SECRET DREAMS AND LONGING
While away on vacation I worked on writing haiku based on the prompt words Secret & Burn given at #ronovanwrites. I did not finish in time to share them last week but now that I’m home my computer is ready and waiting. We all have secret dreams and longings, don’t we?
Gazing at the clouds
I walk on beach and ponder
Secrets burning deep
We all have secrets. Some are desires we are too timid to share.
Other secrets are exciting and we can’t wait to reveal them. Still others hold us back because of things that happened in the past. They haunt us and make us feel shame. The shame becomes a heavy burden stealing our joy and stifling forward movement.
FREEDOM FROM SHAME
Stuck in a pattern of lies making us feel unworthy, we may find it hard to forgive ourselves. But God loves us more than we know. His forgiveness is real. Jesus paid the penalty long ago and we are free.
We don’t have to keep stumbling under a burden of shame.
Burn away the shame
Secret sins have been confessed
All is forgiven
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
(Psalm 103:8-12 NIV)
There is also shame that comes through no fault of our own. Others may have hurt us or made us feel less than or forced us into situations we should never have to face. But God knows about these, too, and welcomes us with open arms. His love and mercy are abundant. He can take away the shame and replace it with joy and peace.
SECRET DREAMS
Often we are afraid to reveal some of our secret longings partly because we lack confidence in our abilities. Maybe we don’t want to risk failure or we think no one will understand or support us. We can hold ourselves back because of fear or try new things, learning from mistakes.
Like a flame of fire
Secret longing burns inside
Yearning to be free
I say let’s go for our dreams, looking to God for strength and supporting each other as we go through life. What do you say?
I’m linking up with: #HeartEncouragement, #ThoughtProvokingThursday, #TeaAndWord, #CoffeeforYourHeart, #TuneInThursday
Thank you for the encouragement to truly accept and understand Christ’s love for us. Ephesians 3:18 comes to mind. A beautiful prayer for the Saints to truly understand how deep and wide is the love of God, our great Redeemer.
Blessings,
Thanks for your encouraging comments, Karen. His love is unmeasurable!
Blessings to you!
I love that first Haiku. What a gift lean language is to you, the poet/thinking, and to your reader. Good and beautiful truths you’ve shared with us today. Thank you.
Thank you, Natalie! I appreciate your encouragement very much. So glad you stopped by.
Blessings to you!
“Yearning to be free…” Oh, that I would always lay those thoughts and shames and things of the world down and walk with the Lord. I want to fly freely. Thank you for sharing your poetry, Gayl.
Yes, Linda, I want to fly freely, too, instead of letting things hold me back. Thank you for your encouragement.
Blessings to you!
I loved this post and I really enjoyed your haiku’s. Makes me want to write some of my own. I was really blessed by your words in this post. Thank you.
Shannan, thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoyed them. I hope you do write some. Please share them if you do. 🙂 It blesses me to know that your were blessed by my words. The middle one was a little hard to write to get it to say what I wanted to, but I knew it was one that needed to be shared.
Thank you for visiting. Many blessings to you!
Beautiful poetry and reflection here. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you so much, Jeannie! Your words are encouraging.
Blessings to you!
I love these Haiku, Gayl! And what perfect images you have paired with the verses. I’m glad that God was stirring your heart while you were on vacation, and we get to share in the fruit! And, what a beautiful perspective, from those ocean-places to remember that His Love is higher than the Heavens towards us! Thank you for these thoughts! Love and Hugs, & Welcome Home! xo
Dear Bettie, thank you so much. I’m glad you enjoyed the haiku and photos. I started writing them last week but I only finished the final versions today.
Yes, the ocean is such a beautiful, magnificent place to reflect on the power of God. What a loving Father we have!
Thanks so much for your comments and your welcome, love and hugs! Many blessings to you, dear Bettie, my poet/sister/friend! xo
Gayl – did you get a new picture in your header area? You look great! I love how you talked about sharing the secret dreams we have… I am a firm believer that we must speak them out so that they can get air and catch fire and go. We need to find others who are safe so we can share our dreams with and they can help nurture them as they grow. love this post and your thoughts today! Thank you for linking up with #TuneInThursday today!
Hi Debbie! Yes, I did get a new picture there. Thanks for the compliment. 🙂 I appreciate your thoughts about speaking out our dreams but finding safe people so that we can encourage each other. I’m so glad you stopped by today.
Blessings to you, dear Debbie!
These are beautiful, Gayl! I especially needed the encouragement about not letting my fears get in the way of my dreams.
Thank you, Anita! I’m so glad you were encouraged, too. It’s easy to let our fears bully their way in and discourage us.
Blessings to you!
This message was right on time Gayl. I have been singing a tune this week to the beat of these words. Thank you for reinforcing the truth and being a light!
Thank you for your encouraging words, Meghan! So glad when my words help to reinforce God’s truth and shine His light.
Many blessings to you! xo
Beautiful poems, Gayl! It’s sometimes tempting to give up on our dreams when we been hurt or shamed. But that is exactly what the enemy wants us to do. When we keep our eyes on Jesus, we can believe that He longs to fulfill our wildest dreams. Blessings on your Saturday, friend!
Thank you so much, June! Your words are very true that the enemy wants us to give up. But God is with us to help us along and walk with us every step of the way.
Blessings on your weekend, dear June! xo
Gayl, these haiku all struck a chord with me, especially the last one. How deep those yearnings are to fly free! Eventually, the burn of shame gives way to the heat of holy desire, as God plants His yearnings within our hearts.
What beautiful poetry and photographs! I hope your break has left you refreshed, just as you have refreshed us with a breath of sweet poetic air in this offering. Welcome home, dear sister/poet/friend! xo <3
Joy, I’m glad to know my words found a place in your heart. Thank you so much for your encouragement, my dear friend. I’m glad you like the photographs, too. 🙂
Yes, even though we were busy we did find refreshment. Thank you for your lovely comments.
Many blessings to you dear poet/sister/friend! Hugs! xo