Tag: poetry

All Saints Day

~ Laura Johnson ~ Leave a comment

I light the candleremembering honoring missingJohnnyJackBettyJohnFayeTisaAdelaideOwenMikeRoyDon.I light the candle and seemyself in the dancing flame -the simmering embers of griefthe warmth of remembered lovethe sizzling burn of angerat Death, whoTakesTakesTakesTakesTakesTakesTakesTakesTakesTakesTakes.So I light the candle and stare down Death.I will not flicker or flinch or fade.For the light shines in the darkness,Life is kindled from Death,and … Continue reading All Saints Day

You, Ex Nihilo

~ Laura Johnson ~ 1 Comment

What surprises me most about love is how uncomfortable and risky it can be. While it fills us with the heady feelings of safety and joy and delight, it simultaneously pushes us beyond our comfort zones, beyond what we thought feasible, beyond what we dared expect of ourselves, beyond our bruised and tender "edges". Love … Continue reading You, Ex Nihilo

How To Find Your Purpose: A Poem

~ Laura Johnson ~ Leave a comment

Your life is bigger than you think. Stretching arms wide as its Maker, it strains to hold the abundance of God within you. You say you seek purpose. I say: seek the living imprints of God on your soul, and you’ll find what you need. Look for slivers of love and passion, justice and longing, … Continue reading How To Find Your Purpose: A Poem

How Do You Draw God?

~ Laura Johnson ~ Leave a comment

Credit: picture taken from “Love Poems From God” translated and compiled by Daniel Ladinsky. I can’t shake this poem from Meister Eckhart. How many of our coloring books depict a clucking “tsk tsk” tongue, below beady eyes that can’t hide their disappointment? How many pages are scribbled with the red of hatred or vengeance or … Continue reading How Do You Draw God?

You Ask Me What A Calling Feels Like

~ Laura Johnson ~ 2 Comments

It's irritating. A calling will sound like the beep-beep beep-beep you faintly hear in your sleep-drowsied dreams. At first you will be dimly aware of its alarming persistence, until slowly, slowly, maybe then with a start you’ll curse the break of day. That is to say, it’s unpleasant, a calling, like a fly, buzzing around … Continue reading You Ask Me What A Calling Feels Like

On the Anniversary of Unexpected Death (or, Grief Complicated)

~ Laura Johnson ~ 2 Comments

For Mike The world has spun for a whole year  without you. It’s relentless, the way life keeps going on and on  and on, not stopping for a breath, a death, a good cry,  a moment of reflection, a goodbye before it is too late. And on this day - one year later - I … Continue reading On the Anniversary of Unexpected Death (or, Grief Complicated)

On Disassembling Jesus’ House

~ Laura Johnson ~ 1 Comment

A Reflection on Mark 2:1-12 Jesus Heals a Paralysed Man – vie de Jesus mafa Jesus, you looked with compassion on the men who disassembled the roof of your home   to bring their paralyzed friend before you. They tore through the structure that kept you  protected from the rain, sheltered from the hot sun. The … Continue reading On Disassembling Jesus’ House

I Have Calmed and Quieted My Soul (Psalm 131)

~ Laura Johnson ~ Leave a comment

Abba Father, like my girl quietly playing with her toys while I sit nearby book in my lap, and she looks up at me, eyes alight with wonder, crying, "Look, mama!" wanting me to see the spectacular discovery before her of how colors of clay blend in her kneading hands - and I smile and … Continue reading I Have Calmed and Quieted My Soul (Psalm 131)

Love Unbound: A Glimpse into Mary of Bethany

~ Laura Johnson ~ Leave a comment

I don't often share posts about my thoughts on Scripture, but Mary of Bethany has captured my imagination this week and I felt compelled to share her story.  I am intrigued by the outrageous display of affection she lavished upon Jesus in John 12:1-8.  This is an easy story to gloss over, to write-off as … Continue reading Love Unbound: A Glimpse into Mary of Bethany

What Does Love Look Like? (A Maundy Thursday Poem)

~ Laura Johnson ~ 1 Comment

What does love look like? Like water spilling onto the floor as Jesus dipped his hands into the basin and wiped the dirt from his disciples' calloused feet. Love is a messy business. I can see them - the twelve disciples, with their shifty eyes, sweating palms, nervous laughs - what in the world is … Continue reading What Does Love Look Like? (A Maundy Thursday Poem)