Poems

I John 4:20 If I have not expressed true tenderness To him I know on earth; If there is one I feel not worth A moment's thought or second glance; If, for brief glory dearly bought, I shatter the confidence of a trusting heart, And treasure the false gold Of scornful thought; How can I claim to understand That Love divine, whose Word Insists I love another as myself? Dear Father, give to me that grace (Although I may not always merit it) Which melts the rocklike vein of thought And shapes it to Your likeness, That I may constantly show forth The gentle radiance of Your love, In words that heal and bless; In deeds that are not just so many words. Stanley John York.

Genesis 3 What did the serpent do to Eve? Simply tempt her to believe that good and evil can combine to make one's living more sublime. He didn't touch her except in thought, and if she'd been correctly taught to respond only to the still, small voice, and always make it her only choice, she would never have chosen to walk in the path outlined by snake talk.

Innkeeper, we come to escape from pressures in town such as hate's frown, flattery's smile, and serpentine guile. Book us a place in your stable.

What had she told him of that first Christmas night— He was twelve now and they were trudging uphill to Jerusalem— That first Christmas night when the hushed stillness Of Judean hills was shattered by hosts of angels Caroling their welcome of glory and peace— Of Wisemen star-led to a manger? Down through the centuries the message echoed— A Prince to come! A King to rule! And now, the promise fulfilled; the babe was here. Simeon lifting him up, And ancient Anna too.

At Shinar people settled down to build a towered city and glorify themselves, but were confounded and divided, no longer understanding one another. Met to honor Christ, men at Jerusalem received the Holy Ghost, scaled barriers of race and tongue in glad communication.

Bright green shoots pushing through soil— young thoughts working their way up through worldliness around them, in spite of atmosphere pollution, hail of condemnation— impelled by that within which responds to Life-energy, Love-warmth, Truth-light. Pull at them to speed the process? pry apart the shoots to see what's coming? Sure destruction that way! Better just to shine—unite with rays that draw them up— and watch the growing! Gloria Novak Christena.

Be with me now; the days grow dark, O Lord. Fluting of birds falls faint upon the ear; Stairways soar skyward, outlines blur.

"God loves you," Historical Sketches by Clifford P. Smith, p.

During one dark night, when danger threatened, with help nowhere in sight, when dawn seemed farther than eternity away, you came, and brought the saving Comforter to my troubled thought, voicing its message with soothing calm, till I felt the power of Truth's healing balm, and the mortal sense of stress vanished from my consciousness, freeing me from hopeless fears of jeopardy. (Ah, false fears! Foibles of frail humanity, that vanish with the night and disappear into oblivion!) Because you brought Truth's radiant light to me, during one dark hour, I now can face life's challenges fearlessly— leaning on His power.

What shall endure with me despite duress? Not static disbelief Nor shuttered sadness; But holdfast held in reaching out To plunge in deeper soil with pliant root, Indrawing essence within Life's energy, And surfacing with breath of exploration. Endurance? Let it be continuance of curling tendril, Or leafs appearance: Soul's signature of growth Which cracks the concrete with its fission; And gives to Love its rightful power and tenure.