Saturday

Romans 8:28

Being mindful of the scripture
You work all things out for good
Please accomplish, Lord, contentment
Through the sorrows if you would

May the knowledge that the road you walked
Would not have been your choice
But you gave up all and suffered much
To heed a higher voice

Be the force by which I’m carried
And the strength by which I stand
Ever mindful I’m an alien
And this is foreign land

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 2003

Friday

Exalted

Heavenly Father, on your throne
My God, you sit on high
Far above the universe
Within the bright, vast sky

Tell me, Lord, of your great love
That saves a wretch like me
Who wanders from your presence
Periodically

Who loves you more than life itself
But still cannot attain
Consistency and faithfulness
On a more even plane

What majesty and magnitude
My God, how great thou art
To look beyond the surface
And see within my heart


Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1993

This is the first poem I wrote that was to and about the Lord.



Heart Response

May I ever bring you glory
As I seek to do your will
May the Holy Spirit’s leading
Catch my spirit quiet and still

That the whisper of your unction
Or the thunder of your call
May, despite the noise and hubbub,
Be the loudest of them all

May my ears be ever listening
For the message you convey
May you find my heart receptive, God
And willing to obey

May you be the one I turn to
Whether times are good or bad
May I see you as the bestest friend
That I have ever had


Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 2002

Thursday

Victory

Father, I beseech you
To help this man at work
That he would know your power
And all your blessed perks
Help him see through spiritual eyes
The grace and love you’ve shown
That he not feel abandoned
Forsaken or alone
Let him know I’ve been there
And I attest to this
That you’ll restore the joy
And all the awesome bliss
That comes from knowing you
And leaning on your power
Trusting in your grace
Every moment, every hour
Let him feel your presence
Your calm amidst the storm
Let him know your fullness
And see your mighty form
The way you work through trials
Using them for good
Stretching and sustaining us
As you said you would
Protect him, God, and show to him
That he’ll be made complete
Tell him when it’s over
The victory will be sweet

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales

Wednesday

My Church

How good it is to have a church
Where people really care
Where Christ is lifted up
And hearts of love are shared
Where prayer is made priority
And praise is all around
Where all the people lift their voice
In precious, joyful sound
Where scripture comes alive
And truth is always preached
Their purpose is to minister
And the lost, they seek to reach
I’m glad to be a part
Of this devoted clan
Who share the love of God
With each and every man

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1995

Tuesday

Praying For Your Health

As you go through this trial
Of being in poor health
I pray that you’ll remember
Your God and all His wealth
His riches of the heart
And nourishment of soul
His wonderful ability
To heal and make us whole
Knowing that He loves you
And that’s what really counts
Knowing He will calm you
When all the tension mounts
The bible speaks of healing
And how God wants our best
But only some were healed
And He sustained the rest
He’s able and He’s willing
But maybe in His plan
He could get more glory
If He reveals to man
The faithfulness and trust
Of Christians as they go
Through suffering and sorrow
True victory they will know

Written for the terminally ill.

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1994

Sunday

Child of the King

How blessed it is to be
A child of the King
How glorious and stirring
Your praises, Lord, to sing
I marvel at your power
Your grace and wondrous love
At how you rule the earth below
And Heaven up above
I marvel at creation
The works of thine own hands
I marvel at your splendor
All across the land
Your love…it knows no boundary
Your grace…it never ends
Your mercies…new each morning
Reaching to all men

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1995

Friday

Seasoned With Grace

Let all our prayers have great effect
And touch, dear Lord, our dialect
With gentle words and spirit sweet
Causing harshness to retreat

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1994

Friendships

Friendships last a lifetime
If we exhibit care
If loyalty and love
Are qualities we share
If genuine respect
Is there between the two
If love’s the motivating force
In everything we do

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales

Thursday

Celebrate

He died for us, for me and you
He died that we would be made new
Giving us a special worth
At the point of our re-birth
He wills that we would ever praise
And to Him our voices raise
In joyful love and adoration
Making Him a celebration

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1994

Wednesday

Tapestry

Father, I thank you so very much
For blessing this family with your special touch
A childless couple, faithful in deed
An orphaned baby, greatly in need
The couple who waited so very long
Through sorrow and pain, you somehow made strong
A beautiful tapestry woven in time
A splendid creation of God's own design

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales


Tuesday

Angel of Mercy

An angel of mercy, a vessel of love
She shepherds the flock of  our God up above
We look at this picture and quickly we see
The nurturing spirit extended to “we”
The women of “WOW” who are faithfully taught
The riches of scripture and sin we should not
From lasting impressions of insight we glean
May spiritual growth be visibly seen
And may this dear angel know deep in her heart
The pleasure she brings to the God she imparts

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales

WOW stands for Women of the Word;
a bible study I used to attend.

Monday

Dynamic Duo

I'm thankful for my bosses
With all their warmth and wit
Although they're sometimes daffy
Just a little bit
They tell their tales convincingly
Sometimes fooling even me
But we who know about their jokes
Can usually discern a hoax
Dynamic duo that they are
Their humor travels very far
Into the hearts of all their staff
Who, just like them, enjoy a laugh

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales  1996





Wise One

Oh most wise and holy one
Shall I kiss your feet
Shall I say that working here's
Undoubtedly a treat
Shall I always call you Sir
And readily bow down
Holding back infectious laughter
All your subjects here have found
At the riotous regalia
You inject in everything
While presenting to the staff
That you are God and King

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales




Saturday

Amends

Since I don't know just what to say
I can only think and pray
Think of how I hurt for you
And pray for God to make you new
Pray for things to be made right
Pray for you to sleep at night
Pray that you'd be free of pain
Pray that God would be your cane
An aid to help you walk through this
A strength when health and joy you miss
And on whom you can rely
When all you want to do is cry
We've had our differences, it's true
But please believe I do love you
Through twenty years of being kin
We've learned the meaning "thick or thin"
Please forgive the times I've erred
Though sometimes wrong, I've always cared

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1995

Written for my step-dad who was battling Cancer.

Friday

Shape Me Yet Anew

Father God, I pray
That you would shape me yet anew
As this pot is cracked and broken
And un-beautiful to you
Lord, I feel as if you’ve started
With a fresh supply of clay
And I’m spinning on the wheel
And my life’s begun to sway
When you’ve shaped me in your image
And you put me in the kiln
In the furnace of affliction
To be set and processed still
Let the outcome be for glory
Let on-lookers stop and gasp
“How did He make this from nothing?”
Let the people stop and ask
Let the beauty draw attention
To the artist and His work
Give me beauty and a purpose, Lord
Of which I would not shirk
As it is with real life pottery
A pitcher or a vase
Make me useful to the Master
In the setting where I’m placed

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales

Thursday

All Time


Oh, dear Jesus, how’d you feel
When you walked on the earth
Confronted by the apathy
Of people toward your worth
They didn’t comprehend in full
The power of your reign
Nor did they care about
Your horrendous pain
They mocked and they rejected you
Disowned you from the start
They didn’t see your glory
Nor did they see your heart
They overlooked your majesty
And power so divine
Never comprehending
That you were for all time
They didn’t know that by your stripes
We could all be healed
And that for all believers
Salvation would be sealed

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1995

Wednesday

Offspring

A blessed joy to behold
Is when your offspring become old
Your heart of love, you cannot hide
And pride that wells up deep inside
To see what they've become

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1995

Tuesday

Aging

When one gets old and not so cute
And finds it harder to re-boot
There's more to life than meets the eye
Like simple things that make you high
Becoming friends with children grown
And long-time friends that you have known
And grandkids are a special treat
Because, of course, they're very sweet
You get to love on them alot
But cumbersome to you they're not
There's freedom now to come and go
To travel, shop and just let go
And aging makes you very wise
To see with retrospective eyes
And even better than all this
Is hope of our eternal bliss

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1997

Monday

Setbacks

God I truly thank you
That it wasn't any worse
But I feel as if my body's been
Attacked by Satan's curse
Every day holds a new injury
Or a problem of some sort
When talking with my friends
I'm embarrassed to report
The ups and downs, the back and forth
The setbacks that occur
Frustration I experience
When healing is deferred

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1998

Sunday

Strengthening My Frame

Father God I pray
that you would help me with my feet
That you'd get me safe to bed
and you'd grant me restful sleep

That you'd take away the swelling
and diminish all the pain
That you'd soon begin the process Lord
of strengthening my frame

That your grace would still continue
in a multitude of ways
And that you would soon incorporate
healing to my days

Lord I've had to lean upon you
in a state of total need
And while staying by your side
I desire to be freed

From the bondage of dependence
that is burdening my friends
To a relative remission
that on God alone depends

Lord it's not that I'm ungrateful
I see all that you have done
I'm just longing to go forward
that captivity be undone

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1999

Saturday

Tender Mercies

How very, very cognizant
I am of all your grace
Not only for your son who died
At Calvary in my place
But also for the mercies
I see with each new day
Exceeding loving kindness
Being sent my way
Tenderness that warms my heart
And makes it all aglow
Little ways you speak to me
That personally show
How much you care about my needs
My every hurt and pain
Every joy and sorrow
Every loss and gain
All the ways that you relate
With overflowing love
While living in my heart
And watching from above

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales

Friday

The Game of Life

It matters that we play the game
And principles remain the same
It doesn't matter what the score
Who was wrong or who gets sore

It matters that our heart has love
And we are one with God above
To know the maker and His plan
And trust our life into His hand

It matters that we nurture seed
Give them love and meet their need
Sharing Christ with all around
And telling of the joy we found

Sharing unconditioned love
Forgiveness flowing from above
Telling of security
In Christ, whose death has set us free

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1997

Thursday

Trinity

Jesus, I'm so glad
You rose up from the grave

Father, I appreciate
The sacrifice you gave

Blessed Holy Spirit
Living deep within

Thank you that you teach me
And convict me of my sin

Thank you that you comfort me
And know just what to pray

When I can only groan
Not knowing what to say


Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1995



Wednesday

What He Sees

Our God enthroned in Heaven above
Does not forget labors of love
We know that it delights His heart
When we effect what He imparts
So as He lovingly looks down
He crafts the jewels in our crown
From what He sees in you and me
When He in us is what they see

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales

Tuesday

The Mind of Christ

As I endeavor, Lord, to seek
The mind of Christ and being meek
I'm surely very well aware
That I am here and you are there
A chasm I could never span
But Lord I know you surely can
And that you wait with open arm
To save your children from all harm

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales

Monday

How Little I Still Know

As I seek the Mind of Christ
And strive to be like you
I feel like I've been purged
And parts of me made new
Yet I so clearly realize
Even as I grow
Despite how much I've learned
How little I still know

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1996

Sunday

Nancy's Visit

My friend was coming into town
We’d been apart so long
With jubilance at seeing her
My heart broke into song
When came the day that she arrived
We set about our fun
We sought out all the gift shops
And we visited each one
We ate along the water
With the seagulls and the waves
The sailboats and the view
Were all deserving of our raves
And following our agenda
We found a B & B
A comfortable and cozy place
That overlooks the sea
The second day was also fun
We headed for the mall
With diligence and fortitude
To heed the shopper’s call
Shop until you drop we say
Even with bad feet
I guarantee that at day’s end
We were really beat
The visit was a blast except
The roach that made me scream
But then we put away our fear
And fell asleep to dream
Again this friend and I have had
A very pleasant time
And now the memories that we made
Have all been put to rhyme


Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1999





Saturday

The Rowdy Red Group

 Here sits Mary's following
The rowdy red group hollering
Shouts of laughter fill the air
And sounds of praise are everywhere

Who'ere said Baptists can't have fun
Should join us as the songs are sung
And listen as the lesson's  taught
The joy of Jesus we have sought

Then Mary instigates the class
With questions of dear Beth to ask
And laughter fills the crowded room
As halos make a crashing boom

We're houligans, it's sad to say
But Jesus loves us, anyway


Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1996

Friday

Sandmen

Well I’ve only got a minute ‘cause I need to go to bed
And my eyes will quickly close as the pillow hits my head
But for now I’ll keep on basking in the wonder of your love
As the angels become sandmen sprinkling particles of love
From the dust of heaven’s glory where the streets are paved with gold
And the showers of your blessing are too great for us to hold

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales 1999

Thursday

Laverne & Shirley

Laverne and Shirley, we once were
Young and sassy, me and her
And we are still two precious pearls
But now we're called the Golden Girls

Written as a birthday card for
 a long time friend.

Copyright Mary Jane Gonzales  1998