For Every Step

These are the lyrics to the opening theme of a stage musical on Esther that I will probably never get to complete. Even if the play may never take form, however, I have no reason not to enjoy this song. The meter and rhyme are clearly for lyric form, instead of poetry. Yet no matter what form these words take, the message they convey is universal.

Verse 1:
Life may be hard and weary,
The roads be hard to see;
It might be so much easier
To turn around and flee.
Things we don’t understand
Keep coming on at hand;
And it becomes too difficult
To follow God’s commands.

Chorus:
For every step there’s a direction
For every pathway there’s a goal
From every promise there will flow glories untold
For everything under the sun
Has a reason to be here
Be not afraid, God’s plan will soon be clear

Verse 2:
Life drops into confusion
With no expected reason,
And worries trace the hours
Of ev’ry day and ev’ry season.
The hardships faced today
Don’t seem to go away,
And it becomes too difficult
To silent down and pray.

Bridge:
The storms of life come over us on each and every day
The clouds stretch out as far as they can be;
But soon God’s hand will lovingly take all the rain away
His rainbow will be there for you and me.

Let Me Live

This poem is a product of my dabbling in Latin. May the Lord help me to live with faith, with hope, with joy, with love, with peace, and with gratefulness--no matter what the time and no matter what the language.

When foggy doubts surround Thy will,
When hardened words my prayers fill,
Please help me, Lord, to trust Thee still;
Cum fide let me live.
When burdens weigh with every stride,
When human strength fails to provide,
Please help me e’er in Thee abide;
Cum spe please let me live.
Though troubles darken daily skies,
Though worries endlessly arise,
I drink to Thee with joyful eyes;
Cum gaudio I live

When loved ones cease to love me so,
When friends no longer friendship show,
Thy love I’ll still believe and know;
Amore let me live
When hurt, distrust, and pain I bear,
When turbulence rocks every care,
Please let me in Thy promise share;
Cum pace let me live
Though I know not Thy purposes,
Though I may lose all I possess,
Your faithfulness I’ll e’er confess;
Cum gratia I’ll live

My Treasurehold of Poetry

I wrote this poem on April 20, 2005, after having left writing for more than a year. As I fumbled through my former compositions that day, I realized how much I had changed, and how important those poems were to remembering my path of growth. In the same way, may the new year ahead herald more growth, more inspiration, and more closeness to God.

My treasurehold of poetry,
So close and dear to me,
Now chronicles the way I was
And shows what I will be.
The past was made eternal by
The scriblings of my pen;
I never can depart from it
And not return again.
Long-labored works and easy rhymes
All come together here
To make a true reflection of
My happiness and tears.
The years fly by with fright’ning speed,
But thoughts are made to stay
By virtue of the faithful pen
I pick up day to day.
I do not know how things will be
When “now” becomes the past;
Yet I believe I won’t regret
My thoughts were made to last.
For every time I search my hold,
I see myself again,
The way I was so long ago
When I picked up my pen.
I never will allow my pen
To lay itself aside,
For through my writing I can see
The girl I am inside.