It is hard to be alone, Lord.
I know You are by my side.
In my heart of hearts
I turn to You.
Be Lord of this day.
Here is my hand in Yours;
Lead me!All in Your Name,
Everything for You,
Everyone in my life,
I give to you
In their present need.
Many do not know
To call to You.
Trifles control them,
And they flit away
Their Eternity with You.It may seem preposterous
That I should dare seek
For the whole world,
Forgiveness and conversion.
I am only one poor,
And wretched sinner,
Yet, Lord, see the army
That prays with me.
See the Blood and Water of Your Son
Pleading for the Redeemed.
By Joann Nelander
Category Archives: Poetry, Prose & Prayer
Poetry, Prose & Prayer
Empowered #Poetry #Religion # Prayer
It is not my prayer.
It is our prayer.
I pray with the Church.
I am one among all,
All Yours,
All giving voice
To the Church Militant,Called by Your Name,
HaShem, the Name!Empowered by the Name,
HaShem, the Name.Copyright Joann Nelander © 2011 All rights reserved
Draw Close to God #Poetry # Prayer
Image via Wikipedia
Draw close to God.
Remove competing wills.
In humility,
Take your repose.
Pride conquers all,
Till dying on Christ’s Cross.Boundless Heart,
Encompassing Universes,
In all dimensions,
You are outside of Time,
Yet close to me.
Eclipse all matter,
Minds, and might,
To draw me nigh to Thee.Amen.
Copyright Joann Nelander © 2011 All rights reserved
Cry of One Forgiven #Poetry #Prayer #Repentance
How can I thank You
For Your forgiveness,
For that moment,
In which You scattered
My accusers,
And took my part?As I looked up
From the mud of my despair,
Your majestic countenance
Was all.
You loomed before me,
Brighter than the Sun.Who could have imagined
Such grandeur?
You wore holiness like a crown
That more than circled Your brow.
Rather, it emanated,
As light from Your Being,
Announcing Who You are?Only humility can receive You,
And dare Your gaze.
For Your Eyes
Pierce the soul,
Revealing all.Only those crying for a Savior
Dare look up,
To confess with that glance
Their fault and nakedness,
Helpless and all pleading.Only the thirsty
Can drink in the majesty
Of Your knowing.
For pride is the travesty,
That hides,
For fear of revelation.That moment shattered my fear
And rent the clouds of all my life.
Taking proffered Hand,
I rise to my feet
Then, as now, again,Light embraces me
As my rags fall to my feet.
In their place
Love has woven a mantle,
A robe of Being,
That more than clothes me.It is a signal grace,
That names me,
With it, You announce
To all Creation
Who I am in You.My “Yes” reverberates
Throughout the Universe.
I am new,
Like a star at its birth,
Bursting forth
With Your Holiness;
Baptized in Your Redemption.How can I thank You
For Your forgiveness,
O, You, Who took my part?
Go now,
In search of my accusers.Copyright 2011 Joann Nelander
A King, A Victim, A Priest
A king,
A victim,
A priest,A king accused,
A victim scourged,
A priest condemned,A king crowned and robed,
A victim beaten and humiliated,
A priest on the altar of the Cross,O Anointed One,
O Crucified One,
O Holy One,
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done.
Eternal Priesthood won.by Joann Nelander
No Empty Dream
Lamenting, I quit my case.
Sorrowing, my complaints lie with me
In dust and ashes.
The plaintiff has become defendant.I rest the case I brought against You.
What have I proven?
That I never knew You?
That I never sought You?Counterfeits sufficed to fill my belly.
There was always another dream on the horizon.
Tomorrows pretended to satisfy my emptiness.
The chase was the gambit that became the game.Before You showed me mercy,
You showed me Me
Not the Me of mirrors, but the Me of my heart,
That shrunken pigmy of diminishing proportion.Among Men, there is no forgiveness like Yours.
If judged by Men, I would be meted punishment
By the self-righteously righteous,
While the unrighteous, would applaud my vice and welcome me at the hearth,
No forgiveness necessary, where sin is no sin.As gift, the clarity of Day, dawned suddenly,
You appeared with Light as Your garment,
In Your Light I was all Darkness,
Pretense dissipated as Your Sun rose.The world appeared not as a prize but as a wonder.
Nature didn’t dictate; it served.
The heart of mothers where turned back to their children.
And You reigned as King.I would have fainted away,
Had not the Good Thief stood by Your side.
He smiled my way,
Eyes twinkling at the memory of his meeting You upon Your Cross.
Assurances asked, assurances given.
Simple eternal words.Coming full circle, I rest upon Your arm,
You lift up my head and incline to comfort me.
Mercy smiles on my repentant heart,
And plans for me a future full of hope.You Who laid the foundation of the Earth,
Plot a course for me through the Wilderness of the world.
My pilgrimage from sin to saint
Leads through Two Hearts bound by a Mystery uniting Heaven and Earth.Birthed anew in Baptism,
Restored again in Reconciliation,
Your grace acts on me, Your grace acts in me.
All grace that waited upon my willing.My will is now that of a child.
I follow at Your side, learning Your ways.
Your Words are my food and my fullness.
Heaven is no longer an empty dream, but a Promise.
From You lips on the Cross, piercing my heart.“Father forgive them.
They know not what they do.”Copyright Joann Nelander © 2011 All rights reserved.
Be Holy! 