one humble step away – a poem

one humble step away – a poem

Hello, friends!

Today’s poem is actually from a few years ago…but I wanted to dig it out of the depths of the blog because I really enjoy the rhythm and the message it holds. Hope you enjoy!

two natures fight within me,

clawing for complete control

and the evil one is winning –

its dark reign I can’t o’erthrow,

for its grasp about my mind

has left an imprint stiff as stone,

and its chains about my heart

into my flesh o’er time have grown.

and I can’t break from these shackles

that hold all my habits tight,

for the rust of time has locked them

and I cry into the night

as I see the one You crafted

to be swift and strong for You

melted to the mess I am –

how could my heart be so untrue?

yet the dawn is breaking now,

and in the early morning rays

I see the promise of the future

and new mercies with new days.

and I see the power of Calvary

making chains and shackles null

as Your faithfulness transforms me

and my shell falls, dead and dull

as new life is pulsing through me –

though I’ve stumbled and I’ve failed,

still You tell me that renewal

is one humble step away.

Photo by Federico Respini on Unsplash

a poem from the archives (a.k.a. last year)

a poem from the archives (a.k.a. last year)

Hello, friends!

I dug out some of my old poetry the other day and found so many poems I’d forgotten…I touched one up and decided to share it with you here. I hope it blesses you like it did me.❤

oh, My child…

I see the pain in the way

you hold your head so high –

stiff, afraid of being weak,

vulnerable, for you feel that

another scar would be a thousand too many.

I see you, love,

when you’ve crawled to a secret place

to let out the grief

when the sobs rise without bidding,

and you trap the muffled wails deep in your throat.

even when you weep, you’re guarded…

but I see you.

I want you to know that

you can stop tracing the scars,

running your fingers through the pains in your past

as if they were pearls.

I want you to look up…

see Me, love.

aren’t I more to you than your broken dreams?

will you risk it all just to sail with Me?

I need you to trust Me when I say

this does not need to be your last chapter.

I promise…one day you will smile again

without brushing the ghost of this sorrow.

I’m wanting to read some more cozy poetry this autumn…do you have any favorite poets/collections you would recommend? Please drop any ideas in the comments!

Stay the course!

Laurel

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash

some autumn-inspired poetry (pt. 1)

some autumn-inspired poetry (pt. 1)

Hello, friends!

I’ve been hosting a poetry challenge over on Instagram with a dear friend…and man, challenge is the word for it! Some days it’s felt like pulling teeth to have to write another poem, but it’s stretched my creativity and given me some poems that I actually kind of love. Here are a few of them…

cinnamon

as the world slows down in

the north wind’s breath of

cinnamon and dust,

may my words fall short

and my life sing love

in each cozy autumn dawn.

sweater-weather

the wind bites hard,

swirling down from the north and

howling as it brings

a smattering of dry leaves and gravel dust.

I curl my arms around myself,

tucking reddened fingers into the sleeves of

my pilling sweater,

butting hard against the biting wind as

I walk a little slower.

(how delightful it is

to fight hard against something and

know that you’re stronger…)

mysteries

why the sky still blushes beauty at

the dawn on battlefields

why most of us have failed to

keep on crying at the headlines

why we say “you’ve got a lifetime yet”

when some girls die at 21

why we fight so hard for riches

we can’t take beyond the grave

Do you have a favorite of the three? If you’d love to be challenged yourself to write some more poetry, I’d love it if you would join the challenge!

Stay the course!

❤ Laurel

Photo by Kat von Wood on Unsplash

whitecaps – a poem

whitecaps – a poem

Hello, friends! I’m finally returning with one of my favorite poems from this summer…

Father, calm this raging soul…

speak peace above the whitecaps

lashing out upon the teeming shores.

hold fast this wandering heart;

bind it to Thy will in love, for

I’m tired

of telling myself the lie that

I’d be better off if only…

cut those bitter words off at the source:

this raging soul.

oh, speak peace above the whitecaps…

help me love the teeming shores.

Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash

glowing horizon – a poem

glowing horizon – a poem

the sun slips behind a glowing horizon,

weary of casting light upon

the wicked deeds of man.

perhaps…

in the morning…

but over and over

the sun rises and sets

on a world that crowns wickedness

and spits in the face of righteousness.

one day…

I know…

a greater Son will rise and

fall no more,

casting light on a throng of faithful men

who treasured the light of this Son

while others basked only in the glory of

the one that slips now beneath a glowing horizon.

Will I ever stop writing poetry that a.) contains sunset imagery, and b.) looks forward to eternity?

I think not.

❤ Laurel

Photo by Dan Cook on Unsplash

wardrobe – a poem

wardrobe – a poem

Hello, friends!

Today I’ve got a poem for you inspired by some pretty awesome characters from literature…

I’m Lucy in the wardrobe,

Bilbo at his door,

Mary at the garden’s edge,

Jo longing for New York…

afraid to leave behind the world

and life I’ve always known,

afraid to lead a different life

than what this land has known…

but what songs will not be sung,

and what tales will not be told

if I venture not outside my door

to burgle dragons’ gold?

Fun fact: this poem stars in my latest poetry book, Clarion Hope!

What are some of your favorite classics, and who are some of your favorite characters from those books?

Laurel

rumblings – a poem

rumblings – a poem

Three days to go!!

I let go

any rights I think I have to

resolution.

weeping,

I lay broken, untold stories

in Your hands,

Your promises of better tales

held close against

my racing heart.

I listen,

my ear pressed against

this shattered earth,

rumblings of hope

pulsing strong deep below.

I smile to know

there is more than meets the eye.

This poem comes from the second section of Clarion Hope: recovering Eden. Quite possibly my favorite section, it really hits on what Paul expresses in Romans 8 — “…the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now…even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.”

We see the brokenness of a sin-riddled world and we weep. Yet in the middle of that, we recognize that redemption is coming…that the perfect fellowship of Eden will one day be restored because of Christ’s perfect sacrifice.

Can you see why I titled it Clarion Hope?:)

If this sounds like something you’d like to have in poetry form, here’s the preorder link!

❤ Laurel

ghosts – a poem

ghosts – a poem

And so begins the countdown to Clarion Hope’s release day!

I’m going to be sharing a post a day until release day, so either buckle up or shut down your computer, depending on how you feel about Clarion Hope spam. XD

I wanted to kick it off by sharing a poem that comes from the first section of Clarion Hope.

The first section is titled fading scars, and it captures the emotions that fluctuate as we find ourselves to be broken people in need of healing…falling at the feet of the Healer. Regret, despair, gratitude, relinquishment…this section has it all.

Here’s one of my favorite poems from that first section.✨

ghosts

etch the tale in silver: how

we’ll break the chains of the past asunder,

and kindle a fire of

paper-thin ghosts

that once proudly bore our faces…

(for that’s you and me no longer.)

If you resonated with the themes of fading scars or enjoyed ghosts, you may want to get your hands on a copy of Clarion Hope. If you order today, it just may arrive in time for you to read it on release day!

If you’d like you can order your copy here.

Stay the course!

❤ Laurel

love lets go – a poem

love lets go – a poem

Every now and then I write a poem that I just want to read over and over again. This is one of those poems.

they told me love lets go,

and I replied, “it can’t be so”,

for to love is to show the loved

how much you care…

how much you need them there.

but slowly I am learning…

love smiles and waves

as the loved one walks away

on a path marked “God’s clear calling”.

the songs were wrong –

love doesn’t long

for eternal nearness only…

love goes deeper

farther

wider…

longs for the good of the loved

even when the good of the loved is

goodbye.

they told me love lets go…

and I folded empty hands

and I replied,

“yes, it is so.”

Photo by Marc-Olivier Jodoin on Unsplash

Clarion Hope Cover Reveal

Clarion Hope Cover Reveal

Behold: the shell of the soul-words that cry for beauty on the battlefields.

This cover makes me so happy, and I feel that it truly represents the poetry inside. There are some deeper meanings beneath the design that I’ll delve into someday soon, but for now, the important details!

*insert a “pay attention” sort of cough*

the official info


dare to dream that there’s more than this broken road,

and that beauty may lie on tomorrow’s edge…

A sequel of sorts to the author’s debut collection, Clarion Hope takes the spark of courage held out in This Will Not Last and fans it into a roaring flame. Over and over again, scars are healed, brokenness is bathed in tears, and fear is buried in the name of the truth and hope of the highest order.

For the boldest warriors and the faint-hearted alike, Clarion Hope is a battle cry to live in the light of the coming Kingdom.


Clarion Hope officially releases on April 4th, 2023, but you can preorder it now and have it shipped just before release day so you can hold it in your hands (and read it!) on April 4th.

Preorder it on Amazon

Preorder it on Barnes & Noble

Mark Clarion Hope as “to-read” on Goodreads

Ahh, I’m so excited.:) Who’s with me??

❤ Laurel