God loves you. – Sunshine Lane

The Little Poet|NaPoWriMo Day 22

“See the poem I wrote today?”
She grinned at me and said.
I looked at her in wonder,
and slowly shook my head.

How could she be so naive
and even worse so glad?
She was just too young to see,
how the world was oh so bad.

Then she handed me her little poem,
written in childish scrawl,
and tears fell down my face,
as all at once I saw,
the reason for her joy
and understood her grace,
no wonder she had such a
sweet, sweet smile,
upon her little face.

The poem was very simple,
just four lines, you see,
but every line was beautiful,
to old and grouchy me:

“God loves you,
God loves me,
I love you,
do you love me?”

This little poem was actually inspired by a little girl I had in a third grade bible class I taught. She was a very sweet little girl from a poor family on the “wrong side of town.” The world she lived in was poor, rough and scary, but she had more love in her little pinkie than most people have in their whole lives! I still remember her…

Elaine

The ABC Poem or Abecedarian Poetry–NaPoWriMo Day 10

Today’s challenge is to write an abecedarian poem – a poem with a structure derived from the alphabet. There are a couple of ways of doing this. You could write a poem of 26 words, in which each word begins with a successive letter of the alphabet. You could write a poem of 26 lines, where each line begins with a successive letter. Or finally, if you’d prefer to narrow your focus, perhaps you could write a poem which focuses on a few letters, using words that repeat them.

My attempt at this is a bit crude, but hopefully it still expresses some of my deepest held beliefs and hopes for this world.

The ABC Poem

Always
Be kind,
Caring for others.

Dare to be different,
Experience life,
Fearing nothing while young.

Go where you can, see the world,
Here and yon,
Imagine a life of peace,
Joy and love.

Keep all your promises, and
Love without limits, you’re sure to
Make friends as you go if you do.

Never lie or deceive, and
O’er all your days,
Pray and believe in God, hope, and love.

Quiet is good for the heart and the soul.
Remember, be grateful, and
Sing every day.
Take time to be holy, and
Understand one another.

Voice all your cares,
Worship all day, God will meet you right there.

Xpress through prayer, to
Your God up above, your care for each man, let’s
Zap all the hatred from our hearts and this world.

Merry Christmas!

Luke 2:1-14

The Birth of Jesus
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant.

And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.

The Shepherds and Angels
That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in highest heaven,
and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” (NLT)

This is what we have to celebrate tonight, tomorrow, and every day of the year! The Savior was born in a humble stable, safely, amazingly, miraculously, of the virgin, Mary. He was God in human form and came for one simple reason: God loves us all. God loves YOU. He loves me. He loves the sinner, the saint, and everyone in between. He loves us all! Now THAT is truly something to celebrate, right?!

May God bless you and keep you safe. Merry Christmas! dewl 12/24/14