Mysterious Peace

There is a mysterious peace when you have been left with only Jesus.
when there is desolation and pain—
when the burden is greater than you thought you could bear—
when the darkness gathers around you—
even after goodbyes are said—
He is the faithful friend who is ever beside you when all others forsake you. He is above every present sorrow and every personal struggle. He, too, has walked the paths of brokenness. He, too, has stood beside graves. He, too, was betrayed and conspired against. You share commonality and kinship with the author of the universe.

He placed His mark on you. He claimed you as His own. He looked through the crowd. He found you and said, “This struggling child is mine.” He is enough to fill your empty cup and to calm the storm within. He can be heard if you allow Him into your silence. He can be seen in the sunset of each dying day. Closer, He will be to you—Pulling you closer into His grace… With every struggling moment, when you desire Him more than the fallen world’s rotting junkyard of futile aspirations and empty pleasure– He will be more than what you imagined He could be. And you would have never known the depth of His love so deeply if you had never suffered so greatly.




What Happened Here?

if you asked what happened here
my reply brief and sure would be:
i tasted loneliness and found it pleasing.
i dreamed of God and washed the floors.
i listened to nothing and everything that surrounded it.
i swam at midnight and watched the moon gazing over the louisiana clouds.
i wailed and no one heard but the perplexities of the owl and possum.
i was never more alive and never more dead.
it was transcendent.
it was holy.
it was the best time of my life. 
(reflections from 1982)



My Journey

I don’t know your journey. But as for me, I needed radical salvation. I needed a Warrior that could battle through the jungles of flesh. I needed a Savior who would run through the firestorms of catastrophic thoughts. One who would withstand the galloping wildebeests of my vain ambition. One who would swim the channels of my stormy seas and into the cavernous passages of ancient strongholds and shame. I needed one to climb over the perilous heights of my doubts. I needed that kind of hero. In you, he may have found a much gentler passage. But mine was and is a profound redemption. And right now He is fighting for a million others as He fought for me—Our hearts… His prize…




To Be Known

There is so much more to You
The ways of mystery and hiddenness
The pain of testing like the threshing of the wheat.
The crowning of each day with the setting sun
The movement of the wind
The waves of sea
And yet the greatest joy of my life
Worthless as I so often am
is this:
You know me
Every part of me
The emptiness in heart of me.
And I am face down in wonder
Put together
Torn asunder
Even when I lose my own identity
You find me, the one I’m meant to be
This is all I ever hope to be
O to be known by Thee!




The Love of God

His love is perfect.
It never fails me.
His love knows no limit, no barrier, no faltering weakness
His love is for me.
Wrapped in grace and tied together in time.
Hidden, a treasure worth more than any riches on earth.
Promised before my birth.
It consumes me
His love is every bit of what I need today.
It redeems my yesterday
My confidence for tomorrow
His love is infinitely abundant
It floods my world with hope.
It brings laughter when I should be paralyzed in fear
And when I weep He collects every tear.
His love is near.
So intimately connected, this love is.
Even in days that I feel rejected
Emotions neglected
His love assures me I am accepted.
My course is corrected
His love will carry me through
His vow is sacred
His word is true.
His love is all I need.
He makes all things new.