Anticipating the day it won’t be a false alarm

When a missile warning is legit
and not a false alarm
where will you go? What will you do someday?
That blunder in Hawaii was a scare,
but so much more.
It was a wake up call and call to pray.

Have you stores of bottled water?
Is your faith in God secure?
Have you written out instructions for your clan?
Why not leave them a reminder
to be ready when they die
so you’ll see them one day in God’s Promised Land?

Are there tensions in your family?
Are there schisms to be healed?
Can rifts of hate be bridged while there’s still time?
Could an errant missile warning
prompt us to put down our arms?
That is what I hoped to trigger in this rhyme.

Honoring MLK Day with a new hymn text

May Your prophets find the courage
to heed Your call
as they strive to climb the mountain
burdened for all.
Help them dream a King-size vision
of a land without division
focused on a holy mission
where tyrants fall.

May Your prophets speak out boldly
hearing Your voice.
Help them stand up for those victims
denied a choice.
Much like Moses and like Martin,
use Your prophets as they pardon
those enslaved and thus disheartened
so they’ll rejoice.

May Your prophets stand on prophets’
shoulders of old,
high above reproach or scandal
grasping for gold.
Help them to make plain Your passion
even when it seems old-fashioned
for the poor who lack for rations
out in the cold.

*This poem can be sung to the Welsh tune often associated with the hymn “Go, My Children, with My Blessing” commonly called “All Through the Night.”

Asking God for divine help as we begin a new year

As a new year breaks upon us,
we anticipate your grace.
Fresh as dew with each new morning,
You are present in this place.
Distance us from shame that haunts us.
Draw us closer to Your heart.
Help us glimpse the dawn before us
with the joy of brand new starts.

As this new year breaks upon us
we anticipate your power
to sustain us in our living
day-by-day and hour-by-hour.
Lord, infuse us with Your Spirit.
Fill us with the faith to trust
when our doubts deter our progress.
When resolve all turns to dust.

As this new year breaks upon us
we anticipate your plans
rooted in a heart of mercy
we don’t always understand.
Please protect us as we venture
into vistas yet unknown.
Guardian of our tomorrows,
guide us from your sovereign throne.

*this poem can be sung to the tune “Ode to Joy”

Posing questions to the earthly father of Jesus

Joseph, did you know…
that being a descendant of King David
would prove to be a taxing situation?

Joseph, did you know…
that carpenters do their best work
when they rely on Another’s blueprints?

Joseph, did you know…
that Mary was telling you the truth
when she insisted she was still a virgin
although pregnant?

Joseph, did you know…
that an unsettling nightmare
(given a little time)
can become a dream come true?

Joseph, did you know…
that obeying God can complicate your life
rather than making it more simple?

Joseph, did you know…
that, while your flight to Egypt
didn’t result in lost luggage,
the resultant loss of life was unimaginable?

Joseph, did you know…
that you would be impersonated
by countless little boys in bathrobes
each December two-millennia after your death?

Joseph, did you know…
that your infant son
(the one whom you named Jesus)
would one day stain the world with His blood?

Joseph, did you know…
that the true meaning of Jesus’ birth
would only make sense
in light of His death (and resurrection)?