Searching

*Here are the lyrics to the second one:

Searching for the reason why
so much pain lingers on.

Can I find the truth?
Open up my eyes
Show me the reason why
I'm torn apart

Now I hear you calling me
You give rest to my soul

Can I find the truth?
Open up my eyes
Show me the reason why
I'm torn apart

Now I see you on the cross
crying and bleeding for me

You became a curse
and took my place in death
You felt the pain I feel
and rose to life

Your name is high above all other names!

Away

*I was inspired, tonight, to record a couple of new songs I've been working on. Here are the lyrics to the first one:

The way your eyes see through

this wall of loneliness,

and how your smile lights up

the darkness in my heart

How could I ever look away from you

How could I ever run away from you

The softness of your touch

could strengthen me for days.

Your whispers, tears, and laughs

are songs I'll sing for years

Why did I ever look away from you

Why did I ever run away from you

Thirst

This is one that my Dad and I co-wrote. It was a joy to collaborate with him and my mom on the new album.

Your love is water for my soul

When I thirst I call Your name

By Your Spirit You pour out 

the purest love I've ever known

When I think about Your goodness, oh God 

my mind reflects on Your mercy

When I see part of Your greatness, oh Lord

I stand in awe of Your sovereignty

In a dry and weary land 

where there is no water 

my flesh faints for You          
my soul thirsts for You

This I Know

I wrote this song back in 2009, which makes it one of the oldest on the album.

I remember February

winter was warm 

hearts were cold

September came 

it began to rain 

and the pain that was new grew old

Your face shines through the snow

this I know, this I know

Your love finds me in sorrow

this I know, this I know

In my search for happiness
I buried You beneath my guilt

No grave could hold 

the wondrous Lord 

though Your blood was spilled

Christ came Your love to show

this I know, this I know

Your grace on me will flow

this I know, this I know

Oh what a beautiful day this has become

Incredible

Click to listen to the new song @ Facebook

Waking up in the morning with you on my mind / 

is like swimming in an ocean of dreams and time / 

stands still for just a moment and then your gone / 

broken glass on the floor / 

the picture frame and you remain / 

Incredible /

Unchangeable / 

All the times we shared are pictures in my head / 

some are shattered but I can't sweep them up just yet / 

maybe one day we can piece them back one by one / 

All I know is I need a savior / 

who can wash my eyes before / 

I can see you clearly / 

Jesus you are / 

Incredible /

Unchangeable

Poetry: Deep or Shallow?

Often, I write in prose form. It started, I think, with a love for music and a desire to write songs of my own. Ironically, very few of my poems become songs. When writing a song, I usually start strumming a chord progression on the guitar, then add the lyrics later. Most of the songs I write are praise songs to Jesus. When writing poetry, though, I start with a blank sheet of paper and think of words, phrases, and ideas that go well together – hopefully sticking to a common theme. Those themes are generally more about relationships, people, joy and sorrow. They are not always void of specific references to God by name, but if I write a poem about a girl, you might not see Jesus' name in it; I hope that the message would still point to his good, holy, just and redeeming characteristics.

So, is poetry deep or shallow? Or, at times, both, or neither? If the same message can be expressed in fewer words, is the shorter version better? If, in an attempt to shorten a message for the sake of time, style, or attention, one omits a vital piece of the message, then the shorter version is certainly worse, if not counteractive. On the other hand, not all poetry simply shortens a broader idea either. Often times, the art form takes on a simple theme, or even just a single word, and, through descriptive terms and alternative angles, portrays that message in a new, perhaps exciting, and hopefully accurate way. I think the Psalms of the Bible provide great examples of poetry both rightly and expressively shortening aspects of God and his glory (see Psalm 100), and descriptively and accurately lengthening our ideas about his love, mercy, wrath, and the relationship between God and man (see Psalm 104).

But I still do not think I have adequately answered the question. Short does not necessarily mean shallow; long does not mean deep. It will be difficult to take on poetry as a whole. It would be similar to taking on painting as an art form to determine whether expressionism is genuine enough, or the classics are expressive enough. Or music – is Rock & Roll too simple? Is Jazz too complicated? I am reluctant to answer the question with “it depends”, but I think it is inevitable. One cannot simply state that most poetry is too shallow or too deep. I could say that most of what I have read is shallow, if it were true. I could say that most of what I have written was intended to be deep, but I would assume that most poets would say the same about their work. If one starts out with the goal of writing shallow, thoughtless poetry, then their audience will most likely be described in the same way. Sometimes, poetry can even seem simple at first, but the reader might interpret something much deeper. The individual experiences of each reader, or hearer, bears much weight on the depth of the message. If I write “She wore a white dress / Her blue eyes gave way to her blue heart”, a third-grader might simply see a bride on her wedding day, but a divorcee on her would-be anniversary might also see a woman who was filled with sorrow and apprehension. Some might say that that is reading too much into it. I will leave it open to interpretation.

She Wears White

Awakened by the sound of knocking.

I open the door.

There she stands.

If she is real, I am still dreaming.

If she is alive, I must wake up.

Her hair floats in the night sky.

Her eyes put the moon to shame.

Her soft skin, like the horizon, flees my touch.

She wears white.

She never says a thing.

Silence will wake me up again.

She wears white.

I pray for peace.

She wears white.

But does she know what it means?