Just to Vent

"Behind the Order"

At the register, there's someone standing, ready to take your order.
Behind the bar, there's a server, he offers you a cup for a beverage of choice.
Behind the buffet shield, there's a team member, she waits for your request.
Behind those mentioned, there's the unseen prep crew, cooking up your favorites.
And in the far-back corridors, there's another 1 or 2, sanitizing, rinsing, drying, shelving, breaking down boxes, organizing,
sanitizing, etcetera.
Then there are those who scurry, with a professional jaunt to specific questions, untimely demands, and never-wanted spills.
They may remember your name, they may take note of your favorite team, dish, or both.
But whoever it is, your less-than-perfect outing takes effort.
Some hands involved, consider your position, even though they never greet you.
Others, they were literally there, at your booth, prior to joining the team.
But regardless of motives or experience, the team needs each member...
including you.
You are the guest, the reason we exist.
And your favorable-thanks is a plus to our unknown concerns.
Speaking of which, one of the workers, someone who provides to your table,
that individual confides to another team member...
I am living in my car...
The same vehicle that brought you your meal.


Note: This poem is a true account: Remember him in your prayers.


-IDEA

"Match made in heaven"
The match does not need the matchbox to start a fire.
But it does need friction. It needs the right kind of chemistry and contact,
otherwise, the swipe of the match is like a demoted credit card.
It is useless, well, for it's primary purpose: to create fire, light, warmth, that fragrant smell.
Sure, there are other ways to start a fire, to get a flame to rise up.
But on the natural occasion, friction is needed-- somewhere.
It may be invisible odds yielding such traction, but friction may stir up the spark needed.
Now, this is not to be confused with wrongful tension, or anything inappropriate.
Rather, it is a comment on how ignition takes the twisting against, a helpful friction,
to spawn a shining life. No matter how dim the wick, the room is brighter;
no matter how cold the atmosphere, warmth, when match is lit, enters.
Then again, perhaps this is bleak understanding, my own misconception that is premature.
And the right sort of friction has yet to illuminate this sitting in the dark.
Oh, how I can't wait, then, for luck to strike.

--IDEA

(just for fun)

Humidifier of faith, it does not douse the dry-hearted.
It does not lavish a tidal wave of liquid into the air, much less onto the floors.
But it does maintain a subtle freshness for one's experience, so that certain plants withstand the arid;
so the sleeping human does not bleed-- as much. Yes, breathing is easier.
But where to place one's faith humidifier is of great importance, just as knowing when and where to place a plant--
or like knowing where to plant one's face for sleep-- helps sustain intended vibrancy.
If it is placed in the doghouse; sure, the pet may breathe better, but the plant will weaken.
If it is placed in the corner of a closet, covered by a to-do-list of luggage to be sorted, then
one's household will likely grow stale... faster. However, if the humidifier of faith,
produced by Christ, is set within our hearts. Well, the plants may die...
but we will persevere.

To God be the glory, in Jesus' name, amen.

The river is frozen to some, but the same river is flooding to others.
Life as you know it, it is not life in its entirety.
There are parts that are hidden from your recollection.
There are those parts that are yet to be collected.
But the River is too much for one human to contain.
--without the help of a deity.

Thankfully,
Scripture says that "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”
My heart is one end of the River, a branch to the Divine.
And it is not the best part. But by His Grace,
I am part of the River.
I hope I am not lukewarm... any longer.

--IDEA

A tree slammed into the roof of my room.
It came with little notice, to me.
But my dad knew.
He reminded my mother.
"It's going to fall"
Reluctantly, she led my sister and I out of there.
And just in time.
The thudding crash shook me to the core,
as I crossed through the doorway, into a safer place.

In this world, weight of worry and the threat of failure looms over our Room.
Some of us wonder how long until impact, others doubt the First Fall ever occurred.
But then there are some, professionally or not, who claim the End is fast-approaching.

My mom doubted my dad. In her case, the reluctance only delayed a safe passage.
And my dad, not always the wisest, was proved right by nature.
Perhaps, then, we skeptics can learn from this.

Eventually, the tree Falls or Dies or is Cut Down.
Here is Good News, it is up to Christ, not the loudest member of society, to lead us safely.
And it is real wisdom to follow Him.

--IDEA

What is your aim today?
What do you shoot for?
What is the goal you mean to make?
Will you impulsively fire?
Or will you consider the stakes?
What is your aim today?

This is just to vent, a little editing....

"Catching a Few"

Cat stashes his musings under the porch of the day.
Cats we find entertaining--
'til the sharp claws enter our way.
Cat, which pounces at anything,
Is sly, like a snake as it approaches,
Cats will hunt for the kill,
but they still expect food in their dishes.
Cat will pretend not to care, but then when you turn--
Cat is there!
Cats demand that you pet them, 'til you become their scratching-post instead.
Cat and Cats are entertaining, with their mewing and silly-cat-playing,
but always be ready for cats who are boring-- they'll get you if you're snoring.

"Rushing vs. Trusting"

Lord, in Jesus' Name,
Where do I fit in with your plans for me?
Am I okay, to just trust you?
Or must I find my space and fill it?
Or do we work together, regardless; overtime if needed?

I am curious about today. Like, what stories will be told?
Will I hear a good topic, will I learn something new?
Or will I be the one teaching?
And if so, then who?

Lord, in Jesus' name,
I am listening for your correction.
But until I see the way I'm to take,
I'll continue moving in every direction.

So Show me, Lord,
and Speak.
For my discernment is unsteady.
I don't mean to rush your Wisdom.
But I think I'm about ready

Still, if you know that I'm not,
the person for today's plot,
then God, please do what you must--
and Stop me from messing up Trust.

"Snitchin'"

Take a moment,
look at the fridge.
What do you find?
What's written on it?

Is there a picture,
a reminder, a note,
or a magnet?
Is there a whiteboard,
a recipe, to-do list,
or a mirror?

The outside of the fridge can tell me your priorities.
Are you simple, expressive, about a family?
Do you post your discounted offers,
or messages from doctors?
Do you use matching colors, or does that seem to matter?

Your refrigerator may not have artificial intelligence--
But it is the kitchen's snitching informant.

--IDEA

"Better Consideration"

Lord, you are better than we deserve.
Your answer to our ambitions is unheard of consideration.
You are best-intentioned and your timing is flawless.
Even when we think you are off the mark,
when you have made a dreadful mistake,
You have a way of proving us wrong.
You created the earth and its intricate origins,
based off of your good pleasure, not from a favored story or a to-be-told myth.
You created man with just as much depth as the earth's supposed core,
only it is packed into vessels of flesh, rather than the interior of revolving rock.
You made creation of all kinds, but you made only one kind, at least on this planet...
in your image. Yet, we messed it up, we still do.
You were grateful for your good work,
but you are angered by our folly and pride.
More than that, you grieved your greatest creation,
first-- through Adam, then during the time of Noah,
and time and time again, You considered us.
Yet we chose the easy path, compared to the right one.
And so sin entangled again... and again... and again.
Of course, your grace and wisdom did not stop working.
As you pruned, restored; pruned, restored; pruned, restored.
And still do this. But never was there a person or people,
so Restorative, then the Vessel of Christ, the one you fulled resided in as full-flesh, tempted, yet withstanding it all.
Yes, God, you consider us-- even to the death.
Only, death could not keep Jesus down.
For hell, the hounding of Satan, nor any tomb has victory over You.
And so he got up. And you Reign with another reason to be praised.
Therefore, while today may feel like too much.
While the hours may stretch themselves into pain's echo-chamber within my chest,
I can remember your considering from the onset of creation,
through inevitable pressures, to the Ultimate Restoration.
I just pray that you gut out anything that is unfit.
Cut off anything that will not adapt to Your Surrounding Triumph.
And let the better part of me, because of You, point others to you...
and how you consider...
even us.

In Jesus' name, amen.

"Missing"

Ever stop to tie your shoe laces,
only to find the person walking with you went on ahead?
You nearly trip, after getting up in a hurry, trying to catch up.
Only, as fast as you sprint for your awaiting party,
a bewildering sensation cuts you off within your chest, because you cannot locate the lost.
Because, really, it is the lost who seeks; all the while, you are wanting to be found.

At first, you knew you were going the right way.
You hoped that you could track down the one who disappeared.
Yet, after regaining your breath from the hustle, you wonder:
Am I sure this is the way? Now what do I do?
And so you crouch down... again.

it is not the time to tie your shoes, however; it's time to pray.

(Quasi-related note:

I'll never forget my 60-something professor running after a train.
When desire to hear from God matches the effort to catch a train,
that is when we are on the right track spiritually.)

You'd prolly get more responses if you were to post just one at a time.

I don't write for response. They are welcome, if they are with good intentions. Even those with selfish intentions God can use.
Thanks, Absolem. I know you mean well. I write to vent, to practice, to pray, and to communicate. But communication for reading responses is the least of my reasons.

Sure, I like to see someone liked something, but I write for different reasons. Sometimes, I just need to capture the outline of a thought. This thread is that... for me.

"Disconnected"

The phone call is long in showing signs of life,
it is tempting potential, still on the "hook" of my pocket.
It is a promise of someone cares,
but there is no sound to signal someone's there.
It weighs me down, while I hope for anyone to lift me up.
It clutters the lint, coins, and collected trash--
things picked up and put away for eventual dismissal.
Yet the expensive item of communication is trash itself.
Yet I hold on to it, waiting for good use.
A good conversation.

Wait.
I just realized.
That thread of paper,
folded,
the one bent (three-times over)
...it is your number.

The sign is not a text.
It is a scribbled "call me."

So I pick up the phone.

...........

"Hello?"

--IDEA

You wait for me to answer you.
ask me questions to benefit you.
while all the time, I never satisfy.
You ask me questions,
which gets me asking why.

I clear my mind, to speak what's true.
But the truth is not what's sought by you.
So I play it down, while you drown me out.
Waiting for the time when we aren't so loud.

I pray for me, that I'll be for you...
The person that God intends me to.
And For your benefit, not your mind.
For your salvation, and not mine.

But either way, your questions are.
Welcomed because I know they are.
Your way of seeking and sharing your concern.
Regardless of my answers, I hope you learn.

And not too late, but when you're through.
When you finally hear what He means for you.

When you get the answer to the question asked,
"Why? Why won't his questions pass me by?"

By then, I may be gone...
or too frail or dead to carry on.
But God will Be, to answer you.

Hint: Love is in the answer...
The "Why" is you.

(John 3:16)

Note: The following is run-on prayer-poem. No editing.
Logical disconnect and misspelling is likely. God knows.
And as the poem suggests. I cannot thank Him enough.

Lord, I praise, but not enough.
My prime is on the horizon;
life is tough.
I am trying to get by with the joy of Christ.
but the afflictions I face, they threaten my life.
I am getting older, but I don't know when...
my last breath of praise will have been.
So I resolve at this moment,
to make this my most recent,
proclamation of how your grace is sufficient.
And the cross of Christ was a tool,
to pull the soul from the Descent.
that was meant to be the pay after-day.
However the hell's thanks for me would me a no-thanks with eternal pain.
It would be that without Jesus' name.
With your will stepping in through a man,
one who was beaten for being honest,
announcing Salvation's Plan.
And so I, while the Deep claws for the me-heel,
to destroy what is Saved,
Satan's hypothesis is hypocritical, to "suppose that God did not."
Well, I'm one more person to share he Does, Will, and Has.
He has a plan for you.
He has plan for how to use what you've been though.
And he has a plan for the enemy of our souls.
And He is Faithfully at Work...
Problem-Solving in His Resolving to Absolve the Abyss, called the Mouth of He Who Boasts as False Witness.
And so we know, while we cannot see clearly.
That God is Lord, now and eternally.
In fact, he does not react.
He is the Cause of Hope.
He is the Reason that made Creation.
And He is how I face today.

Lord, I can't thank you enough.
But thanks for giving more, out of love.
Thanks for ripping the roaring lion of a Lier.
Thanks for tripping the one who tried to be Your Greater.
Showing the world just how Wonderful and Holy and Worthy of praise you are.

Lord, therefore, unlike Lucifer, help me to accept my God-given position.
I am not God, I am grateful. However, like me, my praising you will never be enough.

Still, Your Spirit compels me. Thanks, in Jesus' name, amen.

You clearly have a creative spirit, IDEAtor! God is so good...

I've enjoyed reading. Thank you for sharing.

Keep on being you, dude!

The "way of death,"
chosen by the one who made Breath.
He did this so you and I would not Die.
Some of us will scorn his worth,
while others will doubt our own.
But there are some (of those mentioned)
who will praise Christ-on-His-Throne.

Still, there are those who will forfeit Grace, with every breath of life received.
Yes, they will lose their life to deny the Christ, because they won't believe.
They'll refuse to, choose to, accept the one, "to whom all praise is due."
And sadly, they will hate those who love Him. Because they're blinded by their own sin.

Yet, who am I to say one will buy the Lie?
Why would I deny those who have a chance to change?
Especially, when I know that God is above All Obstacles?
When God's within heart-range?

I mean, our time is fleeting. But God's an Ever-Present Help.
We may seek to outrun Him, but He's already at that someplace else.
In fact, he can raise up dry bones, when no life will praise His Name.
The Only One who will rescue some is He Who is the Same.

He is not predictable in detail, but He's revealed Himself to many.
He is not confused by the cunning Con, or delayed by deceit of any.
Instead, He is Perplexing, because He Always Wins.
He does not cheat, though he will "lose," to draw more men to Him.

So, while many women abandon, or are left behind themselves.
God sees Wickedness behind her masks and how Satan seeks for thrills.
The Lord hears the cries of the innocent; Christ even died for the sinner.
The Lord will visit Death-- to Destroy it, not for another dinner.

So, perhaps you are a humanitarian, whose hope is in hidden treasures.
You travel the globe, or your own backyard, to dig up for someone's pleasures.
The problem here, is God is Now Here. He's not six-feet under.
You'd do better to invest in He Who is Best, than to trust in temporary plunder.

There you have it, the truth of the Gospel. Only, it's communicated with poor rhyming.
But the point is not if you like how I write, but are you right with God and His Timing?


If you are interested and hope to learn more,
about God Who Saves and how Salvation's Secured,
find a Bible or ask a Christian who reads it;
after all, within it, there's tips that are Needed.

Chicken pot pie, a smile, and friendship.
You brought each my way.
You prepared more than a meal.
You advanced a good cause...
by walking with me to the next plane of humanity, in spirit.
We went to a store as well.
You had some money given to you.
Yet your heart easily sought who else the gift could benefit.
You took some time, while I watched you gleefully see what you might get...
to later impact others for Christ.
I waited in line, while you roamed with your imagination soaring beyond set boundaries.
Then, after you wrapped it up, you shared something you received.
No, it was not at the store. It was before that.
You shared a testimony of how Scripture literally brought your memory back.
You shared how your praying mother fought for you, while doctors lectured the unknown about you.
But God knows you.
And He was not threatened.
In fact, he threaded together the split in your logic,
filling you also with brand new empathy for others.
And so you left it.
Nothing fancy to share.
Nothing fancy was bought.
But I was there.
And should I ever forget,
may I remember what you Got.
As for me, I enjoyed time spent with you.
What can I give in return?
My thanks, for starters.

Thanks.