Possess your soul in patience
Own it. Hold your heart the way
you’d hold a live bird–your two hands
laced to latch it in, feeling
its feathery trembling, its fledgling
warmth, its faint anxieties
of protest, its heart stutter
against the palm of one hand, a fidget
in the pull of early light.
Possess it, restless, in
the finger cage of patience. Enfold
this promise with a blue sheen
on its neck, its wings a tremor
of small feathered bones
until morning widens like
a window, and God opens
your fingers and whispers, ‘Fly!’
~Luci Shaw
Wherever your weekend wanderings take you, may you be gentle on yourself and take a few moments to breathe deep. Hold your plans loose enough for others to join the circle. And when you find yourself wanting to hide from the noise, wait for an open window of peace. Stand in it with your eyes closed and linger awhile. If you listen close, you can hear the whisper of redemption.
Happy Saturday Friends!
The finger cage of patience. And God is the one who opens the window. Luci has a way with words. And so do you. And these photos. Girl, you’ve outdone yourself today. Again. (Still holding you close to my heart.)
I actually saw this poem on the blog of a new follower and fell in love with it. Her words are gorgeous. Of course I’m a sucker for any imagery that has to do with birds. Thanks for all your love and support Sandra, appreciate you so much.
I’ve been turning my ear to listen to the whisper of redemption these day. How sweet and powerful His voice.
This is beautiful… as you are, my friend.
May God perfect all that concerns you this weekend…
Ooo, love that last line Michele-Lyn, perfect all that concerns you. There is wonder in those words.
I knew I had read that somewhere. I love the poetry (and prose) of Luci Shaw. She is a beautiful poet and person….very gracious. Your photos are breathtaking, Shelly. They, too, are shere poetry. I waited for a medical test today in a room filled with the deafening, blaring, intrusive noise of a television set pouring into the otherwise quiet space the vileness of so-called news and coarse joking. My soul was like a frantic bird beating its wings, struggling to be set free. And then I saw it-through three waiting rooms linked loosely like a telescope-an open hallway. Like a bird flying toward light, I asked permission to relocate and told the nurses where they could find me. I wanted to hide from the noise, and God opened a window of peace, where I could possess my soul as I waited to take a scary and most uncomfortable test. Our souls are delicate things which need possessing and tending-which need silence, solitude, peace, and quiet-which also need to be possessed by God. Thank you, Shelly, for so often helping the redeemed take much-needed pause. May you, your father, and family find peace, knowing your brother has flown through the window which morning has widened……widened straight across eternity.
Hello Lynni…Your words touch my heart this morning. I miss you, my friend. I pray for a good report from your test.
You are so precious Jillie. Thank you for your kind words. On total overwhelm w/ my brother. Will be in touch soon!
To be honest, I’m not that familiar with Luci Shaw, I just happened on this poem and love it. If you have any recommendations as far as her writing, I’m all ears. I’m thinking about you and praying for you as you go through medical tests (which are never something we look forward to) and the circumstances surrounding your brother. May you find peace in the midst.
Thank you for reminding us of this, Shelly. It is so important especially when we are in the situation of learning the meaning of an experience, still struggling and wanting to trust the One who knows best.
It is only in peace and silence where we mend as in the physical-sleep.
I love that, guys, that we mend in peace and silence. That is oh so true! I just love your beaming faces. You always cheer me up!
Lynn
You are so right Lolita. And I often find I hear God’s voice most clear in the initial moments of awaking from sleep. Sometimes the most profound thoughts come after a good rest.
I love the way you develop many of your photos to look like paintings… an old world oil quality to these. This poem is so lovely… touches me too because it describes the bird in the hand in a way I was thinking about in a recent post, but didn’t quite express (talking about lifting prayers like birds flying up to heaven). Thanks for sharing it… and for your beautiful words about standing in that window… May you stand there too, with breezes ruffling peace over you in all you are feeling. So natural, not to know the total grief in situations like these.,. I relate in ways I can’t express here, but I encourage you to know it is normal, and God is moving in you…
Pam…you too, have a way with words. This is beautifully expressed, and I simply agree with all you are saying.
Thank you, Jillie. That uplifts me today.
I use picmonkey.com for editing photos and its so much fun. You might enjoy messing around on there and its free. And I thought of that ruffling breeze while I was writing, saw it while I was standing there in my mind. I love that you mentioned it here. Appreciate your encouragement Pam, truly.
Dearest Shelly…Truly I thank you this morning for this beautiful post! Again you are here with your absolutely amazing photographs and words. You breathe the Spirit…only God could move through you to deliver to us such beauty. You are my quiet and introspective moment.
I woke this morning to click on my T.V. to ‘PBS World’ station, as is my practice on Saturdays when my husband is working overtime, (or playing ball, as he is today), and I opened my laptop. Right away I’m into this world of electronic gizmos meant to distract, when what I really need is to stand before the open window and allow my prayers to rise like bird on wing.
May God continue to bless and keep you and your family during this time of great loss. You are in my thoughts throughout these days.
I’m guilty of doing this too Jillie. Of getting into the day, even reading other blog posts, before I talk to Him. It takes some diligent, intentional effort to remember what’s going to fill me up like nothing else. So glad to share my Saturday with you.
Ladies, I’m glad you are talking about this. because I personally struggle. I don’t think it should be a legalistic “I’ve got to have my quiet time to check off my list first” kind of thing (which I am NOT saying you are saying)…but rather, I so love and long for and need to be with Christ, that I simply gravitate to Him first and don’t allow the world to distract me from the Word (who is Jesus, and God’s Word, the Bible). I have struggled with this off and on….actually spending time in the Word, but then looking up to the muted TV, or heading quickly to the john (which is sometimes necessary, obviously!)….but then, rather than going straight back to spending undistracted time w/ God, I’ll just “quickly check in on my email or blogs.” Surely, I tell myself, that will just take a couple of minutes, and before I know it, I’ve spent a half hour or more! For me (I can’t speak for anyone else), I know I am not honoring the Lord. It would be like me spending quiet, intimate time w/ my husband and excusing myself time and time again to focus my attention on something else. I’m sleepy and not saying it well, but it is my prayer that I will have undivided, sacred, intimate, and unpolluted time with the Lord-to literally put Him first by spending time w/ Him first each day. He then prepares me to know how to respond to all the distractions that will inevitably occur in my day.
Well, I get this Lynn. It’s like you saw right into my quiet time. I do all that. And as much as I try most days I am so incredibly distracted. I’m trying to be more intentional about focus. (and dealing with my hormones which causes some of it)
Lovely - every picture. Every word. Thank you for this blessing.
Thanks for stopping by Patricia.
I love the effect on your pictures! You’ll have to give me some lessons.
Diane, I just mess around on http://www.picmonkey.com. If you haven’t gone to that site, check it out. They have all kinds of effects you can put on your photos with a click. Have fun!
Shelly-wow, I liked your endnotes:
“when you find yourself wanting to hide from the noise, wait for an open window of peace.
Stand in it with your eyes closed and linger awhile. If you listen close, you can hear the whisper of redemption.” It has a been a noisy, busy few weeks in my life and I jump back in the ring on Tuesday when school starts.
This is a doable reminder—wait for an open window of peace (or LOOK for it.)
lovely.
thank you for this.
It has been the same way here, just lots of irons in the fire and feeling the need to breathe in some cool crisp tenderness from our Saviour. Hope you find an open window of peace this week Jody.
Shelly, I have been praying for you since hearing about the loss of your brother. I am praying that God’s presence be ever so real to you during this time. Thank you for sharing your words IN THE MIDST of your pain.
It touches my heart that you’ve been praying Mari, thank you. The words help to heal the pain, its one of the reasons I write.
What a lovely poem and prayer. Perfectly peaceful for a quiet, rainy Saturday afternoon.
Rainy quiet sounds divine Cheryl. Unless you’re planning an outdoor party of course. So nice to see you here.
I’ve always thought of myself as a “flyer”… sometimes written songs that describe me as flying, but rushing away from family and the Lord and THEN He brings me back to Himself. Doesn’t cut my flying, but the purpose. I LOVE watching birds. You just blessed me.
I’m a bird lover too Joanne.