Fear Not

The Spirit calls us to different things.
Not always reasonable.
Follow anyway.

And if the Spirit tells your neighbor to do
The opposite, let the Spirit work,
And don’t assume either of you is wrong.

Rahab’s high treason, Abraham’s son sacrifice,
Isaiah’s multi-year nudity, Moses’ sojourn in the desert,
Noah’s hundred year preaching.

Would you have supported them,
Or called them crazy?
Because God was there.

Be obedient to your call.
Let your neighbor be obedient, too.
And trust God will work through us and in us all.

Three Friends

I haven’t seen wildlife on my runs.
Today, a deer startled and ran west across the road.
Minutes later, a rabbit did the same.
Then I saw a turtle at the western edge,
Almost done with his traverse.

Three animals, fastest to slowest.
Was this coincidence, or parable?
When you expect God to show up at any time,
Do even the animals speak?

So Defensive

“Stop being so defensive!”
I was rightly corrected thus some weeks back.
It rose in me again this week.

It’s ugly, I know. But when someone accuses
My parenting, my marriage …
I want to defend.

But sometimes defense is more like
An onslaught, and it leaves both
The accused and the accuser worse off.

I am undone. I am a person of unclean lips.
And my eyes have seen the King,
The LORD of hosts.

Healing Prayer IV

A friend was tired. We prayed.
She saw a stretch of Virginia highway,
Stretching away, empty.
And she was driving alone.

“Jesus, where are you?”
It’s a vulnerable place, to ask for a picture
And wait, hoping he shows up.
We cried. And waited.

Suddenly, she laughed.
Laughed!
Jesus was there.
And even if things were still broken,
She was not driving alone.

Healing Prayer III

After two beautiful experiences,
I tried healing prayer with a friend.
She just cried and said,
“I don’t see anything. I don’t understand.”
It was horrible.

If you expect Jesus to come in power
And peace, and nothing happens,
The loss of what could have been
Is worse by far than no expectation.

A friend shed some light on this.
“We don’t want to go towards our pain.
So this might not be the time.
And that’s okay.”

Healing Prayer II

When my sister’s baby died,
We tried healing prayer.
She imagined the moment
The nurse came in and said,
“Your daughter is going to die.”

She saw Jesus holding that
Hospital room in his hands.
“But that’s not close enough!
I need you with me!”

And in her prayer, Jesus came.
And held her, specifically.
“Will you still be with me?”

“You already know that I will.”

Healing Prayer I

After seven months of fostering,
Our family was left shattered.
Brother relationships cultivated half a decade
Were in ruins. My confidence gone.

A friend prayed with me.
I pictured a moment, girl looking up at me,
Defiant, in the midst of the filthy trailer.
“Jesus, where are you in this picture?

He was there, just on the other side
Of the coffee table, looking at her
With all the love I couldn’t produce.
“Let him look at you.”

I didn’t want to. Who wants condemnation?
But when we locked eyes,
Love flowed to me as well.
He grieved for the motherless child,

And he grieved for me.
Hallelujah. What a Savior.