David W. Ballard: Professional Writer specializing in Web content writing, copywriting, feature writing, fiction writing, and poetry.

Hide and Seek

She often plays hide and seek with the Lord,
For days at a time and sometimes more.
She hides in bars and loud parties where the drinks flow free
Then awakens mornings full of misery.

So she hides again looking for refuge in food;
The food goes down, and the cracks inside become smooth.
But she feels fat, and then despairs,
Hiding again in men who put on airs.
But she finds they’re just cads in the end;
So in a moment of weakness, she calls a friend.

But her friend’s on to the next party
Where others are more fun than she.
So she turns inward and wonders: “What’s wrong with me?”
At rock bottom, she hits her knees.

“Come find me, Lord; I’m tired of hiding.”
He arrives because He’s always seeking.
And she finally learns to stop hiding,
Because we’re all worth finding.

A Handful of Seeds

All I’ve got is a handful of seeds.
I wander, wander, wander, and wonder:
Where should I plant these seeds?
They don’t look like much, these
Tiny, little seeds,
But He gave them to me.
He said not to plant them beside the road,
The birds are bound to pick them up as food;
And not to scatter on those rocky places,
They’ll have no room to root in such hard spaces;
And not among the thorns,
They’re too forlorn
With worldly cares.
Wait! There! There!
Among the broken sod
God
Wants His seed–
Where the soil pleads
From need.
That’s where I’ll scatter all I’ve got
Among the have nots.

Matthew 13:1-9

Gossip

The crowd around you is talking about this and that:
She’s ugly; he’s fat.
You resist at first: “I shouldn’t say that.”
But there’s a lust, a thirst to say your piece.
Then it comes out: “Yeah, he’s such a beast.
At least
He could brush his teeth!”
Those around you cackle that you’ve stooped so low,
Perhaps there’s a part of you that dies each time,
Because in your heart of hearts, you know
You shouldn’t have carried on so.
But just so you know we all fall at times to the depths below.
He forgives trespasses when we’re truly contrite.

But perhaps you don’t care and press on out of spite.
Then by chance someone says something about you.
You deny it at first but know it’s true.
It burns; it stings
And nearly brings
You to tears.
How dare they!
But in a way
You know it’s deserved;
So you swallow hard and carry on.
They don’t know who I am,
And I’ll give it back as soon as I can.
The gossip runs back and forth
Till you’re nearly horse.
The itching continues but you feel mostly the burn,
Perhaps silence is the hardest lesson to learn.

Lessons in Suffering

I mourn for her when she grieves my absence,
Hold her close to me, and pray for her once I return;
Her longing while I’m gone is perhaps her better teacher
For his lessons in suffering we all must come to learn.

Crumbs

Heal us, Lord, as we are able
To eat the crumbs from Your table.
We often ask you for much we should not:
Glory, prestige, and wealth as our lot.
But these germs of life sicken its possessors.
Come to us now and provide the lessor.

All we really need hangs on a cross
With a Love that pays every cost.
So heal us, Lord, as we are able
To eat the crumbs that fall from Your table.

Broken Pieces

My daughter only eats her crackers
When they’re whole as if it matters.
I tell her: “They taste the same-
They’re only broken and what remains.”

But she persists in her prejudice.
Don’t we do the same to those in front of us–
Whether they’ve missing legs, missing teeth,
Or broken parts we cannot see?

But Jesus came to doctor such as these,
Not the pious Pharisees like you and me.

Catching Shadows

In the bright sun, my shadow trailed behind.
My daughter followed as if in a line.
As we walked, she began to step on my shadow.
She stomped each foot: “I got you. I got you.”
She repeated again and again;
So I ran ahead against the cold wind.
She gave chase, trying to tread on the darker part of me.
I ran fast then slowed
To increase her delight at following so.
As I ran, I thought how wonderful it is
To run apace with Him
Despite our stumbles with sin
And what an example to follow
As we chase after His shadow.

All We’ve Got

Though bitter
And spare,
Winter’s
Repair
Is not meant for despair.

From sterile ends,
Nature stops
To begin again,
Which shows our true lot:
He’s all we’ve really got.

Just Another Walk

My daughter weaves on her bike this way and that;
So I yell after her: “Stay on the path!”
But she simply looks over her shoulder and laughs.
We make it closer to the park a clip or two,
And she starts to ride ahead as little ones do;
Then gets off her bike, runs back, grabs my leg,
Squeezes hard, and says: “I love you!”
So I just smile and shake my head:
Another walk with my Bailey Boo.

Follow

In waves of Truth
Without shades of doubt,
Love came bursting in
And the host began to shout.

With light no dark
Can overshadow,
He leads the way
So we can follow.