Without warning a storm broke over the lake.
So violent that the waves were breaking right over the boat.
But he will do anything for our sake.
With prayer he will keep us afloat.

They went to him and woke him saying.
Save us Lord, we are going to drown.
Our hopes sometimes are dying.
We are not always up , sometimes we are down.

He said to them , why are you so frightened.
You men of little faith.
But with him our life burden is always lightened.
He is real , not some transparent wraith.

Times yes are trying .
And our boat he is steadying.

……..

Storm over the lake
But our Lord is still asleep
But he will awake

……..

See Matthew 8 : 23-27

Master I will follow you wherever you go.
Jesus replied , the son of man has nowhere to lay his head.
And we complain if we feel a little low.
We so easily lose our thread.

St Oliver Plunket gave everything.
And paid the ultimate price.
And all because he wore a bishop’s ring.
A man unknown to any vice.

We will not be put to this sort of test.
Ours are small irritants and trials.
We seldom have to leave the comfort of our nest.
We can give the world some smiles.

We will not be called upon to be a martyr.
But to our own churning worries we are a martyr.

……..

I will follow him
Wherever he goes for us
Wherever he rests

…….

See Matthew 8 : 18-23

From all my terrors.
The Lord set me free.
He gives us all our favours.
And we now realise this is not all about me.

We wake in the middle of the night.
Depressed , worrying .
Seeing in the bedroom gloom no light.
Fearing the future , the past regretting.

But we need to remember , from all my terrors.
If we let him, the Lord will set me free.
We don’t need to obsess on our errors.
Please God, this is our plea.

St Peter by an angel was released.
And by our guardian angel , we will  be released.

…….

From all my terrors
The Lord has now set me free
If I have some faith

………

See Psalm 33

Everyone who listens to these words of mine.
Will be like the sensible man who built his house on rock.
Here is the only true sign.
And here is the truth we must unlock.

Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew.
And hurled themselves against the house.
It did not fall down , it remained as good as new.
It remained a strong house.

But everyone who does not listen to these words of mine.
Is like a man who builds his house on sand.
He ignored the spiritual sign.

he will search in vain for his true land.

Thus Jesus spoke with authority
He is my authority.

…….

Listen to these words
You will build your house on rock
Whether rain or shine

…….,

See Matthew 7 : 21-29

Beware of false prophets.
That come disguised as sheep.
They may offer extra profits.
But you will in the end sow what you reap.

Underneath they are ravenous wolves.
You will be able to tell them by their fruits.
They may look harmless but underneath they are still wolves.
And you know them by their roots.

Can people pick grapes from thorns.
Or figs  from thistles.
But they come in all forms.
Bearing all types of epistles.

A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit.
Nor a rotten tree bear good fruit.

……

Beware false prophets
They can come desguised as sheep
They’re ravenous wolves

…….

See Matthew 6 : 15-20

The Lord called me before I was born.
From my mother’s womb he pronounced my name.
Thus to eternal life we are sworn.
It doesn’t matter if to obscurity or fame.

He said to me you are my servant.
In whom I shall be glorified.
Questioning or observant.
Undeserving or merited.

While  I was thinking, I have toiled in vain.
I have exhausted myself for nothing.
I hoped for sun and have just endured more rain.
First running and now slowly walking.

And all the while my cause was with the Lord.
I was honoured , I pray, in the eyes of the Lord.

…….

Called before our birth
Our name pronounced from the womb
To eternal life

…….

See Isaiah 49: 1- 6

Do not store up treasures for yourself on earth.
Where moths and woodworms destroy them.
Ultimately all is consumed and in dearth.
Leaving not a single breadcrumb.

But store up treasures for yourself in heaven.
Where neither moths nor woodworms destroy.
Where all is raised up pure by holy leaven.
In a purest alloy.

When things go really badly.
Remember this is all temporary.
Heaven is coming really.
And we can then forget all that’s so scary.

At the end of this tunnel there is light.
Let’s just keep that in sight.

……….

Store treasures on earth
What is the point of all that
All of this will pass

…….

See Matthew 6 : 19-23

Your father knows what you need before you ask him.
So pray like this.
He knows your every whim.
Nothing does he miss.

Our father in heaven.
May your name be held holy.
Let not the noise of the world us deafen.
Let us hear spiritual things more clearly.

Your kingdom come.
Your will be done.
Let our spirituality not be dumb.
Remembering the race we must run.

Forgive us our debt.
As we forgive those to us in debt.

…….

Your father knows all
So pray to him in this way
Father in heaven

……..

See Matthew 6 : 7-15

Love your enemies.
And pray for those who persecute you.
Despite even their half truths and lies.
They harm themselves not you.

He causes his sun to rise on bad men aswell as good.
And his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike.
But we will be judged on where we stood.
Fundamentally we are all alike.

We dwell too much on the past.
We identify too much with our mind.
We should just be a witness of thoughts that don’t last.
We might then be rather more relaxed and kind.

We are not one being .
We are ever being.

…….

Love your enemies
And those who persecute you
We are just all one

…….

See Matthew 5: 43-48

What can we say the Kingdom of God is like.
It is like the mustard seed.
So small , almost dreamlike.
Into this, what can we read.

It is the smallest of seeds at its sowing.
Yet it grows into the biggest shrub of them all.
And we too in body and spirit are always growing.
Eventually walking tall.

It puts out big branches.
So that the birds of the air can shelter on its shade.
And he is the vine, we the branches.
By him all things are made.

So what starts off so  very tiny.
Can be admired by the many.

……..

The small mustard seed
Becomes biggest shrub of all
That is just like us

…….

See Mark 4 : 26-34

After the earthquake came the fire.
But the Lord was not in the fire.
Sit quietly in the quire.
Do not give way to ire.

After the fire there came the sound of a gentle breeze.
And when Elijah heard this he covered his face with his cloak.
We are not always in a kind of freeze.
We are just like all the other folk.

As I read these words in church of the prophet.
I heard, saw outside the trees sway, the wind sigh.
Worries don’t need to be hard set.
We can break the negative tie.

Does the Lord come fiercely.
No he comes  like a breath  , gently.

…….

The Lord not in fire
Nor was he in the earthquake
He was in the breeze

… …..

See 1 Kings 19

Preserve me God.
I take refuge in you.
Where though , we ask, is God.
Is he everywhere , nowhere , in me or you.

I was awake in the middle of the night.
Worrying positive and negative thoughts churning.
I said the rosary mysteries of the light.
My thoughts conquered, I started sleeping.

I sat quietly in our church.
And found refuge in a spiritual presence.
God would never leave me on the lurch.
As long as I allowed my mind to dwell on his essence.

So we keep praying.
And searching, hoping.

…….

Preserve me then God
I will take refuge in you
Are we really sure

…….

See Psalm 15

Though this outer man of ours may be falling into decay.
And if we think of our ageing body, we may despair.
The inner man is renewed day by day.
As long as it is the universal spirit for which we care.

We are enslaved by our mind.
And by passing time.
But to ourselves we need to be kind.
For what is truly real is not bound by time.

Yes the troubles that are soon over.
Train us for the weight of carrying eternal glory.
Here we stumble , one day we will be lying in clover.
And it will matter little if people don’t remember our story.

And so we have no eyes for things that are visible.
Only for things that are invisible.

……..

We fall to decay
Our inner body renews
And so we survive

……..

See 2 Corinthians 4