love

Reflections of grace

/ Joy Lenton / 8 Comments

sunset reflection

Even as we live out our unexceptional, hum-drum, wondrous lives we are reflections of God’s grace, mirrors of His glory.

It’s an awesome calling for every blood-bought son and daughter.

And an amazing privilege.

Most of the time we’re oblivious to the impact we have on others, unaware of  how much God may be using us to be light and salt in a needy world.

Perhaps that’s just as well.

Pride lurks close to our hearts and would have a field day if it saw the quiet, unseen influence we are having.

But the wonder of it all is how our dim light still reflects God’s glory, seen best in our faulty and flawed brokenness, our wounded lives.

He pours out of whatever crack or crevice we provide.

The more we feel unworthy, the more we are prospective channels of grace.

A willing, receptive heart is all He asks for.

A surrendered spirit.

A set apart soul.

And in all the 40 years I’ve been married to my beloved, I have seen him mirror God’s love to me time without number.

Because he loves as openly and unconditionally as any man can.

He always believes for the best, hopes for better, forgives me over and over again.

Sees portent of promise and potential in me long before it creeps into my consciousness or actions.

He makes allowances for all I am and breathing space for all I’m still becoming.

I still struggle to see myself as he sees me, rather as I so often fail to see myself as I fully am In Christ.

But I’m learning – to accept his love, believe in his (somewhat biased) perspective and relax into its promise.

The poem below appears in the anniversary card I’ll be giving to him this Sunday morning.

Reflections

In your eyes I see

reflections of all

I truly long to be

A woman of wisdom

A thing of joy and beauty

A person of great worth

And in our marriage unity

we reflect the complexity

of the 3 strand cord

A blessed trinity

A depth of love

A mirroring of God

Earth stands in awe

of holy intimacy

©JoyLenton2015

reflections poem pin PJ

Being the beloved

/ Joy Lenton / 15 Comments

being the beloved PJ pin

Our insecure hearts seek signs of belonging.

Our minds ache for reassurance.

Our bodies seek to express love to others.

And when I am held in my beloved’s embrace, the inner turmoil melts away.

Concerns may sit heavy but they become lighter for being shared silently.

As he reaches for me I feel wanted, loved, cherished, accepted just as I am.

I can finally be fully myself with this man who knows me so well, who has partnered me for almost 40 years.

Words become unnecessary as we lean into one another. We speak each other’s language now.

Marriage made us as one and we remain so, even as life’s challenges and painful circumstances have tried to pull us apart.

Troubles are shared with kisses. Joy is magnified in the melding, in the overcoming, in the giving and receiving.

And in these heart to heart, soul to soul embraces we are reminded of the way God is continually holding us safe and pouring His unconditional love out upon us.

Because this love of ours has been sustained solely by His grace, nurtured by holy fire, stuck fast by faith.

We love because He first loves us. He is our pattern and example. The glue in this marriage.

And His arms of love never grow weary. We will always be welcome there.

God rejoices when we learn how to accept His love and live in the knowledge of being the beloved.

Arms of Love

Arms of love encircle me

holding secure and steady

as I finally exhale, release

breathe soft and calm

feeling prepared and ready

to accept and believe

hear and receive

that as beloved arms

encompass round

God’s Spirit hovers

without a sound, yet

speaking things He wants

to urgently impart

into the very depths

of my insecure heart

saying, “You are safe; you are loved

You are beautiful; you are enough

You are free – just trust in me”

©JoyLenton2014

love WoJ + PJ

Youth blooms eternal

/ Joy Lenton / 8 Comments

listening PJ file image

Music speaks into the air.

We sway soft, holding one another close, watching years roll away.

Laughter erupts and we collapse onto the sofa.

I sit on his knee and we kiss.

I see a gleam in the eyes of this man I’ve known and loved since forever.

Youth blooms eternal in a heart that loves. Age is no barrier.

We warm ourselves by its fire, persuade its embers into life again, coax the coals.

Others pay attention, attracted like moth to flame, desiring the heat of it.

Although our human love is but a poor, pale shadow of God’s love, it glows with hint and suggestion of His radiance.

Hearts hungry for love sense a longing echoing in their own souls.

And as my beloved and I come closer toward a significant wedding anniversary, we do so with humble gratitude, awe and wonder.

Because this love we’ve been given, shared soul deep, fought hard to retain over years of fears and tears, has survived against the odds and never lost its fire and fervour.

So I make no apology for posting about love this month as I reflect on the gift we’ve been given and the years shared.

Here’s the first small offering… a potential poem for my forthcoming anthology?.. You can decide.

Watching Muse
We’re watching Muse on the TV
our voices joining in
with the melody
in our own idiosyncratic
cracked and rusty way
And it doesn’t matter that
I’m applying your Parkinson patch
as we dance clumsily as one
or that I sway uneasily
on these weak, arthritic knees
What matters is the unleashed
joy as giggles erupt free
and we clutch one another
in imperfect harmony
with a youthful abandon
and familiar, ancient ease
©JoyLenton2015

couple dancing

Love came

/ Joy Lenton / Leave a comment

rose-83955_1280

‘Love came’

Love does not shout its name

Though the cross is a megaphone

to rouse a deaf world

Love is likened to a rose

as it gradually unfurls

Releasing its scent into the air

fragrancing the atmosphere

Lightening the hearts of all

who inhale its heart

and are in its thrall

Love whispers soft in dreams

Causing a swift awakening

It seems ethereal as mist

and lingers long

like a wanton kiss

Betrayal may bring it out

when deep feelings inside

emerging as anger, surge

from one to another

Love came and gave its all

to a world still sleeping

With a hammering and a bleeding

seal stamped on wood

Nailing itself to those unheeding

who could turn a blind eye

to a tearing in their sky

Love may have seemed to disappear

But it stayed in all hearts

who welcomed it here

©JoyLenton2015

Love came PJ file image

A many splendid thing

/ Joy Lenton / 4 Comments

love is PJ poem file pin

‘Love is..’

A tearing apart of heart and soul

as two together make a whole.

Fire, fight, steam and bluster,

the tenderest words that we can muster

Raw, wounded vulnerability,

liberation and setting free

Becoming united for better or worse,

celebrating our beloved in verse

Forgiving, forgiving, and forgiving again

as hearts weigh heavy with sorrow and pain

Keeping one another in cosy company

for there’s no other place we’d rather be

Living, laughing and crying as one,

wonder and hope in a morning sun

A hand to hold on a chilly day,

soothing when things don’t go our way

Our companion throughout the night,

deep reassurance it will be all right

Growing, maturing, ageing together,

surviving all kinds of stormy weather

God’s best gift to fallen humanity,

our anchor, safe place we long to be

Smiles and cuddles, a warm embrace,

a thing of beauty ~ by God’s grace

©JoyLenton2014

“We love because he first loved us” ~ 1 John 4:19

love is poem PJ file image pin

A place of refuge

/ Joy Lenton / 10 Comments

baby being held ~ safety file image

When the world wants too much from us and we have nothing left to give, when we are weary of waiting and hoping for change, when shame and pain have haunted our nights and days, when we long for a place of refuge and a person we can fully trust ~ to whom can we turn?

Only God can provide all the safety, healing, comfort and reassurance we need. We can crawl into His presence and be held fast.

Allow Abba Father to pour His unconditional love out on us. Be held. Be calmed. Be loved beyond all measure.

His arms are our sheltering place.

His heart is our home.

His love is our lasting comfort.

His joy is our strength.

His promises our hope.

His word our light and guide.

Friend, if you are hurting right now, if the world has wearied you, if you need a reliable person to trust and turn to then come, come to God and be helped.

He has been revealing to me lately that healing is a process, a gradual unfurling to God’s love, a continual learning from His word, a daily leaning on His mercy and grace and a laying down of all that keeps us captive to shame and disgrace.

Come and receive the sustenance your soul longs for. He is waiting to receive you as soon as you are willing to believe and turn to Him.

 ‘Safety’

Held fast in the circle

of Your embrace,

my weary head

falls to rest on

shoulders of strength.

Feeling my heartbeat

slow and steady

to match Your own.

Sense my breath

gulping deep,

drinking hard

the very air

You breathe.

There is no

condemnation here,

no fear, no pain

I can let go

tears and years

of struggle, of shame,

of hurt and fears

And asking questions

with no answers.

I can let go

deep-bone weariness,

weakness, sickness,

for they cannot abide

in Your presence.

For now it is just

You and me together

And I feel safe until

the material

world intrudes again.

©JoyLenton2014 

Joining with encouraging friends

Holley ~ Coffee for Your Heart

Jennifer  ~ Tell His Story

Bonnie~ Faith Barista’s Beloved Brews

SONY DSC

Vestiges remain

/ Joy Lenton / 10 Comments

lingering sadness PJ post file image

‘Vestiges remain’

Vestiges of summer linger in sun’s warm rays

before fading far away at close of day

Autumnal chill makes body and heart sink cold

and low before they find another warm glow

Each new sunrise brings hope of renewal and change

opportunity for life and love to become rearranged

We are born; we live; we die. And in-between

we welcome, embrace, and bid Goodbye

Every day has moments of goodness

and grace, sadness and sorrow, clinging on

today while we wait for tomorrow

Silver linings shine beneath all dirt and grime

and darkness hovers round us all the time

Light is always waiting at the door if we

have faith to let it in and believe for more

There are no wasted days or years

despite how bleak things may appear

God can redeem every one as we learn

to trust fully in Jesus, His Son

How do we live with this dichotomy?

By remembering the good, giving praise

and being as thankful as we can be

©JoyLenton2014 

door letting in light vestiges PJ file pin image

Walk of faith

/ Joy Lenton / 6 Comments

file image PJ walk of faith

‘Walking’

Sometimes I want to walk

away from myself

turn my back and flee

But there’s no getting

away from it

I can’t get away from me

Although I feel a place

of cold emptiness

echoing through my heart

When I try listening close

I sense Jesus is

walking through every part

He pushes away the

darkness shelved deep inside

so that it has nowhere else

to trouble, disturb or hide

And He fills and floods

every crevice and space

with His wonderful love

and amazing grace

©JoyLenton2014

For the first time in several weeks, I am delighted to be joining here again today(a little later than planned) with Kate and friends for #fiveminutefriday and with Mel for #essentialfridays

grace file pin image PJ walk of faith

A soft whisper

/ Joy Lenton / 14 Comments

A soft whisper file image PJ

Summer segues soft into Autumn and I sense a shift-change.

A call to quiet and calm. A whispered invitation of grace. A space to receive.

Making room for mercy moments in the mundane and eternal encounters in the everyday.

Words rise and fall in my head but fail to find their way onto the page.

My writing voice is stilled, though it clamours for release.

My mind feels overly busy with thoughts running around like headless chickens.

My body aches for rest, bed, soothing sleep, healing and restoration.

God wants me to be in tune with This season ~ a time to listen rather than speak, a time to refrain in order to gain the better part.

A heart receptive to His voice and a spirit that says Yes. A voice that whispers gentle and soft rather than shouting its presence.

All of which means that the things I long to share have been put on hold.. for now.

I am needing to focus more on the important than the urgent and make way for God’s ways most of all.

Yet He has encouraged me to send this poem forth because its message is timeless.

I wrote it in the flush of youthful love many moons ago, and published it two years ago on ‘Words of Joy’  in the context of a post about being seen, heard and loved.

I wrote the poem to my future husband, and as I read it again it speaks to me anew of our  heavenly Bridegroom calling for His Bride.

Maybe it also describes an intrinsic, eternal yearning inside us to be close, to feel cherished and loved, or maybe a way of seeing God in all of His creation?

However you take it, I pray God will use it to speak to you in the way you need to receive it.

‘Whisper your name’

Whisper your name in the

cold cubes of ice that

melt with heat’s breath

Whisper your name in the

wild, swirling tussle of

leaves on the ground

Whisper your name in the

snow that is black

with your words

Whisper your name in the

warm, woody ashes of

Winter that’s gone

Whisper your name in

Spring flowers that

nod out your greeting

Whisper your name in

the heavy haze of Summer sun

and Autumn sunsets

Whisper your name,

my love

and I’ll…..

whisper MINE

©JoyLenton2012

Praying for space for a sister to be slow, room for a recycled poem, and grace to come late to the party as I link here with Beth and friends for #threewordwednesday and with Kate for #FMF where this week’s  prompt is ‘Whisper’

**If you’d like to read more about words God has specifically whispered to my heart this year, then please feel free to check out the ‘Prayer Whispers’ category here**

A soft whisper file pin image PJ

Come empty

/ Joy Lenton / 14 Comments

come empty welcome file image PJ

We all long to have our love tanks filled. Be affirmed. Be welcomed. Be accepted.

But so often our desire to be seen and heard drives us into places where we shine bright as fire-flies briefly dancing bold in the darkness before it swallows us up and consumes us.

There is another way to satiate our thirsty souls. To discover all we are looking for.

There is a place where we come empty and become filled to overflowing.

Arrive with burdens too heavy to bear, with songs dying on our lips, with eyes full of tears.

Sink low with our sorrows, sickness and shame.

But there.. we are loved,  embraced, held and comforted beyond measure.

You don’t have to dress up or pretend. You can be real. Be yourself. Breathe easy.

In God’s presence we find hope, healing, help, strength, forgiveness and grace.

And so much more besides.

So come to Him now. Lay aside your fears. He won’t reject or ignore you.

Come empty. Come  weary. Come thirsty. Come hungry. Come Just. As. You. Are.

He is waiting,  and will never turn you away.

‘Being filled’

With arms yawning empty, wide,

I arrive at your feet

hardly daring to lift my weary head

with a body yearning only for bed

When a dawning peace

envelops my soul

as you come and abide

ready to make me whole

rest in my heart, take ease and wait

while I sob, breathe deep and hesitate..

Finally, some strength seeps

through as I stay and weep

How could so much time

have taken wings, flown by

How could I have allowed

my soul to become so dry?

You smile and reach out

in reminder, with goodness and grace

There’s always a look of love on your face

You tilt my head toward your own and spill

everything given, overflowing to fill

And I realise, deep down,

it has always been there

if I’d only stopped, searched around

instead of drowning in despair

For all you long to provide, impart,

has already been sealed within my heart

©JoyLenton2014

being filled poem PJ FMF file pin image

Linking here with Kate Motaung for her first time hosting #fiveminutefriday Do come over, join with other brave and bold five minute writers, and give her a warm welcome! Also linking with Jennifer for #tellhisstory and with Mel for #essentialfridays