I Am Mud

I am such a mess.
The rain falls on my soil,
And for a while I am mud.

No hint of fertility.
No hint of growth.
No hint of flowers.

Mud is self-forgetful,
A confusion of gift,
A profusion of promise.

The day will seed to my substance,
Serendipity and surprise,
Plantings for the morrow.

I shall lie here,
Loving my mud,
Waiting for the Sun.

© 2016 Joann Nelander

Thanks Be to God

For what am I thankful?

How about, that I am.

Yes, I am here,

A creature, one among others,

Willed into existence by the God of All,

Who constantly calls me to know Him.

I am free, in other words.

 

Yes, I am free,

Free to be free of God,

If I so choose.

There it is again, scary freedom,

Free to be ignorant of the One Who calls,

The One Who loves.

He calls through His creation,

Look at Me!

I Am Truth.

I Am Beauty.

I Am Love.

 

His call proclaims me not one among others,

But His “one and only”,

To be not only being,

But, exceedingly, blessed.

He says, be, by faith, and “Amen”, My Son.

Reign, as priest, and prophet, and King.

 

For what am I thankful?

I am thankful that I am grateful.

With my eyes, I have seen,

And with my heart, I have said, “Amen”.

I answer “Amen”

With my every heartbeat,

With my every breath.

With all the moments of my life,

I call to my God, my “Amen”.

 

I am son, caught up in Triune Being.

He wears my “Yes”, as eternal glory.

He is,

And I am all thanksgiving.

 

copyright 2014 Joann Nelander

God Can Make It from Nothing

God can make it from nothing.
No Time, no Space, no place!
With a Word, Time,Space, place
All suns are born in His Light.

Beauty of the One Supreme Being,
Arrayed in all that is,
Himself, ethereal, everywhere and near,
Is, itself.

Living, thinking, Eternal Being,
Unseen, untouchable,
Existing forever and always,
Limitless, within and without.

Ocean of omnipotence,
Alive in Your Living,
Living in minuscule, and mighty,
Nothing without you.

Existence,
Beyond all that is.
Worlds exists without me,
But not without You.

I am called,
As You called Creation into being.
The sticks and stones of creation,
Obey Your every whim and command.

Man, alone, can say “NO”.
Place “YES” in my heart,
That I may not thwart,
But with creation play my part.

All that is,
Is of Thee,
Infinite in all Your Perfections.
My Loving Mystery.

God, You can make it from nothing,
Make of me a Son,
A light after the long Night,
Knowing in loving eternal delight.

© 2016 Joann Nelander

Setting Sail

Come Wind of the Spirit.
O Holiness, fill my sails
That we may traverse the oceans,
And laugh at the power of the seas.

Set my course
According to the plan of the Father,
Brought to fruition in the Son,
Who purifies the many waters.

©2013 Joann Nelander  All rights reserved

Handmaiden to the King

All I have known
Has possessed me,
The world and the men
Who walk its way.
All I have known
Ruled my heart
And burned on its altars
The wood of my life.

Now, You give me gold,
And open the door
To Your Kingdom,
To enter through my heart
Into Your Heart.

The fire that once
Consumed my wood,
Now, fires the gold You give me
To shape and fashion
A daughter of faith
Alive for You and in You,
Earthy flesh, taking on heaven,
As Your Spirit wants,
And woos and waits,
Upon the handmaiden
Of grace and virtue
You are creating for Yourself
As Bride to the King.

All I now know
Possesses me
For all I know is Thee.

© 2013 Joann Nelander  All rights reserved

The Breech

How great is the distance between us?

Some would say
The span from East to West,
Or measure in miles the chasm
Stretching from Heaven to Hell.
Others count the centuries
Since Your earthly Presence
In hallowed flesh.

There is no numbering
Eternity or Divinity.
You are closer than my breath.
Your Heart beats within my breast.
Day by day,
Nay, moment by moment,
I pick up Your rhythm.

Traversing the breech,
You make me Your own.
Small, but beloved,
I repose in willful abandonment.
Grace-filled faith,
A movement,
Not a measure,
Soars to the heavens,
In flights of trust in You.

Copyright Joann Nelander  © 2011    All rights reserved