More Flowers of the Upper Midwest

Travels (related to the Christian life) took me to Minnesota recently. Though I love the southwest, there are things there I find refreshing:

Johnny Jump-Up; violet strain

" '26So if you cannot do such a small thing,' [said Jesus] 'why do you worry about the rest? 27Consider how the lilies grow: They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. 28If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith!…' "

Berean Study Bible

Tall Grass Prarie Flowers

Upper Midwest, United States   

Mixed assortment with grasses

[Jesus said], " 'For if God thus clothes the grass of the filed, which today is here and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more shall He clothe you, O you of little faith.' " Matthew 6:30; own translation

Purple coneflower (Echinacea)

Day-lilies

Queen Anne's Lace (Wild Carrot)

Note one deep scarlet bloom, center

Butterfly Weed (Pleurisy Root)

Used by Native Americans for various respiratory illnesses

Black-Eyed Susans

Winter Wakenth All My Care*

Winter wakeneth all my care,
Now these leaves waxeth** bare;
Oft I sigh and mournfully stare
When it cometh in my thought
Of this world's joy, how it goeth all to naught.

Now it is, now not seen***,
As though it hath never been;
That many sayeth, and so is still:
All goeth by God's will:
All we shall die, though we like it ill****.

All that green which groweth green,
Now it fadeth which has been***:
Jesu, help that it be seen
And shield us from Hell!
For I know not how long I go, nor how long here I dwell.

----Anonymous

*Paraphrased in slightly more modern English.  It is one of the earliest surviving winter poems in English literature, original written in Middle English spelling.

**"Wax", an old word for "to grow", from the German "wachsen."  Now used only to speak of the "waxing moon", when the lit part of the moon appears to be growing, all the way to full moon.

**See Psalm 90, which speaks of the grass quickly fading and compares this to the short lives of people.  Also, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6 and Luke 12, how God clothes the grass of the field, which quickly dies, with beautiful flowers.

***Though we don't like it at all

From St Patrick

God, my God, omnipotent King, I humbly adore thee.

Thou art King of kings, Lord of lords. Thou art the Judge of every age.

Thou art the Redeemer of souls.

Thou art the Liberator of those who believe.

 Thou art the Hope of those who toil.

Thou art the Comforter of those in sorrow.

Thou art the Way to those who wander.

Thou art Master to the nations.

Thou art the Creator of all creatures.

Thou art the Lover of all good.

Thou art the Prince of all virtues.

Thou art the joy of all Thy saints

Thou art life perpetual.

Thou art joy in truth.

Thou art the exultation in the eternal fatherland.

Thou art the Light of light.

Thou art the Fountain of holiness.

Thou art the glory of God the Father in the height.

Thou art Savior of the world.

Thou art the plenitude of the Holy Spirit.

― St. Patrick 

“For that sun, which we see rising every day, rises at His command… - Greg Tobin, The Wisdom of St. Patrick from St. Patrick’s Confession”

The Golden Morning [Sun]

(apropos for Thanksgiving, though originally German)

The golden morning,
Joy her adorning,
On us is gleaming,
Rays brightly beaming,
With her beloved heart-quickening light.
My head and members
Lay deep in their slumbers,
But now awaking,
All sleep from me shaking,
Gazing on heav’n, I rejoice at the sight.

Mine eye’s beholding
God’s work unfolding,
Made for His glory,
Telling the story
Of all His power so mighty and great
And where the Father
His faithful shall gather
In peace, whenever
Earth’s ties they shall sever,
Leaving this mortal and perishing state.

Come ye with singing,
Our Maker bringing
Each good and blessing
We are possessing:
All be to God as an offering brought,
The best oblation
Our heart’s adoration.
Songs meet and thankful
Are incense and cattle
With which His pleasure most fitly is sought.


Evening and morning,
Sunset and dawning,
Wealth, peace, and gladness,
Comfort in sadness:
These are Thy works; all the glory be Thine!
Times without number,
Awake or in slumber,
Thine eye observes us,
From danger preserves us,
Causing Thy mercy upon us to shine.


Though all decayeth,
God ever stayeth,Nor doth He waver,
He changeth never,
His Word and will have unchangeable ground.
His grace and favor
Are steadfast forever,
In our hearts healing 
Death’s pangs that we’re feeling,
Keeping us now and eternally sound.


Father, O hear me,
Pardon and spare me;
Calm all my terrors,
Blot out mine errors
That by Thine eyes they may no more be scanned.
Order my goings,
Direct all my doings;
As it may please Thee,
Retain or release me;
All I commit to Thy fatherly hand.

The good and healthful,
The harmful, unhelpful,
Thou my Physician,
Who know’st my condition,
Hast ne’er more chastened than any should be.
Griefs, though heart-rending,
All have their ending;
Though seas be roaring
And winds outpouring,
Thereafter shines the dear sun’s blessèd face.

Fullness of pleasure
And glorious leisure
Then will be given
To me there in heaven,
Where all my thoughts are directing their gaze.

--Paul Gerhardt, 1666.  Translation, composite.  (adapted)

God Bless Our Native Land

God bless our native land;
Firm may she ever stand
Through storm and night:
When the wild tempests rave,
Ruler of wind and wave,
Do Thou our country save
By thy great might.

For her our prayers shall rise
To God, above the skies;
On Him we wait.

Thou who art ever nigh,
Guarding with watchful eye,
To Thee aloud we cry,
God save the state!

And not to us alone, 
But be Thy mercies known
From shore to shore.

 

 
Lord, make the nations see
That men should brothers be
And form one family
The wide world o'er.

Verses 1-2, Siegfried A. Mahlmann, 1815;
Verse 3, William E. Hickson, 1835

(sung to the tune "America")

Salve Feste Dies

("Hail Thee, Festival Day", select Easter verses)


Refrain: Hail thee, festival day!
Blest day that art hallowed forever;
day wherein Christ arose,
breaking the kingdom of death.

 Lo, the fair beauty of earth,
From the death of the winter arising,
Every good gift of the year
Now with its Master returns. Refrain

He who was nailed to the Cross
 Is God and the Ruler of all things;
 All things created on earth
 Worship the Maker of all. Refrain

God of all pity and power,
Let Your word assure those who doubt;
Light on the third day returns:
Rise, Son of God, from the tomb! Refrain

Rise now, O Lord, from the grave
And cast off the shroud that enwrapped You;
You are all that we need:
Nothing without You exists. Refrain

They mourned as they laid You to rest,
O, Author of life and creation;
Treading the pathway of death,
You give life to us creations. Refrain

Show us Your Face once more,
That we may enjoy Your brightness;
Give us the light of day,
Darkened on earth at thy Death. * Refrain

 Jesus has harrowed hell;
 He has led captivity captive;
 Darkness and chaos and death
 Flee from the Face of the Light. Refrain

---

*The Sun was darkened ("obscured") from the "sixth to the ninth hours" (~ noon to ~ 3 PM) on the Friday Jesus was crucified.
--Venantius Fortunatus (530-609);
trans.  Fr. Maurice Frederick Bell (Anglican), 1906, adapted cmb

For All the Saints

[a little late for All Saints Day on November 1st,
but the thoughts go on]

For all the saints who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confess,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest,
Alleluia! Alleluia!

 O blest communion, fellowship divine,
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine.
Alleluia! Alleluia!


 

My grandma, in her glory since 1996

But, lo, there breaks a yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of Glory passes on His way.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

 From earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
Alleluia! Alleluia!

 The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon, to faithful warriors cometh rest.
Sweet is the calm of Paradise the blest.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

---William W. How, 1864



 

Choreographed

Nature's singing me her song,
And around me is a dance:
      The sunlight on the water,
       The aspens' quaking leaves,
       The playful dragonflies,
        My own two happy feet.

 

My heart is filled with wild joy;
I know who wrote the song:
       He gave it melody
       And wove in harmony;
       He sets its steady rhythm
       And makes the whole world dance.

You hear the moments out-of-tune
When Nature's lost the harmony;
     But my Composer saved a better song
     To sing another place...
     Where melodies are never sad,
     And the only song is love.

                     
    ----C. Marie Byars; Ft. Jackson, SC; May, 1986
          [written with memories of the southwestern U.S. in mind]
 

Thanksgiving

The year has turned its circle,
The seasons come and go.
The harvest all is gathered in
And chilly north winds blow.

Orchards have shared their treasures,
The fields, their yellow grain,
So open wide the doorway --
Thanksgiving comes again!    ---Old Rhyme.

 

It Is Well with My Soul

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Is_Well_with_My_Soul

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

 

 

Refrain:

It is well, (it is well),

With my soul, (with my soul)

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

Let this blest assurance control,

That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

Refrain:

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

 

Refrain:

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live*:

If Jordan** above me shall roll,

No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life

Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

 

Refrain:

But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,

New life, not the grave, is our goal;

The trumpet of  angels; The voice of the Lord!

Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!

 

Refrain:

 

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;

The trumpet shall sound, and the Lord shall descend,

Even so, it is well with my soul. 

 

Refrain:                    

 

  ---Horatio Spafford (adapted)

*"For, to me, to live is Christ, but to die is great gain."  ---St. Paul, Phillipians 1:21

**The Jordan River in the Holy Land.  The main eastern boundary of the Holy Land, it has become a symbol of the river to cross over at death, to enter heaven.  It is also the river in which Jesus was baptized. 
 
The writing of this hymn has such a moving story behind it that I included the link above.  For a deeper meaning from this hymn, look into the following verses: 
 
“Praise the Lord, O my soul.”  --Psalm 146:1b

 

"God is our refuge and strength,

A very present help in trouble.  

Therefore will not we fear,

Though the earth give way,

And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;  

Though its waters roar and are stirred up, Though the mountains shake with their surging."  -- David in Psalm 46:1-3

 

"Bless Yahweh, O my soul:

All that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless Yahweh, O my soul,

And forget not all His benefits:

Who forgives all your iniquities;

Who heals all your diseases;

Who buys back[redeems] your life from destruction;

Who crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies;

Who satisfies your mouth with good things,

So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. 

Yahweh carries out righteousness and judgment For all that are oppressed." --David in Psalm 103: 1-6

 

" 'Rejoice in the Lord always'  and again I say, 'Rejoice.' Let your moderation be known to everyone. The Lord is near.  Don't worry about anything; but in every thing by prayer and earnest begging with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."  ---St. Paul in Philippians 4:4-7

 

"Peace I leave with you.  My peace I give unto you. Not as the world gives,  do give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. "  --Jesus in  John 14:27

[I bring an unaccustomed wine]

[published at this Thanksgiving time to remind us to share those things for which we are thankful]   

"The First Thanksgiving";  J.L.G. Ferris, early 20th century

I bring an unaccustomed wine

To lips long parching, next to mine,

And summon them to drink.

 

Crackling with fever, they essay;

I turn my brimming eyes away,

And come next hour to look.

 

The hands still hug the tardy glass;

The lips I would have cooled, alas!

Are so superfluous cold,

 

I would as soon attempt to warm

The bosoms where the frost has lain

Ages beneath the mould.*      

 

Some other thirsty there may be

To whom this would have pointed me

Had it remained to speak.

"The First Thanksgiving"; Jennie Augusta Brownscombe, 1914

 

 

 

 

 

And so I always bear the cup

If, haply, mine may be the drop

Some pilgrim thirst to slake,--

 

If, haply, any say to me,

"Unto the little, unto me," **

When I at last awake.

---Emily Dickinson

*She attempted to help someone who was in need & ill.  But the person still died.
**Matthew 25:35.  Jesus said that whenever one of the believers takes the trouble to feed and clothe someone who seems to be "least" among the believers, it is as if they have helped out Jesus Himself. And Jesus indicates that this will be recognized on the Last Day, when He returns.

Arcturus is his other name [untitled]*

Arcturus** is his other name,—
I ’d rather call him star!
It ’s so unkind of science
To go and interfere! ...

What once was heaven, is zenith now.
Where I proposed to go When time’s brief
masquerade was done*,
Is mapped, and charted too! .... 


Perhaps the kingdom of Heaven’s changed*!
I hope the children there
Won’t be new-fashioned when I come,
And laugh at me, and stare!

I hope the father in the skies*
Will lift his little girl,— 
Old-fashioned, naughty***, everything,—
Over the stile of pearl!   ---Emily Dickinson

*Dickinson is concerned (complaining?) about how science categorizes things she simply wants to "experience."  She expresses some tongue-in-cheek concern that heaven may be this way, also.
**"Arcturus" means "Guardian of the Bear"; it is between the Big Bear (Big Dipper) and Little Bear (Little Dipper Constellations.
***Acknowledges her personal sinfulness

Love Divine

My lover is radiant and ruddy,
Outstanding among ten thousand [men].
His head is purest gold;
His hair is wavy, black as a raven.
His cheeks are like beds of spices,
[a garden] That produces fragrance.
His lips are lilies that drip with myrrh.
His arms are rods of gold,
Set with chrysolite.*
His chest is like polished ivory,
Set with sapphires.
His legs are pillars of marble,
Set on bases of pure gold...
His mouth is altogether sweet;
Everything about his is desirable.
This is my lover, This is my friend,
O daughters of Jerusalem.
---Song of Solomon** 5:10-11; 13-15a; 16

*A green semi-precious stone
**This book describes physical, human love between a couple but is also a picture of the intense love God has for His people.

When All Else Fails.....Rejoice!

Though the fig tree does not blossom 

Nor grapes on the vines; 

Though the olive crop fails 

And the fields yield no fruit, 

Though there are no flocks in the stalls, 

Yet will I rejoice in Yahweh 

And will be joyful in the God of my salvation. The Lord Yahweh is my strength; 

He makes my feet like the deer's"

He makes me [able] to tread on high places. 

For the Director of Music. On my [Habakkuk's] stringed instruments. ---Habakkuk 3:17-19 

Habakkuk had been praying to Yahweh (God) throughout this book about various injustices. God's own people were cheating others. Then the Babylonians (Chaldeans) were to come to punish the Jews, but the Babylonians were a violent people. But each time, God gave Habakkuk an answer, and the prophet wrote this song in the end to praise God, whatever the circumstances surrounding him might be.

I shall know why (untitled)

193

I shall know why—when Time is over—
And I have ceased to wonder why—
Christ will explain each separate anguish
In the fair schoolroom of the sky*—

He will tell me what "Peter" promised**—
And I—for wonder at his woe—
I shall forget the drop of Anguish
That scalds me now—that scalds me now!

---Emily Dickinson, circa 1880

* Many people have speculated that in heaven, we will have all our questions answered, but that, then, it won't matter anymore.

**Probably a reference to Peter's promise to Jesus that he absolutely would not deny Him through the hard times coming up. Those hard times were Jesus's trial later that night, His suffering and His death. Peter did, indeed, deny Christ, three times, and then went out and wept bitterly when the rooster crowed (as Jesus had prophesied), and Peter laid eyes on Jesus. This was Peter's anguish. Dickinson is probably making a parallel to the ways she knows she has fallen short and the anguish that brings, realizing that her anguish will fade when (1) confronted by Peter's in person and (2) she is in the presence of Christ. Since "Peter" is in quotes, Dickinson may be going beyond the literal Peter of the Bible to refer to someone, some man, who left her feeling betrayed.

Joseph the Faithful Carpenter

 (March 19th Commemorates Joseph, Stepfather of Jesus)


Joseph, the Faithful Carpenter
Ponders the news he keeps concealed
His bride-to-be is found with child—
A father’s name is not revealed.

As Joseph slumbers fitfully
An angel enters Joseph’s dream
To tell him that this comes from God
And things are not as they may seem:

“O, Joseph, banish all your fears
And take Young Mary as your wife
And be a father to God’s child
Who comes to share in human life.”

Good Joseph, born of David’s line
(Which matters not in days of Rome)
Bequeaths a human royalty
And gives the Boy a godly home.

A jealous Herod fears this King,
So Joseph takes them speedily
To Egypt, where again he works,
To care for his small family.

An angel tells that Herod’s dead,
So Joseph brings them all back home;
He brings them to quaint Nazareth
And raises God’s Son as his own.        

---C. Marie Byars, (c) 1999

  

       

O, Blessed Spring*

O, Blessed Spring where Word and Sign 

Embrace us into Christ the Vine: 

Here Christ enjoins each one to be 

A branch of this life-giving Tree. 

Through summer heat of youthful tears,

Uncertain faith, rebellious tears, 

Sustained by Christ's infusing rain, 

The boughs will shout for joy again. 

When autumn cools and youth is cold, 

When limbs their heavy harvest hold, 

Then through us, warm, the Christ will move 

With gifts of beauty, wisdom love. 

As winter comes, as winters must, 

We breathe our last, return to dust; 

Still held in Christ, our souls take wing

And trust the promise of the spring. 

Christ, Holy Vine, Christ, Living Tree, 

Be praised for this blest mystery: 

That Word and water thus revive 

And join us to Your Tree of Life. 

---Susan Palo Cherwien; (c) 1993 

*(A hymn to be sung to the old English folk song, "The Water is Wide [I can't get o'er]"

Beside Still Waters

The LORD [Yahweh] is my shepherd; 

I shall not [be in] want. 

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: 

He leadeth me beside the still waters.** 

He restoreth my soul: 

He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; 

Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever. 

----King David; Psalm 23 KJV* 

*I normally don't read the King James Version anymore, but the etched-in beauty of this older version captivated me. 

**Recently revisiting this Psalm (which, actually, is not my "favorite" of the Psalms, unlike many other people), I emphasized the "still waters" and "restoring my soul" because of some great, deep, long-sought but elusive peace which He recently brought to me & which I pray continues through the next leg of life's journey.

To Everything a Season

There is a time for everything,
And a season for every activity under heaven:

• A time to be born and a time to die;
• A time to plant and a time to uproot;
• A time to kill off forcefully and a time to heal;
• A time to tear down and a time to build;
• A time to weep and a time to laugh;
• A time to grieve and a time to dance;
• A time to scatter stones about and a time to gather them up;
• A time to embrace and a time to hold back;
• A time to search and a time to abandon search;
• A time to keep and a time to discard;
• A time to tear and a time to mend;
• A time to be silent and a time to speak
• A time to love and a time to hate*;
• A time for war and a time for peace....

[God] has made everything beautiful in its time.
He has also set eternity into the hearts of people,
Yet they cannot grasp what God has done
From beginning to end. --(King Solomon?); Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 11
*We are called to truly hate what is evil or false; not to arbitrarily hate other people.