I've read that the literal meaning of Christmas/Christ's mass is "Christ-sent". Christ wasn't just born, He didn't just come to earth--He was sent. Of course, He was actually sent some nine months earlier. But Christmas is His birth announcement.

Gal 4:4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law..."
Jhn 8:42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God;
neither came I of myself, but he sent me"
Jhn 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us...the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." from John 1.

Sent

Why Christmas?
Because the world was dark,
and the Word was silent
(400 years)
Because it was promised,
and it was now time--
Christ was sent.

Earth stirred--slightly.
And in heaven?
Glorious excitement in heaven
tumbled down from the skies--
Herald angels bursting
with good tidings
of great joy!

At last!
Messiah has come.
At last!
God has not forgotten His people,
not forgotten His plan.
Wake up!
Celebrate! Shout for joy!

Such tremendous news,
Such an awesome destiny
for such a tiny babe.
Sent--
Sent to us.
Sent for us.
How can we keep such
marvelous news to ourselves?
Go, tell it!
(mountains, hills, everywhere)

lori fiechter
12-01-05

Eze 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you:
and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh;

Heart of Flesh

I am afraid to feel,
to hurt,
to hope.
Afraid to trust my heart of flesh,
and wondering why I have to feel at all--
It would be so much
easier not to feel!

But a heart that cannot hurt
is a heart that is but
half alive,
its beating muffled
beneath its stony casing.

Would I choose to be
such a stony stoic?
If our sovereign, omnipotent God
allows HIs own heart to grieve
and feel and break,
how can we expect any less?

It must be worth this thing called living,
this risk called loving,
to have a heart
that cares enough
to sometimes grieve
and hurt
and break.

lori fiechter
11-25-05

I Timothy 6:12 "Fight the good fight..."
Romans 16:19 "For your obedience is come abroad unto all men. I am glad, therefore, on your behalf.
Romans 12:5, 15 "We, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another…Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.

Your Victory; My Joy

Because you have been faithful
and obedient and humble in your trial,
I have hope and encouragement for my own trials.

Because of your perseverance, I feel stronger,
and your open honesty makes me
examine my own face-saving barriers.

Because you have taken God at His word,
and clung to His promises,
I will not be so quick to doubt.

Because you are fighting the good fight,
I will polish my own armor,
And in your victory, I rejoice
--as if it were my own!

Lori fiechter
11-16-05

November Grace

God's grace in gray November
is the same grace available
in green, growing May
but more noticed now, and appreciated.
When everything else seems ugly,
how altogether lovely does grace appear,
as a respite of calm after hours of howling wind
or an hour of sunshine after days of clouds.
When grace shows up in November,
undeserved and by surprise,
we notice.

And so goes the contrast between
bitter trials and sweet grace;
unwelcome delays and always timely grace,
heavy burdens and the grace that lightens them.

On this blustery, sunless November day,
I will look for small signs of His grace
and I will find them.

lori fiechter
11-16-05

Ezr 9:8 And now for a little space grace hath been [shewed] from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage.

Psalm 5:3 "... O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up."
Psalm 55:1 "Give ear to my prayer, O God..."
II Peter 5:7 "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you."

Prayer Window

Prayer window of sky,
make me look up
and look high,
Away from the man-made,
the common, mundane,
that I might focus above
on the glorious Name
of the one God, Creator,
Redeemer, and Friend,
Who is waiting to hear from us,
To bow down His ear to us
and listen again
To our pleas and our prayers,
our petitions and praise--
Through my prayer window of sky,
I look out and try
to lift up my cares and concerns,
unhurried, unworried,
putting my faith
in a Savior unseen,
In a Father who cares about me.
And I will stay at this window
and pray at this window
until I have cast
my last burden away.

lori fiechter
11-14-05

"When once asked what his plans for the following day were, Martin Luther answered, 'Work, work, from early until late. In fact, I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer."
How strange and impossible that sounds to my modern ears, and how much I need to have the attitude of prayer, at all times. But real prayer is real work--albeit work that no one else really notices when it doesn't get done. (Not like the laundry or lawn-mowing or dishes)

You Call that Prayer?

That is the best you can do?
It is hurried, listless, lifeless;
and though you'd never say it,
an expected duty,
perfunctorily performed,
so that you can move on
to more tangible, pressing,
and rewarding tasks.

You call that prayer?
You left out heart or passion
and lost focus altogether
(misplaced again, along with your spare set of keys)
But why the guilt?--There is time enough another day,
one less busy,
when things slow down a bit.
And if not,
does it really make much difference?
It's only words.

lori fiechter
11-11-05

Of all the duties enjoined by Christianity, none is more essential and yet more neglected than prayer. Most people consider the exercise a fatiguing ceremony, which they are justified in abridging as much as possible.
--Francois Fenelon

Unreined and Aimless

Kneeling,
(whether in the body or out of the body)
Pretending to be earnest
and interested
and devoted.
But unreined thoughts
scatter and skitter
like wild horses on ice.

Who can catch them?
Who can corral them?
Who can train them?

"This one thing I do, fogetting--"
No, I am not pressing toward
any discernible mark,
I am not aiming;
I just dither about in pertetual amazement
at the accelerated passage of time and opportunity.
This is no prayer life!
--LIttle snippets and snatches of
words spoken upwards,
trying to be more
pious and peaceful and prayerful,
while in the background,
wild horses stampede.

lori fiechter
11-10-05

Psalm 38; Psalm 103:9; Isaiah 57:16; Habbakkuk 3:2; Hosea 6:1; II Corinthians 2

Hope, Undeserved

Rebuke me, Lord, I rebuke myself,
But don't leave me without hope
Or I shall be swallowed up
in sorrow and in shame.
Forgive me--Restore me;
I have been a fool,
But now I am broken.
Here are the pieces--
Can You--will You--do something with them?

Do not despise me--do not reject my offering.
Heal me--Revive me--Bind my wounds,
And heal the others I have wounded
in my unthinking carelessness and sin.
But do not leave me without hope.
Tell me there is still hope and forgiveness with You,
and mercy.
For I am utterly lost without You,
and utterly alone.

lori fiechter
11-10-05

Exodus 14:14 "The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

Psalm 18:39 "For Thou has girded me with strength unto the battle."

Jeremiah 6:14 "...saying 'Peace, peace', when there is no peace"

Ephesians 6:10,13 "Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of HIS might...
take unto you the whole armor of God that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day,
and having done all, to stand."

Psalm 18:1 "I will love thee, O Lord my strength."

Not Without a Fight!

"Surrender! Retreat!
The odds are against you,
just give up--give in;
It would be so much easier."

No!
I will not concede defeat,
and I will not give up!
If I must go down,
I will go down fighting.

Get behind me, Satan,
with your whispers of
an "easy way out",
of a false peace that
does not come from God.

This is my battle and
I must fight it.
God controls this battle;
He controls the way it will end.
My part is to stand and fight while I can.

I need help.

Lord, send me warriors,
send me reinforcements.
And grant me the grace to stand fast
when I feel like throwing in the towel,
when I wonder if it is worth the struggle,
When I can't go any further,
When I just can't take it anymore.

Lord, gird me with Thy strength for this battle.
Refresh me with Thy Spirit,
Help me to look up,
Open my eyes to Thy blessings and mercies,
even to the small victories won so far.
It is a marvel that You have brought me this far!
I praise You!
I bless You!
I thank You!
I love You!

lori fiechter
10-25-05

We know the promise of I Peter 5:7 "Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you."
I like the way the Amplified Version expands it "Casting the whole of your care (all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all) on Him, for He cares for you affectionately,and cares about you watchfully." 
Is there anything too big, too difficult for God? Not according to Jeremiah 32:17 & 27.

It is Too Big For Me

It is too big,
Too heavy,
Too hard to bear.
How can I cast my burden on the Lord
and leave it there?

How?

His name is El Shaddai,
The All-sufficient God,
The God who is enough.
Do I believe that?
I believe it with my mind;
I want to believe it with my heart.

Lord, give me the faith to believe
that You can redeem any evil,
and cause any sorrow or heartache
to redound to Your glory.

I am so weak,  
I cannot throw my burden to You,
but I can drop it,
just let it roll off my aching back.
It is Yours, now, Lord,
and You can handle it 
For nothing is too big for You.

lori fiechter
10-24-05

Jeremiah 31:2 "The people...found grace in the wilderness"

Isaiah 63:9 "In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of His presence saved them:
                         in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; and He bare them, and carried them all the days of old."

Grace in the Wilderness  

They were in the wilderness, but
They were not abandoned, and
They were not alone.
God was there and grace was evident:

unexpected water in the desert,
manna for the taking,
shoes that would not wear out,
armies defeated.
And guidance--visible guidance day and night,
the Angel of His presence went before them.
The people found grace in the wilderness.

There is still grace in the wilderness,
we appreciate grace most then,
when we are wandering and confused,
weary of life,
unsure of tomorrow,
utterly dependent on God,
leaning so heavily on Him that
we would fall if He let go of us.

He will not let go.

He holds us up with His right hand,
offering us His living water
to refresh our dry and thirsty soul.
His strength is made perfect in our weakness,
His grace is most evident in our wilderness.

lori fiechter
10-22-05

How do I Pray for You?

How do I pray for you?
How would I have you pray for me
If I were the one in your shoes now?

I don't know.

(How could Job's friends have prayed for him?)
So I lift you up,
Begging for grace at the throne,
for strength to endure,
for freedom from fear and from bitterness--
for faith that will not fail.

I pray for you and for myself--
that I will not cut you off in your pain,
leaving you alone.
I cannot ease your suffering,
I can't make anything better,
but I can plead with God to hold you close,
to keep you from drowning in despair,
to lock the menacing door marked "what if?".
I pray for a window of hope and courage
to see that this darkness is not forever,
to trust God,
through tears and unanswered questions.

lori fiechter
10-12-05

I Put my Trust

(Psalm 118: 6-9, Psalm 139, Habakkuk 3:17-19)

I need a safe place to put my trust,
a safe place that will not fail,
with room for my hope and my confidence;
I am in danger of losing all of them.

Cracks of doubt and fear
creep in from the edges.
Only the center is safe--
as long as God is my center.

Man fails and falls and disappoints,
but what can man do to me?
God is on my side,
He goes before me, and behind me;
His right arm holds me up.

I will not fear.
Not because I am brave,
but because God is true.
I will not fear.
Not because I know the outcome,
but because God is still with me.

And the Lord is still my strength and my song and my salvation
while the world around me falls to pieces.

lori fiechter
10-11-05

My brain looks like my living room looks like my brain.

Scatter ed Brain

Thoughts worth haven't any
organizing. Insert.

React-React.
Current-caught.
Now what?
yes. no. well, maybe.

There was something
I ought to be doing
when? why?
Too late now.

Neatly ignored lists for the future,
Nothing to show for the hours past.

React-React.
Where was I?
Where am I?

And where did I leave the cell phone (on mute) again?
How long has that chicken been thawing in the microwave?
There are fruit flies swarming round pan of week-old cherry tomatoes.
Mental note--dump them now!
No, just do it--no detours through the muddled mind.

Days flow,
I bob along, oarless, rudderless.
Stop.
Somewhere there is a thought worth thinking.
 Can I catch it in time?
And what will I do with it, anyway?

What will I do with what?

lori fiechter
10-10-05

My newly-licensed son had a little trouble finding his way home from town one night--in spite of the map I'd drawn. After driving around for 40 minutes or so, he retraced his steps and had his brother call me on the cell phone. I guided them back, road by road, turn by turn, until they were in familiar territory again.

I'm not Lost
(4th of July, 2005)

I know where I am;
It's not where I should be.
I'm not lost,
but I can't find my way back home from here.

And it's late, getting later;
the stoplights have switched
from their tri-color scheme
to blinking either all red or yellow.

The map that you drew for me
makes no sense at all;
(you left out a stop sign
and I turned one block too soon)

I did find the right house,
on my very second try! It was daylight then--
but now it's dark and
the car can't seem to point itself home.

I drove all across town
and then retraced my steps.
It's been 40 minutes since I called you--
since I called to tell you we were on our way home.

Now I'm back at square one--
at the south parking lot
I'm not lost,
but I sure am confused.

What I need now is guidance,
step by step till I'm safe--
Can you walk me out
of this mess that I'm in?

Tell me what I should look for
and where I should turn,
Just until things start
looking familiar again.
I'm not lost,
but I need help to get home again.

lori fiechter

7-05-05

Life is short, unpredictable, and unfathomably precious. This dawned on me as I was pushing my cart through the grocery store, mulling over a visit with my husband's 90 year old aunt in Intensive Care--still talkative and cheerful, fight sleep so that she wouldn't miss anything going on in the hospital--and thinking about a neighbor who just lost her long battle with cancer. How wonderful even mundane things like grocery shopping seemed to me. And how much people who are dying or seriously ill want to be surrounded by those who love them. How sad it would be to die alone and unloved.

Nothing in This World

(Romans 8:35-39; Isaiah 59:2)

Nothing can separate us
from the love of God in Christ;
It stretches without break
through time and space.

Nothing the world throws at us
and none of Satan’s fiery darts
can cut us off from God
and leave us outside of His grace.

Because of His unfailing, perfect love--
He sent His Son, full-knowing
what we would do to Him.
He shouts His love for us
through His forgiveness and His grace,
He wants us all to know Him,
to always seek His face.

His love is everlasting,
Boundless, without end.
And nothing can separate us
or ever hide His face again

--except our foolish clinging to
our unrepentant sin.