people swamped by storms & massive flooding…

---

Oh God of Abraham (who trusted you)

we’ve seen you act to help him rectify

his family caught, enslaved, delivered to

some enemies. Please now do help us die

to our own comforts (as our guiding lights)

and ease the weather for your kids to shine

your attitude towards the folk in plights

beside them in that country all the time…

and give the spirit of your child to them.

A child who trusts implicitly his Dad,

and lives the fam’ly values from tree-stem 

out to the branch where he can rightly add

expressions that are tailored for that time

and place within your world where they have lived,

to show the fam’ly thriving as aligned 

to root of fam’ly tree of life as sieved

out to the world now through this avenue

of your fam’ly, with motives of its source

and start, as at its heart - the heart of you,

once broken by our failures and the course

we’ve taken as we walked away from you,

and fell asleep, or died (which-ever one),

our flesh now has not strength enough to do

the things impossible that are not fun.

We need a way to team up yet again,

with that creative love that thought and made

a world for children to grow up, be sent

to waft the fam’ly scent within its shade.

---

sore affected

---

My Abba I love you, show you my hurts,

my arm that’s aching, my shoulder that stabs

whenever I use it, or put on my shirts,

lean on my elbow, or clean up or dab

something in front of me. But I recall

this body’s a gift from you to me now.

You mentioned another more permanent thrall,

a body that will serve better somehow!

I love that you made this whole world - and dust.

It matters to you, and me more-so as 

your child so small, learning  largely to trust.

And so, we’ll grow - as our big brother has!

Unlike a brother who tried to secrete

things for himself, and would not let eyes meet

with others in openness sharing his loss

with all the world as Christ shared in our cross.

Here is my pain, and un-comfort as well.

Here are the fears - that I won’t play much more,

let alone work. I’ll be “crangry” and yell.

Push people away. God, oh help - it’s sore!

So thank you for each chance to look and see 

your goodness dancing with great energy,

and sometimes to speak out, even to sing

of good that’s present, though evil’s a thing!

I’m learning to trust you, and to speak truth 

out of the HESED love (that sources youth,

as well as wisdom, and beauty forsooth),

that what I say will match, and has some cooth.

---

 

to raise^ a child*

---

The spark of genius that is this Christ's

who takes up death by cross so willingly,

who warns folk that no sign would quite suffice

unless it’s Jonah’s quite “Will-’e? Nill-’e!” 

edge, with a disappearing - out of sight;

& burried underneath the surface bling

of world, where happenings of hist’ry might

be known by all (with secret suffering).

Where love brings birth, but at a cost - that’s paid

by someone paying forward in the past,

because of that creative love which made 

the world from the beginning - to the last.

It pays the price which love alone can pay.

For no-one who’s impelled by less will want

to do something that gives, when there’s a way

to get control, to have acclaim. Their font

has guise of ’munication, but in fact

it seeks t’impress, to note-a-riot-y

as end it really wants, behind each act.

A mother/ father’s kind society

is seed-bed for a human being born.

The method that’s from love means suffering.

The blood of birth, a badge that may be worn

with pride, when it’s not getting, but would bring

an offering of love, to bless, not bind,

unless with chords of only love itself.

A Song of Serving One° can only find

the lonely, who have lost their hope & health.

---

Footnotes:

^ note Christ’s repeated prophecies warning his disciples that the Son of Adam must be “Handed over, made to suffer, killed, (buried,) raised!!” Note also his repeated reference to being “lifted up”, which drew both concepts together of “raised”, and “crucifixion” (a physical being made higher, but as a mockery of the person themself).

*  Note that “unless you change and become like a little child, you cannot enter the reign of heaven”; “The reign of heaven belongs to such as these (little children?)” etc

° see Isaiah’s several  “Servant Songs” e.g. Isaiah 42:1–9; 49:1–13; 50:4–11; 52:13–53:12 which are possibly mirrored by the later  “Songs Of The Annointed Saviour” e.g. Isaiah 59:15-60:22; 61:1-9; 61:10-62:12; 63:1-6  recounting the one who comes from YHWH God, to the people of God as one who serves & suffers with & for them, to lead them into real right relating with their God, with eachother, & with those around (and with the  newly-made-right whole world)?

to grow up more like YOU!

---

Please teach me your ways Lord! Please grow me up

to learn to love, as Christ displays down here.

He trusts his shepherd to fill up his cup;

as Dave before him sang+ -  trusting he’s near.

So don’t “forget the nearness of your Lord”*;

He’s close, and I’m made up to link with him!

Thus I can never get what they call “bored”.

To conduit love from source has nothing dim

about it, many-coloured “goods” abound

within that coat which goes on over all^.

Creative in existence love has found

a way to make the world, not just a wall

or fence to keep our other neighbours out,

demarking bound'ries, minimise confus-

-ion, clarify somehow. But folk still pout,

and feel excluded, ‘coz they didn’t choose

to invite whom they’d like, and have them come

to their place, so to share life in a meal, 

a cuppa, or a walk, or talk, or some

way that life can be shared, a deeper deal.

I s’pose that must be friendship at its core,

we keep our word to each and carefully

consider what we say, to not say more,

or less than what is helpful$. Speak slowly#.

And “slow to anger#” too is just like you,

Yahweh the GOD who IS, who gives us breath.

And quick to listen#, tune to helpful$ too.

To show more of you here, before my death.

---

Foot Notes: 

+  (Psalm 23)

* “Delight yourselves in God, yes, find your joy in him at all times. Have a reputation for gentleness, and never forget the nearness of your Lord.”(Philippians 4:5 look at footnote of NLT)

^ “ As, therefore, God’s picked representatives of the new humanity, purified and beloved of God himself, be merciful in action, kindly in heart, humble in mind. Accept life, and be most patient and tolerant with one another, always ready to forgive if you have a difference with anyone. Forgive as freely as the Lord has forgiven you. And, above everything else, be truly loving, for love is the golden chain of all the virtues.

15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, remembering that as members of the same body you are called to live in harmony, and never forget to be thankful for what God has done for you.

16-17 Let Christ’s teaching live in your hearts, making you rich in the true wisdom. Teach and help one another along the right road with your psalms and hymns and Christian songs, singing God’s praises with joyful hearts. And whatever you may have to do, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, thanking God the Father through him.” (Col3:12-17 translated by J.B. Phillips, link show Greek & also other translations which can be changed)

$  All things you choose to do may be legal but not all are helpful. (See 1Cor 6:12; 10:23)

#  Exod 34:5-8; James 1:19-27

---

“Communicating with kids!”

---

Book Club for parents and for humans who

do have an interest in what’s in this book 

by Steph’nie Davies-Arai, so we’d do

it. But we're finished now, our faces look

not only sad, but happy to have won.

We finished what we started months ago.

We worked hard, and we’re lucky to ‘ve had fun

along the way with open sharing so…

God, thanks for such a mazing job as this.

We sometimes feel quite lost, and seem to be

a-going round in circles, lost in biz-

nus of the jobs you gave us (and that we

would love to do well too - the way you made

us, to be quite a lot somehow like you).

Yet we know that you are amazing shade,

protection and revealing what to do

as it is needed, necessarily,

and we can be amazed, & still learn trust

and grow in wisdom, understandingly

as you allow (who knows that we are dust).

Our first job might just be to speak in love,

while acting out of creativity

to form some space and time, down from above,

where living/ moving ones like you and me

might then attain a life increasingly, 

as we share what your hopes and dreams might be

by living into our identity-

a nature nurtured in your family.

---

Full of Life

---

It’s been a busy day dear Lord.

We drank some coffee in that park,

we heard some stories told by Mark,

we walked through places that were dark.

It’s been a busy day dear Lord!

It’s been a busy day dear Lord,

we (some) went home and had a sleep,

and clubbed a book* to life, to keep

what’s true and loving, growing deep.

It’s been a busy day dear Lord.

---

Notes

*  Thinking of the opposite of clubbing baby seals to death for their furs, we finished today a book club discussing (one a week - over wine and cheese)  the eleven chapters of Stephanie Davies-Arai 's book “Communicating with kids”. A life-giving exercise, that all of us (probably) would like to repeat with other friends. We had wood-fired pizza together today after a late, last Book-club meeting. A busy day, dear Lord. What else would I spend this life doing? Good things - with you!

---

Tripsy daisy ..

---

Mate, thanks for sending those pictures that whet

my appetite to hear the stories which

go with them so their memories then get

unlocked and meaning compounds, while the kitsch

remains to always hang about with us!

To move into the changes, holding hands

seems like the stuff ADVENTURES which build trust

are made of, till one fine’ly understands

each loved one in a hopeful, open way.

Adventure* pokes its head out as we do

what’s needed (even in the stuff we say)

to build up good for ev’ry thing/one who

we have to do with - where we BE that day.

It looks a great adventure you're all on!

Hope friendships in the fam will grow, not fray.

Connecting to creative love brings song!

So I will sing this ditty now to you.

Please prosper with - the language that you learn;

relating with the others in your group;

and spreading more creative love in turn

to those “outside”, you do not understand.

And speaking of the day that’s past, at night

or in the morning (not just what is planned),

to savour and to process, thank, delight,

each heart, and too creative love itself!

And what a start - to more to come each day

for each small life we live (sickness or health)

as ships (made for this passage) berth. Hooray! …

---

Notes

*  “Inconvenience is only adventure wrongly considered.” Or was it “Adventure is simply inconvenience rightly considered”; not sure… I think that one or both quotes, or ones very like them, are from G.K.Chesterton.

---

A Hallow'een tweak to Progress, Re-incarnation & Karma..

( three wells )

---

Get to know well, so that you can Remember well who owns you! .. and then use this self well, today! 

Part of the Backstory: 

The “given” you is 'on loan' (SHŌMA), & this life (in this body, in this world) is your chance to be involved in the creation of a new permanent version, and to choose some of its capacities.. in the service of pro-found ‘creative love’, or simply ‘control’ (as another cog in the machine where ‘machinery’ and ‘desire’ are its only impetuses).

---

That Prayer

---

His glorious, unlimited resource

is such that as he speaks a world begins

and I’ve been made a messenger with laws

beyond this universe. A power that wins -

in ways that folk who gain internally

the impetus to act and move and live

from just desire of their biology

(don’t know much love, to grieve or to forgive)

will never know, unless they let that love, 

(creative and continuous) express

itself through them as it comes “from above”,

because they stand beneath it, and would bless

as much as they are able to, they pray

for others too, that love might give the strength

inside them in their spirit ev’ry day

em-pow-er-ing them so that then at length 

the Christ will make his home within your hearts

as you trust him to come, and then to do

it, rooting you in God’s love ’s how it starts

(it doesn’t stop) and it will keep you too. 

And may you have the pow’r to understand, 

as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, 

how high, and deep is this great love expand-

ing more than this whole Universe in song.

May you ex-per-i-ence the love of Christ, 

though it’s too great to fully understand. 

Then you’ll be made complete & fully spliced 

into the life and power that God has planned…

---

Notes:

Ephesians 3:16-19 NLT :

¹⁶I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. ¹⁷Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. ¹⁸And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. ¹⁹May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

+  To see Eph 3:16-19 in Greek, & other English translations NTIME, GNT, NRSV, & NLT- you can also choose other translations too!)

---

That Prayer’s Prelude

---

To shine out, and to show, and thus convey

his great intention from “back in the day”

when all of this world came out ‘coz he Said

(by God! He Saw what was Good, in his head);

The point of this all was humanity

that’s thriving, right with  world, & carefully

still looking over it, knowing it well

(not “just to use it” which brings out more hell),

to help appear the reign of the heavens,

make it quite clear, infecting as leaven’s

small influence does one grain at a time

(his spirit’s presence starts whistling and rhyme).

Humanity anointed by the God -

was called Jesus, the Christ - led Way for lot

to enter room of throne, and gladly now

fall on knees, or then raised up we bow,

or run to our “Papa”, father, it’s he

who loves us, wants that all  his children be

so open up, to learn from his leading:

to speak as he did, maybe with pleading,

and all of this must be after looking

& list’ning, hearing, then knowing the thing.

The Way of Christ makes open quite a lot.

To follow him we gladly throw out rot,

and clarify who’s boss (because it's true),

and enter love’s great loss in  death’s dark hue,

to find that all that’s timed has been renewed

in joy, dramatic song, we come to YOU…

---

Notes:

Ephesians 3:9-12, 14-15 (NLT plus Greek “explained” word by word when verse number is link-ified) 

⁹I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. ¹⁰God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. ¹¹This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord. ¹²Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence. 

¹⁴When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, ¹⁵the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. (Ephesians 3:9-12, 14-15 NLT)

Ephesians 3:16-19 NLT: I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

+  (Eph 3: 9-19 Greek, NTIME, GNT, NRSV, NLT)

---

Love's leading - 7

---

Love* leads & I would follow  as a living sacrifice,

but also as one buried and entombed,

until I'm resurrected - and this life’s to dramatize

the bigger story outside of this womb.

Each day take up my cross, buried then raised, 

and when I’m walking round about the world,

I dramatize up close (his name be praised)

the new creation’s energies unfurled.

For I am in this Christ and too his life,

his spirit, goals and impetus as well,

have breathed and entered (as husband does wife),

a branch that’s in its tree will start to smell

quite like a “cedar”, or a “gum”, or “pine”, 

or “camphor”, or a “dead-meat” I suppose.

for sap and cells are energized divine-

ly by the tree itself as it just grows.

And all the branch does is keep in the tree, 

or vine that is its kind and essence true,

depend, remain, stay, live  “yourself in me”

is what he said*, repeated then by Jude*.

And let his words live deep inside me too, 

and let them wash me clean as he gives them 

their meaning, through his life and proverbs - new

new parables, and metaphors that hem

and give a stronger edge that won't wear through,

the clothing that we wear within his world.

We’ll “put it on” like new clothes, when we do,

reminding us of our new job uncurled.. 

---

e* - the biblical concept of love often involves “tender devotion to”, but also another edge. HESED is the English transliteration of the Hebrew word חֶ֙סֶד֙ , used in the Hebrew Bible to communicate something like "covenantal love", steadfast love, family love, loving kindness, love that is based on your own word. It has been said (repeatedly) that the Love of YHWH  is a core attribute of God (Ex 33:19-34:11) & endures forevermore (Psalm 118; Ps136 etc). This leads me to speak of God as both creator, but as love itself too. So creative love might be an apt family name for God. Indeed when this concept of Love is translated into Greek in the New Testament it is expressed as ἀγάπῃ (transliterated in English as agapé) and that is then the word used in the Greek New Testament to express this kind of attitude, impetus, spirit, mindset of God himself, and therefore of his true children. It is the single verb in both the greatest command & the second command - just like it), as well as the initial impetus for all true actions, and the first fruit mentioned of the very spirit of God being displayed in a human life, and the top of the ladder of things to work with God on fruiting in human life. It turns out (as Eirene Gruber used to say) that the greatest sin is to miss the greatest command ( Matt 22:35-40; 24:12; Luke 6:31-36; John 3:16-21; 5:19-42; 13:1-17, 33-35; 14:1-7; John 14:15-31; 15:9-17; Rom 8:38-39; Eph 3:14-19, 5:1-2; Col 3:10-17; 1Cor 12:31-13:13; 1Pet 4:8; 2 Pet 1:1-9; 1John 4:7-19; 2John 1:1-7 ).

d* - John 15

e* - Jude 1:20-25

---

Love's leading - 6

---

Love leads & I would follow where it walks,

and how it walks - on water, or on land,

and why it walks, and acts, and thinks, & talks;

its ends & means I’ll try to understand.

And simply trust it to enable this

small child of that creative love which breathes

its life, and wisdom, love through ev’ry kiss

to raise a kind of animal that sheaths

creative love itself displaying it

to all the rest of God’s creation here

on Earth, but maybe too in hea’en a bit,

the Lamb that’s Worthy made deeds here appear

which fleshed out love as verb of time & space,

which makes all matter, energy to be

and move about, creating more a place

called home, right here within the world we see,

while also trusting that creative love

embodied in Yeshua to do more

as Senior Partner to bring “from above”

a new creation growing well before

it’s quite apparent to the world at large,

for now is its confinement in the womb -

a secret place where God’s great entourage

encounters life on earth, thus ev’ry tomb.

And so each day we take our cross up and

then follow in the footsteps of our Christ -

true Son of Adam, we must understand,

but no less follow - as the sacrificed. …

---

* HESED is the English transliteration of the Hebrew word חֶ֙סֶד֙ , used in the Hebrew Bible to communicate something like "covenantal love", steadfast love, family love, loving kindness, love that is based on your own word. It has been said (repeatedly) that the HESED of YHWH (creative love that simply IS) is a core attribute of God (Ex 33:19-34:11) & endures forevermore (Psalm 118; Ps136 etc) when this concept is translated into Greek in the New Testament it is expressed as ἀγάπῃ (transliterated in English as agapé) and that is then the word used in the Greek New Testament to express this kind of attitude, impetus, spirit, mindset of God himself, and therefore of his true children. It is the single verb in both the greatest command & the second command - just like it), as well as the initial impetus for all true actions, and the first fruit mentioned of the very spirit of God being displayed in a human life, and the top of the ladder of things to work with God on fruiting in human life, and it turns out that the greatest sin, bringing down the greatest judgement, is to miss the greatest command ( Matt 22:35-40; 24:12; Luke 6:31-36; John 3:16-21; 5:19-42; 13:1-17, 33-35; 14:1-7; John 14:15-31; 15:9-17; Rom 8:38-39; Eph 3:14-19, 5:1-2; Col 3:10-17; 1Cor 12:31-13:13; 1Pet 4:8; 2 Pet 1:1-9; 1John 4:7-19; 2John 1:1-7 )

---

Love's leading - 5

---

Once love led & I followed  (’stead of spearned).

Not my truncated, altruism, which

devolves the word to cover what’s been earned,

a contract-like agreement been arranged

to benefit the self at final  ends,

and minimise its suffering as well.

But love, creative, suffering, depends

on using its life here to absorb hell..

no matter what the suffering will be

for self, at heart it pays the sacrifice

itself. Just think of parents with baby.

A structure set to lead us like the Christ:

“My children..” he says to his followers.

That HESED* kind of love, which keeps its word -

that’s even to its own hurt, as though spurrs 

were turned upon itself, not on a hurd

of horses, bullocks, bisen, elephants,

and trusts creative love that made the world

and put his children here to wear the pants,

and learn to understand, before they hurled

a word out in command, much less a stone.

Love makes distinction, and so too will I,

between those here in need (for them atone),

and those who here would like to lead, or try

to, that’s where suffering will come to live

and share their life more intimately for

they’ll have to learn quite truly to fore-give

from source of Universe and so much more.

---

* HESED is the Hebrew word, used in the Hebrew Bible to communicate something like "covenantal love", steadfast love, family love, loving kindness, love that is based on your own word. It has been said (repeatedly) that the HESED of YHWH (creative love that simply IS) endures forevermore (Psalm 118; Ps136 etc).

---

Love's leading - 4

---

Oh God I see a certain serpentine

mindset in me that thinks not of the one

I would allow my thoughts or words to shine

out to; it only thinks of things begun,

not of the process being helpful too.

It is truncated, like an exercise.

A practice time to clarify, argue

a concept or idea. I’m not wise

as serpents are, nor harmless as a dove.

I’m often harmless as a serpent, and

about as wise as dove (strutts, coos it's love -

but doesn't see with depth or understand).

If I am understanding this at all, 

I'm very hopeful, ‘coz you seemed to say 

(quite clearly, I might add - this is no small

and incidental thing) that you would pay

attention to our words and looks, requests 

and  gladly will share wisdom - which is acts 

of understanding, insight, skill that bests

opponents, makes them fearful, hides, distracts

them from your re-al purposes and aims,

from comprehending modus operand-

-i, all the while you understand their trains

of thought, de-syr’s which they live by, demand..

So, if it’s true that I can go to you, 

creative love, and you won’t cease to be

yourself, but gladly share. Then I now do

that: (eating) “You’re my wisdom, knowledge tree”.

---