The Christmas Lamb

A simple sheep, a little lamb,
With fleece so soft and white.
Small and frail, innocent, pure,
Born into a bigger plan.

To protect, to keep perfect and safe,
Shepherds would wrap his legs with care
Single strips of swaddling cloths,
Holding and shaping each precious limb.

Stronger he grew, frolicking and grazing,
Always under the shepherd’s watch,
Until the time came for inspection,
Until the time came for sacrifice.  

A sweet baby boy, a little child,
Born among the sheep and cattle,
Came from a virgin, a young girl,
And rested in a cold, stone cradle.

She wrapped Him in the same cloths,
The shepherds used for the sheep,
And laid him down in hay that poked,
Like the thorns of His future crown.

He grew into a man and began His ministry,
Performing miracles, preaching, and leading,
Until the world turned against Him,
Until they all demanded crucifixion.   

Like the sheep led to slaughter,
He followed with no complaint.
The Lamb of God died on the cross,
Forever taking the sheep’s place.

He returned to the bed of stone,
This time a tomb, instead of a cradle,
Wrapped again in simple cloths,
Laid down and placed for final rest.

But on the third day, He rose again,
Defeating death and darkness at once.
The little child, of humble birth,
Destroyed the hold of the serpent’s curse.

The perfect Prince took our place,
And died the death He didn’t deserve,
All so we could receive His gift, His love,
And a life with Him forever.

The little lamb, the manger scene,
The shepherd’s care, the virgin mother,
Were all part of the Master plan, the greater message:
Christmas has no meaning without Easter.

 

Splinters of Grace

A rough wooden cradle,

Hay pokes through the swaddle, 

Splinters of grace. 

Learning a craft, carpentry,

Turning wood into beauty, 

Splinters of grace. 

Carrying a cross, to His death 

Hanging from nails, fighting for breath, 

Splinters of grace. 

The weight of everyone’s sin, 

There on the cross died with Him, 

Splinters of grace. 

But death had no victory, 

He rose and conquered on day three, 

Unending grace. 

Hope and a future, love unearned, 

Sinners shown mercy undeserved, 

Unending grace. 

Shiloh Rose

A peace, a calmness, a quietness,

At depths I won’t try to explain.

Tranquility, like I’ve never known,

That overwhelms worry and pain.

More than I could ever ask for,

Or could have even dreamt.

Abundance, an overflowing cup,

Every unknown need and desire met.

A present, first wrapped in uncertainty,

That truth and love quickly replaced.

His gift, His blessing, His promise,

His light shining in a brand new face.

A name to represent all of this,

The emotions, the change, the growth,

To remember, yet look forward to,

All the beauty of Shiloh Rose.

Something Beautiful

Think about the beginning.  
Dark and uncertain,
buried beneath the surface.

Was there fear in the uncertainty?
Was their trembling in the dark?
Were there tears in the depth?

Think about the middle.
Growth and change,
emerging into the world.

Did the fear cause the change?
Did the trembling cause the debut?
Did the tears cause the growth?

Think about the display.
Beautiful and blooming,
reaching proudly to the sky.

Was it worth the fear and uncertainty?
Was it worth the trembling?
Was it worth all of the tears?

Think about the end.
Drooping and falling,
returning to the ground below.

Is the hope greater than the fear?
Is there comfort in the trembling?
Is there happiness in the tears?

Is there hope in the One
Who’s kindness and gentleness,
and love and grace know no end?

Is there trust in the One
Who planned and controls it all,
Who never makes mistakes?

Is their belief in the One
who will take all of the fear and doubt
and turn it into something beautiful?

Simon Ray

two small lines that meant so much,
drawn by Hands who create life.
just a moment, memory,
the start of new love and light.

filled with wonder, filled with hope,
of all to come, of all you’d be.
worried of being enough,
wondering if we were ready.

the months went by slow, but quick,
the time came for us to meet.
excitement, fear, tied in one,
my doubts had to take a back seat.

holding you in my arms, the
happy tears in your dad’s eyes,
our family, now made of three,
at the sound of your first cries.

i’m humbled, awestruck, thankful,
for all that’s brought us to today.
for the miracle God brought us,
the miracle of Simon Ray.

Yours

a new role, a new look
on life and all that matters.

a little hand now grasps
my heart, changing how I see

my faith, Your love, Your son,
and all that You’ve done for me.

i can’t write the story
You’ve already done just that.

so why do i still try
to take the pen, rewrite it?

all that does is cause me
worry, and costs time, peace, sleep.

it does no good for me
to grip, cling to my plans when

nothing I do or say
can change the good of Your ways.

even though i hold him,
treasure and protect his heart,

You are the author, the
Creator, the Sustainer

of his life. i can’t change
what is to come, because You

have it all planned. but i
trust and give him to Your will.

he is Yours, not mine, and
You are much greater than i.

Caroline’s Purpose: Doubting God

“Connor watched as Caroline ran her fingers through Edison’s forelock. He could see her mouth moving but couldn’t hear anything she was saying. He leaned into the stall door, in awe as the stallion was already as calm as he had been with her the other day. She did have a gift. A gift that she had given up on because of fear. A gift he wanted to help her rediscover.

‘God, help me here. Give me the right words to talk to her.’ he thought to himself.

“Caroline, can I…?” Connor stopped, and cleared his throat.

Caroline looked over her shoulder at him. “Can you ask me something?” She grinned as she teased him.

“Well… yeah. Sorry. Old habits are hard to break.”

She laughed. “No worries. Do you want to come in here? Maybe hand me his grain bucket, see if he’ll eat?”

Connor nodded as he came into the stall. He grabbed the bucket and stepped over to Caroline and Edison. The stallion perked his ears, looking at the bucket with interest.

Caroline took it from Connor and cradled it in her arms. “Hungry, big guy? You can eat.”

Edison put his head down and began chewing on his dinner. Caroline looked up at Connor, her eyes the happiest he had ever seen. “So, what did you want to ask me?”

Connor reached over and patted Edison on the neck. “Remember when we had lunch in the union? You told me you used to believe in God, but you didn’t want to explain it then. Do you think you could now?”

Caroline looked away from him, her eyes falling to Edison’s ears. Connor watched her blink as she bit her lip. He took a step closer to her.

“I’m sorry. You don’t have to.” Connor put his hand on her arm.

She looked up at him again as she felt his touch. “No, it’s okay. It’s pretty simple.”

“Simple?”

“Yeah.” Caroline shrugged her shoulders. “I’ve had to deal with too much pain and loss to keep believing He cares about me or my future.”

“I can understand that. Completely.” Connor swallowed.

“You can?” Caroline wrinkled her forehead as she looked at him.

“Yeah, I can.” He had asked God to give him the right words to say to her so many times over the last few months. And now, he knew what he had to do. He had to tell Caroline about Emily.”

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Hidden

Folded in, hiding from the outside,

Keeping everything that she can, safe.

Not just her beauty, not just her thoughts,

But her growth, potential, even faith.

The sun, heat, and wind had beat her down.

Without any sign of rain, relief,

She had given up and adjusted,

Accepting her loneliness and grief.

Then the sun shifted, clouds took the heat,

And the wind brought in the needed rain.

She was hesitant, fearful, unsure,

Worried she’d lose, before she could gain.

But the weather stayed patient, kind, sure,

Even through her doubts, her pain, her fear,

He kept peaking through, showing her love,

Reassuring her he was right here.

He saw her, knew her, through the damage,

And treasured, cherished her, and could see

Not just who she had been, or was, but,

Also, always, who she could be.