Does this world’s darkness make you want to weep? Do you feel overwhelmed at times by the brokenness and pain in your life? Me too. But we don’t have to despair, my friend.
Because light and love are all around, seeping into our consciousness. And they are most apparent for those with eyes to see them. If we get locked into cynicism, grief and despair we may fail to see just how much God permeates this world with His light and love.
Our vision can get warped and skewed by circumstances and situations not of our choosing. But if we look with eyes of faith, then we begin to see that life is more than 50 shades of grey, far more than 100 ways of being beige. There is light and life and love and colour just waiting to be discovered by hungry hearts.
Because, filtering softly from dawn to dusk is an invitation to look beyond the immediate, to grasp hold of the eternal right here, right now, in our midst—an invitation to taste holy Mystery.
And even when the darkness descends in such a way that it seems to temporarily blot out the sun, even then the Son of Righteousness Himself will rise in our minds and hearts when we turn in faith to Him.
This is our plea and prayer…
Darkness chokes
This world’s darkness chokes
life and strangles hope. Oh Lord
let your Love-Light shine
And God helps us to view things from His perspective…
Only in the light
Only in the light
of God’s love do we begin
to see our true worth
Then He reminds us how all heaviness of heart is able to be lifted from us as we surrender our burdens to Him and rest in His loving provision for us…
My burden is light
My burden is light
My heart is heavy, full,
holding love for you
Hold on through the dark seasons. Keep the faith when you are faltering and struggling to believe. Because whether you can sense it or not, God is holding on to you and He won’t ever let you go. His greatest joy is to bring His love and light into your life, to turn mourning into joy, heal your brokenness and give you beauty for the ashes of your life.
These words and haiku poems have been inspired by Poet Master Ronovan’s latest weekly haiku challenge of Love&Light. Just click on the link to see how it works and to read the great variety of posts being shared.
Poetry Joy 
Oh, Joy, these are so full of truth and shine with the light of God’s love! I haven’t taken the time to write with Ronovan’s prompts yet this week. I was helping my daughter for a couple of days. Your words today are so encouraging. Blessings to you dear sister/poet/friend! xo
Gayl, I thought I wouldn’t manage to squeeze this post in before Sunday, as I’ve been working on it bit by bit over the last few days. But God graciously gave me a window of opportunity today! Does helping your daughter mean you’re with your new granddaughter now? How lovely for you, if so. Thank you so much for your interest in my words, I’m so pleased they encouraged you! Bless you, dear sister/poet/friend. xox ❤
Dear Joy, I love all of your thoughts today, but this one especially is touching me:
“My burden is light
My heart is heavy, full,
holding love for you”
What a beautiful thought! He does bring a heaviness, but it is a dripping, full heaviness of Love when we give Him our burdens. Thank you for sharing the truth of this thought today, my friend! I’m so thankful that God has given you strength and energy to keep penning words to share with all of us. May He bless you with more of His Heavy/full love today! xoxo
Dear Bettie, I love your description of God’s “dripping, full heaviness of Love” because it so beautifully (and poetically) expresses the abundant, overflowing grace of that love for us.
His Love and Light embrace every corner of our lives! We become inspired to write and share our thoughts as grateful recipients, and in the process of our own small outpouring we are able to bless and refresh others. It’s a wonder and a great gift of grace! Bless you for your sweet encouragement here. Love and hugs! xo ☺ 💜
Beautiful and inspiring poetry, Joy. Lovely post. Thank you. ❤ xx
How lovely to see you here, Vashti! Thank you so much for your kind comment. Your words always inspire me. Bless you, friend. xo 💜
The light shines in the darkness and the darkness will not overcome it.
Amen, my friend! We have that glorious reassurance on days when darkness seems to descend more threateningly. Thanks for the reminder, Tara. xo
Reblogged this on Pastor Michael Moore's Blog and commented:
A beautiful reminder, Joy! Thanks for reminding us ❤
Bless you, Michael! I need this reminder too, especially during dark days of winter and shadowed nights of the soul. I’m glad you can relate to it, my friend. ☺
Oh I do, dear Sister ❤❤
Michael, I think it affects far more of us than we care to admit. There’s such a deep God-given heart yearning to long for the light of His presence in this world’s darkness. Have a blessed weekend, Brother! 💜
I love these Joy. Especially ‘only in the light’. Great reminder to keep pressing into his presence and asking him to shine his light. Ellie x
Hello Ellie, it’s a joy to see you here! I see you’ve got a beautiful book out with your gorgeous postcards from heaven. How lovely! I’ve added it to my wishlist. This month’s a bit hectic reading-wise due to helping out with book launches, beta-reader activities and a few reviews needing to be written, but I hope to purchase a copy soon! I’m sure it will be a great blessing to those who read it. Happy writing, friend! xo 😊💜
Thanks Joy! Yes it’s been an interesting ride publishing the book, and I’ve loved getting letters from people who’ve read it and heard God speak to their hearts through it. But now I’m a bit stumped about a sequel!
The idea will come to you when it needs to. God tends to cause these inspirational thoughts to arrive in their due time. It’s great to hear you’ve had such positive feedback so far. May you hold on to the encouragement of already reaching readers with what they want. I’m looking forward to reading your book for myself in days to come. Bless you, Ellie. Happy writing! 😊 💜
Again, Joy, your words speak life to me. ‘Beauty for ashes’ – exactly the verse and words my pastor spoke over us last weekend when he came to pray with us after my sister’s death. Hugs.
Oh Lynette, I pray you will know beauty for ashes and the oil of joy for mourning, and find that praise can still come out of a spirit of despair. My heart has been heavy for you and the rest of the family trying to cope with this tragic loss. I’m humbly grateful to have been able to “speak life” to you, dear friend. May you hold onto the Life we rest all our troubles in, the One who sees all we are suffering and rises to meet us with His deep compassion and boundless love. Sending prayers and gentle hugs to you. Please feel free to message me again if you need extra support in the days ahead. xo ❤