The Pearl of Great Price

Alone, I am a dry and barren ground

Until Your Living Water gushes forth,

Then this wasteland is suddenly a Spring

Inhabited by a myriad of living things. 

A song of gratitude is on my lips

As you have blessed me with so many gifts,

And not for these I thank you, Lord, but for

Your Self, the only Source, the Fountainhead

Of all my blessings. You the Treasure House

From which I draw an Infinite Supply

You are the only Place I am content

The sole Environment where I can bask

In the eternal bounty of Your Grace.

Your Love surrounds me; angels hover high 

above my head and sing of the Union

Of a loving Father and a blessed Son

Who sought His happiness and now has found

It always did reside within Himself.

The song resounds with pulsations of peace

That move within Him, quickening his flesh,

And giving a Meaning unto his life

And Purpose to every activity

that he engages in with His Father

His Part to play was written in the stars

Long before He incarnated here.

Christ's footsteps still shine brightly in the sand;

Impressionable, soft, yielding to Him

For it does not present an obstruction

To being molded into His image

And in His image, seeing it is God's—

The Infinite Invisible's Likeness.

He witnesses and demonstrates for all

By sheer force of his realization.

He demonstrates by acts of consciousness,

Wherein He claims the holy Will of God

For Himself and for all of His Brothers,

Who are not restricted to humankind

But could appear as plant or animal

Or any other form, for he beholds

Them with the Eyes of Love, which overlook

All seeming sins and forgive those who curse

And use Him despitefully, for He is sure

It is but impersonal, universal

Delusion that could seem to threaten Him

And tempt Him to reconsider His way.

This devil He must put behind himself

A hundred, nay, a thousand times a day

Until this false appearance finally

Gives way as shadows do unto the day.

The Moment of Awakening

The world can give but what you give it, for being only your own projection, it exists not apart from what you wish.

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The moment of awakening strikes suddenly
And all things change.
The whereabouts of what you left behind
Is nothing and nowhere.
Christ came to heal the mind and that he did
By your election.
The image of his loveliness brings peace
To tired hearts and weary feet,
And brings Vision to sightless eyes.
As your innermost Self, Christ gives himself to you
Nor anything does he hold back from you,
But shares freely of his full treasure house
Take one step farther, see him on the road
Made beautiful by a sudden splash of light
And reach your hand to him
He knows your need; the deep fatigue
And sense of hopelessness
He will not leave without your blessing,
That you may come to know that you are blessed.
Give to him all the thorns and all the nails,
With which you sought to crucify yourself
He longs to bring you home, to keep you safe
To shelter you in the midst of the storm.
The sickly grievance; the unholy hate
Are unworthy of you who are God's Son.
Redeem yourself; for thus you save the world.
Emerge from shadows, step into the light
And let Christ look on you.
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From this point forward, nothing you say or do
Has any purpose but to make the Christ manifest
Humility knows it is He that does the works.
He in me and I in Him, and we both ever together in God.
The winds and waves of worldly life will come,
But learn how not to be disturbed by them.
Situations cannot dictate how you feel, nor how
You must respond to them, for it is you
That are in charge of your journey.
If you did not have help, and mighty help
You would be lost indeed!
The Holy Spirit, through your hands, commands
The little vessel safely into the harbor
If you give up the ignoble attempt
To steer your ship alone, to think you know
Better the way than the Guide that God Gave
You will find a perfect peace, like unto
The eye at the center of the storm.
As it is single, so let yours be as well.
Let shine your light, small though it may appear,
And your presence shall illumine the world.