Written by: Ruth Rempart and Nina Bueno
Editor’s Note: The following two poems share the extremes of the Christian life. Intense joy and deep grief often dwell side-by-side in our short and turbulent lives. Through Christ we can embrace them both — the ecstasy of life and the horror — knowing that our present troubles are seen (Psalm 56:8) and our future happiness is secure. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)
But God—
By Ruth Rempart
Tucked in the well-loved pages of my mother’s Bible,
is a verse haloed in sun-touched yellow:
“But Jesus said,” she promised, “Let the little children come to Me,
and do not forbid them;
for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”
But God—
“There was a shooting at Robb Elementary School today,”
(the news reporter announces, grim, acquainted
with tragedy, reporting
a tornado, a hurricane, a wildfire,
tearing little worlds apart
and leaving behind nothing
but wreckage, floodwaters and ash.)
Where in your Word, Father, does it warn that
children will fall like budding flowers,
like summer-green leaves, onto frigid earth
before dawn grows into day,
before winter blooms into spring?
I am nothing but questions, Teacher,
handed a test I didn’t think I would
ever need the answers for
again. And again. And again.
How do I tell the world — You — that
I am scared — terrified — numb — empty
of grief and yet, somehow, still overflowing?
How do I convince people — myself — that
You will lead us to green pastures
when this sin-paved road, eroded with anguish,
Is — feels — like forever?
How do I tell them that life — time — marches on
As if hearts have not been transmuted into glass ruins,
As if stars have not been extinguished from the night sky?
How can I tell them You exist, Lord, when this happens
again, and again, and again?
I break the spine of my Bible,
carve the beginnings of a valley
into its glossy binding,
and underline your divine comfort,
in heartache, in hope, in pale gold:
“You keep track of all my sorrows.
You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
You have recorded each one in your book.”
A Taste of Eternal Happiness
By Nina Bueno
I experienced happiness the other day
Such as I never had before.
I realized the true joy of Jesus.
I felt what it is like to worship in the presence of God,
To pray to One who is right beside you,
To love an everlasting Savior.
I felt what it will be like to spend eternity with Him,
To shout and dance and sing and smile,
Never stopping, because it will never stop.
I felt light, like I could fly, like nothing mattered,
Only that God loved me.
I felt called, like the Light of the World was in me,
Like I must shine to the world, a beacon in the darkness.
I realized that I was no longer simply living
In the knowledge that I was made for more,
But that I was living the more.
More light, more love, more peace, more rest.
Here I had come, to a place I thought would never
Be a reality for me. It had always seemed elusive.
But it had still existed, and will always.
Just like the God in whose presence I rested, worshiped,
Prayed and praised.
Here I am now.
I know that life is hard, but it’s in moments like these
That God gives us the torch, the Light of the World
To carry through the darkness.
We do not each have these moments all the time,
Or even at the same time.
But we do each have them still, and from them
We each can carry that torch we are given
On to the next person,
Passing the love and peace and kindness of Christ throughout the world,
Spreading the Light to each other, more and more
Until the day that the Light of God will reign forevermore,
And those moments of pure joy we encounter on earth
Become eternal for us all.