Spiritual Poems

I wrote a spiritual poem responding to a poem by Langston Huges that our poet in residence, Fran Durler, at the Progress Energy Art Gallery  (New Port Richey, Florida) included as a sample. Fran spurs us to greater poetic heights with a challenge before each poetry night. The Gallery offers poetry readings open to the public on the 2nd and 4th Fridays of the month at 6:30 pm.  

Fran's recent POETRY CHALLENGE was to find a line of poetry that speaks to you.  Write that line and then go on to make a new poem of your own; however, I couldn't allow Langston Hughes' poem titled, GOD, to remain unchallenged.  

My poem, GOD WITH US, was the result, and could certainly be typed as a Christian poem.   GOD by Langston Hughes follows; and while it is a spiritual poem, it is anything but Christian!  

GOD WITH US

I God, came

to be your friend,

©Joyful Expressions Photography 2008

to give you My Purity,

Life without end.

Believe Me earth lovers,

I've walked your ground,

and I am God.

I have come down.

Christ,

My own son,

died for you only,

(total God, yet human).

My love is not lonely!

© E. Goehringer 01/26/2012

GOD

by Langston Huges

I am God --

Without one friend,

©Joyful Expressions Photography 2008

Alone in my purity

World without end.

Below me young lovers

Tread the sweet ground --

But I am God --

I cannot come down.

Spring!

Life is love!

Love is life only!

Better to be human

Than God -- and lonely.

Appeared in the October 1931 issue of POETRY

I have compassion for anyone with the view that God is up there somewhere without any concern for His creation.  Jesus is Immanuel which means 'God with us.' Jesus proved His love when He opened His arms and died for us.  And, gave evidence that He is God when he rose from the dead!

More of my spiritual poems are displayed throughout this site, but especially at my page titles, Inspirational Words.

 I encourage you to share your poetry including your spiritual poems.

Nature Poems

As I researched Key Words, I discovered that lots of you love nature poems.  You are invited to contribute your own nature poetry, but I'll share the one I wrote yesterday in response to a challenge from Fran Durler, our poet in residence, at the Progress Energy Art Gallery in New Port Richey, Florida. The Gallery offers poetry reading open to the public on the 2nd and 4th Fridays of the month at 6:30 pm.  


Fran's POETRY CHALLENGE was to find a line of poetry that speaks to you.  Write that line and then go on to make a new poem of your own!  

© Joyful Expressions Photography

The Egret

Eschew the cluster'd herd,

Aloof from raucous flock,

Observe that stoic bird;

White egret by the rock.

Alabaster wings,

Unabashed elegance,

No lovely voice that sings;

His patience is intense.

No famed marble statue

Is ever still as he;

His fishing rendezvous

baited so carefully,

And when at last he strikes,

His beak a deadly spear,

© Joyful Expressions Photography
This image appears in
A Photographer Looks At The Psalms
by Elizabeth Goehringer

High steps precede his flight                   

Off to a new frontier.

Aloft he dazzles sight,

Brilliant against the sky.

Unfurled wings a kite:

Beauty soaring high.

© E. Goehringer 01/25/2012

I chose to model a nature poem by Elinor (Hoyt) Wylie.  She was the granddaughter of the Governor of Pennsylvania, and the daughter of Roosevelt's Solicitor-General.  The poem below was apparently written in the early 1920s. I found it in Modern American Poetry © 1919, 1921 and 1925.


 It sounds as though her message is to soar with the eagles, and avoid grubbing in the ground.  Is that an inspirational word? You decide:)

The Eagle And The Mole

Avoid the reeking herd,

Shun the polluted flock,

Live like that stoic bird,

The eagle of the rock.

The huddled warmth of crowds

Begets and fosters hate;

He keeps, above the clouds,

His cliff inviolate.

When flocks are folded warm,

And herds to shelter run,

He sails above the storm,

He stares into the sun.

If in the eagle's track

Your sinews cannot leap,

Avoid the lathered pack,

Turn from the steaming sheep.

If you would keep your soul

From spotted sight or sound.

Live like the velvet mole;

Go burrow underground.

 And there hold intercourse

With roots of trees and stones,

With rivers at their source,

and disembodied bones.

©Elinor Wylie

I don't really like working from another poet's work, but it was an interesting challenge

with creative results.  And, now I have another nature poem to share with you, and encourage you to share your nature poetry.

 We have eagles in Florida, but of all the Florida birds, I love the graceful egrets best.  They hunt along the lake that borders our side yard.  They are no songbirds.  Their voices are a loud raspy croak, but their patience always amazes me, as they stand and stare, and wait.  We can learn a lot from them!

I am looking for a photo I believe we took of an eagle's nest or perhaps it was an osprey. When I find it (or another that I think we took at the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa), I will add it to this page.

I have several nature poems included at this link.

Poems About Poems

'PRAISE'  ©Joyful Expressions Photography*

 During Poetry night at New Port Richey, Florida's Progress Energy Art Gallery, I read some of my poems about poems.  So, I decided to share some with you.  After all what does a poet know more about than how that poet creates poems!

INSPIRATION

Into my mind

a rhythm flows,

some words, a rhyme....

A poet knows

her writing time.

First the paper,

then the pen,

a comfy chair,

and often

the words unfurl,

escape my mind,

unfettered, free.

It is their time

to reflect me 

as I unwind

with verse or rhyme.

©ELG 5/97

And, here I am again working the 'night shift'.  I woke up at 3:30 and when I was still awake at 4 a.m., I decided to get up, have some homemade chicken vegetable soup that I made the day before, and post some of my poems about poems.  It's now 6:30 a.m. and I'm not really tired (adrenalin I guess), but I'm heading back to bed for a couple of hours! (I hope!)

NIGHT OWL

I make such vows to me

to go to bed

and get some sleep.

Yet instead, you see,

I'm writing poetry.

©ELG 3/97 2 a.m.

I love the translation of Psalm 61:8 from The Message Bible that I use to begin the next poem.  "I'll be the poet who sings your glory, and live what I sing every day."**

SENT TO THE WORLD

"I'll be the poet who sings your glory",

Your story

to the helter skelter world out here;

smiling, smirking outside

but

empty, searching in here

in the so,

so alone and so un-whole,

so masked,

so lied -

a far cry

from Your Perfect Plan.

I'll be the poet who shares Your love

from Above

to this helter skelter world so near

in my face, flesh stench,

full

of growling appetites; fear

struggling alone

round peg, square hole

empty soul.

so tried (or maybe fried?)

Trapped by a lie

of Your Perfect Plan.

Lord, send me to share Your love

from Above

to the deceived, lost world out here.

©ELG 1/11

'Sent To The World'  reflects my concern for all who don't know that Jesus Christ is the answer for their lives and the only hope for this 'helter skelter' messed up world.  My desire and prayer is that if you don't know Jesus personally, you will accept His gift of salvation; and that God will use me to share His love wherever He provides an opening. After all Jesus last words were to "go into all the world and preach the Gospel (lit: good news) to every person. (Mark 16:15 New King James Version)

Have you written any poems about poems? If not, take this as a challenge to write one! And, then share it here!

* I created 'PRAISE' in Photoshop from two of our photos; one of a sunset & the other of a woman joyfully worshiping God during a time of Praise at Calvary Chapel Worship Center in New Port Richey, Florida.

I devoted several pages at Joyful Expressions Photography Art on how to create a photo collage. . The bottom of the linked page offers links to additional collage creations with instructions.

**This quote is from  Psalm 61:8 in The Message Bible.

FUEL FOR THE FIRE

FUEL FOR THE FIRE

by

Elizabeth Phillips Goehringer

"A missing child, corrupt Senators, gang bangers, and a New Age commune weave an intricate plot of power at any price..." 

FUEL FOR THE FIRE 

is scheduled for print and e-book release in late spring.

CLICK HERE for a periscope into the nightmare world of Janisa Clark.   
The same 'Fiction Writing' page chronicles the effect of my life in Hartford, Connecticut on this tense drama of a desperate mother's search for her missing child.

From Me To You....

Me (Beth) in England

I began Fuel For The Fire while living in Bloomfield, barely north of Hartford, Connecticut.  I had no idea what 4 year old Lora's fate was when I started writing.  I didn't know whether she was dead or alive.  Nor did I know how the story would end. People died that I didn't expect to die.  Characters seemed to appear almost on their own complete with their own personalities...humor, bitterness, whatever.  

I began to understand what the ancients meant when they said they wrote under the influence of their muse.  Only my muse was the Holy Spirit.  

Sorry (well, actually I'm very glad for the Holy Spirit), but I didn't mean to freak you out! LOL!  But that was how it felt.  Oh, I still had to craft, and research and rewrite, but there were many times when I felt another Presence with me.

It was while we were still living in Hartford that I listened to an audio book of the Pelican Brief by John Grisham.   Using that as a model, when I started writing 'Fuel',  I decided it would include a protagonist on the run (Janisa Clark in 'Fuel') and multiple murders.  ( http://www.jgrisham.com/  )

Just before my move to Cape Cod I began reading This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti, and I knew my suspense would include some supernatural appearances of angels and demons.  I knew too that a well written plot with a spiritual component could appeal to mass audiences.  After all Peretti followed up with Piercing The Darkness, The Oath and 19 other titles including his newest, Illusion.      (http://frankperetti.com/  )

Since I didn't know the outcome, I was almost perpetually on the edge of my seat, wondering what would happen next!  But I couldn't skip ahead.  No cheating for the author.  In fact it took me about two hours to write one page.  Oh, the suspense!

Fortunately, you won't have to read Fuel For The Fire that slowly.  You will be in suspense.  You will be obsessed by the mystery of what happened to Lora and why, and you can skip ahead if you want to.  But I hope you won't, because the outcome is in the details.  I was very careful to not leave any loose ends. (I hate loose ends in a novel, especially a mystery!)  But unfortunately you do have to wait for the publisher to complete their part.

I challenge you to figure out what happened to Lora before her family does!

And, I begin my suspense again.  The sequel's underway, Plucked From The Fire, and I don't know the ending of that either, but I know the answer lies in the details....

Beth 

For more details about the creation and cover of Fuel For The Fire, follow this link.

The Road Less Traveled

If you have visited this page before, I have added a poem that describes the choices we all have to make for the year to come...and each day of our lives. Scroll to 'Belfry Balcony' two poems down....

I Can Only Imagine

Death is something we all experience.

Heaven is something we all desire.

After the death of my 29 year old son in 1995, I wrote a series of poems trying to put into words of comfort what I can only imagine....

"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." (1 Corinthians 2:9)

               FOREVERLAND

           oh         my         child

Trebah Gardens, Cornwall, UK
Copyright Joyful Expressions Photography
For more of our photos of Cornwall click below -
http://www.joyfulexpressions-photography-art.com/Falmouth-England.html

Have you gone to Never Never Land                                                    

      to never ever grow old,

      where nothing wears out,

       and pain is no more?

        In a way you have,

For you have left us for a better place

        where you will be forever young,

         and in that eternity

          of flawless gardens,

     

      and no more tears          

            We will reunite,

           and the years apart

            will be as nothing. 

1/11/96 ELG  Copyright

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE - Lyrics

I can only imagine What it will be like When I walk By your side

I can only imagine What my eyes will see When your face Is before me I can only imagine

I can only imagine

[Chorus:]Surrounded by Your glory, what will my heart feel Will I dance for you Jesus or in awe of you be still Will I stand in your presence or to my knees will I fall Will I sing hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all

I can only imagine

I can only imagine

I can only imagine When that day comes When I find myself Standing in the Son

I can only imagine When all I will do Is forever Forever worship You I can only imagine

I can only imagine

[Chorus]

I can only imagine [x2]

I can only imagineWhen all I will do Is forever, forever worship you

I can only imagine

[| From: http://www.elyrics.net/read/m/mercyme-lyrics/i-can-only-imagine-lyrics.html |]

These lyrics were last corrected by Graeme Beck.

Trebah Gardens, Cornwall, UK
Copyright Joyful Expressions Photography
Our inspirational page, I Can Only Imagine, is below -

http://www.joyfulexpressions-photography-art.com/I-Can-Only-Imagine.html


I pray that you will find words of comfort in these poems and inspirational

quotes - especially if you too have experienced the tragedy of the death of a child.

IN MEMORY OF DAVID

            (HAIKU #2)                                                                      

       Like flowers in spring

we will meet again and bloom

       where death stings no more.

12/31/95  ELG Copyright                     

SLEEPING



My David is sleeping
While I go weeping
And keeping my memories fond.

I feel so empty
Without his dear body
To Wrap my arms around.

When will he awaken?
When will the day break in
When he rises out of the ground?

Or will I go to him
In heaven's dominion
Before the trumpet's loud sound?

He's There and I'm here,
Separated though near,
'Til Jesus creates a new bond.

Tardy time speed away;
Bring forth that grand day
When, rejoined, our joy shall abound.        

1/8/96 ELG Copyright

Walk In The Word

How do we walk in the Word?  That's a question most of us have asked at one time or another in one way or another. I know I have.

Maybe instead of the question above you've said, "What's it all about?" or "What's my purpose?" or "How can I know God's will for my life?"

Here we'll feature some inspirational poems and prose showing how to walk in the Word of God.  We've included inspirational pictures to help infuse our souls with the reality of God's methods and plans for each of us.

This poem came to me late last night.  Almost out of the blue as they say. But I believe it was God-breathed.  Not because it's the best poem ever; or even the best I've ever written.  But because it is Truth.  And it speaks to my heart.  I pray it will to yours.

THEN GOD WORKS...

Gorilla Jar
Photo Painting
Copyright Joyful Expressions Photography
I show how to create a Photo Painting
at the link below:
http://www.joyfulexpressions-photography-art.com/photopainting.html

Here’s how God works…

You hold on tight

    Like a monkey’s fist in a jar

           Full of candy;                                                                  

And nothing happens…

    At least nothing good.

You get caught in your own trap                                                               

    Of overspending,

        Over eating,

    Picking the wrong mate,

        Or car, or house,

    Simmering with anger,

        Bitterness,

            Resentment,

    Unforgiveness…

Until you give up,

    Unball your tightly squeezed fist.

Open your hand,

    And let go of all that stuff.

Then God works!                                          

ELG 10-25-11 Copyright

God's Word, the Bible, tells how to walk in the Word:

Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

Psalm 27:14

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹² Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.  

Jeremiah 29:11-13

New International Version (NIV)                                                                              

Search for any verse or topic at:   http://www.biblegateway.com

FOOTSTEPS IN THE SAND

Footsteps At Sandy Neck
Copyright
Joyful Expressions Photography
For more of Gods Promises, Click Below:

http://www.joyfulexpressions-photography-art.com/footstepsinthesand.html

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the LORD. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonging to him, and the other to the LORD.

When the last scene of his life flashed before himhe looked back, at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times of his life.

This really bothered him and he questioned the LORD about it:"LORD, you said that once I decided to follow you,you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life there is only one set of footprints. 

I don't understand why when I 

needed you most you would leave me."

The LORD replied:"My son, My precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints
 in the sand, it was then that I carried you."

Author unknown

"You Are My Hiding Place" Psalm 32:7 

Grays Preserve, Port Richey, FL
Copyright
Joyful Expressions Photography
Included in "A Photographer Looks At The Psalms" - Click  Below:

http://www.joyfulexpressions-photography-art.com/Psalm23.html

                             

                         You Are My Hiding Place.   I Will Trust In You.

                                 by Selah (with awesome photos)

                                

                           

                             The inspirational words are on the video below

                         in concert with inspirational art and verse.

                               

                                

World English Bible
You are my hiding place. You will preserve me from trouble. You will surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.  (Psalm 32:7)


Biblos offers parallel translations and commentary at -   http://bible.cc/psalms/32-7.htm

The more of Gods Word I have in me, the more I will live God's Word...and Walk In The Word.

Fiction Writing

INSPIRATIONAL WORDS - MY FICTION WRITING

FUEL FOR THE FIRE 

is scheduled for print release in late spring.
http://www.inspirational-words.net/2012/01/fuel-for-fire.html

Fuel For The Fire is not inspirational in the usual sense.  It was inspired by the 20 years I spent living in the city of Hartford, Connecticut and environs. Although it is fiction writing, 'Fuel' reflects some of the hopes, aspirations, fears and frustrations I saw and experienced within the minority community projected into an environment more like today's world than the world I wrote it in!  In the end it is a glimpse into the power of hope, and the battle for faith.

TEASER: ": an advertising or promotional device intended to arouse interest or curiosity especially in something to follow (Merriam Webster)http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/teaser

So, Here's My Teaser!

Reading like the headlines of a 21st century newspaper, Fuel For The Fire, is hold onto the back of your seat, non-stop suspense featuring mystery, murder, mayhem and unexpected glimpses of the supernatural.

Janisa Clark awakens in the hospital after crashing her car to discover that her three year old daughter, Lora, is missing. Her husband, Dr. Jeremy Clark, shows her a newspaper article reporting that Lora was abducted because minority rioters thought she was white. But she’s not.

In an economy reminiscent of the Great Depression, the fury of the have-nots has been vented in firebombs, riots and attacks on anyone and anything considered affluent or different.  The city has been torched.

Against this backdrop Dr. Clark enlists the assistance of his gang banger brother-in-law, Cat, in his search for Lora. However, his HIV research is a valuable commodity, and his impetuous actions have placed it and him in great jeopardy.

As her husband disappears into the underbelly of society, Janisa’s desperate efforts to find Lora provoke a backlash that have her and their son, Sandy, running for their lives.

With fast paced precision the story catapults from homeboys in the hood to incendiary skin heads in the suburbs; a clandestine government installation; the conspiracies and secrets of two corrupt senators, and their wives; the schemes of a billionaire plotting world domination; bizarre murders; a child adoption agency with its own agenda; and a pristine commune specializing in occult phenomena.

FBI detective, Sean McArthur, stumbles on the Clark tragedy when Jan turns to his sister, Molly, for help. Can he unravel the tangles linking the Clarks to powerful minority Senator Raindolph, and the Senator to a commune he doesn’t know exists?

Will Janisa ever be able to place her trust in a God who allowed this travesty to happen but who Molly and Sean say loves her? Will Sean, the Senator and the Clarks survive the equally determined attempts of a unknown enemy to prevent them from knowing Lora’s fate?

Fasten your seat belt for a riveting ride to a screeching conclusion.

"Reading Fuel For The Fire is more like watching a high suspense movie than reading a book!"

The Effect of Hartford, Connecticut 

On My Fiction Writing, 

and Fuel For The Fire

Can I bare my soul to you for a moment?  I spent all of my children's growing up years in Hartford and the close suburb of Bloomfield. I was married at that time to a prominent area  jazz musician.  His race excluded us from certain apartment rentals due to discrimination.  He was the director of a summer jazz series which brought celebrities into Hartford, and placed the children and me in the middle of the arts community.  At one time I ran the campaign office for a minority political candidate.  I sold Real Estate and advertising, and wrote articles for two local publications.  As a result I experienced the North End, the South End, the West side and every other neighborhood in Hartford and its environs.

In the course of those years teen gangs were active.  My  son was attacked with a hammer in school.  My daughter saw friends die.  She also saw a woman hosed off the street after she was run over by a bus.  That episode found its way into Fuel For The Fire.  At 13 my son was diagnosed with diabetes at the UCONN Medical Center which became the model for Jeremy Clark's Aids research.  My advertising background became Janisa's career.  

My son's untimely death resulted from his inability to overcome a cocaine addiction. My daughter has gone on to become the best RN I have ever met.  She has helped me through some of the medical scenes in the book.

Finally the Hartford area hosted some of the most amazing experiences of my life.  On the way home from a Billy Graham movie, my son asked me to stop the car so that he could pray.  Yes, he died from a drug overdose, but a few days after his death, I had a phone call from a woman who used to do drugs with him.  She told me that she came to know Jesus as her Savior because "even high David never stopped talking about him." 

That was a theology buster and a major revelation to me.  Drugs are not the unforgivable sin.  Rejecting Christ as Messiah Savior is; and who else can share Jesus in a drug den except another addict.  I am proud of my son for not keeping his faith to himself.

Through a friend of my daughter, I heard about spiritualism, and heard the cries of a demon in an empty apartment.  Through another person I met a bonafide witch, and was introduced to the occult.

Spiritually, the Hartford area reflects some of my lowest points, but it also was home to some of the deepest growth of my life, and the foundation for my future.  A church nicknamed "The Barn" in the suburb of Simsbury introduced me to the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and provided the template for 'His House' in the latter part of the book.

Missing children were only beginning to be an issue when I began writing 'Fuel'.  It's an epidemic that has exploded in the last decade.  My husband, Tom, and I moved to Florida just about that time, and shortly afterward a little girl in the next town was stolen from her bed, and buried alive beneath the child molester's front stairs. But the epidemic has grown far beyond individual perversion.  We are told that the United States is the greatest purchaser of illegal slaves in the world.  The profit motive for baby sales, sex slaves, work slaves and human sacrifice are  woven into the story of Lora and the Clark family.

Books grow from experiences - even fictional, and my fiction writing is no exception; but no person, place or event in Fuel For The Fire is actual.  It is all fiction, and it is my hope that it provides  readers with a good ride regardless of whether they share my conviction or faith. But more important to me is that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is clearly presented in the midst of the murder, mayhem and unexpected glimpses of the supernatural.  

We are living in potentially the most important historical period since the birth of Jesus.  Look around, read the papers, listen to FOX and CNN; then read the Bible.  The return of Jesus is not far away, and that means also that the greatest tribulation this world has ever known is also not far away.  My prayer is that those without faith who read this suspense novel, will realize that it could easily be true, and that their eyes will open to see the spiritual battle that is here now and that is to come.  If that is you, my prayer is that you will jump into the arms of Jesus before it is too late.

Stay tuned to this 'channel'!  You will have one of the first  opportunities to read one of the first print or e-books of FUEL FOR THE FIRE!

http://www.joyfulexpressions-photography-art.com/kindle.html