The Light

Hark, in the distance, a light I see
Lighting the dark around me
I fell to my knees
I could see
Clear

So long the darkness encircled me
Trapped and lost, I could not flee
Would I soon be free
Could that be
Fear

Fear that this light would go out on me
Closer it came; I could see
He’s coming for me
Glory be!
Tear

© 2014 Earl Parsons

A Messenger

She queried “Why?” with furrowed brow.
“Why did Jesus have to suffer and die?
He could have just told everyone His story.
I’d still believe Him,
‘Cause I know Jesus wouldn’t lie.”

“He could have performed more miracles.
Enough to convince everyone He was God.
Why did my Savior have to be crucified?
He was perfect,
How could anyone believe He was a fraud?”

The emotion of her question set me back.
I’d taught the reasons why time after time.
I knew it wasn’t easy for the mind to comprehend.
Murder is a sin,
To crucify an innocent man had to be a crime.

“It was all part of God’s perfect plan, you see.
For centuries the prophets predicted this event.
I know it was cruel, but it had to be done.
The blood of Jesus,
This was the fulfillment of God’s new covenant.”

“What the people did was wrong, very wrong.
But think about the outcome of it all.
Jesus is waiting for you beside His Father God,
He’s still alive,
And if you listen close, you can hear His call.”

Her expression changed; then suddenly she smiled.
“I know He’s alive, He lives inside my heart.
I also know why He had to die that way.
You’ve taught me well,
Jesus will be happy; you’ve done your part.”

Then, without warning, she gave me a hug.
How could I think she hadn’t understood?
After all, I’m just a messenger for Him.
The truth be known,
Only God could teach that good.

© 2014 Earl Parsons
(Modified for PAD challenge from a 2003 poem)

Where Hope Finds Me

Dredging in the doldrums of sorrow and pain
The past but a parade of badly made choices
Bad choices that got me exactly where I stood
At the lowest point in the valley of desperation
Drowning in the impossibility of resurrection
From my self-made prison of hopelessness

Then through the flood of self-pitied tears
As I stared down for fear of glimpsing doom
I saw a shadow stretching from behind me
But there was no sun for to cast this silhouette
Quickly I turned that I might see for myself
And I saw; and I fell to my knees in utter fear

For the shadow grew larger as it came for me
Close now, its red glowing eyes shone bright
Black and cold it pointed a bony finger my way
My frozen soul ached at the pull of pure evil
Through thought that this evil could be my relief
My escape from the despair of hopeless misery

My life flashed before me, the good and the bad
Then all thoughts stopped at one exact moment
The day I rejected the One they called Jesus
I’d pushed Him away and paved my own path
A path fraught with bad choices, pain and strife
Bad choices that got me exactly where I stood

That moment would not depart from my brain
Would this be the torture I’d carry for eternity
Reliving the instant I rejected His mercy
Just so I could do things the way I decided
Decisions that have turned my life upside down
Decisions that got me exactly where I stood

I didn’t need Him then, but I need Him so now
But, alas, I fear it must be too late to save me
I’m unworthy, filthy, corrupted and immoral
A heart of wickedness; an unsalvageable soul
Not a decent bone in this wasted walking corpse
I’m not even worthy of an eternity in Hell

I crumpled to the ground as regret flooded in
Why had I pushed away the hope of all mankind
If only I had one last chance to accept His grace
One chance to set my feet on the righteous path
Forgive me, Lord, for turning my back on You
That moment will be my torture forevermore

Then I felt a gentle hand, softly on my shoulder
I heard a voice so calming whisper in my ear
I looked up and I saw Jesus smiling down at me
He called me son as He took my hand in love
Tears of joy filled my eyes as He lifted me up
Hope had found me in the depths of my despair

© 2014 Earl Parsons

Perfection

Eternity awaits for all who seek
Eternity on high forevermore
Oh, how we’d change our minds if we could peek
Just one quick glimpse inside through Heaven’s door

Just close your eyes
Ask God so wise
Then visualize
Perfection

He will give you the glimpse that you seek
Unfathomable, mindboggling perfection
All you’ll ever need to make you believe
Eternity awaits for all who seek

I Wish We’d All Been Ready

An evening quite some time ago
A concert in New Brunswick
Woodstock, if I’m not mistaken
On a cold Canadian night
The music played
And the crowd praised the Lord
Me included
Although not sure I belonged there
Until the end
When the invitation began

“The King is Coming’ started
And the pressure mounted
My hands began to sweat
Then my brow
And down my neck
My heart rate increased
As they made their case
For heaven or hell
If only I could make it through
This song, I could go home
But then,
It went on
Verse after verse
Word after word
Eating at my lost soul
Calling me to repent
And give in
To a Savior
That I needed to know
But didn’t
Or wouldn’t

Then it ended
The song, that is
And several people bumped their way by me
On their way to the front
Answering the call
The call I was fighting
Could I go home now?

Then the voice over the loudspeaker said
“Now is your time….your time to answer His call”
Then another song started
More powerful than the last
A song that hit me hard
A song that broke me down
A song that started my feet moving
Toward the front
To accept Him
Once and for all

“A man and wife alone in bed
She hears a noise
And turns her head
He’s gone
I wish we’d all been ready.”

“I wish we’d all been ready”
A sad song of truth
About those left behind
When the eye twinkles
And He returns for His own
To take us forever
With Him
On high
That’s where I’ll be
Because thanks to that night
And that song
I am ready