Never Sleeps

While a pastor on the Fort Berthold Reservation I was honored with the Indian name, "NeverSleeps". It was primarily because I was often responding to particular needs in the middle of the night.

Even more relevant, the Lord Himself, Maker of all, "Never Sleeps".

Surely you know.
Surely you have heard.
The Lord is the God who lives forever,
who created all the world.
He does not become tired or need to rest.
No one can understand how great his wisdom is.

Isaiah 40:28

Welcome to every reader. I am a simple follower of Jesus. He is perfect, I often fall short.

Showing posts with label invited. Show all posts
Showing posts with label invited. Show all posts

Thursday, March 26, 2026

The Fog was Ankle Deep

The Fog was Ankle Deep

(“Jesus said to Nathanael, ‘I can guarantee this truth: You will see the sky open and God’s angels going up and coming down to the Son of Man.’” John 1:51)

The fog was ankle deep as the sun
warmed the wet morning asphalt. It slunk like
snake tracks and spoke of something that wrapped
us all up like common denominators, like children returning
from exile. It hinted that we might all have wings if
we only inhabited the thin places where heaven seeps
through.

It makes us doubt our own significance as if the breath
was taken out of our lungs at the very thought that
there may be more than we imagined going on within us.
If the sun can coax land-locked clouds on the ground
why can we not linger while spirit breathes a presence
we had only guessed at until now. What if the very place
we stand
is also an anteroom to the throne? What if we are invited
to enter in like Spring coaxing the cherry tree blossoms?

I’ve stood here before, thinking I needed to knock down the door
and crawl on my hands and knees to prove my piety.
What if the throne is unoccupied? Or what if, instead, it
is filled with the author of nurture? What if every blade of
grass invites us to sing around prayers like maypoles
and mumble inaudible but well-intentioned alleluias?
What if our morning walk is just the start of
the very heartbeat we had been waiting to hear?


Wednesday, February 10, 2021

Open Fire Breakfast

 

Open Fire Breakfast

(“Hey! Come, everyone who thirsts, to the waters! Come, he who has no money, buy, and eat! Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” Isaiah 55:1)

Did you ever have one of those skillet breakfasts
in the forest cooked over an open fire? The eggs
and cheese and ham and peppers
sometimes cooked at home
but never tasting better in the smoke and resin
and dew. Even a tuna fish sandwich
tastes better outdoors.

Did you ever camp next to someone who motioned
you over
and shared that frittata with you, ashes clinging to
the cast iron pan? If you talked, I am sure
you do not remember the conversation now,
but the taste of kindling and coffee last
at least a decade or two.

The recipe in your kitchen and the
one over the coals
are identical.
But one tastes so free, stays so close to
your memory.

And so, we savor the divine. An invitation. A fellow
pilgrim disguised in flannel. I only wish you, my friend,
had invited me in.