Extreme Northwest Arizona

Click below links on "desert" to find poems that are reminiscent of this area near Chloride, AZ. 

Jesus, and Could It Ever Be?

[based on Mark 8:38. Regarding being ashamed of Jesus before others now.*]

Jesus! and could it ever be
A mortal man ashamed of Thee?
Ashamed of Thee, whom angels praise,
Whose glories shine through endless days?   

Ashamed of Jesus? Sooner far
Let evening blush to own a star.
He sheds the beams of light divine
O'er this benighted soul of mine.  

Ashamed of Jesus? Just as soon
Let midnight be ashamed of noon.
'Tis midnight with my soul till He,
Bright Morning Star, bids darkness flee.  

Ashamed of Jesus, that dear Friend
On whom my hopes of heaven depend?
No; when I blush, be this my shame,
That I forgot His precious Name.  

Ashamed of Jesus? Yes, I might
When I've no guilt in Yahweh's sight:
No tear to wipe, no joy to crave,
No fears to quell, no soul to save.  

Till then--nor is the boasting vain--
Till then I boast a Savior slain.
And oh, may this my glory be:
That Christ is not ashamed of me!

--Author: Joseph Grigg, 1765; Adapted Benjamin Francis, 1787; cmb, 2013

*from Mark 8:31, 34-38: "[Jesus] began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the [religious leaders].  And that He must be killed and after three days rise again.  He called the crowd and said, 'If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For what does it profit a person to gain the whole world & lose his own soul?   What will a person give in exchange for his own soul?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this unfaithful and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes back in His Father's glory with the holy angels.'" 

The Greatest Love

 

 

Christ of St. John of the Cross
 --Salvador Dali, 1951

 

Chief of Sinners, Though I Be

[For Valentine's Day &  Lent, 2013]

Chief of sinners though I be,
Jesus shed His blood for me*,
Died that I might live on high,
Lives that I might never die.
As the branch is to the Vine,
I am His and He is mine!

Oh, the height of Jesus' love,
Higher than the heav'ns above,
Deeper than the depths of sea,
Lasting as eternity,
Love that found me -- wondrous thought!
Found me when I sought him not...

Chief of sinners though I be,
Christ is all in all to me.
All my wants to him are known;
All my sorrows are His own.
Safe with him in earthly strife,
I await the heav'nly life.   ---William McComb (19th Century)

* "....Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief [foremost]."    ---St. Paul, from I Timothy 1:15 (NKJV)

Glory Be to Jesus

(Lent reflection)

Glory be to Jesus, Who, in bitter pains,

Poured for me the lifeblood From His sacred veins!

Grace and life eternal In that blood I find;

Blest be His compassion, Infinitely kind.

Oft as earth exulting Sends its praise on high,

Angel hosts, rejoicing,Make their glad reply.

Lift we then our voices,Swell the mighty flood;

Louder still and louder Praise the precious blood!

---At­trib­ut­ed to S. Al­fon­so, 18th century; adatped c.m.b., 2012

"The Love of Christ Which Passeth Knowledge"

[A useful reflection for Lent] 

I bore with thee long weary days and nights, 

Through many pangs of heart, through many tears; 

I bore with thee, thy hardness, coldness, slights, 

For three and thirty years*. 

Who else had dared for thee what I have dared? 

I plunged the depth most deep from bliss above; 

I not My flesh, I not My spirit spared: 

Give thou Me love for love. 

For thee I thirsted in the daily drouth, 

For thee I trembled in the nightly frost: 

Much sweeter thou than honey to My mouth: 

Why wilt thou still be lost? 

I bore thee on My shoulders and rejoiced: 

Men only marked upon My shoulders borne 

The branding cross; and shouted hungry-voiced, 

Or wagged their heads in scorn. ---Christina Rossetti

*It's not clear that Jesus lived exactly 33 years on this earth. His public ministry began when he was "about" 30 years old and lasted three years. 

O, Darkest Woe!

O darkest woe! You tears, forth flow!
Has earth so sad a wonder?
God the Father’s only Son
Once was buried yonder.

O sorrow dread! God’s Son was dead,
Upon the cross extended.
There His love enlivened us
As His life was ended.

Laid low in death, Sweet silent lips,
As You, dead, then lay sleeping!
Surely all that live must mourn
Here with bitter weeping.

Oh, blest shall be Eternally
All who repent and ponder
Why the glorious Prince of Life
Should be buried yonder.

O Jesus blest, my Help and Rest!
With tears I pray, Lord hear me:
Make me love Thee to the last,
And in death be near me.
---Friedrich von Spee, 1628 (German); translation: composite

Confessions*

 

1) Though I'm not at all what I'd like to be, 

 I hope you'll understand. . .  

My thoughts and deeds aren't "good as gold":  

They're more like worthless sand. 

 2) So far as east is from the west,  

So far my sin's removed.**  

Embraced by Jesus's perfect grace, 

I know I'm always loved.  

3) My love for God is really true, 

My faith in Him sincere:

Now I reach to others, too,  

4) To show I really care.  

So after a trying day of work,  

When stress just runs away, 

I hope you realize I know inside 

It's still a lovely day! 

 

---Marie Byars, 1986; Ft. Stewart, GA 

 

 *"Confessions" of both sin & faith **Psalm 103:12

sketch accompanying original version in my journal

The Bible's Trees

The trees of Yahweh are full,
The cedars of Lebanon which He planted,
Where the birds make their nests:
The stork has her home in the cypress trees. 
[Psalm 104: 16-17]

"The stump of Jesse shall grow anew, " [promised Yahweh]
"And a Sprout [Jesus] from the root shall bear fruit.
And upon Him shall rest the Spirit of Yahweh:
The Spirit of Wisdom and of Understanding,
The Spirit of Counsel and of Might,
The Spirit of Knowledge and of the Fear of Yahweh." 
[Isaiah 11:1-3a]

"Cursed be any man who hangs on a tree." 
[Deuteronomy 21:22; Galatians 3:13]
"But I, when I am lifted up from the earth,
I, Jesus, shall draw all people unto myself." [John 12:32]

(The righteous man) is like a tree,
Which has been planted by streams of water,
Which gives its fruit in its proper time.
Its leaf does not wither:
Whatever it does will prosper. [Ps. 1:3]

The trees of the forest will sing for joy before Yahweh,
For He comes to judge the earth. [I Chronicles 16:33]

"You will go forth in joy," [promises Yahweh]
And be lead forth in peace. . .
The trees of the fields will clap their hands.
Rather than the thorn, the cypress will come up;
Rather than the brier, the myrtle will come up.
And all this will be for the sake of Yahweh's Name,
An everlasting sign which will not be destroyed." [fr. Is. 55:12-13]
(original translations)

Wildernesses [for Lent/Advent]

A message envelopes me, 

Permeating my whole person: 

The disembodied preaching, 

The tones of a tameless, timeless wind, 

Surge deep into my searching soul, 

As if, "A voice of one crying: 

'In the wilderness clear out the way of Yahweh; 

Make straight in the desert-plain 

A highway for our God.'" (Isaiah 40:3)* 

Ridge follows ridge into the horizon, 

Their shadows and mountain hues 

Growing hazy, at last to melt at the world's watery edge.

Ages old, yet seeming no older than I: 

Wind-whipped, scarred and, yet, still enduring. 

Forlorn, wild, untouchable seems this place... 

The lonely sadness of a lingering coyote howl 

Harmonizes the wind's haunting melody, 

Eerie to all but those who know and love such music, 

Whose very life and sustenance are this desert: 

Ground squirrels and kangaroo rats, 

Cacti and sagebrush, 

Rattlers, gnarly reptiles and other desert-dwellers 

Make peace with this wilderness, 

Surviving and thriving. 

In such a place settled Abraham, 

Blessed by Yahweh, prospering as a tent-dweller. 

Through such barrenness 

Moses led the multitudes of Israel. 

Elijah first retreated to the desert 

To find relief from wickedness. 

Christ came to the wastelands 

To fast His forty days; 

Here to be tempted, here to triumph; 

Here to prepare His soul 

For the rugged ministry ahead. 

And, so, a still, small voice (I Kings 19:12-13) 

Whispers softly inside me: 

" 'In the wilderness clear out the way of Yahweh; 

Make straight in the desert-plain 

A highway for our God.'"* 

---C. Marie Byars, November 1986 Ft. Irwin, CA

*original re-translations from the Hebrew Bible; somewhat more literal and, hopefully, more in line with poetic work