Month: September 2013

Not giving up

/ Joy Lenton / 11 Comments

In the midst of our daily struggles we have hope of seeing change.

God arms us with hope and courage to persevere though trials.

Let’s try to encourage one another to keep on keeping on.

Perhaps you are feeling battle-scarred, weary and worn out by life’s challenges.

Too much may be happening at once or long-term struggles can render us weak and discouraged.

If that describes you, my friend, then the poem below is for you.

And my hope and prayer is that you will feel less alone in the fight.

We are surrounded by a host of witnesses that have gone before us.

We are able to rest secure in knowing God sees the bigger picture.

He gives us strength to cope for one more day..and the next… and so on.

Not giving up

Limping and wounded I may be

but I’m not giving up on my destiny

though it’s a war zone, battle, a fight

life is still filled with God’s radiant Light

His word my compass, eternity my goal

hope keeps faith stirred up in my soul

©JoyLenton2013

Sharp side of life

/ Joy Lenton / 13 Comments

It’s been the worst of times and the best of times.

Recent weeks have been a period of great turmoil when it felt like everything that could be shaken was being shaken.

The past I thought dead and buried in memory rose up to greet me with renewed darkness and pain.

The present brought challenge and a pressing need for change I didn’t feel ready for.

Nothing felt safe anymore.

My heart was exposed.

Raw. Wounded. Hurting.

I wrote the poem below to express how it felt.

Maybe you can relate to it too.

Shards

Waterfall of rain

sheets hard and fast

steady on pane

with resounding drum

as I wall up my heart

with frame of glass

encasing erratic thrum

ready to part

and shatter all content within

leaving me raw

exposed, bleeding

vulnerability

all over the place

pain stabbed deep

wounded, lanced

shards sharp

piercing steep

in fiery dance of fury

on softness

exposing traces of all

kept hidden over time

and years

when nothing hurtful

allowed entry in this space

and vale of tears

©JoyLenton2013

Yet…there was a new surge of life within as the frame of my thinking shattered.

The old ways had to give way to deep excavation, renovation, rebuilding and renewal.

Peace and purpose grew from pain.

Shattered life made safe by God’s continual presence.

And Christ bled vulnerable for me and you.

He suffered deep dark pains within so that we could be recipients of His love.

There is nothing we go through that is a mystery to God.

He wants to re-write our history in the light of His grace.

His arms are ready to catch His broken child.

God alone can make us whole again.

Are you willing to offer Him your brokenness in exchange for His desires for you?

I know I can trust no other to mend me fully and set me on the right path again.

Veiling and revealing

/ Joy Lenton / 16 Comments

Autumn is a season where we begin to experience a shift-change in our natural environment. Leaves take on a brilliant kaleidoscope hue; they glow as invitingly as the open fires we long to huddle over. Its colours warm our eyes and hearts. Its mists breathe out mystery. Its transience lends itself to reflection. For it’s a portent of death and dying with leaves falling and flowers losing their bloom. It lends itself well to poetic ponderings. The poem below arose at such a time.

Veiled

Sweeping across the veils of loneliness and despair

beautiful in its death

Autumn mists cling hopefully to me

a season’s sea-changing tidal broom

But do I rather cling to them

sensing reflections of death ~ my death

as I cling to you with crying need

unheeding the shattered veils

of our past

and the  reborn curtains

cutting across our future

We may rejoice in the untold beauty

that exists

now within a leaf

now within us two

as Autumn eclipses our moods

but decay stands

hoveringly with splendour

a quiet presence but always there

I stand as one amazed

and yet aware

watching this poem falling

into my mind and tumbling

rudely into yours

with no more grace than I possess

Receive it into your heart

for it was written for the deep corners

and already lay

embedded there before

it was begun

©JoyLenton2013

In plant life, dying is a precursor to new life springing forth in time to come. In human life, we can learn to die to selfishness and self-preoccupation as we allow God’s gift of new life in Christ to take root. If we hold on to a life of personal gain and are not prepared to embrace change, then we risk becoming destroyed on the inside – even as we give every appearance of being alive. Embracing the life offered us in Christ means hope, growth, change and potential for today and all the days yet to come.

Prayer Whisper:Hearing

/ Joy Lenton / 11 Comments

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God has many ways He chooses to speak to us.

‘Prayer Whispers’ are some of the messages God has laid upon my heart this year and inspired me to share to bless others with.

This one is about hearing God’s voice:

“Slowing down in order to hear My voice is so important. Your mind has a tendency to be distracted by many things. As you still your soul and learn to filter out the other voices that call for your attention and begin to recognise My voice, then you will hear Me speaking to you. I am never silent. My voice goes out over all the earth. Only those who quiet themselves to tune in to it will hear My voice of affirmation and instruction.

I have spoken words of love, forgiveness, mercy and grace to all through My beloved Son. I speak words of My glory and majesty in the heavens and on the earth through their bounty and splendour. So no-one is without the ability to know that I am God. Those who come to Me through My Son have My written word and the voice of My Spirit to guide them as they journey in life. I have not left you without help, guidance or support”.

“The heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the end of the world” ~ Psalm 19:1 – 4

Lord,

Help us to still ourselves before You and listen for your voice speaking directly to our spirits. Speak as we read Your word, wait quietly before You and learn to tune out other distractions. May we seek and find You as we carve out time and space in the busyness of our lives, and become more aware of Your presence as we go about our daily tasks. Give us ears to hear, a heart to respond and the ability to live out the truth we read in Your word. Amen.

Out of shadows

/ Joy Lenton / 16 Comments

Welcome to my first Five Minute Friday post here. I’ve been writing them for some time over at Words of Joy.

It’s a challenging creative writing exercise where we write freely, as it comes, pouring out words in 5 minutes flat in response to a one word prompt, with no over-thinking or editing. Then we link back, and read the post next to us to encourage one another.

I have found that memories often rise deep from a well within, and a degree of soul-searching occurs. Most of my attempts lean toward the poetic. Such is today’s offering.

The prompt is:‘She’ 

START…

‘Hope rising’

SAMSUNG

Some days she is shadow

mere wraith

going about her ways

drifting

as grey smoke

insubstantial, barely there

floating

between colours vibrant

alive and bright

while she moves silent,

unseen

out of mind and sight

dull, invisible

energy quenched

nothing left

except vapour

and mist disappearing

when One calls

her name

His Light  piercing

the gloom

of sadness and shame

she’s dwelt in

for too long

now…..

He beckons her

to an open door

she hears a new song

as hope rises

phoenix bold

from the ashes

of her life

and fire ignites

her heart once more

©JoyLenton2013

STOP

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Linking here with Lisa-Jo Baker for Five Minute Friday.

You are very welcome and warmly invited to join in.

I have written about coming out of the Shadow-lands I have inhabited for many years.

Shadows can be painful issues from the past that still spread a stain on the present and cloak us in invisibility, making us feel disconnected from ‘real life’.

They are also the deep places of suffering and struggle, whether with depression, sadness, shame, pain or sickness, whereby we are unable to live as freely as we desire.

But they are not our permanent home.

There is always hope with God in our lives.

“but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” ~ Isaiah 40:31

Parting is such sweet sorrow

/ Joy Lenton / 11 Comments

As Summer segues into Autumn/Fall, we may experience a sea-change of emotions, new beginnings and opportunities arising, as well as a shift in the weather patterns.

It can feel like a chance to start over again, with the shiny new inviting us to embrace our future with anticipation.

Changes also bring with them departures from the way things have been, which can feel a little scary.

This is the period when children commence school and those who have left school stretch their wings seeking unexplored pastures.

All of which can bring a bitter-sweet mix of emotions when we let go of the old in order to embrace the new.

Seeing a child off to nursery, school, college, university, or the world of work for the first time can feel painful, even as we celebrate their emerging independence and new-found freedom, especially if it is the youngest member of the family finally growing up in various ways.

You may be in that situation now, or able to look back and see how well you coped with it afterwards.

The poem below was written at such a time as this:

‘Letting go’

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Love held him tight

as hand clasped hand

I would not let him go

I was the voice of reason, wisdom,

watching my seed grow

Yet time marched on

and loosed the bond

slowly gathering pace –

he strained for independence

to run in his own race

Now still the rock

on which he leans

crumbling yet holding fast –

my child grows wise

for future years

while I cling

to the past

©JoyLenton2002

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Note:This poem was previously published in the anthology ‘Individual Voices’ in March 2003 and in ‘Celebrations -15 Years of The People’s Poetry’ anthology in November 2005 ©JoyLenton All rights reserved

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How well do you cope with change?

Have you found ways to embrace the new whilst letting go of the old?

Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you. Thank you.

It’s a brand new day

/ Joy Lenton / 30 Comments

Welcome to my blog. I’m so pleased you are here. This is a brand new one for me.

My usual place to hang out is at Words of Joy

This space is mainly for spilling out the poetic and prayerful.

Many days have been challenging for me of late and I need to remind myself to try to greet each new day with a positive attitude.

Maybe you can relate?

The poem below reflects those thoughts.

Brand New Day

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Brand new day
I salute you
though I rise hesitant
weary of mind
heavy of limb
I choose
not to succumb
to sadness within
nor stick on my face
fake rictus grin
rather I aim
to see you aright
as a chance
to start again
after restless night
and begin anew
with mind made up
not to chew
on my problems
or sink
into despair
but to see
potential etched
bright with awareness
of God’s light
beaming still
brand new day
I arise
to salute you
through effort
of will

©JoyLenton2013

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” ~ Psalm 118:24

This is a small taster for things to come.

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Thank you so much for stopping by. I am honoured to meet with you here.