Poets & Saints

Scripture

1 Kings 19:5-8 (NRSVUE)

Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep.

Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him,

“Get up and eat.”

He looked, and there at his head

was a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water.

He ate and drank and lay down again.

The angel of the LORD came a second time,

touched him, and said,

“Get up and eat,

otherwise the journey will be too mu...

Scripture

Genesis 32:1-2 (NRSVUE)

Jacob went on his way,

and the angels of God met him,

and when Jacob saw them he said,

“This is God’s camp!”

So he called that place Mahanaim.

Refrain

I am sheltered under angel wings.

Quote

Sergius Bulgakov, from Jacob’s Ladder

“The world is sheltered by angel wings.

Angel eyes keep watch without rest over us.

Between heaven and earth

the h...

Scripture

Matthew 18:10 (NRSVUE)

Take care that you do not despise

one of these little ones,

for, I tell you, in heaven their angels

continually see the face of my Father in heaven.

Refrain

I am not alone. A friend is near.

Quote

Sergius Bulgakov, from Jacob’s Ladder

“At that time the voice of a companion sounded within:

I was not alone but together with my own other I;

it w...

Scripture

2 Kings 6:15-17 (NRSVUE)

When an attendant of the man of God

rose early in the morning and went out,

an army with horses and chariots

was all around the city.

His servant said,

“Alas, master! What shall we do?”

He replied, “Do not be afraid,

for there are more with us than there are with them.”

Then Elisha prayed:

“O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.”

So the LORD opened the eyes of the...

Scripture

Hebrews 1:14 (NRSVUE)

Are not all angels spirits in the divine service,

sent to serve for the sake of those

who are to inherit salvation?

Refrain

I travel in the company of angels.

Quote

Brian Zahnd, from Unseen Existences

“What I desire most is for you to remember

that as we journey through life,

we really do tread on paths of unseen existences.

In our darkest hours, we are ne...

Scripture

Philippians 2:13 (NRSVUE)

For it is God who is at work in you,

enabling you both to will and to work

for his good pleasure.

Refrain

Let God talk to me about me.

Poem

Brian Zahnd, "About You," from Unseen Existences

Let God talk to you

About you

For if you imagine God talking to you

About her or him, those or them

You're on the fast-track...

Scripture

Daniel 7:9-10 (NIV)

Thrones were set in place,

and the Ancient of Days took his seat.

His clothing was as white as snow;

the hair of his head was white like wool.

His throne was flaming with fire,

and its wheels were all ablaze.

A river of fire was flowing,

coming out from before him.

Thousands upon thousands attended him;

ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.

The court was seated,

...

Scripture

Genesis 1:26a, 27 (NRSVUE)

Then God said,

"Let us make humans in our image,

according to our likeness."

So God created humans in his image,

in the image of God he created them;

male and female he created them.

Refrain

God knows the self I was made to be.

Quote

Thomas Merton, from New Seeds of Contemplation

"Every one of us is shadowed by an illusory person: a false...

Scripture

Psalm 139:23-24 (NRSVUE)

Search me, O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my thoughts.

See if there is any wicked way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.

Refrain

Search me, O God, and know my heart.

Quote

Fyodor Dostoevsky, from The Brothers Karamazov

(translated by Michael R. Katz)

"The main thing is, stop telling lies to yourself.

The man who lies to...

Scripture

Luke 5:8, 10b-11 (NKJV)

When Simon Peter saw it,

he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying,

"Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!"

And Jesus said to Simon,

"Do not be afraid.

From now on you will catch men."

So when they had brought their boats to land,

they forsook all and followed Him.

Refrain

Do not be afraid. Follow me.

Quote

Brian...

Scripture

Revelation 21:3-4 (NRSVUE)

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

"See, the home of God is among mortals.

He will dwell with them;

they will be his peoples,

and God himself will be with them and be their God;

he will wipe every tear from their eyes.

Death will be no more;

mourning and crying and pain will be no more,

for the first things have passed away."

Refrain

Scripture

John 11:25-26 (NRSVUE)

Jesus said to her,

"I am the resurrection and the life.

Those who believe in me,

even though they die, will live,

and everyone who lives and believes in me

will never die.

Do you believe this?"

Refrain

Christ shares my sorrow and holds my future.

Quote

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, from Letters and Papers from Prison

"God lets himself be pushed out of the...

Scripture

John 11:33-35 (NIV)

When Jesus saw her weeping,

and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping,

he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.

"Where have you laid him?" he asked.

"Come and see, Lord," they replied.

Jesus wept.

Refrain

In the silence, Jesus weeps with me.

Quote

Brian Zahnd, from Unseen Existences

"Yes, Jesus knew he was about to raise Lazarus,

he...

Scripture

John 11:3, 5 (NIV)

So the sisters sent word to Jesus,

"Lord, the one you love is sick."

Now Jesus loved Martha

and her sister and Lazarus.

Refrain

I am loved as a friend, and I am not alone.

Quote

Henri Nouwen, from Out of Solitude

"When we honestly ask ourselves which persons in our lives mean the most to us,

we often find that it is those who, instead of giving...

Scripture

Psalm 84:5-7 (NIV)

Blessed are those whose strength is in you,

whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

As they pass through the Valley of Baka,

they make it a place of springs;

the autumn rains also cover it with pools.

They go from strength to strength,

till each appears before God in Zion.

Refrain

Even in the valley of weeping, there are springs.

Quote

Charles Dickens, from Great...

Scripture

Proverbs 4:18 (NRSVUE)

But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,

which shines brighter and brighter

until full day.

Refrain

I am being dazzled, gradually, into the light.

Quote

Brian Zahnd, from Unseen Existences

"I've been gradually dazzled by Christ into a much more hopeful and glorious theology. But along the way I've also learned that I have to tell it slant. I can't always expect someone to see in five...

Scripture

Luke 8:9–10 (NRSVUE)

Then his disciples asked him

what this parable meant.

He said, "To you it has been given

to know the secrets of the kingdom of God;

but to others I speak in parables,

so that 'looking they may not perceive,

and hearing they may not understand.'"

Refrain

The story is working in me before I understand it.

Quote

Eugene Peterson, from The Contemplative Pastor

...

Scripture

Hebrews 5:12–14 (NRSVUE)

You need milk, not solid food;

for everyone who lives on milk, being still an infant,

is unskilled in the word of righteousness.

But solid food is for the mature,

for those whose faculties have been trained by practice

to distinguish good from evil.

Refrain

I am ready for what once would have overwhelmed me.

Quote

St. John of the Cross, from Dark Night of the Soul

...

Scripture

Philippians 3:13–14 (NRSVUE)

Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own;

but this one thing I do:

forgetting what lies behind

and straining forward to what lies ahead,

I press on toward the goal

for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

Refrain

I am always being drawn further in.

Quote

Gregory of Nyssa, from The Life of Moses

"Such an ex...

Scripture

1 Corinthians 13:12 (NRSVUE)

For now we see in a mirror, dimly,

but then we will see face to face.

Now I know only in part;

then I will know fully,

even as I have been fully known.

Refrain

The truth dazzles gradually, so that I may see.

Quote

Emily Dickinson, "Tell All the Truth but Tell It Slant"

"Tell all the truth but tell it slant—

Success in Circuit li...

Scripture

1 John 4:7–8 (NRSVUE)

Beloved, let us love one another,

because love is from God;

everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

Whoever does not love does not know God,

for God is love.

Refrain

Love is my refusal of cynicism.

Quote

WHEN I AM AMONG THE TREES by Mary Oliver

When I am among the tr...

Scripture

Genesis 1:3 (NRSVUE)

Then God said, "Let there be light";

and there was light.

Refrain

I was called out of the darkness.

Quote

David Bentley Hart, from You Are Gods

"From eternity, God has brought forth spiritual creatures into existence in the only way that such creatures could be formed: by calling them to ascend out of the darkness...

Scripture

James 1:17 (NRSVUE)

Every generous act of giving,

with every perfect gift,

is from above,

coming down from the Father of lights.

Refrain

It's all a gift.

Quote

Julian of Norwich, from Revelations of Divine Love

"And in this he showed me a little thing,

the quantity of a hazelnut,

lying in the palm of my hand...

Scripture

Genesis 15:5 (NRSVUE)

He brought him outside and said,

"Look toward heaven and count the stars,

if you are able to count them."

Then he said to him,

"So shall your descendants be."

Refrain

Hope returns when I look up.

Quote

J.R.R. Tolkien, from The Return of the King

"Sam saw a white star twinkle for a...

Scripture

Psalm 19:1 (NRSVUE)

The heavens are telling the glory of God;

and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.

Refrain

The world will never starve for want of wonders, but only for want of wonder.

Quote

Wendell Berry, from The Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essays

"The Bible is best read and understood outdoors,

and the farther outdoors the better.

Passages that...

Scripture

Romans 13:13–14 (NRSVUE)

Let us live honorably as in the day,

not in reveling and drunkenness,

not in debauchery and licentiousness,

not in quarreling and jealousy.

Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ,

and make no provision for the flesh

to gratify its desires.

Refrain

I want to spend my life knowing you.

Quote

Brian Zahnd, from Un...

Scripture

Deuteronomy 6:4–5 (NRSVUE)

Hear, O Israel:

The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.

You shall love the Lord your God

with all your heart

and with all your soul

and with all your might.

Refrain

Even here, the prayers hold.

Quote

Jürgen Moltmann

"When we encounter insoluble problems and despair,

we must remember

that the...

Scripture

John 1:50–51 (NIV)

Jesus said,

"You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree.

You will see greater things than that."

He then added,

"Very truly I tell you, you will see heaven open,

and the angels of God ascending and descending

on the Son of Man."

Refrain

God is nearer to me than my own soul.

Scripture

John 1:47–49 (NIV)

When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him,

"Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit."

"How do you know me?" Nathanael asked.

Jesus answered,

"I saw you while you were still under the fig tree

before Philip called you."

Then Nathanael declared,

"Rabbi, you are the Son of God;

you are the king of Israel."

Refrain

I was seen be...

Scripture

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NRSVUE)

Rejoice always,

pray without ceasing,

give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is the will of God

in Christ Jesus for you.

Refrain

Prayer is keeping company with God.

Quote

Mother Teresa

"Prayer is not asking.

Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God,

at His disposition,

and listening to...

Scripture

Isaiah 30:15 (NRSVUE)

For thus said the Lord God,

the Holy One of Israel:

In returning and rest you shall be saved;

in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.

Poem

Brian Zahnd, Blessed Are the Patient

A woman in the kitchen baking bread

A farmer in the field sowing seed

Both know they must trust to

Tiny miracles of fermentation and germination

Jesus says—

This is...

Scripture

Mark 2:15 (NRSVUE)

And as he sat at dinner in Levi's house,

many tax collectors and sinners

were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples,

for there were many who followed him.

Refrain

There is a place at the table, and it is mine.

Quote

Henri Nouwen, from Behold the Beauty of the Lord: Praying with Icons

"To live in the world without belonging to the world<...

Scripture

Hebrews 13:2 (NRSVUE)

Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers,

for by doing that

some have entertained angels without knowing it.

Refrain

I welcome everything that comes to me today.

Quote

The Welcoming Prayer

Mary Mrozowski

"Welcome, welcome, welcome.

I welcome everything that comes to me today

because I know it's for my healing.

I welcome all thoughts, feelings, emotions,<...

Scripture

Genesis 18:1 (NRSVUE)

The Lord appeared to Abraham

by the oaks of Mamre,

as he sat at the entrance of his tent

in the heat of the day.

Refrain

The present of our life looks different under trees.

Quote

Wendell Berry, from A Timbered Choir

"I go among trees and sit still.

All my stirring becomes quiet

around me like circles on water.<...

Scripture

Hebrews 11:8 (NRSVUE)

By faith Abraham obeyed

when he was called to set out

for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance,

and he set out, not knowing where he was going.

Refrain

I set out without knowing. Faith is what I carry.

Quote

Søren Kierkegaard, from Fear and Trembling

trans. L.M. Hollander

"Through the urging of his faith

Scripture

Luke 24:30–32 (NIV)

When he was at the table with them,

he took bread, gave thanks, broke it

and began to give it to them.

Then their eyes were opened

and they recognized him,

and he disappeared from their sight.

They asked each other,

"Were not our hearts burning within us

while he talked with us on the road

and opened the Scriptures to us?"

Refrain

My he...

Scripture

2 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV)

For we live by faith,

not by sight.

Refrain

I make the path by walking it.

Quote

Antonio Machado, trans. Betty Jean Craige

"Wayfarer, only your footprints

are the path, and nothing more;

wayfarer, there is no path,

you make the path as you walk.

As you walk you make the path,

...

Scripture

Philippians 3:12–14 (NRSVUE)

Not that I have already obtained this

or have already reached the goal,

but I press on to make it my own,

because Christ Jesus has made me his own.

Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own,

but this one thing I do:

forgetting what lies behind

and straining forward to what lies ahead,

I press on toward the goal

for the prize of the heavenly call of God

Scripture

Matthew 7:13–14 (NRSVUE)

"Enter through the narrow gate;

for the gate is wide and the road is easy

that leads to destruction,

and there are many who take it.

For the gate is narrow and the road is hard

that leads to life,

and there are few who find it."

Refrain

Truth is a road, and I am walking it.

Scripture

Acts 9:2 (NIV)

...and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus,

so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way,

whether men or women,

he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.

Refrain

I belong to the Way. I am on the road.

Quote

Jack Kerouac, from On the Road

"As we crossed the Colorado-Utah border

I saw God in...