Shells of Time

Perhaps it’s the empty nest, perhaps it’s the new beginnings, but whatever the cause, the effect is a surge of memories…which are best presented poetically…or so I think.  Perhaps these sentiments will wash over you in much the same way that they wash over me:  gently, rhythmically, hypnotically…and with a splash of salt!  Won’t you join me for a walk along memory’s shore?  Surely God walks these shores too, as David records in Psalm 139:17-18, “How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!  How vast is the sum of them!  If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand.”

 Shells of Time

 Though time has passed, the thoughts don’t cease,

When memories flood, the gates release;

And yesterday now lies before,

Lapping my feet as I walk its shore.

 

Memories once buried rise anew,

They toss and turn with emerald hue;

Catching the light as they wash ashore,

With each new wave, there’re more and more.

 

I pick one up, wipe off the sand,

I lay it bare upon my hand;

It’s but a shell of days gone by,

A souvenir no coin can buy.

 

So one by one, I gather each,

But soon return them to the beach;

I place them back upon the shore,

Knowing in time there will be more.

 

For memories, though mine to keep,

Prefer to dwell within the deep;

Where waters rise, they find their home,

Contented there, they will not roam.

 

Yet I am free to beckon them,

And that which holds them can’t condemn,

My heart’s desire to walk again,

Upon the shore where I’ve just been.

 

So I’ll return when ere I might,

And gather shells that bring delight;

I’ll hold them closely to my ear,

And hear the roar of yesteryear.      

There You Are, Here I Am – A Psalm of Surrender

There You Are, Here I Am
A Psalm of Surrender

There You are, LORD, holy and righteous,
All-knowing, all-seeing, invincible, and strong.

Here I am, LORD, battered and worn,
Sinful and scarred, scared and uncertain.

But there You are, LORD, arms open and heeding,
Eyes kind and unyielding, form bent down and pleading.

Yet here I stand, LORD, wanting to run to You, eager to approach You,
Desperate to be held by You…but unable to move toward You.

You’ve removed all the walls, You’ve scaled all the towers;
You’ve moved heaven and earth to reach out to me.
So why I am still here?
Why don’t I surrender to Your call?

Your holiness overwhelms me, I cannot comprehend it.
Your love overpowers me, I cannot stand up in it.
How do I draw close to One as great as You?
How do I cast off these sinful rags and stand before the One I love?
How do I overcome the deceitfulness of my heart and fall into Your arms?

There You are LORD; holy and righteous.
Here I am, LORD; sinful and needy.
There You are, Savior; broken and bleeding.
Now I run, LORD, into Your arms of grace.