Pentecost haiku

From heaven the Spirit plunges
deep into our hearts,
love's infinity.

Pentecost Ponderings

Be.
Be still.
Know.
Be still and know.
Know.
That.
I AM.
God.

Pentecost comfort

Spirit, hear my prayer and come to me.
Your wings are made of light
and effortless is your flight.

My steps drag across the earth,
heavy with the muddy years,
staggering with the weight of fears.

Spirit, give me your gift of fortitude,
an eventide of boundless grace,
the strength to finish in the race.

Pentecost

Come, and open your heart.
Throw wide the shutters.
Put off the weights
that drag you down.
Ascend like a feather
in the arms of the wind.
It will blow through you,
filling you with power,
speaking with your voice.
Listen! The wind blows
wherever it wills.
It will carry you
by paths untrodden
to where you would not go.
Rejoice and be glad.

Heavenly help

For we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.I

What if a monk named Francis
asked you to stop and intercede
for the poor who suffer everywhere?
Would you spare for them a fervent prayer?

What if a nun called Faustina
asked you to join her unending plea
for mercy on those about to die?
Would you pray gladly and not ask why?

What if Margaret Mary took your hand
and bade you give your life
to adoration of the Sacred Heart?
Would you consider it just a start?

You need not go alone to pray.
There are many teachers on the way.

Shared Destiny

"I shall not die,"
the child believes
and laughs in her delight.

"I came to die,"
the savior cries
In anguish to the night.

"I too shall die,"
the child soon learns
and feels the stab of fear.

"I live forever,"
Jesus proclaims.
"Look up, for I am here."

May haiku

Mary's month has come,
bursting with resurrection.
All praise to our God.

Meeting

The eyes of the angel
and the woman meet.
His glance is a flame,
Heaven's light
pierces her heart
and finds no shadow.
He looks into her eyes
and sees an ocean
of grace brimming
overflowing,
in tears of joy.

Perseverance

I am a candle flickering in the wind. 
How shall I burn with a steady light?
Set me on a stand, a sure foundation.
Encompass me about with protection.

I am a candle flickering in the wind.
How shall I burn with a steady light?
Melt and mold me according to Your will.
Set me to blazing with an eternal spark.

I am a candle flickering in the wind.
How shall I burn with a steady light?
Let me feast on the unbroken stream
of oil poured from your overflowing grace.

The gift of tongues

Grant to me, O Lord,
the gift of tongues,
that I might speak a word
powerful and true.
Jesus.

Grant to me, O Lord,
the gift of tongues
that I might speak a word
to bring others peace.
Jesus.

Grant to me, O Lord,
the gift of tongues,
that I might speak a word
of illuminating light.
Jesus.

Grant to me, O Lord,
The gift of tongues,
That I might speak a word,
ringing loud with love.
Jesus.

Lenten struggle

Our times are filled to overflowing
with the staggering weight of things.
Frozen gazes locked to TVs,
wrists chained to computer keypads,
dragging behind chains of houses
stuffed with the debris of malls,
we lurch and strain to move.

Tonight I dream of deserts,
empty spaces where the wind can blow.
The Son of God sits on a rock
and looks up at the stars --
emptiness upon emptiness and yet
filled with the glory of God.

Lord, make us empty again
that we too may be filled
with your shining light.

Welcome, Lent

Lent comes wrapped in purple,
like twilight at the end of day,
sunset before eternal dawn.

Now all voices fall silent
and hidden stars start to gleam
in the darkening dome of heaven.

Lent Haiku

Spring plants reach skyward,
but humans bow low, sending
their roots in search of water.

I Saw a Vision Once

I saw a vision once

On an ordinary day
In my ordinary way
I was avoiding 
An urge to pray.

The Spirit kept tugging,
kept gently bugging
while I ignored
the voice of the Lord.

But He would not stop,
He would not quit,
Until I found 
A place to sit,
To open up my heart and say,
"All right, all ready, I will pray."

What happened then was all His grace.
He snatched me up to a heavenly place.
I saw His throne, I saw His love,
a thunderous river from above,
pouring down on us below,
an endless, ever-giving flow.

The years have come, the years have gone,
and yet the vision lingers on.
When days are dark and nights are long,
When the heart falls silent without song,
I let the vision rise once more,
I stand at heaven's open door.

Lift up your face
toward His throne.
The Spirit says "Come and taste!"
Listen! Go now. Make haste.

Resurrection Day

Leaving death behind,
he walks in the garden.
Dew glitters at his feet
baptizing the world
with new life.
The curse is broken.
The birds sing 
full-throated with joy.
Only the woman weeps,
seeing him through tears.
Wipe your tears,
Heaven's child.
He is here,
and with us forever.

Consuming Fire

"Our God is a consuming fire."

In the darkness
of the cold tomb
a light kindles.

Life explodes
out of death
In bright glory.

This consuming fire
burns up fear,
destroys despair.

"He is risen,"
the angels shout
In ecstasy.

Headed Home

Sometimes the years are heavy,
burdened with the weight 
of remembered sins.
Sometimes the years are light
like a summer breeze
rushing by my cheek.

In my weariness you strengthen me,
in my exuberance you anchor me.
When all things shift and change
You are the calm center,
the unchanging beacon
lighting the pathway home.

Transformation

I bring you a gift, O my Lord.
Take it if you will, 
this granite rock. 
I lay it on your altar,
hard and cold,
a shriveled lump.
And now I kneel and lean to you,
my mouth open to receive.
Your life quickens me.
Your blood revives me.
Your divinity transforms.
In our shared silence
a heart begins to beat.

Friends in high places

On lonely nights
I whisper low
a chant I taught
my lips to know.

I've got friends in high places
watching my back.
I've got friends with bright graces
my soul may lack.

When Satan's snares
entrap my feet
I shout aloud
to his defeat:

I've got friends in high places
watching my back.
I've got friends with bright graces
my soul may lack.

When weakness looms
To my distress
I have a creed
I can confess.

I've got friends in high places
watching my back.
I've got friends with bright graces
my soul may lack.

Communion prayer

The priest says, "Learn to listen
with the ears of your heart."
My heart is noisy, Lord,
full of clamoring thoughts,
yapping fears, senseless distractions.
How will I ever hear
the whisper of your voice?

In mercy you provide
a silence born of grace.
Sheltered in love's embrace,
I kneel and receive you.
The world fades to nothing.
The ears of my heart open.
Speak, Lord, for I listen.

The angel's visit

The angel was beauty
that burned like a fire.
His brightness scorched the air.
He sent words of thunder
rolling through her heart,
a lightening bolt of truth,
unbearable light.

The woman was beauty
that lay like a sweet balm
on raw wounds torn open
by the ancient rebellion.
The angel marveling
saw she had the strength
To bear the heavenly weight.

With a humble spirit she
opened her heart to hear.
With the courage of faith she
opened her lips to speak.
"Let it be done to me
according to thy word."

Coming home

When coming home
a closed door means nothing.
You have the key.
Inside warmth and light,
welcoming arms,
bread to give strength,
a cup to take away thirst.
Come, be at your ease,
surrounded by family.

Song for a New Year

The angels know --
and heaven, too--
I did not come
seeking you.
But wandering far
from you was found
and in strong cords
of love was bound.

You kissed my head,
you kissed my feet,
you sat me down
and bid me eat.
I supped on bread
and drank sweet wine,
and hunger ceased
for I was fed.

The angels know --
and heaven, too --
that all I have
has come from you.
The only thing
I have to give --
eternal thanks
each day I live.