“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” Matthew 5:7 (NIV) A foil against the sword of strife and stridency Mercy Is a cool drink of water on a hot day Upside down Inside out And Counter our flawed intuitive The laws of this country are unexpected And Better Just Better Just (ice) Better
Human Beings
Human beings People we love(d) trust(ed) Never stop Giving us Reasons to Practice Forgiveness Grace Strength Grace Strength Grace We Need You Now
Step Outside
When the system is stacked against you (and it is) And you have no more fight (left) Step outside the system (take a deep breath) And Step into (rather) His Freedom His Grace His Purpose His Love His Peace He is for you (when nothing else is)
Your Plans
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” Jeremiah 29: 11 (NIV) I am waiting Listening Pressing into You Your Heart So That I Can Hear Your plans For me (And get on board) Face Forward No looking back
Paint by Numbers
Paint by numbers Are good for those Who Can Colour in the lines I (and many others) Can't
Your Hands
Your hands Lined with grease and strong with hard work Warm my screaming fingers and toes Protesting that I stayed too long on the ice Who can come in? On a perfect Saskatchewan winter night Ice Cold Clear Sky Skates scraping We are magical and powerful And we skate and skate till we can’t feel our fingers and toes anymore And then the rink shack beckons us with it’s Warm fire and Smell of wet wool and Export A cigarettes and Black rubber mats and Your hands.
Thicker Skin
I would like an outfit of thicker skin That I could just don when I need it When words And systems And processes And theologies Rip mine and unclothe me Leaving me Vulnerable And Shivering And Weak And Cold
What If This is the Day
The blank page mocks me What if this is the day That I have nothing to say What if this is the day That It all stops That The good beginnings Come To An End I resist And call forth my soul To create To redeem To build To bring Life Fill me Spirit For without You I Am Death
Please Don’t Call Me Christian
Please don't call me Christian I want a new family name Ours is blackened beyond use or Reasonable recognition and I'm ashamed to be associated with It (with you) Because You've sullied it completely With your Flag Waving Hatred And Racism And Sexism And Greed And Lust for Power And Politics And Privilege And Violence And Ignorance And Malice toward the many who don't fit into your boxes (whoever that might be) I don't want a moniker at all What is the good way forward Father What is The Way The Truth The Life Now
Just Economy
One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. Proverbs 11:24 (NIV) I give You give I withhold You withhold A just economy
Colleen R. Jantzen 