Why These Poems?
Contains a degree of Christian content.
Adrian Rodgers (1931-2005)
"Where softer words and gentle ways are not heeded, louder words and firmer ways are often needed."
The Author
Professor Andrew Sims, former President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists
These poems, LIGHT-HEARTED, SECULAR-GENERIC, and CHRISTIAN, came as quite a surprise to me,
having never done poetry before. It wasn't until about
2002, when I was around the age of 52, that they began.
One day I was feeling particularly upset over the things that I had been witnessing and hearing of within the Christian community. You see, in recent years I had become more committed to my Christian walk, and as a consequence, had been applying myself to serious indepth biblical study, (upon which my Christian poetry is largely built), and as another consequence, had become more aware of what Christians, (which meant me too), should be upholding and practicing, but were not, thus bringing Christianity into disrepute, and representing God badly — many folk ignorantly so, though not necessarily excusably so — for after all, Christians are supposed to be God’s ambassadors, aware of His will and walking in His ways.
As a result of having become more committed to my Christian walk, I
had begun to see more clearly the tragic changes that have also been
occurring within society.
In other words, and in a nutshell, my poetry-cum-website has been driven by an informed and urgent desire to:
1)
Awaken Christendom to how far it has strayed from the apostolic
teachings-cum-blueprint-cum-path for Christianity; to the woes and
perils that have engulfed Christianity as a result; and to the faulty
witness that it’s now presenting to the world.
2) Awaken
society to how far it has strayed from that which once held it together,
and to the harm that has resulted and is continuing.
Added to all the above, was the pain that I had experienced over the years, and
was still experiencing, which I believe was primarily caused by: 1) my
own foolishness, emotional struggles and general health; 2) a greater
appreciation of the wrong that I myself had inflicted
on others throughout my life, and; 3) the insensitivity, indifference, unkindness and
prejudice that I had personally experienced from others, (many of them Christians, sadly), and that I was still experiencing.
In other words, and in a nutshell, my poetry-cum-website has also been driven by an urgent desire to:
1) Spare others from the same mistakes that I have made.
2) To help folk see how they may be hurting others and harming themselves.
3) To awaken folk to any forces that are currently working against their best interests.
4) To encourage a greater respect for life, the environment and its creatures.
Now getting back to where I came in — and with all this going on inside me, I, for some unknown reason, took a
pen, sat down, and tried putting something together in poetical form,
starting with a Christian poem.
Let me reiterate and elaborate on
my comment, “For some unknown reason” --
Prior
to this occurrence, I had no interest in poetry whatsoever, and to the
best of
my knowledge had never done or learnt to do poetry, and even today
after
having penned in excess of 1000 poems, still have no real
interest in
poetry, no desire to read poetry. Yes, I have immersed myself in such
now, and have formed a deeper
appreciation of this art, but it has simply become an accidental
vehicle, one that I
can only attribute to a divine source (confirmed more so over time) that has taken me down this track
knowing
that I would be prepared to oblige given the strong feelings I had (and
have) about
certain things, and my unconcern about being popular.
To continue. My first attempts resulted in a number of poorly constructed
poems, often with ill chosen words and poorly rendered verses
which reflected my lack of poetical and even grammatical skill, and my lack
of Christian growth. As time went by, my skill in the realm of poetry
improved, but not before a number of my earlier attempts had
circulated. The poems represented here, are the ones I would rather be
judged by, as it were. Most of them are new poems, but a few are
earlier ones that I have gone back over and improved as best I could —
ones that I considered savable and worthwhile saving. However, poetry is
simply the vehicle being used here, and therefore is not my primary
focus.
Regarding my "first attempts", (particularly the first 40 poems, say, since discarded), I guess there's always a learning period, not that it ended there.
I would like to point out that certain things expressed in these poems are not necessarily my experience, but what I have seen experienced in the lives of others — a good example of that is my poem, "This Man Who’s In Your Life" (secular). This particular poem came about as a result of a conversation that I had had with a friend who felt it was needed given that I had previously penned a poem on the plight of women, entitled, "This Woman Who’s In Your Life" (secular).
The point of writing these poems is to express my own beliefs, viewpoints, concerns, and thoughts, and that should always be borne in mind when reading them. They are a reflection of my ongoing journey. The poem "How Could I Act Otherwise?" (Christian) expresses where I stand personally as a Christian, and the poem "Take My Selfish Heart" (Christian) expresses my desire. I do not consider myself as being better or wiser than anyone else and am very aware that I still have a long way to go and am happy to receive all the help I can get. It’s just simply that a fountain of poetry has been springing forth from within me, as appears here, which I have often had folk, (both Christian and non–Christian), tell me I should publish. It is my hope that this poetical collage will stimulate thought, benefit others, and bring glory to my God, who I believe has used me (an unworthy vessel) to express what’s in these poems, and to whom I give any credit.
I hope that your response to these poems will take into account the fact that God is still working on me, He hasn’t finished yet, so I may not have put things together as well as He might have liked. If so, I ask your forgiveness, and His forgiveness.
I believe that we should consider very carefully, thoughtfully, and thus fairly what another person is saying. Though we may ultimately disagree with what they are saying, and still hold to our own views or beliefs, this should not preclude us from keeping an open mind. Many have found with time that what they thought was right, was actually wrong, or that what they thought was wrong, was actually right. May I suggest to you that it is not differing views or beliefs that cause the problem, nor the expressing of them, but those bad responses or attitudes that many display towards another who expresses, (or practices), different views or beliefs to them.
Some of the poems included are just general poetry. More poems might
be added to this site, and existing poems may be upgraded at any time.
Comments, (or various
diagrams), may also appear at the bottom of some poems, but such
comments will not be particularly in-depth, as
my primary focus is my poetry. For more in-depth comments, one can
visit the likes of my Bits 'n' Bobs page, (secular), or my A
Biblical Potpourri page, (Christian), both a much later creation of mine, and
where some subjects covered by my poetry are elaborated on now.
My
website was designed and produced at no cost to me, for which I am very grateful.
If I have overlooked giving someone credit regarding comments on my
site, I am happy to be contacted so that I can rectify the situation.
Please feel free to download and distribute my poems.
NB: Though I am
happy for anyone to download and use my poems, (including
publishing them in bulletins, magazines, etc), it doesn't necessarily
mean that I endorse the way in which they're used, where they're used,
or those who're using them, (including those who may promote my site). Please
bear in mind that all my poems are copyrighted and therefore must not be
altered and must bear my name. If you wish more details, just click the
button at the bottom-left corner of the page to read the relevant
Creative Commons License.
My usage of any quotes is not an automatic endorsement of those who first spoke or wrote them.
This website is a personal website, and is not affiliated with any
group, movement, or organization. However, folk may wish to link to
this site, which they're free to do.
I am happy to hear from you, so please feel free to contact me using the feedback form on the Contact page.
Regarding biblical texts that appear on most
poems: Where not indicated otherwise, the Scripture quotations
contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible,
copyright, 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National
Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All
rights reserved.
Other versions used include the RSV, NIV, KJV, NKJV, ESV and NASB.
Kind regards,
My Prayer For You
May the God whom all glory is due, fill your heart with His tender love,
And may the Spirit work within you, with empowering from above,
May God also place charity, grace and compassion within your heart,
And not just inner joy too, but peace, contentment; and courage impart.
May the loving God above, with His wisdom and truth encompass you,
And may He guide your every step, thus showing you what to say and do,
May His presence fill your every day, and expressions of His great love,
And may He constantly send angels with protection from up above.
May the God whom those angels praise, restrain any who would do you ill,
And may He also take into account all your desires with His will,
May strength for every trial, (when such strength is required), be granted to you,
And wherever His moulding is needed, may His gentleness show through.
May the gracious God above, give a greater understanding to you,
And may He send you encouragement, and friends that are caring and true,
May all suffering that's encountered be softened, and comfort given,
And any powers of darkness from your home and your life be driven.
To God the Father, this I thus pen, in Jesus' Holy name, Amen.
By Lance Landall
Don't Believe in God? Not interested in Christianity?
Have you considered the following?
Could not believing in God be one of the reasons for the many rapes, murders, assaults, abuses, etc, that our world is so full of today — in other words, no God, no accountability? Let me clarify that a little more. If one doesn’t believe in God, then one most likely doesn’t believe in a day of reckoning. And I guess one might order their life on that basis. What I mean is, why would someone necessarily concern themselves with what they might do, if at the end of their life, there was no punishment for the unrepentant wrongdoer, and no paradise for those who choose to live rightly and lovingly. If one wasn’t caught by the authorities, what they could get away with would only be limited by the degree of their creativeness. After all, if life didn’t exist beyond the grave for us, if there wasn’t a bigger picture, what on earth would be the point or purpose in morality, human rights, etc, one could ask.
Even worse would be happening today if it weren’t for the fact that some are simply motivated to do the correct thing because they don’t want to take a chance on risking prison, punishment of some other kind, or some sort of self inflicted repercussion. The motives of others for refraining from lawlessness, might, for example, simply be upbringing, social pressure, or simply a lack of opportunity. So where would a sincere distaste of evil, a true genuine sense of right and wrong, and a truly unselfish desire to do good come from. It’s certainly not something you can legislate or force, though there are some who might like to try. How does love for our fellowman get into one's heart to start with? Where does one's conscience come from?
Doesn’t having a hope beyond the grave, a belief in a God, and a day of reckoning, help to hold society in check? Otherwise, what’s the alternative? Survival of the fittest, dog eat dog, the law of the jungle? Sounds evolutionary doesn’t it? Incidentally, Darwin didn’t think his evolutionary theory – yes it is only a theory – would take off like it did.
When one looks at the miracle of new birth, the wonder of the animal kingdom, and the beauty and complexity of nature itself, not to mention the human body, its hard not to believe in an incredible, intelligent, powerful, Divine source. Likewise, love, mercy, compassion, kindness, tender human expressions, etc, must emanate from somewhere, and that somewhere could surely only fit with a Someone, that is, an amazing, loving, and caring God. On the other hand, any opposition to a God like that, and His Word, would surely have to come from a negative source, one that would really only fit with a devil, hence why the devil mentioned in the Christian Bible [God’s Word] neatly fits that picture. Only that sort of scenario makes some sense out of it all. A beautiful newly made creation [planet earth], humans given free choice and control of their habitation, rebellion, planet earth and mankind corrupted, death and decay, a perpetrator behind it all [Satan – a malcontent angel], and a concerned savior [the creator God, king of all the worlds] watching and awaiting the eventual climax of the perpetrators plan. A great universal controversy between good and evil. Wouldn’t allowing such a thing, instead of instantly snuffing it out, help humanity to clearly see forever more the result of rejecting what was right and best in the first place, therefore preventing another disaster, and showing how merciful and longsuffering this God is? That He is not a dictator. After all, a God who creates beings with freedom of choice instead of making them robots, (after all, voluntary love is the only love worth having), would hardly in a renewed environment [a renewed earth], change them into robots the second time around. That would be the ultimate contradiction!
Today we seemingly live in a never ending world of change and instability. Surely what we need today is something that never changes, something that gives us reassurance. With all the theories doing the rounds today, a master blueprint to refer back to is surely needed more than ever. The Bible? Could it be that Christians have been forsaking what they once upheld? The Bible not for you? Once again, what’s the alternative? Communism, fascism, mysticism, New Age [actually old age wrapped in new clothing]? Mankind has never been able to find an answer within itself. It just chases its tail. One only has to look at history. Mankind is like a ship in a bottle — clearly only something from outside can save it. Look at where mankind is now. To think that we can cure this mess we’re in is to act like the proverbial ostrich with its head in the sand.
Our seas are polluted beyond redemption, our land masses likewise. The ecological system is in tatters, the very air we breathe contaminated, even food we eat. Calamities are increasing rapidly, (funny how the Bible predicts all that), lawlessness is rampant, and the list goes on. Its like everything is going wrong. It’s clear that it's all going to end somewhere, sometime. Where would you like it to end? Wouldn’t a new and better life beyond this present one be the answer? Hope for the future? Life beyond the grave?
Personally, my hope and trust is in God and His Word. Each day His Word is validated by what we see happening around us, along with the disturbing world events. All predicted and all on track.
Tell me, what are you putting your trust and hope in, or aren’t you? It’s food for thought, isn’t it?
