Christian poet – Laurel Luehmann

Reflections on a year of Beauty Even Here

August 26, 2026by Laurel LuehmannLeave a Comment

One year later, I sit here in the hour before dawn, as the sky colors lavender and pink in anticipation of the sun’s arrival, and the poetry of being able to soak in the beauty and symbolism of this hour is not lost on me.

I have spent much of my (short, I know) life waiting for the dawn…for the light of literal morning, for clarity in the light of God’s Word, for the moment when light will break over the darkest of circumstances and we will see that, truly, hope was not lost.

I have learned that the sweetest way to spend this darkest hour is to find my favorite constellation, brew a mug of coffee, and settle in with my Bible, journal, and a stack of books.

Seek the pinpricks of light afforded. Make and savor something beautiful. Fill my mind with truth, and preach it again to myself.

This, I realize today, is the essence of Beauty Even Here.

It’s a compilation of poetry that I wrote while feeling lost, directionless, confused, and disappointed by God’s timing. It’s in the spirit of Habakkuk, or Martha running to meet Jesus after her brother had been dead three days.

It’s full of poems that ask why, God?, but also of poems that cry show me, God…help me, God…heal me, God…turn my eyes to Yours.

One of my favorite lines from Beauty Even Here is nothing and everything has changed, and I feel that deeply – in a different way than I meant in that poem – a year or two later. A good deal has changed in my circumstances, but so little has changed in the tendencies of my heart: to seek the dawn of an answered prayer rather than the face of the One who is answering.

That, also, is the heart of Beauty Even Here, because I am stubborn, stuck in my ways, and so desperately need to be reminded and to remind myself to turn my eyes to Jesus in the midst of painful or unwanted circumstances, rather than just seeking relief and escape.

Spoiler alert if you haven’t read the book: He is the beauty even here.

So may we love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and learn to seek His face before we seek His hand.

He is our light, our joy, our ultimate satisfaction and beauty in both our darkest and most ordinary days.

What a gift He is!! How kind He is! We could not trust our lives to anyone better or more capable and worthy.

May He in truth be the most beautiful One to us in all our days.

Stay the course,

<3 Laurel

A small P.S. For nearly a month I’ve been wanting to get back into the habit of writing down three beautiful things that have happened/I’ve seen each day…as I’ve been writing this, I’ve been convinced that I do indeed need to get back into this habit. If you’d like to join me in doing this for just a month (hopefully you’ll get hooked on it and end up doing it for longer, hehe!), consider this your nudge and your invitation. 🙂

Poetry

God is not giving you breadcrumbs. (a poem and a link to an old post)

May 11, 2026by Laurel LuehmannLeave a Comment

You are not a Father who

pats His children on the head and

asks them to love breadcrumbs

as their playfellows feast sumptuously

at a table weighed down.

You are the Father who,

as the rest of the children run

helter-skelter after the ice cream truck,

taps us on the shoulder

with a finger to Your smiling lips

and whispers, “how about something even better?”

What is it about unanswered prayers that makes us believe God is holding out on us?

Somehow, though we have seen His faithfulness and sovereignty time and again, we need reminders of those sightings time and again. As I tend to write to preach to my own heart, I thought I’d share with this poem an old post that resonated with me again today and pairs nicely with this poem…in my opinion, at least. 🙂

a rambling post on time and hurt and promises (perhaps with a couple of poems) – Laurel Luehmann

The Lord is so wise and kind…may we learn to love His heart and will more deeply day by day!

Stay the course!

<3 Laurel

Photo by Jakub Żerdzicki on Unsplash

Poetry

of radios, hearing, and singing harmony – a nameless poem

April 20, 2026by Laurel Luehmann4 Comments

I wonder if, sometimes, when You speak,

all You hear is Your voice echoing off the shards of

a broken world that is plugging its ears,

or at least has the radio of its self-importance

cranked so high that

it cannot catch Your voice.

what a tragedy, to so deliberately drown

the voice of the Almighty with my own!

so open my ears to

Your voice, Your laughter, Your love songs.

catch my attention with

the things that make Your own heart beat faster.

when You speak, I want to settle at Your feet

or scramble to keep in step with You,

yanking off my stocking cap

to be sure I can catch every word.

when You laugh, I want to laugh with You,

letting my eyes follow Yours to see the joy

and abundance of gladness You see in these days.

when You sing, I want to stop my ears

to every note of wickedness so I can catch

the sweet song of Your Church living in harmony,

with each other and with Your Spirit.

I do not want to come to the end of my days to find

that, enthralled by the sound of my own voice,

I lived in dissonance with the song of the Creator.

each and every one of my days

I want to lace my life beneath Your melody

as a pleasing harmony,

drawing attention not to my own skill but

to the beauty of Your arrangement.

make me a willing musician in Your courts

forever and a day.

Poetry

a poem on normalcy

September 29, 2025by Laurel LuehmannLeave a Comment

Hello, friends!✨

I wrote a poem earlier this month that I thought I’d share here. It’s a reminder I need often! What a gift it is to walk with a sovereign God through “ordinary” days.

may I not, O Lord,

despise these hidden days…

the years stretched long with normalcy,

the months framed by the mundane.

may I never, sore impatient, kick aside

the purpose You’ve disguised in disillusion,

or rush ahead of shabby Providence.

pull me ever closer, Love,

till my racing heartbeat slows

to match the steady, loving pulse of the Divine.

Poetry

a new poem for August…at last!!

August 4, 2025August 4, 2025by Laurel Luehmann2 Comments

Hello, friends!

I haven’t shared a poem on the blog in…a very long time. Let’s change that today, shall we? I’ve come to find that I love referencing seasons and months in my poetry, and this poem reflects that. I hope it can be an encouragement to you.🫶🏼

August…

even its name on my tongue

feels like an exhale of lifted weight…

we made it.

hot, sticky mornings are s l o w l y giving way

to dawns that call for hoodies

as sunlight smiles golden through tasseled corn,

heralding harvest.

the best is yet to come…

the wait will soon be over.

we will soon sink our teeth into

crisp, sweet kernels, and

wipe the gift of butter from our chins

and exclaim in delight over the firstfruits.

we will savor

sweetness forged in the heat of summer,

and that, I believe,

is a foretaste of heaven.

Book Reviews, Journaling, Personal

June memories – 2024

July 1, 2024July 8, 2024by Laurel Luehmann3 Comments

This June was sunshine and thunderstorms and wildflowers and good books.✨

And mosquitoes. Lots of mosquitoes.

When he bares his teeth,
Winter meets its death,
And when he shakes his mane,
We shall have spring again.
C.S. Lewis

Things worth remembering

the start of the local farmers market
flower shopping with a brother
kayaking with the same brother in the rain
wandering through a newly-discovered cemetery
savoring slow mornings on vacation
reading on the dock
sand volleyball and Crossnet
Facetiming a dear friend
hayrides with cousins
wild costumes and Uno in the rain
late night cousin chats
scrounging wildflowers from the ditches

“Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works…”
Revelation 2:4-5a

What I’ve been reading

Morning and Evening – Charles Spurgeon

Jesus says, “take freely.” He wants no payment or preparation. He seeks no recommendation from our virtuous emotions.

I think this is the best daily devotional I’ve had yet. <3

A Light in the Window – Jan Karon

“What don’t you love?” he asked, looking at her intently.

She gazed back at him. “Oh, soggy mittens, chocolate without nuts, a man who can’t find it in himself to hold your hand when it’s sticking right out there in plain view.”

He took her hand that was resting on the table. “What else?” he said.

I finished this one on our family vacation, and it was a delight. I’m so glad there are so many more books set in Mitford!

The Colors of Rain – Abigail Hayven

Her life was pretty normal, but normal through rose-colored glasses. Normal with abstract colors thrown in. Normal in an intentionally romanticized way.

This book is a masterpiece. Both the pacing and narration are absolutely brilliant, and Rain is one of those characters who deserves to go down in literary history with the likes of Anne Shirley and Jo March.

Holy Hygge – Jamie Erickson

When you’re brave enough to show your scars to others, you declare that both your celebrations and your sufferings belong to the Lord. In doing so, you steward them both well.

Yes, I’m STILL reading this book! XD It’s still good.

(I’ve also been beta reading a short story that will be published in this anthology!)

LORD, my heart is not haughty,
nor my eyes lofty.
Neither do I concern myself with great matters,
Nor with things too profound for me.
Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul like a weaned child with his mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
psalm 131:1-2

From the journal

It is His strength within me. His love. His heart. His mind.

It was glorious this evening, and beauty is pulsing stronger on the horizon. God, You are so good to carry Your weak ones and give them hope’s whispers in unexpected places.

Let me not long for the cup You have not given.

What stood out to you from this June?

Oh! Just a note…I’ll be sending out a newsletter with some writing updates in a week or so here that you might not want to miss. You can click here to join my mailing list if you haven’t yet.

Stay the course!✨

<3 Laurel

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)

Poetry

tapestries + timelines – a poem

May 27, 2024by Laurel Luehmann5 Comments

Hello, friends!

Since sending Project Redemption off to an editor, my brain has been freed up to actually write poetry again! Here’s one of my recent favorite pieces…

I can trust my paltry timelines to

the hand of the God who crafted time

and set within this heart His mark:

an ache for the world unsullied by

a death-driven race for

desire unslaked.

behold

He is making

all things new…

untainted by the sin-stained clock,

the God who rules outside of time

is weaving tapestries of tears

and heartbeats – and His story’s end

wastes not a racing one of them.

Book Reviews, Journaling, Personal

April memories -2024

April 29, 2024April 27, 2024by Laurel Luehmann3 Comments

Hello, friends!

April showers have been bringing dandelions and daffodils…and this post.:)

Things worth remembering…

not having a cold for the first time in forever
living on ice cream, yogurt, and noodles after bidding wisdom teeth goodbye
a nostalgic viewing of a Winnie the Pooh movie…or two
handing Project Redemption off to an editor
being able to write poetry again
hitting a cajon with wild abandon for the first live worship time with our entire church
being told by a young child that I’m “too little to drive”

Fear not tomorrows, child of the King; trust them with Jesus. Do the next thing.
Author unknown

What I’ve been reading…

Holy Hygge – Jamie Erickson

Encouragement is more than just giving a compliment. It is the passing on of courage. To encourage someone is to give them the courage to face an unknown future, the courage to trust an unseen God, the courage to stand firm in a turbulent culture.

I’m so glad I finally got this book. I’m marking it up all over the place! It’s been a gentle challenge for me to consider the way that I walk through life and treat the people that surround me…and what that lifestyle says about who God is.

At Home in Mitford – Jan Karon

“Timothy, look at that funny cow staring at us.”

He raised his head slightly, and froze. “Do not move,” he said. “That is a bull.”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” she whispered, “this happens in comic books, not real life. Will we be gored?”

I’m such a slow reader, but I was able to tear through this book while I was down after getting my wisdom teeth out! XD You can read my full review here.

The Inheritance Games – Jennifer Lynn Barnes

…I looked past her to the counter and realized she’d baked more than muffins. There were also cupcakes. I felt my stomach plummet. “Oh, no, Lib.”

“It’s not what you think,” Libby promised. She was an apology cupcake baker. A guilty cupcake baker. A please-don’t-be-mad-at-me cupcake baker.

I did end up shelving this as DNF because the combination of teenage angst and implied content wasn’t my cup of tea. That and the plot just didn’t grab me like I’d hoped. I loved the MC’s snappy dialogue, though, and the glimpse of the tender heart beneath her armor, even in the first chapter.

“…we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”
2 chronicles 20:12

From the journal…

Let me see each day, each aspect of my life as a battleground; an opportunity to decrease and let You increase.

What made your April memorable?

<3 Laurel

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)

Poetry

spring’s gift – a poem

April 22, 2024April 19, 2024by Laurel LuehmannLeave a Comment

Hello, friends!

It’s spring in my corner of the world…on the ridges and in my soul. Here’s a new poem to commemorate these days.

the world is coming alive again,

and so

I…

spring is yawning green,

pushing its delicate fingers through the loam

that knew death with such intimacy…

but it breathes again,

racing to meet a cloud-studded sky

at the horizon to dance a jig

where death has died.

words flow, inky black

yet so alive

from my pen.

funny how, in the months where

the world stretched barren,

my pen was barren, too…

and now,

as the fields are wooing my heart,

my fingertips spring to life with the words

I fought to snare all winter.

a gift, a gift,

it’s all a gift…

the chorus echoes through my mind

and thunders through my ribcage.

all these God-formed hands can do is

plant,

water,

weed,

gather the increase that comes

from the heart of God and never

from my own sweating brow.

fear melts with the last of the snowdrifts, and

I poke warming fingers into the grasp

of an Almighty hand…

grateful,

eager,

in love.

P.S. I had to revamp my newsletter because I was running into some issues with my hosting site…so if you were subscribed to receive my newsletters, you’ll have to re-subscribe here if you’d like to continue receiving them!

(And, hey…if you weren’t subscribed in the first place, now’s your chance. ;))

Poetry, Uncategorized