God Will Provide

Photo Credit: www.goodsalt.com

LOVE AND THE AKEDAH

The Binding of Isaac – Genesis 22

"Take your son

your only son

whom you love…"

Twenty-two chapters into Scripture

and it's the first time love is mentioned

as God tells Abraham,

"sacrifice Isaac

as a burnt offering"

What swirls

through the mind

of this old patriarch

(who after a hundred years

fathers the son

of God's promise…

the son he loves and

proudly watches grow)

What swirls as he swings

the sharp axe, splitting wood

It was three days journey

from Beersheba to Moriah—

Leaving his servants behind

Abraham hands Isaac

the bundled wood

and carries fire and knife

up the mount

himself

"Avi" (my father)

"where is the lamb?"

"God will provide the lamb

my son"

Abraham erects an altar of stone

arranges the wood and binds the lad

(whose faith and obedience

must be at least as great as his own)

Unflinching before the God

he has finally come to trust

the aged patriarch

(known to lie

to save his own skin

known to try to pull off

God's covenant himself

when it seemed God was slow

in keeping His promise)

this same patriarch…

raises the glinting blade

above his son, his only son

whom he loves…

Split-second

to knife-fall

the angel of the Lord calls

"Abraham! Abraham!

Do not lay a hand on the boy…"

The old man

who proves he would

withhold nothing from his God—

drops the bloodless blade

unbinds and embraces Isaac

O boundless relief

Effusive praise

and there, tangled

in a thicket, struggles

the substitute sacrifice

…a ram

Two millennia later

God's Son

His only Son

Whom He loves

carries wood

of a crossbeam

up the very same mountain

No angel of the Lord

arrives last moment

to halt the hammer fall

No ram appears

in a thicket

For God so loves

the world

He provides…

His Son

His only Son…the Lamb

Maude Carolan

Listen to the Songbirds...

Photo Credit: my.nature.org

 BIRDSONG

I opened a window

to let birdsong in.

Warbles, twitters and chirps

from the great oak

filled the room

with nature’s rhapsody.

God could’ve

given winged creatures

brays, snorts, whinnies or croaks,

but He gave them songs.

Whose delight is greatest,

His, theirs or mine?

Maude Carolan

I thought this would be a good poem to begin the summer. It's an oldie. It appeared in my chapbook, "God Could've" which is now out of print.

It's All About...The Lamb, Vol. 17, Issue 2

June 15, 2014
Vol. 17, Issue 2

It’s all about…The Lamb

Maude Carolan Pych/Quarterly Poetry Letter

“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches

and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” Rev 5:12 NASB

It’s all about…The Lamb is a quarterly publication for lovers of the Holy Lamb of God, who also enjoy poetry. The purpose is to magnify our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and inspire an ever-deepening relationship with Him, the lover of our souls…

I’M CELEBRATING “TWO” BIG BIRTHDAYS…

As usual, June is busting out all over with gala celebrations…weddings, First Communions, graduations, recitals, etc. This June two celebrations are for me. Celebration #1 was June 3^rd, my 70^th birthday. The festivities began in May with a bus trip to beautiful Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, then onto an intimate lakeside dinner with my hubby, birthday cake with my siblings, a dinner at the Jersey Shore with my children and grandchildren and a get-away with daughter Beth to Point Pleasant, where I accompanied her on a brief business trip. To top things off, the icing on the cake will be a cruise to Bermuda later this summer with my entire family…Wow!!! All this fun takes the sting of turning a new decade completely away! (Well, almost!)

Birthday #2 is my spiritual birthday…I was Born Again and filled with the Spirit, June 6^th, 35 years ago. Praise the Lord and Hallelujah! What makes this extra-special this year is that the Lord has been reigning in my heart for exactly half my life.

I have posted poems about birth and rebirth on my blog to mark these special occasions. To read them, go to http://maudespoems.com and click on the archived poems dated 6/1/14 and 6/6/14.

+ + + FEATURED POEMS + + +

The two poems I’ve selected for this edition both rhyme. They are “My Friend” and “Sky Dancers”. The first was written in 2000 and speaks of my relationship with the Lord, Who the Book of Proverbs tells us is “a friend Who sticks closer than a brother.” and the second is another oldie in sweet celebration of summer being right around the corner. I hope you enjoy reading them.

MY FRIEND

"…there is a friend

who sticks closer than a brother." Proverbs 18:34

Sometimes I go to God's house,

sometimes He visits mine;

He often comes to work with me

and helps me pass the time.

He's with me in the kitchen

when I cook and as I scrub;

I meditate upon Him

while lolling in the tub.

He keeps me company driving

and when I take a walk;

God and I stroll quietly

and other times, we talk.

God's there when I am shopping

and watering my flowers;

He inspires my writing,

in computer weary hours.

He's in me as I minister

and hears me as I pray,

lifts me up when I am downcast

and helps me through the day.

He sups with me at table

and He joins me in my rest.

Oh, when we are communing,

they're the times I like the best.

God loves it when I worship Him

and glorify His Name;

He shines His Face upon me

and ignites me with His Flame!

I read to know God better,

for He knows all about me;

fills sleepy thoughts at bedtime

with His sweet tranquility.

How blessed I am to know Him!

Love overflows my heart!

I count upon His faithfulness

and know we'll never part.

My heart is filled with gladness

every moment that I spend

with the Creator of the Universe,

Holy God, my Friend.

Maude Carolan

1. 

   Photo Credit: Flickr.com

   

   
   
   
   

   Photo Credit: Flickr.com

SKY DANCERS

There's something happy about butterflies.

They flit-flitter as they flutter by,

flying flowers against the azure sky.

They alight upon the milkweed, and then

they circle, soar and alight again,

toe-dancing on pink petals in the glen.

Ever dwelling in hue and sweet fragrance,

in garden splendor they flicker as they dance.

Pollination is purely happen-stance.

I delight in their overflow of joy.

(They wouldn't even know how to be coy.)

A flame of mirth! A whirligig! A toy!

Do they recall they once were grubby worms,

remember well their dark and squiggly squirms?

Reborn, now grace and beauty each affirms!

This almost seems to be sheer fantasy,

sky dancers as enchanting as can be,

springing from blossoms right in front of me!

So, merrily a-nectaring they go,

reaping and sowing sweetness in day-glow…

Seems they have learned what all of us should know.

In contemplation of their simple ways,

I wish to add their ballet to my days,

to sky dance gracefully on wings of praise!

Maude Carolan Pych

Comments are always welcome and appreciated. If possible, please post them to the website.

Look for the next edition of It’s All About…The Lamb, September 15, 2014

A FEW CLOSING WORDS…

Dear Reader/Subscriber,

I hope you have a delightful summer! 

In the meantime, every hour of the day…

May God be with ewe,

Maude

After God’s Own Heart Publishing

P.O. Box 2211, Woodland Park, NJ 07424

thelamb777@optimum.net

http://maudespoems.com

TWO!! Birthdays This Week

Photo credit: pageresource.com

THE UPPER ROOM

In remembrance of Pentecost 1979—

The Upper Room Charismatic Prayer Group at the Parish Center,

St. Catherine of Bologna RC Church, Ringwood, NJ—

Father Matthew Gaskin, pastor

Here I am, Lord

at the podium in The Upper Room

reading my poems again

The Upper Room—

room of my second birth

where thirty-five years ago

after questioning Your existence

and the meaning of life

the truth of the Gospel became real to me—

Yes, it was here, in this very place

that Father Matthew delivered the prayer

for those of us who desired to be Born Again

and filled with the Holy Spirit—

a birth both spiritual and virginal

from the Seed of God alone

a prayer that changed our lives

completely and forevermore

There was no primal cry at our rebirth

but exultant cries of “Hallelujah!”

and Pentecostal utterances

No amniotic fluid

but streams of Living Water

and Second Chapter of Acts tongues of fire

that we couldn’t see with our eyes

but knew in the realm of the Spirit

were blazing above our heads

In a wonderful and mysterious way

that night and this room was reflective

of another Pentecost; another upper room

another descent of the Spirit—

somewhere in Jerusalem, 2000 years ago

We became new creations that night

like those believers of old—

burning with Light

that has not grown dim

Maude Carolan Pych

On Tuesday I celebrated my 70th birthday; today (Thursday) I am celebrating my 35th spiritual birthday. I have been Born Again for exactly half my life and it's been an amazing journey.

This poem was originally published in the 15th anniversary poetry anthology of the St. Catherine of Bologna Patron of the Arts Exhibition held in Ringwood, NJ, in March. 

NUMBERING MY DAYS...

Photo: buzzle.com

NUMBERED DAYS

 “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,

which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

I imagine her fright

was practically unbearable

when late to motherhood

those first contractions came—

too early

and I began traveling

down the birth canal—

prematurely

Oh, I’m certain she worried

as she endured the pangs

of relentless contractions

worried and wondered and prayed

as she watched hours tick away

on the clock on the wall—

worried

(until they numbed both mind and body

by administering ether)    

if I would make it

or if her lifelong dream

of motherhood

would be forever dashed

but her dream was not dashed

and they scurried to place me

in an incubator

I was very, very tiny

yet it looked as though

I would make it

but a day or two later

as she held me in her loving arms

and fed me at her giving breast—

I stopped breathing

and my flesh turned cold and blue

She screamed a scream

that surely shook the hospital walls

A nurse came running—

grabbed me by my feet

smacked me on the bottom

and praise God

I began to breathe again

and that indicates to me

that the One

Who has numbered my days

and multiplied my breaths

had a purpose

and the fact that I’m still here

sixty-nine years

and counting

indicates He has more

for me to do

and all I want Him to know is

Lord, here am I

Maude Carolan Pych

The above poem was written last year. I decided to post it here today because I'll be celebrating a milestone birthday this week...my 70th! Praise the Lord & Hallelujah! This is especially significant, because I will also be celebrating the 35th anniversary of my spiritual birth this week. I was Born Again at Pentecost, 1979, so the Lord has been reigning in my heart for exactly half my life. Inviting Jesus into my heart was the greatest decision I ever made.

"Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." 

Psalm 90:12, NIV