Poem - He Came To Die

I'm at The One Project in Seattle.   This is my third time at this gathering of people with Adventist faith in their lives...that are seeking to make Jesus.  All.    I am one of them...and it is why "Jesus.   All." has been printed on our church bulletin cover for the past 3 years.

Yesterday, on Day One of "The Final Week" the first presenter - Paul Dybdahl drew out from the Bible the parallels from the birth and death of Jesus.   It made me think of this old poem I wrote a few years ago.

HE CAME TO DIE

O. Kris Widmer

He came to die.

The Babe in the Manger

The Man on the Cross

Both times, He is next to wood.

Both times, He is wrapped only in a cloth.

Both times, He is gifted with myrrh.

Both times, He catches Herod’s attention.

Both times, He is crying.

Both times, His mother, Mary, weeps and crys out.

Both times, it is a man named Joseph who saves the day.

One time, the angels sing “Glory to God.”

One time, they hide their faces, not daring to look.

One time, a bright star is seen in the sky.

One time, even the sun refuses to shine.

The Babe in the Manger

The Man on the Cross

Both times, He lays in a borrowed cave.

One time, He lays on soft, fresh hay.

One time, He lays on a stone-cold slab.

One time, He is alive and kicking.

One time, He is dead and stiff.

Both times, the soldiers come up empty.

Both times, the angels says “Fear not...”

Just think, He came to die for YOU.

He came to share your life and take your death,

so that you, though you share His death, may have His life.

The Babe in the Manger

The Man on the Cross

Poems (2) - Uzzah's Wife

Required Words From "Three Word Wednesday"

Tearful, adjective: crying or inclined to cry, causing tears; sad or emotional.

Unsteady, adjective: liable to fall or shake; not firm, not uniform or regular.

Abrasive, adjective: (of a substance or material) capable of polishing or cleaning a hard surface by rubbing or grinding, tending to rub or graze the skin, (of a person or manner) showing little concern for the feelings of others; harsh; noun: a substance used for grinding, polishing, or cleaning a hard surface.

Uzzah’s Wife

O. Kris Widmer

3 Haiku

from Three Word Wednesday

Required Words:  Tearful, Unsteady, Abrasive

2 Samuel 6:1-8

Pardon my weeping.

Unplanned death in the family

Tearful wife, I am.

Husband buried fast.

Unsteady ark cart to blame

Yahweh is cruel.

Motive conjecture

Now I’ll face a future of

Abrasive morals.

Uzzah’s Wife

O. Kris Widmer

Free Verse

from Three Word Wednesday

Required Words:  Tearful, Unsteady, Abrasive

2 Samuel 6:1-8

Pardon my weeping.

We’ve had a sudden death

in the family.

Yes, very sudden.

I don’t know.

Just be tearful, I guess.

I’m full of tears.

My husband didn’t deserve to die.

All he did was try to keep

the ark from being pitched down,

broken to splinters,

gold leaf scuffed onto the road rocks.

People whisper his motives,

the reasons he died.

They omit that he kept the unsteady ark

on the cart.

A hero in my book.

No there is nothing to do

but to roll the stone in place,

and face a future

filled with abrasive comments.

Scripture Reference:   Holy Bible    2 Samuel 6:1-8

1David again brought together all the able young men of Israel—thirty thousand. 2He and all his men went to Baalah^a in Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the Name,^b the name of the Lord Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim on the ark. 3They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart 4with the ark of God on it,^c and Ahio was walking in front of it. 5David and all Israel were celebrating with all their might before the Lord, with castanets,^d harps, lyres, timbrels, sistrums and cymbals.

6When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. 7The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down, and he died there beside the ark of God.

8Then David was angry because the Lord’s wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah.^e

Poem - The Robe

The Robe

O. Kris Widmer

Idea:  29 January 2016                               Printed: 29 January 2016

Writing Prompt: Three Word Wednesday:  Required Words:    Pathetic, Radical, Seamless

  

In pathetic gaze,

the eyes glaze over

for the Man on the cross

during the hours He hangs there

after a spear

confirms His demise,
before the nails are pulled.

“That Radical Rabbi is gone.

Nothing more to see here, folks!

Disburse quiet like, ya hear!

Paschal Blessings!

Shabbat Shalom!”

a soldier tosses pinkish dice,

this high roller rolls high numbers;

then gleefully grabs his seamless winnings.

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Thanks for Doing It.

Poem - The Goings-on in Gethsemane

Lackadaisical, adjective: lacking enthusiasm and determination; carelessly lazy.

Makeshift, adjective: serving as a temporary substitute; sufficient for the time being; noun: a temporary substitute or device.

Nude, adjective: wearing no clothes; naked; depicting or performed by naked people; (especially of hosiery) flesh-colored; noun: a naked human figure, typically as the subject of a painting, sculpture, or photograph; flesh color.

The Goings-on In Gethsemane

O. Kris Widmer

December 27, 2015

Holy Bible:  Gospel of St. Mark 14:51,52

Prompted by Three Word Wednesday Week 456 Writing Prompt

www.threewordwednesday.com

Three Required Words:  Lackadaisical, Makeshift, Nude

Three Other Words, Chosen from the given definitions:  determination, substitute, naked

To no avail,

he already tried

a ancient mind trick

gazing into his captors eyes

while saying -

“these are not the disciples

you are looking for.”[1]

Now, still detained

by the youngest but burliest

of the mob’s members

who eyed him with leer-filled looks,

fear seized the controls

of his mind[2]

with a determination

to cause another panic attack,

just like the incapacitating ones

he’d had before.

Would this be like Sodom (Genesis 19:5)

or Gibeah (Judges 19:22) all over again?

(He knew ALL the Scripture stories!)

He clenched his sphincter at the thought.

There is nothing between

his flesh and theirs,

his tight end and their stiff beginnings,

but his bed’s linens,

cast about his nakedness

a makeshift toga,

a sorry, substitute tunic,

now a fashion faux pas

on display at the Christ’s

all-night prayer service

gone horribly wrong.

miraculously,

reason took over, noting that

the lackadaisical trooper twins

lacked ropes or chains.

“Why, they only hold me by

this twin-sized top-sheet!”

So…our dear detainee

in a flash

makes a quick turn,

a twisting to the right

both arms raised!

Sweet Freedom!

Free of them.

Free of covers.

Free of fear.

He flees - flexing

and flaccid -

gone from the garden

and the Gospels,

nude into the night.

Nothing new is known.

---

[1] Reference to the famous force-using Star Wars line from Obiwan Kinobi.  “These are not the droids you are looking for.”

[2] Reference to the personification of emotions in the movie “Inside Out”

Poem - Wrapped Gifts

Wrapped Gifts

O. Kris Widmer

 Written   12/17/2015

At Christmas,

the child that

has everything

suddenly realizes

that happiness

is not found

in the wrapped

packages,

but it is found

being wrapped

in parental arms,

being read

the story

when the earth

was wrapped

in God’s love.