Poems

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2016: Page 361

Page 361 was a Monday and the “official” Christmas holiday day, so I took the day off — sort of. 🙂  The Lemler family Christmas with my parents and my siblings and their families has traditionally been the day after Christmas for a lot of years, so today was the day we gathered together as a family to celebrate Christmas.  My morning began by checking email and social media messages as I caught up on Christmas greetings and news from friends both far and near.  I also gathered up all the parts of my ice cream freezer and pulled out the recipe to see what I had and what I still needed to get so we could enjoy home made ice cream as part of our family gathering.  I’ve thought at various times over the past week about the supplies I would need to pick up to make ice cream today and each time I would picture my niece at various ages coming out to see if the ice cream was ready yet.  As with many of my nieces and nephews, she shared the Lemler love for ice cream and was very persistent in making sure she didn’t miss out.  As I gathered the supplies together this morning, a short poem showed up in my mind that was worded as a letter to her in heaven.  

Merry Christmas up in heaven,
I pray that you can see.
How much you’re missed and dearly loved,
by friends and family.
And while you’re gone, we carry on
as best as we know how.
Some days are good, some days so-so,
some days the tears flow now.
So as we gather here today,
it won’t be quite the same.
We’ll love and laugh and share a tear,
and I’ll eat ice cream in your name!
So, Merry Christmas dearest Bre,
please help us find our way.
To live for Christ and make you smile,
‘til we join with you someday!

Merry Christmas with much love,
(and no, the ice cream isn’t ready yet 🙂 )
Uncle Tom

After the family gathering, I came home and worked on my normal Monday morning project — next week’s prayer guide.  That also meant that I did some more work on the sermon for New Year’s Day as I’ve chosen to use the prayer guide as follow-up to the sermon.  So, while it was mostly a day off, I didn’t avoid “work” completely 🙂

Today’s photo is one I took a few days ago and it seemed fitting considering all of the feasting that has been taking place over the past few days.  On the day I took this photo, the brush was filled with birds feasting on the red berries.  I caught this robin with a beak full about to enjoy its next bite.  I thought about how food often brings people together to share whatever life experiences are current.  Whether it is grieving together at a funeral dinner, celebrating at a wedding reception, or rejoicing over a Christmas feast, sharing a meal has a way of helping us to share life.  As that thought ran through my mind, I considered how Jesus shared a meal with His disciples many times but as His task on earth was coming to an end, He eagerly desired to eat a final Passover meal with them.  The night Jesus was betrayed and taken off to face the authorities who would crucify Him, He gathered around a table with His disciples for a  meal together.  It was during this meal, this Last Supper, that He laid the groundwork for our remembrance of Him whenever we eat of the elements of a communion service — sharing in His body and blood.  It is through the sharing in His death that we are also able to share in His resurrection and have the confidence of life eternal with Him in heaven.

I pray that you and I would pay attention to a God that longs to be in communication and communion with us.  I pray that we would not only share in the feast of the Lord’s Supper, but that we would know the fellowship that can be had with one another during a meal.  I pray that we would live in a way that makes our loved ones in heaven smile.  I pray that we would share in the death of Christ in a way that prepares us to share in His resurrection.

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I Know

‘Twas the week before Christmas
and all through my mind.
A deep sense of sorrow
is what I did find.
I thought of so many
who would face Christmas Eve.
With tears in their eyes
and their heart on their sleeve.

So as I lived life
and went about my day.
I did what I knew,
and that was to pray.
God gave me no answers,
or tried to explain.
But quietly whispered,
“I do know your pain.”

A long time ago,
God lived with His Son.
The two were so close,
they were known as One.
And in their existence
they set forth a plan.
They created the world
and placed on it “man”.

Then God walked with man,
and man walked with God.
So what happened next
should really seem odd.
Mankind was tempted
to believe a lie.
They disobeyed God,
which caused them to die.

While it wasn’t sudden,
in a physical way.
God lost those He loved,
on that dark, dreadful day.
The closeness they had
when they walked side by side.
Was gone in a moment
as man tried to hide.

And while we talk often
of what mankind lost.
Do we give much thought
to Who else it cost?
For on that same day
that man was deceived.
God lost a friendship,
and His heart was grieved.

And down through the centuries
when we disobeyed.
God knew the price
that would have to be paid.
So a long time ago,
when the time was just right.
God sent His Son
into the dark night.

So heaven was emptied,
of God’s only Son.
The price needed paid,
and He was the One.
So on that first Christmas,
that makes us rejoice.
Heaven was missing
part of God’s voice.

And through the next decades,
as Christ walked the earth.
God Himself knew,
the reason for the birth.
His heart must have been heavy
as each long day passed.
But He knew for certain,
the loss would not last.

There would be a day,
after a long, hard night.
He would see a reunion
of His glorious light.
And while that was true,
of God and His Son.
It was not just for them,
it is for everyone!

So we can take comfort,
in the midst of our pain.
Knowing God will bring sunshine,
after the rain.
And when we have sorrow,
and the tears freely flow.
God’s love will be with us
as He says, “I know.”

© 2016 by Tom Lemler

With the death of my niece this past year and her spending her 22nd birthday in heaven a couple days ago, my  heart and mind have been more attuned this Christmas season to those who will face the holidays missing someone they love.  As I was praying this morning, I was filled with a sadness that is hard to explain.  Sad for myself, sad for family members, sad for friends, and even sad for strangers who long for another day with the ones they miss most.  As I prayed, this poem began to form in my mind and I could sense God’s presence with me saying, “I know.”  I pray that you would experience a peace and comfort beyond explanation as you trust in a God who knows.

In prayer,
Tom

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2016: Page 330

Most of the time it is easy to sit down and write out the day’s page.  Today, however, is not one of those days.  The American culture calls today Black Friday because it has the ability to determine if a retail business will finish the year with its books showing a profit.  We have become so obsessed with “stuff” that many people will rush out to purchase things that they don’t have the money to pay for just because they’ve been convinced, or convinced themselves, that they need it.  Many times this pursuit of things creates a double standard when it comes to how we define wants and needs.  When it comes to providing for ourselves, the list of needs is often much longer than when we are called upon to share what God has given us.  

While the words for today’s page seem to be quite elusive, a poem showed up in my mind as I’ve been trying to write.  I guess the poem will become today’s page as I pray that I’m not missing what I was supposed to be writing.  

The turkey was eaten,
the pie disappeared.
Our attention has turned
to a red suit and a beard.
Our one day of thanks
has gone out the door.
And now our whole focus
is on wanting more.

And as we consider
what’s want and what’s need.
What we want is important,
what they want is greed.
So self is the master
we try most to please.
While everyone else
is brought down to their knees.

You can’t have what you want,
for I really don’t care.
That’s just how it is
and yes, life isn’t fair.
I give what I want
and I keep what I choose.
What I have is mine
and I’m not going to lose.

I really don’t care
if I could make your day.
That’s not why I’m here,
no matter what God might say.
For the things I do want
are always much higher.
Than anything else
that you might desire.

I hope you did notice,
and it’s more than a guess.
The poem you’ve been reading
is simply a mess!
Thanksgiving is over,
at least as a day.
But a life filled with thanks
should be here to stay.

So as our attention
turns to sleighs and reindeer.
I offer a message
that I hope you will hear.
The seasons may change
but the need still is real.
To give of yourself
no matter how you may feel.

We give of our self
and we give of our treasure.
We give by a standard
that no one can measure.
That standard is Jesus,
as He showed us how.
To give in the moment,
when that moment is now!

© 2016 by Tom Lemler

Today’s photo is one I took earlier in the week as a cardinal helped himself to some of the berries in the brush outside my office window.  To me, it is a picture of contentment as he ate his fill and perched in the glow of the early morning sun.  One of the neat things about the area outside my window is that there appears to be a willingness among the various visitors to share the food supply.  There are deer, cardinals, blue jays, flickers, woodpeckers, finches, robins, and other wildlife that all come to feast within view of my office window.  Even species that have a reputation for not getting along seem to tolerate each other at this location as I’ve had cardinals and blue jays eating side-by-side at times.  They share what God has provided and seem content with only what they need.

I pray that you and I would spend time with God examining our attitudes toward the “stuff” of this world.  I pray that we would listen to God rather than the world when it comes to defining what we need.  I pray that we would learn a contentment that helps us to not only live within our means, but to freely share what God has given us.  I pray that we would look to Jesus rather than others when it comes to determining how we ought to give.

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The Unseen

Sometimes I wonder
     just how life would be.
If I were a person
     that people did see.
If I could be more than
     a burden to bear.
If I could be seen,
     would they really care.

If I could be seen,
     would I even be heard?
Or would people go on,
     ignoring my word?
Would I make a difference,
     or be in the way?
If I could be seen,
     just what would they say?

If I could be seen,
     would they argue and fight?
Would they do all they can
     to keep me out of sight?
What would it take
     to have a real voice?
If I could be seen,
     would I have a choice?

Sometimes it is easy
     to just close our eyes.
But does that really keep us
     from hearing the cries?
The unseen are many,
     some are yet to be born.
If I can be seen,
     my heart should be torn.

A torn heart should cause me
     to look deep inside.
Then look at all others
     with eyes open wide.
To look past the slogans
     and self-proclaimed rights.
And see all the unseen
     as beautiful sights!

But what do I do
     if the unseen is me?
If I walk through this life
     and no one can see?
If my voice falls on deaf ears,
     and no one does care?
If I am not seen,
     would God still be there?

I have the answer,
     at least to that end.
I’ll never be unseen
     by the One who’s my friend.
And even when people
     may pay me no mind.
God sought me out
     until Him I did find!

© 2016 by Tom Lemler

I have been referred to more than once as an invisible man.  All of my life I have felt that I’ve lived at some level of being unseen.  I know a big part of it is my brain wiring and the fear of people that produces.  I’m also not an aggressive salesman of myself or my ideas so the things I share are often easily overlooked in favor of that which is being pushed by someone with a “charismatic” personality.  As I began my weekend cleaning tonight and was thinking about being unseen, this poem quickly formed in my mind.  It didn’t take long as this poem was forming to realize that the very heart of it wasn’t about me being unseen but about the cry of an unborn child wanting to be seen and hoping, praying, believing, that being seen would make a difference in someone’s decision to let this baby live.  I pray that we would open our eyes to those who are unseen and show them the value that God has given them as His creation.  I pray that we would become “champions” for those who are given no value by the ones who should value them most.  I pray that we would know that even in our darkest and loneliest hours, we are never truly unseen.

In prayer,
Tom

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Changes (A Psalm of Praise)

I sit at my desk
     and think of back when.
I would sit down to write
     and have paper and pen.
So many changes
     in such a short time.
Perhaps that’s the reason
     for this little rhyme.

Changes surround us,
     some good and some bad.
Some make us happy
     and some make us sad.
Sometimes change is helpful,
     sometimes it does hurt.
Sometimes things need changed,
     like my old, worn out shirt.

As I look out my window
     there’s change in the air.
The beauty of autumn
     makes me want to stare.
The colors are pretty,
     the gold and the red.
But a day is soon coming
     when the trees will look dead.

But looks are deceiving
     when change is inside.
The beauty that grows
     at times seems to hide.
We may go through seasons
     when growth can’t be seen.
When the cold days of winter
     are our only scene.

Yet autumn brings winter
     and winter brings spring.
So the life that is hidden,
     new beauty will bring.
What’s true in creation
     is true for you too.
The days that seem darkest
     could be making you new.

So when seasons of change
     begin to arrive.
Look to the Father
     to learn how to thrive.
Don’t let the dark days
     fill you with despair.
Know that God’s beauty
     will always be there.

His beauty is in you
     throughout every season.
His love for His children
     would be the real reason.
So live your life fully,
     let His beauty show.
Then whatever the season,
     His love you will know.

Praise God in the springtime
     when you feel brand new.
Praise Him in summer
     when you’re growing as you.
Praise Him in autumn
     when life’s a beautiful scene.
And praise Him in winter
     when His work seems unseen.

Praise Him through changes,
     the big and the small.
Praise Him for growth
     that He brings in us all.
Praise Him for goodness
     He showers from above.
And praise Him for showing
     the wonders of His love.

© 2016 by Tom Lemler

I was in my office when the first two sentences of this poem filled my mind as I thought about the days when I would actually write using paper and pen.  It wasn’t until I typed those lines out that I realized there was an entire poem behind them.  Change is inevitable but not all change is good.  When we make changes of our own doing without listening to God, we can expect trouble to arrive somewhere down the road.  But, we can be confident that when our changes are a reflection of God’s will and purpose in our life, He will bring great beauty from them.  I pray that you would learn to praise God through every season of life.  I pray that you would spend time with Him so that every change you make would be in obedience to His Word and His will.  I pray that you would see the great beauty that God has created within you regardless of the season you feel you are in.

In prayer,
Tom

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Giving (A Poem Read by the Author)

This is the audio of my reading a poem God gave me to share at the Etna Green Church of Christ on Sunday, October 9, 2016.  This was part of a Homecoming Service to first honor God, but also to honor my father-in-law, Gene Neyhart, for his service to God and to the Etna Green church.

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Giving

It’s more blessed to give
     than it is to receive.
While we can quote it,
     do we really believe?
There are some ways
     we can probably tell.
If we seek honest feedback
     from those we know well.

What would our friends say
      about how we live?
Do we take for our self,
     or would we rather give?
Would they say we’re generous
     with our time and our treasure?
Or would they say our giving
     is too small to measure?

Do we find ourselves taking
     and hoarding our stuff?
Because we are worried
     we won’t have enough.
Enough for the future,
     enough for right now.
Enough to succeed,
     if we only knew how.

Do we say we’ll give more
     once we feel secure?
Most of the time,
     that claim isn’t pure.
For what will it take
     to have more than we need?
When our life is controlled
     by our lust and our greed?

For the eye is not filled
     by the things that we see.
And there’s never enough
     when I think only of me.
But when I look heavenward,
     eyes fixed on above.
I find I have everything
     if I just have God’s love!

And as we consider
     the gift we now bring.
Is it really something
     that’s fit for a King?
Or is it what’s left
     after we take our part?
How will we know
     until we examine our heart?

So that’s what we do
     as we stop and pray.
We ask God to change us,
     turn our heart His way.
We set our mind firmly
     on things from above.
And recognize blessings
     as they come from His love.

© 2016 by Tom Lemler

I was asked to share a poem to lead into the offering time at a church service that was part of a day to honor my father-in-law, Gene Neyhart, for his years of service to God and to the Etna Green Church of Christ.  I don’t write poems, I just write them down as God gives them to me, so this was a huge task for a lot of reasons.  I spent a lot of time with God trying to clear from my mind the words I would want to say and hear just the right words to share.  During my prayer times about this, I would usually get a single block of 4 lines and then nothing.  But with enough prayer times, came enough blocks of lines to assemble into the poem I shared this morning which I now share here.

In prayer,
Tom

Our Anniversary
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Our Anniversary

Our marriage has made it
through 35 years.
Some filled with laughter
and some filled with tears.
Some days were hard
and others were fun.
But through it all,
you’re my only one.

Where do I start?
Where should I begin?
To tell a love story
that started back when.
Back when life was easy,
or so it would seem.
‘Til we had to figure
what was life as a team.

Some say it was foolish
to get married back then.
A couple of kids
whose wisdom was thin.
As I look back now
at how little we knew.
I can’t imagine learning
with anyone but you.

Our first house was simple
and drafty, I know.
On cold winter nights,
the inside drifted with snow!
It was hard to keep heated,
so we warmed it with love.
And if that didn’t work,
it was jacket and glove.

We moved on from there
to a house that was nice.
(Well, except for the times
we would catch all the mice.)
And while we were trying
to figure out life.
My health took a turn
that would cause us much strife.

We battled together
through pain and through tears.
As I fought to survive
the worst of my fears.
When I’d had enough
and did not want to live.
We received a blessing
that only God could give.

I called her Ralph
until she was born.
Then a more fitting name
is what she has worn.
Susan Marie
is the name we did give.
To the angel that’s with us
and helped me to live.

I did my best,
at least that’s what I thought.
But I found out later,
I didn’t do what I ought.
Each day was a struggle
for such a long time.
There were large mountains
that we had to climb.

So climb them we did,
until we reached the top.
And saw more ahead
so we never will stop.
We may pause for a while
to enjoy the view.
Then we’ll head for the next peak
as I travel with you.

So, Happy Anniversary
to me and to you!
It is quite amazing
what we’ve made it through.
And if God should give us
another thirty-five.
We’ll probably both wonder
why we’re still alive!

So, what can I say
as I look back in time?
How can I finish
an unending rhyme?
But to say it’s not over,
perhaps just begun.
As we learn from each other
and make our life fun!

© 2016 by Tom Lemler

After attending our 35 year class reunion the weekend before our 35th wedding anniversary, I spent some time reflecting on the years gone by — particularly the years at the beginning.  As I did so, this poem started to gel in my head and finally came our for our anniversary today.  I pray that God’s grace continues to give us more years together and that our lives would reflect Him more and more as the years go by.

In prayer,
Tom