Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Holy Ground




grounded
here in this sand
quick sand
it feels

days run 
together
when duties
long stilled
echo the halls

changing plans
i follow the
sun
mete out my
moments

seeking a
firmness 
wanting a
strength i
lose my clenching

find what was
missing 
seek what is
losing
life laid down








LORD of the 
moment he
holds me beneath
where ground
shifts

i watch him plant
seeds in
my feet standing
ground
sand shifting

and life is
here blooming
watered from well
springing up

HOLY GROUND



“'Do not come any closer,' God said. 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.'”



The writing prompt this week, given by Jamie Wright Bagley,
 (you can check out her site here) 
is "God in the ground beneath me," 
with a secondary prompt to experiment with the
 no caps no punctuation style of poetry that ee cummings made famous  


and my heart started pounding
when i heard a whisper
calling my ground
holy



What if the very place where the trial looks hardest,
where the ground seems most burnt
is actually the place most holy
in the eyes of the ONE who is changing
my heart? 



You might recognize that first photo above
as the one I posted here earlier this spring
after the DNR had come through our favorite
prairie park with a prescribed burn.

The second photo shows the prairie transformed,
when we visited just a few weeks ago. It's hard to
imagine the way that fire birthed life into 
the worn-out prairie lands. 



These burnt-out shifting sand places of our lives
become HIS fertile land 
when we let Him have the final say. 
But in those days when I stop short, try to shorten the
 process, or worse yet,
go off in my corner to pout,
I only hinder His planting,
quench off His Spirit,
and stunt my own growth.



For those of us who seek our corners,
can I offer a prayer?


"Dear Lord of the Harvest,
what an Amazing LORD you are!
Will you open our eyes
to see YOU in the 
shifting sands of our days?
Will you help us to loosen our hold
and come out of the corners,
to find YOU at work 
in the fertile soil,
the sandy loam
of hearts set free,
to be transformed into 
YOUR HOLY GROUND." 








I am linking with these great bloggers this week:





 

20 comments:

  1. "and my heart started pounding
    when i heard a whisper
    calling my ground
    holy" <--- Wow! I just got the chills. Amazing words, friend. Thank you for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Jamie,
      Thank you for your encouragement and inspiration to find the words that God plants in our hearts. I am so glad that your Mom pointed me in your direction! And isn't our Lord so good to bring His whispers to us? Blessings to you!

      Delete
  2. There is some good stuff in this post that I will be pondering today. I'm in a season of life where I feel like the fire is coming through and destroying much of what I love. But if this fire is a refining fire I should quit trying to wriggle away, hold still, and let the Spirit have His way. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Kelli,
      I am thankful that you found encouragement here today. I'm sorry that you are going through such a hard time right now, but I will keep you in my prayers! May the Lord show you the ways that He is at work in the midst of the storm. Blessings and Peace to you!

      Delete
  3. Oh, Bettie, this is beautiful! And this spoke to me -
    "What if the very place where the trial looks hardest,
    where the ground seems most burnt
    is actually the place most holy
    in the eyes of the ONE who is changing
    my heart?"
    Wow! What if it is? I want to trust Him even in the hardest places, because I know He is changing me. It may hurt, but ultimately good will come out of it.

    Blessings to you, my dear sister/poet/friend! xoxo I'm glad to be your neighbor at #Glimpses.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Gayl,
      Thank you for your sweet encouragement! And thank you for pointing me in your daughter's direction also, her inspiration has been such a blessing to me. Isn't our Lord so amazing to walk with us through the refining fire process? You are so right, that His ultimate good will come out of it when we let Him change us. Blessings to you also, my dear sister/poet/friend! xoxo

      Delete
  4. Thank you so much for a wonderful reflection today.

    God bless you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for stopping by and bringing encouragement with you today! Blessings to you also!

      Delete
  5. "What if the very place where the trial looks hardest,
    where the ground seems most burnt
    is actually the place most holy
    in the eyes of the ONE who is changing
    my heart?" Oh Bettie, you have really brought the idea of suffering to a place where God is the objective. Your words are so poignant and beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Debbie,
      I am so thankful that the Lord brought blessing to you through these words. His ways are not like ours, are they? But oh what incredible gifts He brings to us through the surrenders! I am so grateful for the gift of your prayers and friendship! Love and Hugs to you!

      Delete
  6. Bettie, I have no words to express how this post spoke to me the very words I needed this morning. So thank you! May you know God has used you and your writing and your photos! This is a beautiful post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Joanne,
      Oh what encouragement to know that Jesus used these small words of mine. He is so present with us in every moment of our days! You will be in my prayers as you continue on His path for you! Blessings and Love to you!

      Delete
  7. You have such a gift for poetry. Your description of the holy ground left me wanting more. These words right here --->
    i watch him plant
    seeds in
    my feet standing
    ground
    sand shifting

    and life is
    here blooming
    watered from well
    springing up

    HOLY GROUND

    Thank you for this blessing today.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Mary,
      Thank you for your kind words! I am so blessed that you would see beauty in these words. We have such a wonderful Lord who plants and waters our hearts, even when we can't see it! I pray that you find Him so close to you today!

      Delete
  8. You are very gifted! Beautiful, meaningful words, woven together poetically. Your insights connected with the picture were very encouraging.

    Thank you for sharing this very edifying post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Karen,
      Thank you for your sweet words. We have such a wonderful Lord who brings us His transformations and encouragements in the midst of our days! May He bring His blessing to you!

      Delete
  9. WOW! Absolutely beautiful words, I loved how I was able to have a cadence and beat as I was reading your words. You are such a gifted poet Bettie. Thank you for linking up with #TuneInThursday today

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Debbie,
      Thank you for your sweet encouragement Debbie. I am so blessed that God brings His Spirit to speak into our moments and days! Thanks for the community of your link-up!

      Delete
  10. Loosening our hold to find Him at work, I love that Bettie. Such hope in allowing and then watching God move. Blessings, friend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Tiffany,
      Oh, yes, there is such a sweet hope He brings to us as we watch Him move! And I am continuing to ask Him to loosen my hold, daily it seems. I am so thankful that He is so quick to answer. May you be blessed also, my friend.

      Delete

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