Tag Archives: Prayer

Shout for Happy!

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O holy saints of God,
Help Us to celebrate this day.
Bedeck our house in pure white lilies,
Picked by the hand of Love.
Such were the souls of Mary and Joseph,
As they journeyed forth to live the Father’s Will,
As they kept faith,

Bless the years that pass.
Bless the days that be.
Our youth God entwined,
Weaving gold out of straw,
Fashioning a cord that bound us ever close in dreams of love.

O, Holy Love,
Your fiber of Being,
Imperceptible, yet alive,
Knit the garment of our marriage.
As we gifted each other
With our very lives
And lived the Promise.

Taking pleasure in each other,
And the mystery You impart,
Mutual donation and happy hopes
Gave substance to our youthful reveries.
Soon, You delighted Your children with children to sweeten the wine we sipped.

You never waited on our understanding or perfection .
You built rather on duty and faith, Married unto eternity.
Your sacrament enfleshed in our lives as grace,
Filled our days with laughter amid challenge,
Befriended us in friends ,
As a corsage of heart and healing.

You opened the door of opportunity,
And we feared not to enter in.
Receiving in the womb, Your joy and plenteous reward,
Covenant love lived despite our weakness.
Hope hanging like numberless leaves,
On trees the formed an arbor for our love.

Yes, dear saints, sing songs with us,
To welcome home the Promised Groom,
Who never left our side.
Make of this day a joyful shout,
A happy anniversary!

Throw Away Life?

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How sad is Man?
He values the rare,
Exults the extraordinary,
Crowns the celebrity.

God, on the Other hand, proliferates.
He calls good all He creates,
Dignifies life by His Love,
And Humankind by His Incarnation.

For want of goodness,
Man may usurp the place of God,
Seat himself
Upon that lofty throne.

For the want of love
Man may throw life away,
Too small, too young, too needy
Too dependent to matter.

How sad is Man upon his throne?
He beats his chest,
And declares his liberty;
Forgets his neighbor, chooses self.

How sad is Man,
Unencumbered of diety,
His own god,
And lord of all he has stolen.

Yet, God dignifies his defiant creature.
God respects the time of Man,
And give His Goodness
Sway over Holy Wrath.

Out-side of Time.
There is only the Eternal.
In Time, mind and Man are matter-dependent,
Sustained in rhythms tuned by the Creator.

When Time is rolled up
With the stars, like a scroll,
And fire devours all matter,
Where will the spark of Man exist?

While living, Man chooses,
Until Death declares
All he has chosen final,
The Star of Hope extinguished.

O Man, gladden the lot of Men.
Your eternity begins in the Heart of God.
You are rare.
You are extraordinary.

Celebrate the Lord, Your God!

Copyright  Joann Nelander ©2011  All rights reserved.

Lenten Whispers

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You who eat to gladden your gut,
You who indulge to comfort the flesh,
Come to a true banquet!

Rejoice your spirit,
Give joy to your soul.
Fatten your prayer on faith.

Let words ravish the Heart of God.
Even words unspoken, but burning in your heart,
Call angels to your side.

Quiet the world, by stepping apart,
Still your flesh in earnest fast,
Widen the breath of your praise.

The majesty of God inclines to your lips.
For it is He, Who has promised.
Whisper and He smiles.

Copyright Joann Nelander © 2011 All rights reserved.

Empowered

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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

Cry of One Forgiven

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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

Found

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My Lord, my Love,
Turning to you,
I meet Your gaze.
Your eyes never stray
From your child.

Since my conception,
That awesome moment,
You have kept
Careful watch over me.

Through fleeting years,
You have guarded me,
As the apple of Your eye.
Your angels await my prayers.
I part my lips,
Pronouncing Your Name,
And they are at alert.

“Thy Kindom come”
A flurry of wings
Break the silence.
“Thy Will be done. “
The brightness of electrum
Pervades the air.

“Give us this day
Our daily bread.”
Shining  beings glow white hot,
Wings unfurl.

Soaring heavenward
To the throne of God,
Weightless spirits
Obtain my abundance,
In measure overflowing.

Depending on You,
For even my gratitude,
I rejoice,
For the Sun rises
Each day in my heart.

Searching for You,
I find Your trail,
There is food on the table
And horses in the stall,
My children, too, are clothed,
And I am adorned in virtue,
Protected by humility.
What have I,
You have not given me?

Though I spend myself in labor,
My vigor, I have not exhausted.
Though, I fall into bed at night,
I look back on a day,
Lived in Your Presence.

Now, I recognize Your disguise.
I find You in the dawn.
Announced by bird song.
Heralded in my children’s cries.
“Tie my shoes,”
I hear You say.

Hope sends out new shoots,
As I find my strength refreshed
By your calm streams.
My duty awaits me,
And I am Your steward.

Drawing from coffers
That may appear empty,
They are, none-the-less,
Full of opportunity,
As Your poor
Are always with us,
Depending on You,
And, You, on me.

You no longer hide.
You await me in the voiceless.
Your vessels of helplessness
Beckon me, “Come!”

Your Cross surrounds me,
As I find myself
Nailed to the society of men.
The blood of Adam fills my veins,
But, so too,
The Blood of Christ.

As I expend myself on family
You are fed and clothed
In your hunger and nakedness.
As I lift my voice in song,
The high heavens resound,
Echoing Your Name.

My Jesus, You, fill the Universe,
For need and the Promise of Plenty,
Are all about me,
And I am Church,
Throbbing with Your Blood,
Beating with Your Heart.

Copyright Joann Nelander