Under and Over

 

 

I knew them well

Well, not that well,

They were somewhat mysterious

I heard people tell.

 

I will refer to them

As under and over,

I won’t mention their watchdog

His name was Rover.

 

I know that I said

I won’t mention his name,

Are you making that an issue?

Are you insane?

 

I may have overstated it

But you don’t understand,

I am telling this story

That is the overall plan.

 

Let me get back

To over and under

And by the way it has nothing to do

With a four-leaf clover.

 

He was under weight

But she was over bearing,

They so got under your skin

You dreaded their appearing.

 

She had over anxiety

Which she under expressed

And he was overwhelmed

And much distressed.

 

Once he over excitedly said

That he underestimated her

And she over exuberantly replied,

“In that we concur.”

 

They used to live together

But operated apart,

He understated the problem

But she over shot the charts.

 

  

They quarreled excessively

And over excitedly so,

And there was nothing one knew

That the other didn’t know.

 

They reached retirement age

But refused to stay at home,

Though married for many years

Each preferred to be alone.

 

Understandably so

Since no honey was in the moon,

And with the overtones and undertones

They never sang the same tune.

 

Their relationship was under stress

And overheated most times,

He was under a cloud

And she was over inclined.

 

Interestingly, over time

The couple had underachieved,

She had overworked

But underpay she had received.

 

This was unfortunate

And he well understood

That they had overshot the mark

Choosing an upscale neighborhood.

 

I hope you understand

Though I may have overstated their case,

But be under no delusion

I wouldn’t want to be in their place.

 

 

Under and over

That is how we view life

Even though all along you thought

It was a man and his wife.

 

We often over project self

And undervalue others

But do we understand ourselves?

Well, that’s another matter.

   

Under and over

Which are you today?

Note: there is a tendency to switch

Depending on what is in the way.

 

Get over yesterday’s problem

Do not be overwhelmed,

And I will be over enthused

If you understand this poem.

 

I may be exasperating

And overly so

But that is only because

I know much more than you know.

 

I wrote it but you said it

You’re no different from me,

When we under or over look others

We are in the mirror we see.

 

 

Understand therefore

I am not underestimating you

So get over yourself

And commit to my view.

 

Stewart Russell © September 2019

 

Psalm 118:24

 

 

“This is the day,”

How we so lustily sing!

“We will rejoice and be glad in it”

And O what joy it brings!

 

It’s truly a lift

From our sunken depths

Especially after an experience

That brought regret.

 

“This is the day,”

And it doesn’t matter what,

There’s no such thing as a bad day;

God created the whole lot.

 

That’s how I viewed it

Until someone shared with me

This entire chapter

And then I began to see.

 

We sing it and enjoy it

But we miss its context,

The Psalmist saw a lot more

In this significant text.

 

We think of creation

And that God made each day,

Nothing’s wrong with that

But David had more to say.

 

 

David had a preview

Of God’s amazing grace

When the Messiah would come

And take his place.

 

And so, in God’s assurance

He could confidently say,

This is the day, prophetically speaking

Of Christ’s coming day.

 

The day of atonement!

The day of so great salvation!

Twenty-eight generations before,

David saw his redemption.

 

 

He rejoiced back then

As though the time was nigh,

“This is the Lord’s doing,” he says,

It is marvelous in our eyes.

 

More than a thousand years

To come before Christ’s time

But the glorious Gospel of salvation

Was on David’s mind.

 

“The stone the builders refused

Is become the headstone,”

“This is the day,” David said,

And in this he was not alone.

 

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

 

Stewart Russell © August 12, 2021

 

Help!

 

 

Bombarded on every side

Information overload,

Some believable, some not,

Both subtle and bold.

 

A cacophony of noises

Assaulting one’s ear,

All in the name of the science

Yet causing much fear.

 

A proliferation of dissonance

And disequilibrium,

Loss of mental balance

And unreliable cognition.

 

Precariously positioned

Centre of gravity askew

And what to make of it all,

I really wish I knew.

 

A difference of opinion

From experts in the field:

Some apparently genuine

Others driven by greed.

 

How to tell who is who

Beats me for sure,

No wonder some of us say

We can’t take anymore.

 

I’ve heard from doctors

Whom I admire

But their contrasting advice

Says either way is dire.

 

 

There’s a lot we don’t know

The cry of some,

Meanwhile this COVID-19

Keeps us on the run.

 

It’s the worse it has been

From the time it had begun

Though given at one stage

We thought we had won.

 

From single digits a day

To triple figures now

Such that, no retreat no surrender

Becomes a hollow vow.

 

The vaccinated will die

In three years, some say,

But the unvaccinated are dying

Each and every day.

 

Two terms are stated

In almost every COVID death:

Comorbidities and unvaccinated;

We don’t have to guess.

 

One hundred family clusters

So, we now have a plague

Yet, not all of us are behaving

In a responsible way.

 

And given this trajectory

It will only get worse

For only responsible behavior

Can deal with this curse.

 

Adhere to the protocols

I know you know them all,

Together we have to stand

Or divided we will fall.

 

 

Think of another

As you think through all this

And as you do

Put family top of your list.

 

In any case the life you save

May be your own,

Help me help you

In this COVID-19 zone.

 

Help!

 

Stewart Russell © September 27, 2021

 

Prayer Meeting Extraordinaire

 

 

 

I will never forget

That extraordinary prayer meeting,

Convened on our brother’s behalf

When we could be sleeping.

 

It was back in the early church

Not long after Pentecost

One of our leaders had been slain

And another about to be lost.

 

Herod had executed James

And Peter had been imprisoned,

Hence, this special time in prayer

Hoping for Peter’s freedom.

 

I was just a young damsel

Observing the others in prayer

When I heard a knock on the door

And went to see who was there.

 

I did not have to see his face

I knew who was at the door,

From the moment I heard his voice

I needed nothing more.

 

I was so filled with excitement

I ran back to tell the rest

And Peter could do no better

Than stay right where he was left.

 

In my excitement I left him

Outside the meeting place

And back to those intercessors

I had excitedly raced.

 

Of course, they did not believe

What I revealed to them,

They suggested I had seen a ghost

And with that I had a problem.

 

 

Peter continued knocking

And eventually the door was opened,

There he stood in front of them

A testament to what God had done.

 

Their excitement was continuous

Like it would never cease

Causing Peter to beckon to them

And request they hold their peace.

 

He explained all God had done

And then he went his way,

Actually, he left that same very night

Before the turn of the day.

 

I believe as they prayed for Peter

They were praying for his release

But then it happened so quickly

It shocked their own belief.

 

Hence, the initial evidence,

Having been shrouded in disbelief,

Had an opposite effect on them

Despite praying for Peter’s release.

 

 

Prayer meeting extraordinaire!

The saints prayed while yet in doubt,

 But according to His own purpose

God still brought Peter out.

 

The lesson to one and all

Is to trust God however we feel

And in God’s own time appointed

All will be revealed.

 

Stewart Russell © September 25, 2021

 

 

Not One But Four

 

 

I guess you must be wondering

What this title means,

Well read on a little further

And I will develop the scene.

 

Actually, I had seen this before

But it did not fully register

But this morning as I sat reading

I grasped the total picture.

 

Not one, but four miracles,

However, we usually focus on two

That is: Jesus walking on water

And Peter whom he rescued.

 

After feeding the five thousand

Jesus went into a mount to pray,

His disciples crossed the Galilee

This being at the end of the day.

 

An account is given in Matthew

And in the 6^th chapter of John

Mark also records the event

That occurred before the dawn.

 

 

In the midst of a terrible storm

Jesus came walking on the water,

The disciples were sorely afraid

Anticipating pending disaster.

 

Jesus calmed their trouble nerves

With his reassuring word

“It is I, be not afraid,”

These sailors had all heard.

 

“If it be you,” Peter challenged

“Permit me to come to you.”

Jesus agreed and Peter complied

So that he walked on water too.

 

As long as he looked at Jesus

His adventure went quite well

But suddenly remembering the storm

In his fear of drowning, he yelled.

 

 

“Lord save me!” Peter cried,

And Jesus took him by the hand

And as soon as they entered the boat

The winds ceased as though by plan.

 

A worship service broke out

“Of a truth this is God’s Son.”

This they acknowledged in praise

But the fourth miracle was to come.

 

Immediately they were ferried

From the middle of the sea to the land,

In the twinkling of an eye

Faster than the wave of a hand.

 

Jesus went to them on the water

Peter’s rescue was number two,

The winds and waves ceased their fury

As though they awaited a cue.

 

Number four is often missed

While two of the others are the focus

But instantaneous migration

Can only be done by Jesus.

 

His first coming was such a case

So will his second coming be

In spite of the distance heaven is

When he comes the world will see.

 

Not one but four:

Each miracle shows an attribute,

The Creator, Saviour and very God

Whom none can ever refute.

 

Stewart Russell © March 2019

 

With the Heart

 

 

Salvation need not be a puzzle

As some make it out to be

Just read Romans 10:8 to 11

And you will clearly see.

 

Confession is with the mouth

While belief occurs in the heart

That God raised Jesus from the dead-

What a good place to start!

 

The heart is the principal issue

The mouth confesses to this,

A person believes unto salvation

And that we should not miss.

 

We confess what we possess:

That salvation is already a fact,

It is the Spirit that is now inside

That witnesses to this fact.

 

Believing on the Lord, Jesus Christ;

Initiate one’s salvation

And spontaneity to the same

Results in audible confession.

 

For with the heart

One believes unto righteousness

And with the mouth

Confession is made unto salvation.

 

Whosoever believes on Jesus

Shall not be ashamed,

With the mouth he is made known

But in one’s heart he reigns.

 

Believe on Jesus is key

It’s the key to being born again,

It’s nothing more or nothing less:

All this in Jesus’ name.

 

143 times in the Bible

You will find the word believe:

124 times in the New Testament

Shows salvation is not achieved.

 

That achievement was Jesus’

When he died and rose again,

Thus, by faith, when one believes,

His salvation is not in vain.

 

For “with the heart”

Man believes unto salvation,

Confession is with the mouth made

And in heaven there’s celebration.

 

Luke 15:10

 

Likewise, I say unto you,

there is joy in the presence of the angels of God

over one sinner that repenteth.

 

Stewart Russell © July 18, 2021

 

For Our Children

 

 

I implore us to consider

These precious gifts from God,

It’s a wonder, giving current trends,

If we’re considering them at all.

 

Often, they inhibit us

In our chartered lifestyle

And we wish to abandon them

Every once in a while.

 

They are often not planned

As we go about our quest

But were conceived at a moment

When we attempt to destress.

 

They often struggle with identity

Due to lack of attention

And this deficit fills their lives

With much apprehension.

 

In lots and lots of cases

Their daddies have gone away,

They see them from time to time

But they have little or no say.

 

 

The mummies for the most part

Become the one in charge

But especially with the boys

Mummies too, may be at large.

 

This has become the norm

For a very long time,

It’s time to put these children

At the forefront of our mind.

 

Very early in their existence

They become aware

And whether they are boy or girl,

This poses no fear.

 

But a group among us

Say they are too young to know

So, give them as long as they want

To decide which way to go.

 

Until they have decided

We can call them neither he nor she,

“They” is gender neutral

Hence, “they” it must be.

 

What ludicrous confusion

We have introduced to them!

Hence, I am begging, spare a thought

For our children.

 

Adults have become trapped

Of their own volition, I must add,

And this gender fluid nonsense

Is becoming a fad.

 

 

If tomorrow morning I wake

And I become tired of who I am,

I can there and then decide

I am neither woman nor man.

 

Genitals no longer determine

The gender I am

But my feelings stipulate

Whether I am woman or man.

 

Until then, call me they

And call my children they too,

They must be allowed to decide:

Not me or you.

 

So, imagine the offspring

Of a transwoman and transman:

The transman birthed the baby

But she is now the man.

 

 

Imagine how they both agitate

To secure a legal document

That would make the man the mother

And legalize their nonsense.

 

Imaging the precious gift,

Born into this gender-mess

And then imagine people telling me

That this is not madness.

  

The lines are truly blurred

Re: insanity and right thinking,

It is like, the man must be dead

Cause I saw him blinking.

 

“Please, please, I beg yuh,”

Like the Prime Minister often say,

Spare a thought for our children:

This is not the right way.

 

Stewart Russell © August 27, 2021