Faith

Faith can be messy

And riddled with questions

It can be complicated

Faith is a journey

A journey with struggles

It can be hard to understand

How things can happen

And why are they allowed to

Do you wonder and question?

Well you are not alone

Humankind wrestles these complexities

Of a hard life and a loving God

Where is God when life is tough?

Where is he in the mayhem?

In the shootings and the fires?

That brings destruction to life

God is always there

Even when we cannot see him

And even in our doubts

He knows us inside out

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2017

You Are Seen

To the woman in the corner

Crouching on the ground

Scared of the next thump

Please be reassured you are seen

To the boy running away

From the bullies in school

Scared of the next beating

Please be reassured you are seen

To the girl being abused

Hiding in a darkened room

Scared of the night time

Please be reassured you are seen

To the man under stress

In a job that is too much

And is taking its toll on you

Please be reassured you are seen

To the people who are scared

To those who are invisible

To those who are struggling

Please be reassured the Lord sees everything

He sees all we do

The bad and the good

He sees our heartache and pain

And he loves us all

He does protect us

Though it may not seem it

But he is working for us

As we are his precious children

Jo Anne Kennedy

October 2017

Prayer

So many words

Floating in the air

Trying to reach you

From us below

We send up requests

We plea in anguish

Asking you to help us

To come amidst our problems

Every night, every day

Every hour, every moment

Prayers are being said

Waiting for your answer

Do you answer us?

Yes you do every time

But it is not always a yes

Sometimes it’s a maybe

Sometimes we get a no

And we don’t understand

Why we prayed for healing

But the person passed away

We need to trust in you

To realise that you always hear us

Even as all our prayer mingle together

You always hear our individual voices

You are a God who is never distracted

You focus on us always

Listening to our prayers

And hearing them clearly

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2017

Paul

Paul is an apostle

He was the boss

He was tough

He was fierce

His endurance was great

He was broken

He was stranded

He was shipwrecked

He was imprisoned

He was forever in danger

But still, he endured

He laboured

He toiled

He went without sleep

He went without food

He went without drink

But still, he endured

Paul was strong

Mentally and physically

But yet he felt weak

He was weak to sin

But yet he was positive

He didn’t let life overwhelm him

Paul pressed on

He continued living

He was bold and courageous

He was confident

Because he knew the truth

The strength of God would not fail him

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2017

Fear

Fear

Fear is a four letter word

Which we all fear!

Because it is considered weak

To be afraid of something

But fear is real

It is the gap in our armor

And is used by our enemies

To trip us and cripple us

Fear haunts us every day

From family woes

To health scares

Fear is all around

It is okay to be afraid

It isn’t a sign of weakness

It is just a fact of life

Fear is a reality

Fear shouldn’t cripple us

It should give us strength

We should stand up to fear

Because we do not need to be afraid

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2017

Alone

To be alone

To be rejected

It is a double sting

It brings isolation

It brings hurt

And leaves deep wounds

When we are abandoned

And left in the corner

While they walk away

And leave us on our own

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2017

Bedrock

When terror strikes,

You don’t unravel

You remain steadfast

And in control

Everything is in your hands

Including us

No matter how violently the earth shakes

You never let go

You are always with us

Watching over us

Helping us with our lives

Ad keeping us together

I thank you for being you

For bringing me into the world

And never letting me go

You are the bedrock of my life

Jo Anne Kennedy

September 2017