Changing the world one person at a time

Make a difference. Do you part.
Heed that prompting in your heart.
You can help to change the world
by what you do today.

Make a difference where you are.
Help a widow change a tire.
Pick up litter in the park
or rake your neighbor’s leaves.

Make a difference for a day
in the little things you say.
Seek forgiveness. Talk to God.
Or greet a homeless man.

Make a difference while you can.
Take the time to make a plan.
Volunteer to serve the poor
who’ve lost their dignity.

Make a difference with the prayer
that your simple ways to care
will result in lasting change
and the hope for more.
 

* http://www.usaweekend.com/section/MDDAY/Make-A-Difference-Day

Washington debates same-sex marriage

The state in which I live
is in a state of deciding
whether gay couples
linked-by-love
should be issued
a license to wed.

It is
a complicated issue
to be sure.

It’s divid-
ing fam-
ilies,
split-
ting church-
es
and fractur-
ing friend-
ships.

Some say it’s a matter of
equality and fairness.
They contend it’s all about
compassion and love.

I’ve even heard it said
the marriage bed
does not discriminate.
That homosexual matrimony
is marriage come-of-age.

They see it as front page news.
Extra! Extra!
Read all about it!
“Tolerance Wins the Day!”

But not all feel that way.

More than a few view
society’s openness
as simply
closing ones eyes
to Truth.

For them an open mind
means turning a blind eye
to righteousness
and disregarding the values
humankind has embraced
since the Creator 
choreographed
the first dance
at that Garden wedding.

One man. One woman.
And the two became one-flesh.
(Naturally).

By definition
marriage is a sacred word
and messing with it seems absurd.
Why redefine what history
has hallowed as what’s right?

Why indeed?

Why sanctifiy unnatural affection?
Why thumb our noses at God’s intention?
Why cave to pressures to comform
and doubt what Scripture claims?

Why not simply affirm what marriage is
while granting human rights and respect
to all who are made in God’s image?

It’s Clergy Appreciation Month

A pastor’s work is never done.
He’s sermons to prepare
and calls to make
and folks to see in dire need of care.

He mentors men who’ve lost their jobs.
He marries grooms and brides.
For those confused who need to talk,
in him they can confide.

He’s at the bedside of the sick.
He’s at his daughter’s game.
He eulogizes those who’ve died.
He knows his flock by name.

He comforts widows in their grief.
He counsels single dads.
He hangs with kids to understand
their pressures, dreams and fads.

He visits those who lost a limb
while serving in Iraq.
He offers words of hope to moms
whose boys did not come back.

He spends time with the leadership
to shape the church’s goals.
But he is just as comfortable
with ex-cons on parole.

He calms the staff when they are stressed.
He prays at Rotary.
He seeks out those he knows are new
in his community.

Each Sunday as he leads in prayer,
he is most confident
that God will guide the process
as we choose a president.

And yet in spite of all he does,
you won’t hear him complain.
He’s energized by all the ways
he serves in Jesus’ name.

So in this month of saying thanks
to pastors and to priests,
let’s honor these we need the most
who serve the lost and least.

Can we hear what each is saying?; Big Bird’s Big Problem

The Donkey and the Elephant
Can we hear what each is saying?

The donkey and the elephant
have started to debate.
But we have trouble hearing them
because of deafening hate.

The donkey has his followers.
The elephant does too,
dividing our United States
into ones of red and blue.

Perhaps if we unstopped our ears
and opened up our minds
we’d see that both these candidates
aren’t really deaf and blind.

The blue and red of compromise
make purple when they’re mixed.
The hue of mountain’s majesty
is what we most need next!
 

Big Bird’s Big Dilemma
Is Sesame Street or Wall Street the problem?

Bert and Ernie are upset
about their friend Big Bird.
It seems that Romney wants him gone.
Now, isn’t that absurd?

The government may shell out bucks
for PBS TV.
But based on constant pledging drives,
who pays is you and me.

Sesame Street is not what’s wrong.
It’s Wall Street that not right.
The road to our recovery
is anything but trite.

So let’s not blame the yellow bird
for what the greedy do.
It’s time the guilty pay what’s owed
for robbing me and you.