Seasons come and seasons go

   Spring follows winter like fall follows summer

Life goes on

   There is no stopping this moment

No matter how hard we try it slips away

   Only to be followed by another

What does this mean

   Who thought this was the way for life to be

Does it matter

   For by asking we lost another moment

What is left to do

   Realize how precious every second is

We are spending our life day after day

   What are we buying

What will our legacy be

   How will our pebble of life ripple and affect others

Once again does it matter

   For by asking we have lost another moment

Is our legacy questions

   Endless searching for meaning

Or is it a life lived in awareness

   Of the importance of every moment

      Lived to the fullest

One moment life is wonderful

   The next it is awful

What changed

   Sometimes it can be something that happens

   Most of the time nothing has changed

So what is going on

   I look inside to see

      What is happening with me

The answer doesn’t always come quickly

   But that is alright

      Because when it does it is more precious

Life is often found in our thoughts

   We think this or that which then results

      In life being wonderful or awful 

The same thing can be happening but

  Our thoughts judge it

   This is good and this is bad

Did you ever stop to ask why

   Who taught us something was good

   Who told us something was bad

Jesus said judge not

   We thought it pertained to others

      It really is connected to us and

        how we judge ourselves

No wonder He said

   Judge not less you are judged

A five day old baby visited our Church

   He slept in our new nursery

      He blessed it with his precious presence

Imagine being born

   A few days later to find room in our inn

      To be blessed by the Good Shepherd

There is no end to what God is doing

   We are God’s instruments of hospitality

To those who wonder about their future

   God says, Be not afraid

      I am with you

When we hear those words

   Everything falls into place

      For God’s Arms of Love are holding us

God says to this new baby

   You are my beloved in whom I am well pleased

Now I can name you

   Elijah

A five day old baby visited our Church

   We will never be the same

      For we have seen again How

         God is Good

         All the Time

I was watching the rain fall

   It began and it ended

   It was heavy and it was light

      Where it came from I have no idea

      What caused it is beyond me

Some people are able to provide answers

   But I still don’t understand them

So what does this tell me

   Answers don’t always come in understanding

Life is like that too

   Things begin and end

   Sometimes painful sometimes joyful

      Where it came from I have no idea

      What causes it is beyond me

Some people attempt to provide answers

   I wonder why

Why does everything have to make sense

   Why can’t we just watch life

      Letting be whatever is

Some may say this is a silly approach

   But I don’t see them relaxing much

   I don’t see them letting life be

      They seem busy forcing life into this or that mold

Which approach works

   I think we have to answer that one ourselves

Summertime and the living is different

   Fish are jumping but not as high

Did you ever notice how every summer is unique

   It is not as hot as we remember it

   Or it rains more now

   Or it was so much easier in years past

Why do we want things to remain the same

   Is there comfort in things being the way we remember

   Is there a concern about future change

As I look at pictures of myself

   Especially those of me much younger

      I wonder who is that person

My life has changed so radically

   Who I was is just a springboard

      To who I am now

      And to who I will be in the future

As I think about the past it comes to me

   I not only can’t go back

      I don’t want to

Summertime and the living is different

   Fish are jumping and so am I

      But not nearly as high

Thank God

   For now I can view life from a different height

      One that God and I have chosen

God says I have an invitation

    Join me in life as I see it

      Too many are blind to my ways

So my invitation is this

   Be who you are

      Don’t be who others say you are

   Do what you want to do

      Don’t always live up to other’s expectations

   Laugh in the face of fear

      Love always reveals fear for what it is

         An imposter

   Run barefoot in the grass sometimes

      It is God’s way of tickling us

   Notice the surprises of life

      It is God winking

   Break a rule

      God loves a cheerful giver

   Color outside the lines

      Freedom is things never being done that way

   Have a good cry

      You don’t even need a reason

   Have a belly laugh

      Once again you don’t need a joke life is enough

   Be alone with Me

      I am good company

      I won’t ask you to do anything

         I just want to be with you

This is My Invitation

   You don’t have to do it

      Actually it works better if you want to do it

Two ways of seeing life

   Fortunately or unfortunately

Fortunately life is filled with problems

   Unfortunately we try to deny them

Fortunately we are weak

   Unfortunately our world says that is bad

Fortunately we can not overcome everything

   Unfortunately some how this is seen as weakness

Fortunately some individuals won’t love us

   Unfortunately we miss the gift in this

Fortunately there is a Being who Loves us

   Unfortunately so many say it isn’t so

Fortunately physical life comes with an ending

   Unfortunately some think this is the end

Fortunately there is more than this life

   Unfortunately some think it is only for a few

Fortunately we can think for our self

   Unfortunately others may not understand

We could go on and on

   Because life is dependent not on the lack of problems

      But the way we see them

Now isn’t that fortunate

Resurrection Weekend

   A time to be in Awe of God

   A Time to Sing and Play

   A Time to Eat at The Banquet of God

   A Time to greet old and new friends

   A Time to show others what God can do

   A Time to say Thank You

The old has passed away

   It is made for a new vision

   It is made for those who are to come

   It is made for children

   It is made for Worship filled with Song and Word

   It is made to Proclaim God IS Good

   It is made for All The Time

The new has come

   Where no one handicapped is turned away

   Where no one is denied because of what they         believe

   Where people of all ages, shapes and forms are welcomed

   Where what is inside you is what matters

   Where fear has been swallowed up by Love

   Where Sisters and Brothers join as One

Resurrection Weekend

Sometimes life is a challenge

   Things do not go the way we would like

   People misunderstand our motives

   We are looked upon as a bit odd

What do we do

   We can continue to sit and try to understand

      But even when we understand nothing changes

   We can try to change the other person or the situation

      But this only seems to make matters worse

   Or we can let it be

      But what good is that

Life and others are meant to have something done to them

   This is our calling on the world’s terms

      Right God

No

   We are to make a difference on God’s Terms

      But sometimes without any effort on our part

What does that mean

   By letting things be what they are

   To accept life on life’s terms

   To be a change agent by not changing anything

No wonder Jesus didn’t hop off the Cross

   He let death be what it was – An Imposter

   Three days later people saw death for what it was

      A time of transition

So challenges are like death

   When we let them be what they are

   When we don’t fight them

      Then we see them as what they are

         Times of transition

I went walking the other day   I expected to see things as they were

   I was startled with what I viewed

Life not as it had been

   No life turned upside down

      The sadness overwhelmed my heart

It was so many things

   People blaming others for inaction

      No one said I’m sorry

   A Society strongly built on class lines

      But no one seemed to notice or care

   The blank stare of wonderment at what was there

      Houses and lives destroyed by human error

   Individuals ready to blow up at any time

      No end to this possibility in sight

   A pervading pain built on loss

      Wanting to avoid it but no chance

Where can I go

   What can bring me comfort

      Is this the way it will always be

As I wander through this wonder I see a light

   Not at the end of the tunnel

      But in my midst

I walk into it

   There is a sense of peace here

    There is a feeling of hope

    There is love

I am invited to stay in what is real

   For as long as I like

   To be with the others who have gathered

We are held together in prayer

   To not only be assured we are not alone

   But to discover the power of the Spirit

I will only stay for a short while

   It is all I need to be energized

      To tell others what I have found

Can you hear me