Speak

I say speak,
But am I ready to listen,
 eyes pulled to the side,
By something that might glisten,
Ears filled with noise,
That toys with my attention,

 Speak, I say,
In my condescension,
Speak I say,
Whatever you may mention,
Speak says my mouth,
But my heart is in detention,
Ensnared by many things,
That set up some pretension

Some pretension,
Of worthy distraction,
Some pure lure,
That causes an attraction,
But worthy as it is,
Not worthy of my reaction,
Not worthy of your glory,
which can't be shared,
It cant hold a candle
Or ever be compared,

Speak I said,
But wasn't listening,
Lord let's try again,
Whatever that may bring,

And lord let me remember,
What you say isn't always spoken,
And words, as we know,
Can often become tokens,
But just as we speak through,
Body language and behaviour,
So you speak to us,
Through beauty and nature,
You love not just in words,
But through the sacrifice of the saviour,
Let that speak always,
Of a love that never wavers,

If we only learn your language
learn to read in silence and in patience
We'd see your voice is at work,
In our situations,
You're always saying something,
Even in the silence
To be still and to know,
Is something we should try once,

At least once,
Or perhaps maybe twice,
Still your soul and listen,
Let the mystery entice,

My mother used to say,
You hear but you're not listening,
Open up your heart and ears;
See what difference this will bring,

Shut down your facebook,
Turn off the phone,
Stop your little brother crying,
Give the dog a bone,
Cancel your appointments,
Get somewhere you're alone,

Sow generously in time,
You'll reap what you have sown,

Sow to the spirit,
Reap what is right,
Shuffle out of the darkness,
Step into the light,

Incline your heart,
and incline your ear,
If you are really listening you'll know,
Shh
God is here

Discipline

Father,

How I'd rather,

You took me in your arms,

And spoke to me, 

Comfort me with warmth and charm,

Throw off all your restraint,
Shield me from all harm,

I'm often alarmed that you don't,
And it's not so much that you can't,

But that you wont,

And it feels like I'm lost, afloat,

A passing leaf, adrift, 

A boat 

That slipped it's moorings,

And all my crying and outpourings,

If they are heard or not,

Does it matter a jot?

For the result is the same,

A lone candle
A wanderer on the water,

Taken by tides,

Looking for quarter,

And all I want is home,

All I want is you,

All I want is love,

And all I want to do,

Is love,

And be loved,

And in love,

You leave me to my devices,
It's a discipline,

I don't understand,

One day I will write a poem,

About the why of it,

And I'll sing of your love,
My strength and song,

My song and shield

Hebrews 12:5-11

Sight

I've had eyes,

All my life,

But I wonder if I've ever seen,

I've been looking ahead a lifetime long,

But seen nothing in between,

The foreground and the horizon,

My nose and the great beyond,

My aspiration blinded me,

The bright lights had me conned.

Creature

When you pray,

To the Universe,

As ethereal and spiritual as that seems,

You are praying to that which is made,

And in turn you make an idol,

Out of the created,

You creature,

Worship your creator.

They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen.

Post Trauma

The wind,

Rushes by,

No lie,

All is quiet,

All is quite still,

In the bubble, until,

It burst out too,

And hell breaks through,

The landscape is change,

Nothing is the same,

I see life in a different hue,

I see in life,

Something new,

The ground is firmer,

Though the heavens may shatter,

Like glass,

There is grass ,

Between my toes,

I can feel it grow,

But I'm waiting though,

For the hit to kick in,

A smack in the mouth,

With adrenaline,

The landscape is changed,

Destiny rearranged,

As it always and ever shall be,

That's the permanent changing destiny,

Nothing is sure,

Except,

There sure is nothing,

To be complacent about,

So get on your knees,

And kiss the mud,

Give thanks to God,

Taste the air,

Find it there,

For it is only seconds till the bubble burst,

And, for now,

Face the worst,

Remember through siren blare,

God's hand in this is nothing but fair

M. Joseph Burt    (5.11.6)

(Written almost immediately after I had a head on collision with a bus in which my life nearly ended )

Burning Coals and Turning Cheeks

Sometimes it's hard to be a martyr,

Taking all the blame upon yourself,

Sometimes it's hard to do the right thing,

And leave your rage up on the shelf,

And I secretly suspect,

Burning coals do not exist,

And all the assholes,

Get away with it,

But then,

I never do it with love,

When I turn the other cheek,

And I still smile on Sunday,

I'll see you all next week

M. Joseph Burt  (25.9.6)

The Least I Could Do

In this life,

There's so much,

Shit and gold,

Warm and cold,

Sour and sweet,

Grass and street,

The least I could do,

Is be grateful,

And enjoy it,

If I can't find,

The faith to work miracles,

I could if I ponder,

Find some wide eyed wonder,

And a dawning sense of awe,

For all that's gone before,

The least I could do,

Is be grateful,

And enjoy it,

In this world,

There is so much,

Horror and treasure,

Sin and pleasure,

Loss and gain,

Benevolence and pain,

But the least I could do,

Is be grateful,

And enjoy it,

I can naval gaze,

I can spit,

In despair,

In the face of it,

I can cringe,

I can seeth,

I can winge,

At the path of greed,

But I will have missed the chance,

To take a stance,

And be grateful,

And enjoy it

 M. Joseph Burt  (15.7.6)