PAULIE'S POEMS - PMG

  Christmas Eve So, today's Christmas Eve  Preparations are made Lots of shopping and cleaning  Great attention's been paid Now, just for a moment  As we end hustling  Let's turn our attention  To a far greater thing Let's remember the promises  Prophets foretold It's the Eve of Christ's birth New created from old With the birth of sweet babe The world turned upside-down  The poor were made rich And the lost ones were found The lowly were lifted Powerful were brought low Hope and joy would replace The world's mourning and woe The great chasm between  God and man would be bridged With a birth, then a cross We live 'cause first He lived  God's bright light came to earth Through this nativity In the dark of this world Light for all who will see Unbelievers see darkness Some believers do, too When we turn eyes away from what's holy and true But even if darkness Is what you're going through  Christmas dawn brings a promise To make all th...

  Just Like... Am I just like a Pharisee Stuck in my stubborn ways Not acting with pure motives Rather, seeking earthly praise My Savior right in front of me  Yet, I refuse to see Instead,  convinced I know better Just like a Pharisee Am I just like an Isrealite Who grumbles and complains In spite of seeing miracles My worship quickly wanes Often, I wander aimlessly Not knowing which way's right Instead of walking God's clear path Just like an Isrealite Am I just like the sinners  That I read in bible verse That lie, and cheat, and disobey Even things that are far worse When fighting against the Lord's will They never are the winners Is that the way that I behave Am I just like those sinners Am I just like the hypocrite  Who sits in the next pew Hearing how they should live their life But that's not what they do For, I hear the same message, too Yet, sin in spite of it Then, judge them for the way they act Just like a hypocrite  I want to be just like Jesus...

  Unearned Earn a promotion, earn a raise  Earn touchdown for good football plays Earn gold medal or blue ribbon Earn leading role for play you're in Earn soccer trophy, scholarship Earn respect in a relationship  Earn settlement in legal suit Earn recognition playing flute While every one of those is nice Won't earn your way to paradise  It's not something you can work for Only one way opens that door  It's a free gift! Can you believe it! The one thing to do is receive it Accept that Jesus is the Christ And then can live in paradise  It seems too simple to be true For surely there is more to do In this life, everyone has learned  All things of value must be earned How could this gift be freely given  A golden ticket into heaven Not really free - cost dearest price Through broken body of our Christ  For with his death, sin's bill was paid Then rose so we could all be saved All done because of unearned love From God, our Father up above ...

  While Waiting What do you do while waiting for A prayer to open heaven's door What do you do once God implore Say, it's no use, I've prayed before How do you behave while you wait Most eagerly anticipate  The answer you've been praying for Because he's answered many more Or is your mind filled up with doubt Since other prayers did not work out  And so you're anxious while you wait Afraid disaster is your fate You know God's answer's never late But what do you do while you wait Repeat yourself ad nauseum To make sure God will hear you, then Or ask him once, call it a day For really, what more can you say Then go on with the things you must Knowing he'll answer, 'cause you trust Once your dear Father knows your heart Then waiting is the hardest part Yet, that is where your faith will grow While still in land of " I don't know " For as your waiting becomes longer Your faith and trust are growing stronger Of this fact, there is no deb...

  Time For Love How love is spelled, it seems to me Is with the letters T-I-M-E "I love you" is quite nice when heard But, it is so much more than words If you want genuine love to grow Time is required to make it so For without an investment of How do they know you truly love So many ways to show love's real Making amends or home-cooked meal Help 'round the house without reminder Investing effort to be kinder Make plans to be with one another  Taking the time to call your mother  Why, even giving a quick hug Done with intention shows your love For things we love, we'll make the time May even invest our last dime Our hobbies, pastimes, a good read Things that we care about  we feed Thus, how much more deserving of Our time are those we say we love For they should take priority  Not be dismissed too casually Gift of our time's the antidote When love feels distant or remote For when we love by what we do That love finds a way back to you The joy of love is so su...

  The View Remember a View Master When you were a little kid You'd bring your eyes up to it View the magic that it did Experience a story Or location far away  And if you had enough reels You could play with it all day  T'was quite a simple pleasure  For children of bygone years Today's kids view things differently  So they'd be bored to tears They live with such technology  The limit is the sky World of virtual reality  Of X-Box and A. I. Their eyes fixated on a screen Various devices they may use Search of knowledge,  entertainment  Or validation counting views But as child of the sixties World was quite a different place Not hang with friends through media Instead, played face to face I viewed the world through different eyes As I did come of age And while my vision has matured I'm certainly no sage Yet, one thing I am certain of Since I was just a girl That the one I should keep in view Is the creator of the world Just like the toy, with ...

  Christmas Magic The festive season is here now Of caroling and holly bough The scent of pine fills every room In hopes of chasing winter's gloom The decorations  shiny bright The glow of flickering candlelight  Excited shoppers everywhere  A sense of magic fills the air But oh, how quickly spirit's change With busy schedules to arrange  Cards still to mail, menus to plan The list of tasks is out of hand The thrill we felt mere weeks ago Of candy canes and mistletoe  As each day nears the blessed date Its magic seems to dissipate  Holiday traffic is a mess What should be joyous feels like stress Excitement's given way to angst We're all running on empty tanks Instead of laughter everywhere  We see tempers begin to flare How quickly lives get out of line From magic, that is Christmas time  The days can still be magical If we would just stop and be still Relax and sip a cup of tea Enjoy the lighted Christmas tree Recalling how when we were you...

  Good Friends Oh, the sweet blessing of good friends A taste of heaven the Lord sends The ones who stay with me through strife And joyously enrich my life Good friends produce an earthly bliss And chase away all loneliness  The best, know me outside and in Will stick with me through thick and thin What precious gift a friendship brings I'm sure it comes on angel wings Through all the years on earth, I've spent I know my friends were heaven sent Some came in childhood schoolyard play And still I call them friends today Others grew in high school or college  While some appeared without my knowledge  Many developed in workplaces May come and go; even change faces No matter how they crossed my path Their love remains as aftermath Some friends developed gradually  Others became so instantly Though be it slow or very fast The greatest ones are those that last Friendship's not just a want but need Without friends, harder to succeed  For they're a personal cheerin...

  Your Spiritual Walk Do you ever see others whose spiritual walk Seems farther along than your own Who get Bible things that you don't understand  Somehow closer to foot of God's throne Do you ever compare to believers you know And it feels that you always fall short  Or, try as you might, it just never feels right To behave like the spiritual sort Those who praise with arms raised or recite verse with ease While you search for right words, WHEN you pray Or perhaps the word's IF, for you have to admit That you don't talk to God every day Have you come to believe you just don't measure up In the Christian life, there's much you lack When the Bible you read, try to get up to speed  Do you quickly find you get off track For the devil, it's true wants to discourage you And convince you that you're not enough  Once he has you compare, then you're caught in his snare Soon, you'll think spiritual walk is too tough No, don't fret all the rest, just ...

  Balance On balance beam, so you don't fall You shouldn't watch your feet at all For if with gaze you look straight down You'll lose your balance; hit the ground  Likewise, with waitress balancing trays It's in the center her hand stays For if she holds it otherwise  She'll watch each plate and cup that flies To balance on a bicycle  Requires practice for that skill We wabble till we master it Then, ever more confidently sit A balanced checkbook's hard to do When dollars each month are too few No matter just how frugal are The money only goes so far A balanced diet's also tough How many veggies are enough It's hard to watch the things you eat For sure, if you have tooth that's sweet Life, too can be a balancing act If want to keep sanity intact  It's hard to balance work and play Too much to do each given day Unbalanced life makes stress compound For, just like see-saw up and down When counterweight leaps off at once Life crashes down like a gut...

  Rest Rest is not a privilege  That's a truth I must still learn It's something that's greatly required  Not reward you have to earn Sometimes, it's learned the hard way Through sickness or injury When my body has been forced to rest To restore my health to me Yet, in this hustle, bustle world May think that it is best To complete as much as possible  And then never stop to rest To some, rest denotes a weakness Or the price of it's too steep Or somehow, it's a bragging right To require so little sleep But that's not how God intended  For on seventh day did rest Not because the Lord would need it But to teach us what is best For God's always about balance In our lives and in all things So designed our bodies to need rest And the restoration that it brings Yes, the call to rest's a balanced one All things done in moderation Neither be a workaholic  Nor go into hibernation  So, don't fight it like a toddler's nap Surrender to it; be refreshed N...

  How Did I Get Here? How did I get here? I don't know  Seems sometimes fast, other times slow Though does not matter what the pace Still wonder how I reached this place  How am I at this point in time Reality of its sublime For most of journey was uphill Through hard fought land, yet I'm here still How did I get from there to here In baby steps, year after year Know sometimes how I reached this place Was through tremendous leaps of faith But other times through missteps went To places that I never meant Through valleys deep or forests dark Through turbulent waters full of shark Yet, oh so many times I've found That when I stop to look around  The sun is shining on my face And I am in a lovely place A place with lush, green, rolling hills With irises and daffodils  A place of rest, peace, and beauty  Exactly where I want to be I've found as I trek on my way Sometimes have both in the same day Day can begin as walk in park Then suddenly turn very dark Or sta...

  'Tis the Season  'Tis the season to be jolly With mistletoe, pine boughs, and holly Yet, what if jolly's not your mood  But melancholy, you exude What if the carols in the air Remind you of someone not there Or crackling fire's bright light and heat Can't chase the cold of empty seat What if season's not full of thrills But full of lack and unpaid bills Though sugarplums fill your kid's head You know they'll get little instead  Perhaps in place of peace, good will You have a loved one very ill So thoughts don't turn to season's din But doctors visits, medicines While others have house full of guests All you have though is loneliness  The kids have grown and moved away So it's not the same holiday How blessed if season's joyous one But it is not for everyone  For most December brings good cheer For some, it's hardest time of year Whatever circumstance you claim The Christmas message's still the same That hope came through a baby...