Lean into the Prayer That Holds Us

Silent on the still ways of wandering,
hope in the new breath that comes.

Pressed into the moments that lie before us,
we are bearing no heavy burdens today.

There are things going on everywhere we look,
much ado about so much.

The lines on our brow are a textured map
of deep thoughts, measured.

We have lifted up our hands like autumn leaves.
We have turned golden, red, and brown
under the pressure of elements that keep coming.

We are letting the things we know, drift outwards,
we are allowing our spirit to be felt and sown.

There is a kingdom within you have said
and the children inherit.

Earthly treasure cannot come close in comparison
to what is already in the field.

Would we be willing to sell all things for
such a fine pearl?

We would be willing to come if we saw you
on the horizon, beckoning.

But you have called to us from within, not far off.

It is time to rest into the kingdom you have placed here.
It is time to find the compassion that grows.
It is time to lean into the prayer that holds us.

It is the right time for such things
to bear us into your inner court.

We are the treasure you have been
waiting for.

Jenneth Graser

Photography - Petra

Listen to Beautiful Jesus by Melissa Helser

A Very New Time

My Dear

You are on the verge of a very new time
even though the mist is still thick on the fields.

As you notice the dew on leaves
and the fragrance of trodden earth,
I am there in the places you feel the most lack,
working.

My purposes are to build you up in the weakness
you face, especially in the places that feel impossible.
I am there, present.

In your heart's cry and needs, with your family and friends,
every relationship that bears down on your shoulders -
I am there, working.

You are on the verge of a very new time
and I have been restoring the history of your life.

In every small act of forgiveness, I am there.
You are not as far off as you feel,
in fact, the radiance of my face beholds you.

My love is as real as it was when you first knew me.

I am there,
I AM.

Jenneth Graser

Photography - Benjamin Balazs  

Listen to Julie True- I Need You Lord, Meet Me Here

To Know You Again

We were walking alongside thunder
before the first drops thump the earth.

There was the smell of waiting for things to happen
thick on the air, heavy on a sigh of prayers.

We were remembering what it is to be present
to each other.

The first time we gave our life over,
read your holy words,
heard your voice in unexpected ways,
felt your touch from within...

There have been times of forgetfulness.

Tears have been stored for another time
when tears will be more convenient.

But you have called us into the storm
where the wind whips through our cavernous
longing for you to meet with us in new ways.

The lightning illuminates the profile of your face,
but there is no wisdom forthcoming, no vision
or dream in the night to explain all things.

Only your hand holding my hand
in such a way, that I know with a grip like yours
I'm going to be held like this forever.

Let us journey into the rain
and feel the old things melt away,
making way for me to know you again.

Jenneth Graser

Listen to Audrey Assad: I Wonder As I Wander/ How Can I Keep From Singing featuring Sarah Kroger