bold bright colors

8/9/2019 Bold Bright Colors

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Bold Bright Colors

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Table Of Contents

Introduction p3

Splash p4

Wildfire p6

the path He shows me p8

The Clods The Rapids and the Lords Hand p12

When The June Bugs Were Hummin p15

In A Nutshell p18

At Bay p21

Its Like The Prodigal, Man p23

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Bold Bright Colors

I used to wish I could paint. Had I been given the chance, I would have painted

everything in large brazen strokes, and bold, bright colors. Vincent Van Gogh's

work was like a revelation to me so near to my aspirations, so far ahead of my tal-

ents.

Yet the Lord has given me brushes and colors to paint with, readily available and

within my reach through the most unlikely applicator, the keyboard. It is no coinci-

dence that through the years I vacuumed up every nuance of every word, every

color of meaning, in all of the many books I'd read. He was building an arsenal in

my mind which I had no idea I would be needing, an arsenal which can never beexhausted. As long as He prompts me, I will write.

This is a collection of the more creative things I have written, most of which I have

posted on my blog. If you like these bits of creative expression please leave a

comment. I will enjoy reading them no matter what you have to say, praise or criti-

cism, crabby or funny I will treasure them all. So dont be shy about it.

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Splash

I am standing on a dock, it is a crisp, cool morning and the water looks

cold, it is calm this morning and little ripples lap quietly against the dock pil-

ings. Appearances are deceiving, because I have been in this lake before.

The water has always been warm and comfortable, but my skin crinkles up

in goose bumps at the thought of entering the water, the chilling mist which

drifts up around me only heightens the feeling that I should stay away, I

know what I need to do, I need to get over my fears, I need to be in the wa-

ter, I need to just jump.

The decision is made and I am flying through the air, I am about to hit the

surface, I am smiling, I am happy, soon, oh so quickly I will be one with the

water. I will be where I am supposed to be.

Splash.

I once looked down into a pool, at the deep end, I was young seven, maybe

eight, I couldnt swim, oh I could dog-paddle a little, very little, but no, I

really couldnt swim, off to the side my parents were urging me to jump in.

They didnt know what I knew, they didnt know that if I jumped in I would

drown. I knew this, but at their insistence I jumped in and I started flailing

and sinking. My Dad swam over and pulled me out. He seemed disgusted

with me. I never wanted to enter the water again, but I was wrong. I learned

to swim despite my parents attitude. I had to, I had to get past the jeering,

the looks of disgust, or die of shame, I did get past them, because God

helped me.

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We can spend our whole lives on land, we can build our worlds in such a

way that we neednt think of entering the water. We can shut off the views

of the river, the lakes, and the endless ocean beyond. But there is some-

thing which calls to us from the water, the constant motion of the waves,

the wind in our faces, the smells on the breeze, the quiet depths. Some-

times, short of putting on our swimsuits, we just like to look at it.

This is what it is like for us, we are all standing on the brink of God s great

mercies. We are looking down into the depths of the inestimable love of the

one who died that we might live, and we are tempted to chicken out.

It is because in our native form we are dry, we are dry and water scares us.

We imagine that our dry substance is what we are. We are empty desert

and moisture would destroy the dry uniformity we have become comfort-

able with, but we need not fear, dry dirt plus water is mud, the kind of thing

God made us from in the first place. If we look to Him the Spirit of God will

bring forth in each of us a spring of living water. This is not a vain imagin-

ing, Jesus said it would be so. When we have a spring we are sprinkled

with His provision and in our moist potential, He can mold our mud into

something wonderful. When we have the spring inside us, we need no

longer fear the water. We can jump into the sea, into the fullness of His

grace.

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Wildfire

I had a peculiar feeling the other day, so I sat down to write what the Lord was say-

ing to me. He said this is how it is, how its going to be.

Its like the day you look up and there is smoke on the horizon and, dang, now

theres fire, man is it moving fast, and you see that no-one is escaping the fire

-woomp- there goes another neighbor and you look at your neighbors place being

consumed and you say Nooo, but there they go, they are gone already. And the

fire races on, it is heading for your place now, but it does a funny thing even

though the wind is blowing like crazy, even though the flames are jumping from

ten feet high to forty during the gusts. the fire is splitting and its going around your

place, you were looking for your big shovel and testing the water hose, but now

you just stand there and watch in puzzled fascination as the conflagration roars on

by.

Then it hits you that none of your neighbors got away in time. and you run across

the field over to Archies place and you look for the family, but they didnt make it.

and you fall on your knees and hot tears make rivulets on your ash stained cheeks.

And its tough being alive when the neighbors didnt even see it coming. They

didnt see it coming, but somehow you did. And youre standing there alone for a

while, surrounded by charred shapes, stunned, when you hear a little cry, you real-

ize its a child and you run toward the sound and sure enough Becky, the three year

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old, is hanging onto the inside rim of the open cistern. She is terrified, you reach in

and you coo and make soothing sounds and you hold back the tears. You know that

putting the child in the tank was probably the last thing her mother did. So you

pick her up and you hold the child close and you tell her its OK, and you walk

home slowly. You hold the child closer and wrap your jean jacket around her, she is

so cold from being wet and you dont mind that she is getting you wet. She is so

exhausted that she falls asleep in your arms still crying a little.

You are crushed by the devastation, your friends couldnt be saved, it was just too

quick, too thorough, yet there is joy in the saving of one life. Little whirlwinds of

black ash swirl ahead of you as you carry your precious cargo home.

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the path He shows me

why do I do the things i do?

someday i will do exactly what He wants me to.

i wish it was today but sadly it is not, it makes me sorry that i am so stub-

born

i have not arrived, no alas i have not, but here is something to consider.

My kinsman Redeemer has appeared and He will heal me,

He has and He will make me whole, and there is not a whole lot i can do

about it, but thats good because He can and He has promised to do it.

there is so little that i can do about it.

there is nothing i can do about it.

that is what is so neat He can and i can t and that is as it should be for how

else would i know how incredible He is.

if i could heal myself;

if i could manage my shattered affairs, if i could mend my tatters, my rags.

if i could see clearly, apart from Him, i would not even look His way.

thats the blindness of pride,

the blindness i exemplified.

after so very long without a clue, He got my attention,

i once thought that i would not allow utter defeat to spoil my plans,

then even that plan fell apart,

but the failures were well worth the introduction to Him.

for sitting in the ashes of failure i looked up, to Him.

the crushing defeats are as nothing compared to the warmth of His regard.

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priests dont understand it, ministers dont either, they point to salvation

and how they think, they are instrumental in the process,

yeah they missed the point, they missed the bus.

it is not what they are doing at all. it never was.

it is and always has been what He did and what He is doing. right now and

always, forever.

you know its not hard, He wants us to seek Him. no it s not hard at all.

He has always been there watching for you to look His way.

ive seen His face, it is human, that is the overwhelming part,

He has a human face full of tenderness, and understanding.

that is who He is to us, He is The Human, the first real human.

as humanity was intended.

His face is our face or how we will be

and to us His face is the Fathers face.

our kind and loving Father.

it is important to note that He never had a thought for Himself,

He thought of His Father,

He thought of the crippled, the blind, the possessed,

He thought of us, we who were still so far away, in sin and in time.

you know He could have walked away,

before the guards got to the garden,

He could have said forget it, but no, he stayed in the garden and they got

Him.

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Adam didnt make it, he stumbled on his way to the orchard. Eve was the

enabler that time so long ago, but Adam stepped out. out of the garden.

Jesus stayed in the garden and faced the music for us all,

for Adam, for you and me.

Jacob would have run away,

Moses would have run away,

Peter did run away,

I would have run away,

and we would have been right.

because He is the only one who could do it.

absolutely the only one. and He did do it.

and for that reason He deserves everything.

absolutely everything.

everything belongs to Him.

the funny thing is, He did it all, to get it all, to share it all.

His love, His life, His place with the Father,

He gives to us. because,

because of what?

because He loves us.

He loves us and wants us to be with Him,

to be found in Him.

so when He calls you

dont start looking for your jacket,

dont sit down to put on your shoes,

dont try to find your wallet.

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just go

He is all you need.

He really is you know.

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The Clods The Rapids and the Lords Hand

One morning I found myself dreaming, but unlike other times when Ive had

dreams I am aware that this is a dream, In the dream I am beginning to

wake up and I start to feel the things that are in contact with my skin, it

feels funny and Im almost certain that I have dirt clods lying all over me, I

try to shake myself awake but I am stuck in an uncertain level of con-

sciousness not completely awake and not really asleep. Then I feel it, the

agony of my spirit, it is straining against the clods, and it is aghast at the

complacency of my flesh, it is mourning the connection, it is complaining at

being tied to the clods, for you see the clods are not lying on me, the clods

are me. And my blood flows like the muddy sludge in the Missouri when the

spring rains stir up all of the silt, and the current breaks loose the boats

large and small and carries them along to their destruction.

I am suddenly aware of the feeling that someone is digging in my dirt, and I

shout dont move my dirt, I just got it the way I want it .

Then I see who is doing the digging and I recognize that it is Jesus, and He

is not really digging He is reforming, reshaping, and hey He is throwing

stuff away!

I start to shout again and then I realize, youre not supposed to shout at the

Lord even if you have a good reason. My mind interrupts and says why

not? King David shouted at Him a lot. So while I have been arguing with

myself, He has been finishing the renovation, He shakes me and says get

up, My spirit is calmed by His presence, and I no longer feel like clods all

over but there is something going on in my heart it is as if there had been a

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curtain over my heart and now it is gone and there is a really big light

brighter than a spotlight inside. Somehow even though the clods are gone I

find that my flesh is uncomfortable with the arrangement, it is trying to hide

from the light, but there is no place for it to go, no place to hide.

Then I see what He wants me to see, the road, it is gently rising towards

the mountains and my spirit does a little dance at the sight of it.

I am dragging my stubborn flesh along the road which is full of rocks and

mud holes, then I hear the Spirit not mine but His calling to mine. And I look

up and see that Jesus has joined me for my spirit called back to His. the

road is not smoother, not less muddy, but somehow now I am not feeling

every bump and rock and our pace quickens, there are fallen trees up

ahead but I begin to take my lead from what the Lord is doing, He takes my

hand and we leap over the tree trunks. It is beginning to be fun. We are

pretty much running now, then I see it. The biggest roughest rapids I have

ever seen, there is no bridge and there is so much water that I know I cant

make it.

Then the Lord does something I dont expect, He wades into the rapids,

this time I reach for His hand as we go in. It s tough there are rocks the size

of mini-vans and water gushing everywhere and pounding on me. I loose

my footing more than once, but He never skips a beat soon we are climbing

out the other side and it feels real good to be done with it. I am feeling

lighter and I look around to see what I have lost in the flood, and then I no-

tice that my body got hung up on one of the rocks, I look up at the Lord in

puzzlement and He says, today we are going to My house, dont worry you

will like it a lot.

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So on we trudge, but then I notice were not trudging, were flying.

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When The June Bugs Were Hummin

Whenever you are bummed because your life is too complicated and you

dont have any money and you dont have friends or relatives to stay with,

think about the time when you were a little kid and your folks got you one of

those swirly cones from Dairy Queen, remember how the soft serve ice

cream always had a way of dripping before you finished it, and your mother

scolded you for getting some on your sunday clothes and the june bugs

were humming around the fluorescent lights and just about that time you

thought She knew that dripping on my clothes was a probable outcome of

this DQ cone thing, but you didnt think it in exactly those words because

you were just a little kid, but when you got home the dog licked the drips off

of your clothes anyway without leaving too much to worry about, then you

remembered that you hadnt done your summer reading because it took so

long to find the book at the library, and besides the story wasnt anywhere

near as exciting as the cover art, but you thought you might have time to

finish it, yet you never got around to it, so now you were on the verge of a

panic attack and your blood ran all cold and tingly and you had shivers

down your back because the new english teacher always gave a test about

the summer reading and you really didnt want to start the fall semester

with a failing grade which you would have to bring home to your parents for

them to sign and endure their caustic remarks about how the innocent fun

you had during the summer chasing your brothers around and breaking

your younger brothers arm, but that was in early june and he was all better

now, was wasting time, but they never asked you if you needed to do your

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reading when they suddenly took you to Mexico City, Mexico for a week

and a half and it was three whole weeks before you even remembered that

you had summer reading because you were still finding people to tell about

seeing the pyramids at Teotihuacan and the dried up chicken bone you

found in one of the ruins which you just knew was an ancient artifact, since

the nearest Colonel Sanders was miles away in Mexico City and the way

that the trees and cars and people looked like something from your model

train set, from the top of the pyramid of the sun, except that these ones

moved around, but suddenly you got sick and barfed at the top where they

used to sacrifice people and it was hard going back down the pyramid be-

cause the stairs were steep and you couldnt keep from looking straight

down, but that all happened weeks ago and now you are trying to remem-

ber where you put dads hammer after he saw you borrow it and now hes

gonna be mad when he looks for it and he knows you have it, then hes

gonna blow his top and line up the boys and say who took my hammer

and no one will say anything because its just a little game he plays and he

beats everyone at the end of it anyway, so theres no point in confessing,

and after denying it once, you just stand there and try not to look guilty

when hes staring at you, but thats impossible because you know that you

did it even though now the details are so fuzzy that you cant remember do-

ing it and just then you notice a fly buzzing around the window in the ga-

rage, just before he starts hitting everyone, so now youre glad because

that was a long time ago and hes dead and the flys gone and you burned

all the old two by fours he used for paddles and now youre free, free at

last, but then you remember youre not and your taxes are due next week

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and you havent even started to find the scraps of paper you kept your du-

bious records on and your blood runs all cold and tingly and you have shiv-

ers down your back at the thought of it, so you realize what a stupendous

rut your whole life has been and how impossibly high the sides of the rut

are so that you will never be able to climb out, so you cry out Lord Jesus

please help me, and He does.

Then you find yourself sitting on a rock in the lushest green pasture you

have ever seen and there is this guy walking toward you and its Jesus and

Hes smiling at you and you say to yourself He s not smiling at me there

must be someone behind me, but you look and theres not. So here He is

holding out his arms to you like you always wished he would, but the

preacher said Jesus was mad at you and your older cousin said the boogie

man was going to get you and he said Jesus doesnt care if he does. And a

well meaning friend gave you a picture of Jesus and your well meaning

mom threw it away. But there He is holding His arms out to you and smiling

in spite of what they said. and He takes you into His arms and he heals all

of the hurts. So you dont have to think of the two by fours and the ice

cream drips and the books you didnt read and He gives you an idea where

the tax records you need are. And He tells you that even if you walk away

from Him he will come after you, even if you fall down the canyon wall He

will be there to get you out. And at first all you can think of doing is to

breathe a sigh of relief and take a nap, because guilt is tiring and now its

gone, and you try to nap but you cant, so you get up and you go back to

where Jesus is watching the other sheep and you look into His eyes and

then you understand that you dont want to be apart from Him ever again.

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In A Nutshell

I was a victim of my own fame, that is the fame which I ascribed inwardly to

myself. When things were going swimmingly I imagined that I was the cap-

tain of a great ship on the sea of life, a large, beautiful schooner. I was

breezing along, immune to the cares of the world about me, passing the

wreckage of those who had foundered, without so much as a how-dee-do. I

avoided the unfortunates lest I also run on the rocks and shoals they were

cast upon. In my triumphant journey each success or honor became an

adornment for my vessel, a showy bit of brass or some smart paint. I imag-

ined, if only I could find some tropical paradise where the fish jump into

your boat and the islands give their fruits willingly to the wayfarer. Ah, to be

a part of the grand procession of human progress. But I deceived myself

and the day came when I looked about and things were quite different.

I then found that I was still at sea, but I did not have a grand ship, oh no I

had a walnut shell and a leaky one at that, no sails, no crew, no motor, only

paddles. So between bailing, and paddling I found that I was making no

headway. And the currents were taking me to places I did not wish to go, in

fact toward the very shoals and rocks I had been avoiding.

I paddled madly, bravely, but the current was so strong that I despaired.

Then I noticed a sail on the horizon. It was a ship, it was far grander and

larger than my former one was, and it was heading straight for me. I tried to

paddle and stay in one place, but it seemed hopeless. So as the ship drew

closer I waved my arms and paddles and yelled like a wild man, and yes,

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the crew spotted me, they got as close as a large vessel could to the dan-

gerous shoals and they skillfully hove-to, backing sail to slow their pro-

gress. A boat was lowered with a single occupant, he handled the oars with

swift and sure strokes, until he pulled alongside me. I still couldn t believe

that I was being rescued, but I gripped the gunnels of his boat and jumped

for it. As I landed safely aboard, my tiny, abandoned shell settled beneath

the waves. Then to my amazement I saw that the man who came after me

was the Captain Himself. He smiled, deftly brought the boat about and

headed for the ship. I couldnt believe it, I pinched myself, I felt the seat and

the sides of the boat, yes it was real. Then I got a splinter in my finger from

the strake along the side and it finally sank in, the pain underscoring the

reality. This was what was really happening, this was not a nightmare from

which I would soon wake and find myself safe aboard my own ship, I had

no ship of my own, the tiny, sinking shell was my vessel, my way of life, and

the gracious Captain who risked Himself to rescue me was the Lord. When

we reached His ship he gave me warm dry clothes and seated me next to

Him at the table in the Captains ward room. With all of His officers gath-

ered round He served me Himself and was most attentive.

Finally I found my voice and said, Captain, You risked yourself to rescue

me and I am deeply grateful, but now you heap honors and favor upon me,

it is too much! I do not deserve it, my seamanship stinks and I have no

means with which to repay You.

The Captain looked at me with a sparkle in His eye, he cast a friendly

glance around the table and said, My friend, I knew when I saw your dire

situation that in rescuing you I would gain an appreciative companion and a

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great shipmate. You have all of the means to repay Me at your disposal for

all I require is your total dedication to Me as your Captain. All which you

need to serve Me, will be given you in time, and training, by Myself, and My

faithful crew. You need no longer worry, you are now a crew member

aboard My ship, and most welcome. So say we all.

At that a rousing cheer went up around the table. And the Captain s fine

wine was poured in celebration.

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At Bay

I was running very fast and very hard, down a path in the thick forest, al-most in a panic, gasping for breath, listening behind, rather than looking

back. I was being followed, it was bad, nothing I did seemed to shake my

pursuer, I zigged, I zagged, I even left the path, and ran through the trees,

though I was in danger of losing my way. My level of panic began to rise as

I realized that I was becoming exhausted. I started to look for the place

where I could make my stand, I saw a clearing ahead, I began to calculatehow difficult it would be to defend. Satisfied, I wheeled around and whipped

out the large knife I carried for protection. I tried to calm myself, but my ef-

fort had been too all out, I could not catch my breath, I was still sobbing

great panting breaths when He came into view.

I thought He had been hell bent to catch me, to kill me, what I didnt under-

stand is that instead, he was walking calmly toward me to relieve me of myhell, to calm my fears, to give me life. I stood gasping and looking at Him,

His kindness was shining in His face, I could see it in in His eyes. He held

out His arms to me. I took a step toward Him, still wary, and then, I dont

know how, but I caved in, I threw down my weapon, I sank into His arms,

crying loudly.

I did not know that He actually cared for me so, I could not know, I hadbeen listening to the lies I grew up with, the lies which I had grown accus-

tomed to. God is angry with you, they lied, He will send sinful little boys

to hell.

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As He comforted me, as you would a little child, I could not believe that this

was the person who was supposed to be so angry with me.

He held me for a while, and when I had finally caught my breath He held

me at arms length and said, David, I pursued you because I love you. I

was not going to leave you to your own devices, no not in this world, no,

not ever. I am never going to abandon you, never. You are My son, I will

always come after you when you are in trouble, always

He brought me to a stream where I was able to wash myself and get a cool

refreshing drink, then We walked back to His house, it was much shorter

and more pleasant going back than it had been running away. It was much

better walking with Him.

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Its Like The Prodigal, Man

For those who read this if you care,

in todays essay I will not share

holy words for holy ways

I tell you instead of my prodigal days.

the depths Id sunk to I will plumb

my struggles with the demon rum

and dried green herbs in paper spun

How like the prodigal I did boast

And bacchanal parties I would host

To raise a glass, an end to sorrow

and live as if there were no tomorrow

the sunset is a pretty thing

when tinged with cannabis to dream,

but wasted days and awful mornings

sneak up on you without a warning

and drop you on the citys curbs

to see things for which there are no verbs

When to the bottom I had settled

and failed the test

of my supposed mettle.

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The great Good Shepherd had a look

and pity on my cries He took

He lifted me out of the muck

and gave me a job driving a truck

The 23rd Psalm in my mind He played

and He has stayed with me to this very day.

Thats not to say I have not wandered

and so much of my time Ive squandered

He brought me back, in His gentle way

and corrected, held me in His sway.

For He allowed my Oktoberfest

and with vain illusions laid to rest

I seek Him now most every day

He gives me His peace, to follow the way.

bold bright colors

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