I had to think as I got up this morning that the Monday after Easter must have been a pretty special day as well.  Knowing that Jesus has been raised from death and is walking among us ... changes the perspective of the world we live in and our purpose in being here.  I suspect one would walk along the road or through the marketplace, anxiously searching the faces of the crowd to catch a glimpse of the Savior; to see his eyes one more time or to recognize his smile or his distinct voice.  I pray that your Monday after Easter is filled with the same anticipation.https://photos.app.goo.gl/2QCKy3osiX6Mp1Ch9

wrote this poem in February of 2003 but its been in my head the last several days ...

The cold north winds remind us 

                that the winter hasn’t passed

The lifeblood of the oaks remains

              beneath the ground steadfast

and yet the cardinal’s refrain

              is prelude to the spring

when once again the grasses green

             and orioles will sing

they’ll sing for all the hope they have

     that this will be the season

the Father will reveal to them 

         their purpose and the reason

so in the midst of life’s cold days

    is set this celebration

of all the love that gets us through

     despite our consternation

as chards of light pierce eastern clouds – 

-      a prelude to the day

reminding us of amazing love

       that gently points the way

so sing for all the hope you have

     that this will be the season

the Father will reveal to you

         your purpose and your reason

...on wings of eagles

(This showed up in my drafts and I don’t believe I ever posted it ... circa 2015)

Reflecting on yesterday ... the church bulletin published a half page summary of a 'legend' about how birds got their wings. I do not know the source, but it was really quite cheesy. The gist of the legend was that birds were created without wings and GOD told them to carry their wings. Their burdens became their means of flight. Perhaps someone was encouraged by the parable that by some stretch of the imagination had spiritual implications for their life, but it wasn't me. This is not a cynical attack. The story did start me thinking about flight and I was reminded of a group of finches that were brought to our 'rainforest' room at school. We thought it would be cool to have birds fly about this large room that was full of aquariums, tropical plants, and a waterfall. But when the finches arrived ... all they did was walk around ... hop a bit ... and occasionally fly about six inches up in the air. It seems that they had been raised in a small cage since birth and really had no idea of their own capabilities of flight. They also did not sing as I had expected the finches to do. It took them a couple of days to adapt to their new environment and begin to fly about the room. With their freedom came their song. You draw your own inferences.

"those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings of eagles;
they will run and now grow weary; they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40

chariots and horses

I think if you zoom in on this panorama you can almost see the Mediterranean at the line of the horizon on the left side... this is the view Abraham would have seen as he held a knife in one hand and his son's neck in the other while he desperately looked for an alternative ... it is what Elijah saw as he had allowed himself to be used to defeat 800 prophets of Baal and then called out to YHWH to relieve the drought he had prayed for over the past three and a half years.  This is from the top of Mt Carmel in central Israel.  I was reminded as I awoke this morning [having slept through the night for the first time in a long time] that when the people of GOD "cry out" ... he always hears, because he always listens ... and he always responds ... in powerful ways ... though in HIS own time.

Ze' ekah is the Hebrew for 'cry out' ... it implies a deep scream of despair and simultaneous hope - as a mother in childbirth or a mother who has lost her child or when one has come to the end of the rope and realizing they are not 'tied in' .  Ze' ekah, though, is a corporate scream ... when the people of GOD join in a desperate cry for rescue ... when their realization that their own helplessness and brokenness cannot fix things and ONLY the intervention of YHWH can redeem them.

Join voices in the people of GOD for the first time in all of earth's history, as we lift our  united Ze'ekah in hope and in confidence that Adonai is indeed in control and is about to do something unprecedented to glorify his name.

If you look at the numerous references to chariots and horses in scripture, you'll find that again and again GOD's people are reminded
     Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
                                                                                                                              Psalm 20:7

blessings and peace

dan