Saturday, September 29, 2012

In the Desert with My Tears - Thoughts on brokenness

I wrote these words at the pinnacle of a season of struggle.  Today's rain reminds me of the Truth the Shepherd and I discovered in the darkness.

July 21, 2012
There are times when all we have to offer God is our tears, when the brokenness of the world becomes clear and we grow weary and we grieve.  The healing of eternity feels so far away and every joyful moment we've experienced seems to fade into distant memory.  We live in the desert.  We grow angry with God and try to carry our burdens on our own, and when they become too much, we grow angrier still.  Then we finally drop the good Christian facade that says we're fine, and we cry out to God... and He answers our pounding fist with words of love.  That is freedom.  And so we water the desert with the tears we weep and God in His sovereignty causes a harvest to abound.  Oh marvelous mystery!


In the Desert with my Tears
The dust rises
In  clouds around me
To mock the cloudless sky
As my knees hit the ground
I'd cry
If I had the strength
But my eyes stay as dry
As my parched throat
My muscles ache
As I lie
Crumpled beneath the weight
Of the pain
I carry
Normally
I'd grit my teeth
And continue on my journey
But today
I simply
Can't

The sand is coarse against my skin
The sun is hot
But the anger in my heart
Burns even hotter
As I wonder
Where You are
And why you would call me
Here
To this place of pain
To this desert
When I can still taste paradise
And suddenly
The air grows thick with mystery

My fist hits the sand
There's so much I just
Can't understand
But You whisper to me
Softly
Words of love
And nothing more
I am angry with You, Lord!
And still You love?

The tears cannot be stopped
As they gently, quickly fall
And the weight of it all
Begins to lift
And everything I've missed
Becomes clear
I will water this desert
With my tears
And pray
That someday
A harvest will abound
From this parched and broken ground
For only You can satisfy
And bring fruit
From a land so dry
And hopeless
So here am I
In the desert with my tears.

Stephanie M. Frakes
July 21, 2012


Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Remember When: Thoughts on Christian Community


Remember When

We climbed a mountain, you and I
It was a sight to behold
Such perspective we would gain
Eternal Beauties yet untold

So we built an altar
From our laughter and our tears
And those words of faith
That we’ve rehearsed throughout the years

Then there came the time
For us to journey down
Back into the valley
Where deep, deep need abounds

I confess I am reluctant
To leave these heights for what’s below
But we’re called to move from heights to depths
Just like the rivers flow

Downward, ever downward
In humility and grace
To live out our altar moments
In the everyday

We’ve spoken of eternal things
That stir us heart and soul
Now we must go live these things
We can’t describe, but Know

So you go your way, I’ll go mine
And we will meet again
Every time we need to hear
Those words:  “Remember when…”

Stephanie M. Frakes
September 18, 2012

Exhale: Why I go to church

Exhale

In Your presence I find
For all my longing
My seeking
My crying out
A quiet place
Of reverence
Humility
Emptiness
Fullness
A mystery explained
But never understood
Realized
Felt
But never grasped
Though I've tried
And failed
My heart rises
My chest falls
I exhale
Emptying
To be made full
Again
And again
And over again
Forever

Stephanie M. Frakes
September 9, 2012