Ruminations

A Collection of sayings, short poems, and songs.

“When everything else is stripped away the only thing left is God’s Word and that is more than enough to satisfy all we need.” 

Given to me by the grace of God - February 2013 - Peter Keyes.

 Where is my hope?

Where is my hope when sorry comes,

When grief, heartbreak, and loss become overwhelming,

When words cannot express my pain,

When the wind is knocked out of my lungs,

In gasps and sighs too deep for tears to fall?

The shadow of death draws nigh,

And the reality of life’s fragile existence becomes

Eminently closer than I care to admit.

There is no stopping its march

Death is but a breath away.

Another gasp….then silence.

Waiting for the next breath to be taken.

Hoping it will come for we are not ready to let go.

Another gasp…………then silence.

Was this for our sake? An answer to prayer.

Or an inward struggle to cling to this world?

The involuntary muscles are fighting for oxygen but are losing the battle.

The breath given by God is leaving with the spirit

And only the material corpse will be left behind.

Another gasp…………………..then silence.

Was this the last?

Are there more to follow?

Christ our Lord came to this hour,

But not just to die,

But to die a sinners death.

He was rejected, scorned, beaten, bruised, tortured, and humiliated.

Satan threw everything he could at Him.

And He bore it willingly for our sake.

God so loved the world

And desired to have us with Him

That He sent His only begotten Son(Jesus Christ).

Into the world to redeem us from sin,

That is, to set us free from our slavery to sin.

By His death we are set free.

  

For two days Jesus Christ clung to life,

And endured the floggings and punishment doled out upon Him.

And then… at just the right time…

He bowed His head and let go of life.

At that very moment when Satan started to cheer.

The earth shook and Jesus turned the tables on him.

Satan’s powerful hold on God’s creation had been destroyed.

Foolish being, death cannot hold a righteous God.

“Oh death, where is your sting?”

“Oh grave, where is your victory?”

God has led us through the shadow of death

And taken away our fear of it.

The breathing has stopped….  My friend is gone.

I will not see him again on this side of heaven.

Will I carry on without him?

Will my pain turn into joy?

Will the void be filled?

His pain is gone.

He is with the Lord.

Someday I will join him there

In the presence of Jesus Christ,

Who gave up His life

So we might have life eternal with Him.

My hope is in the Lord!

He replaces my mourning with peace,

My sin with His righteousness,

And fills me with His love. 

By peter keyes

Written sometime in 2011