I look around this world with troubles to see And I wonder to myself how then should I be? There are troubles all around - enough to see The need is here everywhere for another way to be
I looked at all religions and into philosophy Until finally believing in the ways of Christianity Not that leaders don't sometimes make mistakes But it's not God's lessons that bring heartaches
It's the ways of man however great the illusion That seems to lead us blindly into our confusion We have thoughts enough in a fanciful profusion But only one path brings us to our absolution
The world's troubles can set a heart to disbelieving But considering the miracles of life, it's in believing That we might set this world in the direction of right We can do our part by keeping the Beatitudes in sight
There is no more comfortable home that finds me Then to think over the guidance of Christian theology When seeking answers to the world's probing questions Turning to the mount's sermon brings no hesitation
But it might just be that it brings a clue or two On how we might be better citizens into clear view Maybe we should think over that sermon's meaning When you and I seek to become better human beings
Head
Our place in the kingdom isn't a place of pride But instead, one of humility worn so as not to hide Thinking of ourselves less and putting others first The poor in spirit lean in to quench their thirst
Living with a sinful nature that leads us to sin We mourn our misdeeds and in repentance seek God again In earnest recognition, we ask our Lord God to forgive To correct our relationship once again to rightly live
Humility, patience, and obedience are steps of meekness These take great strength and are not steps in weakness At times this requires submitting to another's leadership As we meekly adhere in relationship and in God's worship
Heart
An unjust world offers hope as righteousness is ratified Our hunger and thirst come through faith to be satisfied Starting with little things to make the world more right This is the path to walk in our Savior's guiding light
God mercifully extends mercy toward us in loving embrace We are to echo this in our treatment of this human race God hung on Calvary's cross gave mercy to point of death Forgiving smaller transgressions is simple as a breath
Sincere, selfless love for others and God is purely given In obedience to truth by the blood of Christ we are forgiven It is through Christ we are empowered and renewed as we pray It is through His strength that we are purified in this way
Hands
As the children of God we are peacemakers in our communities Seeking peace in all we do with our families and our enemies The shalom that comes only from God is to be sought from all In our walk and talk, in all we do, until the clock hand falls
Antithetical to the world's ways, the godly will be persecuted While simultaneously our cried for peace and mercy are muted Jesus tells us that our righteousness may bring us tribulation But by God's grace these very things bring us our absolution
It is by these ways that we live well in a world that is falling By doing this, we are righteously living our Christian calling These are the blueprint for a just and equitable sense of society Working toward the common good with love forging our legacy
(c) June 30, 2024 Michael Doyle All Rights Reserved
“I do not believe there is a problem in this country or the world today which could not be settled if approached through the teaching of the Sermon on the Mount.” – Harry S. Truman
“The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” – Isaiah 58:11
It was just one of those endless nights I sat feasting on a garden of fried delights Turning the channel to hear a bit of debate Surreally hoping to help decide the nation's fate
There on the stage were two grown men Who had been down the road and back again Like the pointed fingers of schoolchildren I saw a lashing out of name-calling again
A passive-aggressive suit wanted to sell wares He was barely able to avoid falling up stairs Clinging to talking points, he showed his memory Was less than desirable and has a weak familiarity
Of what passes for the life we Americans live Under a tyrannical administration, we won't forgive All in the name of our own good, so they say But no one elected the agencies or their way
Whatever the administrative way might be called The policies given have given an economy stalled Maybe fascism isn't the way for American dreams The evidence shown, the verdict is in, it seems
The blessing and the curse of being overtly snarky The other speaker dressed the truth in styled malarkey Who could blame him after a bevy of hostile charges Pointing fingers just leads to obvious countercharges
The puppet master of the suit spoke up at the end Obviously, his suit was unhelpful and hard to defend How this isn't elder abuse is hard for me to understand Unable to fill two minutes means unable to lead this land
These are simply my reflections on the aftertaste Maybe a dog ate his homework, but he prepared without haste It's more than hard to sit here and swallow this illusion Let's be kind but direct about the "Medicare" confusion
(c) June 29, 2024 Michael Doyle All Rights Reserved
There is no treaty we can sign That can reach for and define The reasons why I made a ghost of you There is no explanation for what I do
I hide my shame deep in the shadows Keeping to the places memories won't go There is no honor in locking you away The price is one that I pay every day
I feel like raging against the dying light Throwing verbal punches without a right It sometimes feels like a snake shedding skin Trying to itch my way to my original sin
There's a still voice inside that says it's my friend But all it wants to talk about is the final end Whispering it doesn't matter how we got this far The only difference is -- here we truly are
The truth laid down on the void of once-blank pages Is what puts each of us in our own special cages The further and deeper we shake and thrash about The harder it is to ever dig our way out
(c) June 20, 2024 Michael Doyle All Rights Reserved
“If men through fear, fraud or mistake, should in terms renounce and give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the great end of society, would absolutely vacate such renunciation; the right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power of Man to alienate this gift, and voluntarily become a slave.” – Samuel Adams (1772)
This nation was born under the authority Blessed into birth by God's wise dignity As one filled with freedom and liberty Given to us, not by government, but God's divinity
We, this republic, are born by providence That all persons have the right to independence This is especially true when oppressed in station Burdened by excess demands and absent representation
From the Mayflower Compact, American Civilization Rests on the reverence for God across our nation Madison and Washington were not suspicious Of the Commandments and God's hand conspicuous
That we, the People, were to adopt the right attitude Keeping prayerful hands joined in faith and gratitude Patrick Henry and Samuel Adams found Jesus sovereign Holding all of us should keep eyes on God, averted from sin
God governs in the daily affairs of all men Holding our liberties are held best by avoiding sins In the complex interplay between faith and philosophy We founded our nation under God and promised liberty
These true beliefs are to be kept in good maintenance To pass on to future generations as our inheritance Faithfulness to God's ways is manifest in our destiny As such, belief and obedience are integral to our history
II.
Scriptures tell us of our duality That our lives are led by spirituality We are to lead lives striving for good Following godly principles as we should
Our country is founded on the Christian proposition From which we take our Judeo-Christian disposition This creates a unique tension requiring attention If we are to live our lives to the best intentions
In the beginning, God created everything Putting God's thumbprint over all things In this, God's reign is seen with clarity Lived in the Garden and the world with sincerity
Don't believe Satan's lies over the truth Those raised Christian are taught this since youth God has always kept Himself in graceful contemplation That each of us is to live for our redemption
God raised Abraham to raise Israel to raise our king Jesus, the Messiah, raised to reign over everything Yet, when the Lord walked before our human eyes Somehow, most did have the ability to see and recognize
Our Lord want us purposefully engrossed in prayer In a personal relationship of love with moments there To recognize His will, not ours, is what is to be done And that we, as God's children, are to follow God's son
Parables of priorities reach to teach by simplicity To seek the kingdom in God's created complexity As His disciples, we are to love with our integrity Living out each day to our best with our sincerity
Living as we do by God's logos that is the truth That we've borne witness to since our early youth And instead, as an alarming number have walked away We are to remain citizens serving heaven in every way
We, as Christians, must take our actions as if by cue Living our lives faithfully as servants, me and you Loving faithfully in keeping Christ in everyday Doing this in our utmost in all Christ's living ways
(c) June 27, 2024 Michael Doyle All Rights Reserved
Heading out of Australia to escape this Aussie winter. First stop Japan, then UK/Ireland and if work doesn't call me back, onto Chicago. I will make it up as I go along
