trust

When we need to accept help

/ Joy Lenton / 6 Comments

helping hand PJ FMF

How hard it can be for us to realise we are helpless in some areas.

Human effort will only get us so far, as will natural talent and abilities.

Yet we so often strive to succeed by ourselves, not seeing our need of help or wanting any assistance.

Independence is a good thing on the whole, but a degree of dependence is also a sign that we’re aware of our own limitations.

We can see how the gifting in others enriches us and there is grace in accepting assistance and support.

We begin to accept that we need other people. Together we achieve so much more. United we are stronger.

Because eventually we’ll reach an impasse. A point of no return where we cannot do a thing except trust in another.

See our need and willingly (or grudgingly?) receive.

We’re wired to exist within community and live mindful of each other’s needs.

And some things in life are completely beyond us. Maybe you can think of a few?

In my life with M.E and chronic illness I’ve learnt to be gratefully dependent on those who assist me with daily living tasks.

In my writing life I’m completely dependent on Holy Spirit inspiration, grace, gifting and energy.

In my spiritual life I responded to what God had already done in Christ, seeing my impotence to save or change myself.

The poem below is my five-minute-friday contribution as I join others who write brave and free in a supportive community. You’re very welcome to join us over at Kate Motaung’s place. Today’s prompt is ‘Try’.

Also linking with Barbie at The Weekend Brew.. do drop in for some soul refreshment.

START…

You don’t have to

You don’t have to try to curry

favour with a risen Saviour

You already are His glory treasure

and He loves you beyond measure

It’s not your effort that will gain

you a seat in heavenly places

Jesus bore the cross and shame

so that forgiveness would embrace us

You don’t have to worry

as you go about your days

There’s no peace in stress and hurry

only in following His ways

You don’t need to do a thing

beyond believe in Him

and see how His sacrifice

offers us a renewed life

Rest easy, my friend

Seek the wonder of salvation

and eternity without end

for every person, tribe and nation

Relax and sense the flow

of His holy joy within

as you surrender and let go

trusting your life to Him

©JoyLenton2015

STOP.

flow PJ FMF pin

What to do when you scramble for words

/ Joy Lenton / Leave a comment

bleak tree PJ file

Whether speaking or writing, we can soon come across an inability to find the precise words we want to share.

The stream dries up; all seems lifeless. We find ourselves parched, staring at barren ground and bare bones, our thoughts like twisted twigs.

The Muse seems elusive and unkind some days, or so we say – although she is really a mere figment in our minds.

A reason to hang our excuses upon as we scramble around for words vanishing in the ether.

Inspiration deserts us and we hover over paper or PC with fingers itching to release… only to come up empty.

What do we do when words drift away?

I’ve found that resting, relaxing and praying help enormously.

All inspiration is God-given and a gift of grace.

Because some days? Some days we’re too plumb tired to plumb the depths to extract the exact words we want.

So we pretend not to care for a while, switch off, engage ourselves with new pursuits, or give in to the need to pull back, seek some spiritual whitespace.

And in the quiet contemplation, in the resting in God’s presence, in the slowing down and stressing less we find we can tap into the Source of Life Himself and He begins to fill and flood our minds with lively thoughts once more.

Maybe a seeping through, a slow filter, a line or two, but then it begins to flow again.

We can breathe easy. Speak, write and type as God directs, comfortable in His provision and timing.

Because words will rise easy when God decides they need to and they’re ready to share.

Our part is to stay expectant, listen to our lives and all they are saying to us, listen for God’s voice and remain open to inspiration.

Then my friends, we give thanks, we speak, we write, we pour out our offering and we trust God to use it as He wills.

And we remember that God has an inexhaustible supply of words He desires to impart to waiting hearts.

Last night I was considering why I hadn’t written much poetry recently. There are lots of good and obvious reasons why my mind has needed a rest, not least that I’m currently staying with family.

Then a line or two insinuated itself into my mind, and this is how it ended up…

Cajoling Poetry

Poetry can act capriciously

especially if we try

to pack her into a

little rhyme or two,

or wrestle words onto

a page, she’s apt to fly

into a sullen rage

Although she has been known

to demur when called upon

to assist us in a song

And will indeed, sometimes,

be cajoled into a line

which, for better or worse,

becomes joined into a verse

And even though poetry

will not easily or

willingly bend the knee to me

or resists staying around

when I try to pin her down,

I find if I keep an open door

and open mind, she will return

with an offering – or more

©JoyLenton2015

cajoling poetry pin PJ

Aim at heaven

/ Joy Lenton / 2 Comments

Aim at heaven - CS Lewis pin

Reality and truth are hard to define. We all live with shifting perspectives, objectives and definitions.

Circumstances cloud our judgement. Pain makes us doubt what we thought we knew before.

Life constantly remoulds our thinking, stretches our boundaries.

We sense we are born for more than earthly striving. Our gaze begins to rise heavenwards.

Where can we turn for wisdom? Who will guide us into Truth?

What if we really believed what the Bible says, about how Truth is a person and not an idea?

Jesus came that we might have life in abundance as we place our faith and trust in Him.

He alone can fully answer the questioning soul’s concerns because He brings truth and reality as seen from God’s perspective.

Here, we see in part, understand but a little, comprehend only a fraction of what is taught and revealed, given and received.

We aim at heaven and get earth thrown in, but we still live with mystery into eternity.

So we grow in faith, life and maturity and learn to live into the answers to come.

And we finally become satisfied in the not knowing of all our heart desires to understand.

Because this we do know… we are deeply, unconditionally loved, here for a purpose beyond the present, brought into relationship with God, and able to trust Him in the silence and the dark as well as in the light.

‘Reality’

The greatest reality is seen in divinity

The essence of all that is and exists

Expressions in every place

providing glimpses of grace

A revealing and concealing combined

An unfurling in hearts over time

Whispered sounds down corridors

of years, and roar of waterfalls

echoing in our ears

We see and sense Him all around

Because God is eager to be found

Dark valley-life with heaviness of cloud

acts like a muffler and a shroud

Each storm sends us to our knees

where we offer up our earnest pleas

Our reality too rocky to bear

until we sense Him drawing near

Offering faith-filled walk on water

to every drowning son and daughter

©JoyLenton2015 

Linking here with Barbie at The Weekend Brew where soul refreshment is being served. Come and join us?

reality poem pin

When you need rescuing

/ Joy Lenton / 14 Comments

by still waters PJ rescue file image

When a season of turmoil, trial, testing and tribulations pull us into a deep pit, we long for rescue, for God’s quiet waters, stillness and calm to soothe us.

The freeing breath of peace seems elusive until we seek it in Him and not in our circumstances.

And find how faith in Christ becomes the stabilising anchor for our wandering, wilful souls thrown about in life’s stormy seas.

His grace is the means by which we endure and stay calm in the midst of chaos in our circumstances, mind and heart.

Adversity and affliction sift and refine us, make us come forth (eventually) as gold from the fiery furnace.

And they are made bearable by the recognition God is right here with us, in the heat of it all, ready to rescue and save as necessary.

Sometimes a holy agitation occurs which makes us sit up and sense His presence.

What I mean by ‘holy agitation’ is a gentle stirring on the inside, a Holy Spirit nudge, if you like, that grows stronger over time to alert our sleepy souls to His deeper reality and purpose for us.

‘Rescue’

My life feels stuck and stagnant,

mired in mud soul-deep

And as I stretch yearning arms

toward empty skies, I reach

a place where soft breeze

wrinkles water where I lie

An angel has passed by

to offer holy agitation

to set me free from

stagnation, from still pools,

with soft spools of Spirit sighs

An arm reaches down to mine

Across galaxies, across all time,

eternity of stars so bright

Ready to lift me up, rescue

from dark pit of night

My eyes raised high

from gloom and dim,

I feel the breath of Life

filling lungs with Light

and I cling hard to Him

©JoyLenton2015

Dear Reader and Friend,

You know something? Clinging hard to the Lord is where I’m at right now after a prolonged season of increasing sickness since Christmas. Being stubborn old me, I rested up as much as possible after having the flu, but also drove myself as hard as possible to appear relatively ‘normal’ again afterwards.

Apparently, a lot of folk with M.E are like that. Who knew? So I kept up my writing schedules and pulled back from all avoidable social media interaction for a while.

And now? I am deep bone-weary and weak. In need of further rest and sleep, restoration and recovery. In need of not only leaning into Lent but laying down for much of it. In need of putting first things first ~ God, family, health and so on.

Maybe you can relate? You don’t have to be suffering from M.E and chronic illness to feel drained and burnt out.

I’m sensing God saying this is a good time to take a break from blogging for a while, to stay under the protective shadow of His wings as He pours His love, refreshing rest and peace into body and soul.

So I am finally listening and doing just that ~ thinking I can hear a heavenly sigh of ‘At last’ as I do so! It means I will be missing here and on ‘Words of Joy’ for a bit, though I will be honouring my writing commitments elsewhere.

And you can catch up with me on my Facebook page because I could be posting there sometimes as God inspires, enables and indicates it’s fine to do so.

You can also stay in touch with me on my ‘Words of Joy’ Facebook page or connect with me on Twitter, Google + or Pinterest as I dip in and out of those places too.

Meanwhile, do feel free to dive into the archives and find something to bless and encourage you. And if you find something you like, please consider leaving a comment or sharing. Your thoughts and words matter. Thank you! May God bless you and keep you until we meet again. With love, Joy 🙂 ❤

prayer of rest PJ pin file image

Living on the edge

/ Joy Lenton / 4 Comments

child living happy on the edge PJ file image

Living on the edge unsettles me. I’m hard-wired for safety. Live in the pursuit of peace. Find my rest in refuge.

Though I yearn for the ease of feeling more secure, of trusting so fully in God I am like a carefree child splashing in the sea of His grace.

When parental rejection, the sting of guilt and shame, or society’s scorn casts us off as being unworthy of attention, then we can feel miserable, marginalised, desperate for approval.

Being accepted, being heard, being respected, being loved is what our needy hearts long for.

The world’s way is to embrace you one day and spit you out the next.

Without deliberately seeking it, we have become edge-dwellers, shifting shadows on the margins.

What do we do when life tips us sideways and hisses, ‘You’re not enough’? Maybe measures us by the size of our wallet, the way we live, the gifts we give?

We look to the One who speaks a soft, soothing whisper to our souls. He says we are His cherished possession, dearly beloved, fully accepted in Him. We ~ you and me ~ are enough because He is Enough, so much so He died to save us.

Jesus came humble, came lowly, and seeks those who feel ‘less than’ to give them more than they ever could hope for or imagine.

And as we seek after Jesus, we see how He stoops in tenderness to offer us comfort, reassurance and hope.

In following His ways we will find ourselves living on the edge, on the margins at times, at odds with the world’s ways of thinking and reacting.

Because all who strive to live a God-centred life will encounter resistance, rejection and strife.

But we will also have opportunity to follow Christ, to be in relationship with Him from now to eternity and receive all that our empty, thirsty souls need to be fully satisfied.

‘Living on the edge’

Lord,

I feel like I’m living on the edge

of society, with a longing to be

more, to discover, to explore

and uncover deep hidden things

for which my impoverished soul sings

Most of life feels like a race

for which I have no pace or speed

Where the primary function seems

to be to make a mark, to succeed

And as I scoop with eager arms

to catch a smidgen of success,

it very quickly loses charm and

leaves me breathless, needing rest

Depleted, weary, scarred and torn,

I feel the blast, the heat

of this world’s scorn, and have

to make a swift retreat

On the edge of obscurity

can feel a scary place to be

until I pause, sense your presence,

then reassurance comes to me

You chose the road-less-travelled

You were often on your own

You didn’t become unravelled

but kept your counsel and your calm

Found purpose in doing the Father’s will,

strength from resting completely still in Him

And wisdom from Holy Spirit’s refill

Jesus, I want to live this way

To follow hard after your heart

In all I do, think and say, please

help me to live right, do my part

©JoyLenton2014

Friend, you don’t have to wait for the world to approve of you; God already does.

Come to Him; read His word, see and hear how much He loves you, receive His cleansing, forgiveness, mercy and grace, and learn to live freely again in His loving embrace.

**NOTE** ~ This post was written a while back and sat in draft form ready for a time such as this when energy is low and I’m away enjoying some special with the family. I am grateful to God for inspiration coming in abundance sometimes so I have the ability to share later. 🙂

less travelled road PJ pin file image

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

Invitation to rest

/ Joy Lenton / 7 Comments

snowdrops PJ file image

A new year unfurls slow, reluctant as snowdrops to show itself before due time.

Patience is required to see its full potential, the beauty it will bring forth arising from seeming deadness.

Life throbs beneath the surface; its urgent beat calling us to rise. There’s no time to lose. Let’s seize the day! Not a moment to waste.

Only… so many of us are just plain weary, worn-out and unwell or just sick and tired of feeling sick and tired.

We can barely get out of bed, never mind leave our mark on the day.

We sense sand slipping through our fingers and want to claw it back, halt the progress until we can face things again.

Or you may be fired up, all systems go, running on an adrenaline-fuelled rush. An eager-beaver racing against the clock.

However this day finds you, would you pause a while and let God refill and refuel you?

Will you come empty, with hands wide open, into His loving arms?

He is waiting to offer you rest, pour His peace into heart and mind as He shares His plans for you this year.

Come linger; come listen, draw near; come hear and be strengthened.

The invitation is always open. Are you ready?

butterfly welcome PJ and WoJ file image

‘Welcome’

When I am busy and burdened,

You welcome me into Your rest

When I am cold, indifferent,

You welcome me into Your Love

When I am lost and lonely,

You welcome me into Your embrace

When I am poor and needy,

You welcome me into Your best

At all times

In all ways

You offer me a Home

A place of refuge

A safe haven

An oasis of peace

A covering of mercy

A hymn of praise

A way to be free

A mantle of grace

©JoyLenton2015

green water -rest PJ pin file image

I aim to make more space for resting in God because He has invited me to take ‘Rest’ as the defining #oneword365 for 2015. And it’s never been more needful as I try to recover from a bout of flu.

I hope you will be able to join me on the journey here and over at ‘Words of Joy’. as I explore the depths of rest. Your company is greatly appreciated.

Do you struggle with switching off, relaxing or resting as much as you need to?

Please feel free to share what helps or hinders your progress. I love to hear from you.

Out of mist

/ Joy Lenton / 4 Comments

december mist

Waking up to morning mist, I sense the otherworldliness of its obscurity.

Sight is dimmed. Senses dulled as dishwater.

Lost in fog. Muffled morphed outlines rising as shadows.

No compass points defining end from beginning.

December chill making body feel stilled as statue.

And here am I… frozen in poetic thought as the kettle boils hot…

As mist

Watching steam clouds billow reminds me
how our lives are but mist in lens of eternity
our deepest desires and dreams, hopes and schemes
in danger of being fizz, evanescence become
melting puddles of deliquescence
seeping into nothingness.


And all pleasures rise high as steam
then fall away as vapour dissipating
into darkness too dense for us to hold.
For all is fleeting, all is change, all is meeting place
where we surrender our goals and plans,
then taking up God’s gift of grace
we can sink restful, with trusting sigh,
leaving all to be rearranged by His loving hands.


He gathers every scattered act and thought
to make-over, remould good and true,
weaving them into a tapestry of His own design
where nought is wasted
only caught, drawn fine and new into
a lasting beauty to behold.
©JoyLenton

Misted wintry days remind me of how fleeting and changeable our dreams and schemes can be.

Though all desires surrendered to God become enlarged at His hands and so much more than we ever envisaged.

Happiness can vanish in an instant, ephemeral, lost in the ether.

Lasting, solid joy is found in relationship with God and following His ways for our lives.

He transforms everything by His grace. Makes us come alive on the inside.

Making beauty from brokenness, from the scattered ashes of our lives.

as mist poem pin image

Dawn to dusk

/ Joy Lenton / 2 Comments

dawn-212133_1920

From dawn to dusk the skies proclaim God’s glory.

Reveal His majesty and unfolding story.

We watch in awe each morn, eve and afternoon.

And maybe with some dismay on dismal days that end too soon.

Yet we live with the hope of God pouring out speech day by day.

Enlivening us with His word. Gifting us with His Presence.

Sharing His ways in all created things. Making us aware of His grace.

If we would only learn to listen, pay heed and receive.

‘Dusk’

I feel the fade

to grey

on cold

November days

An inconsiderate

gathering gloom

of darkness

falls too soon

Something in me

squeezes tight

And I want to rage

against the

dying shafts

of light

Unless my heart

makes room

And trusts

grace is shining still

in the dusk

of these afternoons

©JoyLenton2014

“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 ends of the world”  ~ Psalm 19:1-4

Joining Janis and friends for #SundayStillness as we make sacred space to reflect on God’s ways

dusk in November PJ file pin image

Hearts on pilgrimage

/ Joy Lenton / 6 Comments

hearts on pilgrimage file image

Reaching significant life markers can feel like a line being drawn in the sand.

Behind it may lie years of fruitful abundance, times of activity and usefulness.

In front is an unknown, untried, untested future ~ trusted to a known God.

My line in the sand came in my 30’s when I was working as a nurse.

I was struck down, laid low with M.E, and other chronic illness followed hot on its heels.

Time shuddered to a halt. A life divided into ‘now’ and ‘then’. I soon forgot what it felt like to feel well. 

God used the time to good effect. As I began to mourn the loss of health and career, He made me lie down by His still waters to examine my soul.

Provided good Christian counselling to encourage me to unearth my painful past and bring me into a place of greater release and freedom.

After nearly 10 years of weekly counselling sessions, I was finally emotionally healed from most of the events that had shaped me as a growing child/adult and poisoned my mind and heart.

Though some lingering after-effects continue to impact my life.

They too require the Healer’s ongoing tender touch.

Now, I remain a sojourner. A heart still set on pilgrimage.

“Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage” ~ Psalm 84:5

My soul is still seeking safety, sanctuary and strength on a daily basis as it leans heavy on the Lord.

For we never stay the same, even if our circumstances do.

We are all growing, evolving, maturing and learning day by day.

And God never stops teaching us about Himself:the wonders of His love, the marvel of His grace, the sweetness of His Presence.

I may have just passed another milestone on the way to heaven, but I will never get beyond my desperate need of God.

We are built to yearn for Him, to desire to know Him, to set our hearts on following after His will and ways.

Because that’s the only certainty we have in this uncertain world ~ our God is totally loving, totally trustworthy and totally faithful to His children.

God’s best won’t necessarily look good to us while we are experiencing it, and often not until we understand what He is doing and allowing, but it will heal and deliver us in His own perfect timing and way.

‘On pilgrimage’

Marching on is the nature of souls

in search of becoming healed and whole

Our pilgrimage can span many long years

as we learn to walk bold and conquer fears

Stumbling through valleys deep with sand

we reach out for God’s proffered hand

When weak, worn out and weary we fall

we’re lifted up by the One who sees all

Blinded by tears we lose our way

God ensures we don’t go astray

Discouragement comes and hearts can fail

until we remember the Blood and nails

Our Saviour Lord trod this earthly soil

experienced its pain, suffering and toil

And when we follow hard after Him

He grants us strength when life looks grim

©JoyLenton2014

on pilgrimage poem pin file image PJ

Linking here with Beth,  Holley, and other like-minded friends as we seek to encourage one another in our walk of life and faith