What do you want?
Companionship, and tenderness in gaze?
Gentle tones in talk and touch,
And understanding ways?
Or, is it Courage, Stamina, and Strength,
Enduring through thick and thin;
Defeating all the odds, at length,
And never giving in?…
Patience that passes ev’ry test,
adjusting at each turn?
Virtue protecting Modesty
When passions flare and burn?
A relationship with God that’s sweet,
Calming your every nerve;
That draws you to His piercéd feet,
Equipping your heart to serve
Him, as His Spirit subdues
Your stubborn will
And you bask in His peace?…
As you learn to be still, and
Know Him as your God…
Your constant Friend and Guide?
‘Til you no longer seek to hide
Away from His outstretched arm of
Mercy and all-consuming love,
But rest in its safety and thrill to its charm
And with wanton abandon your heart
Soars above in surrender and sweet release?
So, what do you want?
There are “no free lunches” –
So, what have you brought?
Let’s hear your thought?
Friendship is like a bank account:
Without your deposit
You’ll have no credit
From which to withdraw
Any needed amount.
So, first, you must give, and give, and give,..
And then your reward you will receive;
Can’t put to the test
What you never invest.
The harvest comes last – as all farmers know;
Before ripe fruit come the seed and the plough.
Life owes you none of what you seek,
But the seeds you sow bear the fruit you reap.
So, what do you REALLY want, my friend?
For you first must have in view, that end;
Next, wisely choose the fertile land –
Select it by God’s guiding hand!
Then till the soil with gentlest care,
Bible study and daily prayer.
Nurture the seedlings in their rows,
Enjoying the beauty as each grows
So fragile and pure; remember:
Reaping comes only when the fruit is mature!
So now, to watch, and wait, and learn….
As you water and feed….
(Keep the soil free of weed!)
Oh, your dear heart so yearns
The sweet fruit to taste –
But untimely waste’s born
Of things done in haste!
So, quit you like a man –
Show courage, show strength;
Know by God’s grace that you can
And will conquer at length!
With sanctified mind
Fix your eyes on His prize!
Then reap your surprise of true Love’s dividend!
Penned: Autumn, 1996
Revised: November 4, 2003; November 21, 2015
Copyright (C) 2018 Dahana Baxter. All rights reserved.
