Lone Tanka

The fight continues-
Talent, knowledge alone will
Only begin work,
Each word is a shining sword
Set to carry effort forth.

Depending

Surrendering now,
Placing heart, mind, soul, all things
In Christ who loves me,
Who will never give me up
For I am bought with a price.

The life of God’s Son
Became the sacrifice paid
That I might have life
Abundantly forever
Here, and in Heaven above.

Nothing can steal me,
From the Lord who provides all
I ask in His will,
Nothing can force us apart
For He calls me beloved.

Jesus, Great I Am,
The Rock on whom my life stands
God’s Love never ends,
I will sing praises in love
Because all life on You depends.

Briefs

1.
We only know NOW –
The beginning is over,
The future, a wish,
But blessings, dreams, everything
Build in us courage and hope.

2.
Finding ourselves in
The arms of Jesus who loves
Us eternally,
We are free to live in joy
Knowing His blessings ours.

3.
Coming from the storm
Into Love’s still waiting arms,
Blessed assurance.

4.
Hope stagnates within
The life where choices are grown
Limited by fear.

5.
What does it mean to
Carry a human inside
Your body? Love born
Into a perilous world
Forever caring galore.

These are tanka and haiku, the forms I resort to when writing is hard, or I become distracted. Usually, brief work will prime the well.

When And Ever

The relationship with
Time is unreliable,
Past invades present
Without an invitation
Giving no hint or warning.
Although sometimes things
Crop up like pleasant hauntings,
Others much darker.
Living in the stream wavers,
Unfolds personality.
Thoughts flinch in passing –
Some neglected on arrival,
Superstitious fear,
If held, could these manifest?
Clear concentration, be blest.
Treasures run away
Appear again in vision,
Maybe now gain, claim,
The mystery retains charm
What comes, comes, as it will, still.
The search, clarity,
Love is the treasure, fullest
Measure of life lived
Whether past, present, future,
All is in sharing, caring.
Time unravels
Pieces everywhere, chasing
Forever in fog
Blindfolded except when free
Accorded chances to see.

Prompt: Expound on your relationship with time.

Swim

Standing at the edge
Of the river known as Life
Looking across it,
To the other side where dreams
Dear held, challenging reside.

Procrastination,
Doubt, fear of failure, aside
A toe in the stream,
So cold, vast, daunting, lonely
No bridge, boat; must cross alone.

Wading in deeper
Knowing there is no return
To this place, safety,
Embarking; bottom falling
Away from hesitant feet.

Beyond all limits
Pulled under the water’s flow
Finding the way up
Blessed air, more determined
Swimming like a manatee.

Nothing hurried now
Building passage with each stroke
In the depths, courage
Must be found to reach those grounds
Where all good things may be found.

It is the journey
Building every needed strength
Which allows success
In each endeavor given
As Life becomes love engaged.