A signal of hope or an invitation to trust?

Their pontiff dead, the birds in red
perched near St. Pete’s in Rome.
In secrecy, they flocked to see
who’d claim the papal throne.

With J.P. gone, they prayed at dawn
while fingering their beads.
Upon their knees they begged, “God please,
tell us who you’d have lead.”

And rightly so, for as you know
their church is quite perplexed
about the way it’s viewed today
with scandals over sex.

Is it too late? Should priests have mates?
Is birth control so wrong?
And what about a clergy drought?
Their laundry list is long.

With much at stake for Heaven’s sake,
the cardinals found their voice.
Within that place of frescoed grace,
the red men named their choice.

Black puffs gave way to white the day
they took their final vote
as thousands cheered and shed some tears
to see the holy smoke.

Yet can this pope give cause for hope?
Can one man turn the tide?
It seems to me the missing key
is faith that’s true and tried.

What can we learn about life from two noteworthy deaths?;
Longing for Grace

By George, John Paul is ringed by those
who want to hold his hand.
The world now grieves for one who claimed
to be God’s chosen man.

Hey Jude, he knew your words by heart.
The Psalms and Gospels too.
He prayed God’s Word when feeling well
and when he had the flu.

When he found himself in times of trouble,
he heard Mary speak.
His was a long and winding road.
He worked eight days a week.

Imagine there’s no Heaven? Hell,
he couldn’t if he tried.
This shepherd of the Roman flock
could see pearled gates spread wide.

While some believed his God a fool
perched somewhere on a hill,
the Pontiff blanketed them with love
to warm their faithless chill.

T’was something in the way he moved
here, there and everywhere
that mirrored Christ and offered grace
to those without a prayer.

It seems like only yesterday
the Cardinals crowned him Pope.
From Penny Lane to Abbey Road,
his homilies brought hope.

But now, by George, John Paul is ringed
by those who grieve his loss.
And yet their grief will turn to joy
because of Jesus’ cross. 

Longing for Grace
Faith lessons for who will one day die
The monarch of Monaco died without Grace.
That plight is as sad as a flowerless vase.
The Pope left for Heaven without knowing peace.
In spite of his sermons our wars have increased.

Without what we long for we’re really alone.
Just ask one who’s homeless or one on a throne.
The need that we’re born with is really the same.
We enter the world stained by guilt and by shame.

It’s not having money that makes us feel whole.
It’s knowing we’re loved way down deep in our soul.
It’s letting God grace us by cleansing our sin
and giving us meaning and purpose within.

It’s one thing to sorrow for those passed away.
But don’t die without grace God offers today.

“For it’s by grace that we experience God’s unconditional love and acceptance. A grace that embraces us when we reach out toward it with arms of faith. And come to think of it, even our ability to reach to receive God’s grace is something he makes possible. One thing I know for sure, our good works never are quite good enough. And even when they seem like they are, they cause us to boast about our goodness. And when we do that we’re just as bad off as when we started.” (a paraphrase of Ephesians 2:8-9)

Lamenting the high cost of filling up

I get gas and I feel awful.
Real discomfort. Chronic ouch.
And that hurt within in my wallet
makes me grumpy as a grouch.

I feel pain as I stand pumping
with that nozzle in my hand.
I spend more than half a hundred
just to fill my minivan.

There’s a knot within my stomach
and an ache within my head.
I’m a hostage to the Saudis
every time my car gets fed.

Spinning numbers leave me dizzy.
Every time they stop, I lose.
It’s just like the slots in Vegas.
It’s a case of gas pain blues.