Read these when your world is dark. These fine poets offer REAL hope! |
Back in 2004 I ran a contest that read as follows: There are times for all of us, when we face darkness that promises no end. Life is hard. Sometimes it gets so dark, we feel we can’t go on. It can’t be fixed this side of heaven. Dark night of the soul; we walk alone. As a Christian, I know that despair is an illusion that makes mockery of the truth - that God loves us totally and cares for all our needs. That heart-knowledge doesn’t change the hard emotional reality of taking up the cross and following Him down that hard road, though. So… how do we cope? For myself, I hate the pie-in-the-sky-by-&-by-when-I-die sort of sentimental fluff that is offered as hope by well-meaning Christians when we face tragedy. Such stuff, while true, does nothing to help me cope with the death of a child, a broken marriage, the physical suffering of someone I love. Christ never promised to take away our suffering when He suffered for us. So… here’s my challenge to you. Write a poem (old or new) that offers REAL hope I can hold onto when I despair. I want poetry I can read when I’m feeling despair, that will give me a lifeline to cling to, a pinpoint of light to look toward. You don’t have to take the pain away. I will be looking for something that keeps me going without minimizing the pain of now. Be my Simon of Cyrene. Help me finish this work I’ve been given. Thanks to the incredible generosity of the contest donors, there were 72,720 gift points left over after the awards. After long searching, I decided to donate them to
And now, for some other poems I've run across that offer true hope, not entered in the contest, but definitely worth reading! I'll keep adding more as I find them, so check back here now & then, and let me know of poems you think might fit here, too. Exerpt from the lyrics to Blessed Be Your Name by Matt Redman Blessed be your name When the sun's shining down on me When the world's all as it should be Blessed be your name Blessed be your name On the road marked with suffering Oh, There's pain in the offering Blessed be your name Every blessing you pour out, I turn back to praise When the darkness closes in, Lord Still I will say... Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be your glorious name
...and last but not least, my own collection of feeble attempts to express hope with mere words:
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