Chris Gribble

Be yourself - Everyone else is taken (Oscar Wilde)

  • About Chris
  • Chris and April – Destiny Rescue
  • Home
  • Psalms
  • Poems
  • Christian Meditation
  • Prayers

A reflection on Psalm 67

December 16, 2015 by Chris Gribble

God’s gracious love is uncovered,
Today it has lit up my morning,
My day will be transformed by his love,
I am forgiven,
His wounds and my wounds shared,
Compassion reached out to me,
And said, “I understand”,

I delight in belonging to him,
To know and to be known,
This is a comfort when I seek sleep,
It’s a responsibility to my call to love,
Today I join with my God in mutual praise,
Strengthened by his comforting hand,
Ready to face all my fears,
God’s blessings are mine to share daily.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 66

December 15, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Every day I love to wake and hear God’s voice,
My response is to let anyone who listens,
Know that God is the instigator of life,
This goodness that is ours to have,
From the morning sunrise,
To the setting sun,
Even in my sleep,
God dishes it up for our benefit.

Even when I tried to make my own path,
God didn’t forget me,
The lessons learned when I forgot God,
Are now etched on my heart.

Life without God at the centre,
Is a futile grasp at self importance,
Life is fully appreciated when God is most important,
The path to understanding this is difficult,
I wanted to give up,
Because, I thought God gave up on me,
This was not true,
God was leading me to incredible opportunity,
Far more than what I could create myself.

Now, I know my daily prayers are not wasted,
God loves faithfulness more than my activities,
My prayers are about my love for God,
Each new day an opportunity for more love,
A celebration of his loving care for me.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 65

December 14, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Creation’s power wielding unlimited love,
Is evident in every part of the world,
Everything responds to God’s Voice,
Life itself is responsible to God.

I thought that God worked with my plans,
But, I have found His Truth,
It turned my world around completely,
Sin’s reality hit my right between the eyes,
Now, I seek God’s will first,
It’s not about me,
Life’s secret is found in hearing his Voice.

I love how his words fill my heart,
They are a deep well speaking life words,
Day after day they come to me,
Forgiving words that free me from regret,
Praise words that let me enter his creative work,
Love words that show me I belong.

Abundance is my daily experience of God,
Blessing is my praise song,
God’s will is discovered by his creation,
We do not determine its path,
We learn it through obedience,
Each day a new lesson is learned,
My life a constant unfolding of hope.

Filed Under: Psalms

The Art of Rhythm

December 13, 2015 by Chris Gribble

School holidays are a disruptive time for our family. The kids are no longer in a familiar routine of getting up at a certain time to make sure everything is done in time to catch their school bus. They spend a lot more time around home so this means they are disruptive to my routine. There is a usually a period of tension in which we sort out the new schedule.

There is always a period of boredom where they tell me, “there’s nothing to do!” Then there is the constant asking to be given some money usually to waste on some adrenalin pumping manufactured activity.

I felt excited a couple of days ago when my youngest daughter said she wanted to make something. She wanted to make Christmas cards for the family. This was something that I was prepared to invest in.

I took her down to the local discount store and invested $20 in stuff from which she saw something that she could create. That night we were presented with a unique Christmas tree that could only have been made by her.

Out of disruption her creative spirit was sparked to do something herself. I love that out of boredom something new can emerge.

Then there is my own familiar routines. One of these is a regular walk with my wife around the escarpment of the Toowoomba Range. In this rhythm we have a few of our favourite routes that we choose as we head out on early in the morning.

A little while ago we decided to go a bit further on our regular route. That’s where we discovered the small spring that creates a waterfall, and a path that leads a little further on around the edge of the range.

As I wrote, “The Walk”, I reflected on this regular rhythm and how the physical activity refreshes my tiredness. There is something good in taking time to do something that is intrinsically boring. The real journey when walking is the one to my deepest thoughts where I can think in an unstructured way. There is no agenda when I set out on my walk and usually by the time I get home I find the day looks really hopeful. My main problem is that I often will have even more ideas of opportunities than what I know what to do with.

The nice thing that I have learned is to not rush to the next discovery. It will emerge in its own time. I couldn’t explore the spring that I found on that day but I knew it was another opportunity that would be there in its own time.

The Walk

There is a path that I like to walk,
Especially in the morning,
Where I have a view from the mountain –
Over the valley, and on a clear day,
I can see to the horizon.

Each step refreshes my tiredness,
It’s a rhythm my soul loves,
Where my spirit sees each day,
The path that takes me to my deepest thoughts,
About God and life and love and pain.

Today on my familiar walk,
I discovered a new path,
That led me to a spring,
That I didn’t expect,
Time only allowed a brief glimpse,
But, tomorrow will give the chance,
To explore the path not yet travelled,
An opportunity waiting to emerge.

Filed Under: Going Deeper, The Art of Series

A reflection on Psalm 60

December 13, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Desperation marked my every thought.
I believed that my God had deserted me,
Everything was stripped away,
Only my naked soul was left,
I thought God stopped listening to my prayers,
I believed my sin was too great,
To be forgiven and restored.

Within my heart I cried out to You,
“Take back what is yours God”,
Life without God was terrifying,
I spent my days cowering,
Scared of my own shadow.

God’s restoration took me to my fears,
Healing showed me victory,
Each shadow felt the white light of his love,
God said, “You are mine, mine mine.”
No part of me was left unexamined,
He brought it all back to his heart.

Praise’s source sheds light on shadow,
From the shadow I learned about Grace,
My deepest valleys were gifts of understanding,
They are leading me to the mountaintops,
God is my trusted guide,
His perspective the gift to those who love him.

Filed Under: Psalms

Grace Visited

December 12, 2015 by Chris Gribble

My world’s cry of, “not good enough”,
Gave birth to disappointment,
It led me to life’s darkest shadow,
Powerless to lead myself into light,
Disappointment gave life to transformation,
The place that where hope can shed it’s light.

Disappointment’s path took me to loneliness,
Alone, silence, spoke to my soul,
While the world’s voice echoed in my head,
Silence spoke with a clear whisper,
Reflecting my deepest desire,
Connecting my heart to destiny.

In the silence I met with Grace,
He looked me in the eye,
Complete honesty in his gaze,
Then he spoke very quietly,
The words longed for by all,
“My child you belong to me.”

In the silence of despair,
And the heartbreak of disappointment,
I heard the voice of forgiveness,
It called me to know I belong,
Aloneness and silence brought recovery,
From my deepest wounds,
Knowing My heart’s healing source,
Is because of Grace’s gaze fixed on me.

Filed Under: Poems

A reflection on Psalm 57

December 12, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Doubt is a constant question,
That makes my next step uncertain,
All around me is good advice,
Confusing the truth.

I am inundated by words,
They are like a thousand pin pricks,
My pain building in intensity,
Till I feel I can’t keep going.

I have chosen my path,
My love for God is true,
Truth is my most painful choice,
Every step is a crippled limp.

Words said with evil intent,
Won’t be forgotten by God,
The destructive lies,
Will return to haunt the sleep of liars,
There will be no escape for evil intentions.

I will wake each day,
Eager to praise God,
I won’t stop doing this,
Because, I have heard your loving truth,
My life is full of love,
I will shout it out daily.

Filed Under: Psalms

Transformation

December 11, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Despair was the empty echo,
That shattered each daily thought,
My life a desperate search for understanding,
Lived in fear of never being heard.

My soul strung out tautly,
Daily wound tight, stretched to breaking,
As I discovered myself with nothing left,
I visited the place of “No Hope”.

There my friends found me,
They listened to my circular tale,
My words seeking their source,
In the pain and the lonely tears,
There emerged a glimmer of hope.

Discovering disappointment as my companion,
Listening to despair’s words spoken each day,
No longer feared enemies,
Disappointment my trusted mentor,
Despair my compassionate friend,
In them I discovered transformation’s source,
As my voice was heard again.

Filed Under: Poems

A reflection on Psalm 56

December 11, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Lord you have heard my sobbing regrets,
I know that I am not good enough,
To speak to you,
I have spent night after night,
Counting my sins,
Blaming myself for everything,
There seemed to be no end to my failures.

The hater’s voice is venomous,
Oozing sweet tasting poison,
While each day he makes up his hate list,
Twisting nice words to line up me, the target,
My loyalty used to destroy me,
Confidences used to conspire against me,
Each day finding new ways to bring me down,
Attack upon attack,
Nothing was sacred,
He used everything to try to destroy me.

Now I have complete confidence,
God is sorting it all out
He has heard each hate word,
Felt every one of my family’s hurts,
Justice will be wielded,
The Hater will face God’s reality,
Arrogance will see Humility,
It will bring the Hater to his knees,
The great reversal will begin,
For Hate it will be a frightening journey to Truth.

My fears are now my strength,
My brokenness once mocked by the Hater,
These are my greatest comforts,
I was so close to dying,
Stupidly I thought it was the answer,
My daily regrets,
Are now my praises,
Thanks to you God,
I am now living,
An example of your power,
Demonstrated through human weakness.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 54

December 10, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Rock bottom is a terrible place to be,
It feels totally friendless,
Arrogance speaks words that want me dead,
His only message to me is failure,
Day and night his words cut deep into my soul,
Truth is replaced with put downs,
I wonder if God hears my pain?

Out of the carnage,
Left in Arrogance’s barrage of word vomit,
God helped me to emerge,
In the midst of wanting to die,
I heard God speak to me,
“My beloved child …..”

Instead of pleasing Arrogance,
My life is devoted completely to God,
When I was emerging into the light,
Arrogance still holds up a puny fist,
But he now wallows in his own vomit,
His life is pitiful, self centred,
Each day lived in misery,
My days are now full of possibility,
Given to me by God,
Truth is having its way,

God loves to bring hope to the broken,
My life daily witnesses to His care,
My first desire is to be with Him,
Arrogance walks with deep shame,
Now I can look Arrogance in the eye,
And, thank God for Truth.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 53

December 9, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Stupidity says that God doesn’t exist,
They misguide people with their hollow assurances,
Their words are putrid – rotten to the core,
Because, the only care for themselves,
They don’t care who they destroy,
Their only quest is self interest.

They live pitiful, fearful lives,
Exercising more power in smaller circles,
Living in a world constricted by hate,
Less and less believable,
As the truth comes to light,
The consequences of selfishness,
When exposed to honesty,
Is the wrath of God,
Unleashed to protect his child.

God missed none of this,
He has heard the putrid words,
He has felt my pain,
There is no escape.
Those who sought my destruction,
They will get the reward of selfishness,
Their stupidity will be exposed,
Clever words will become their shame,
Meanwhile I will join in Eternity’s song,
Singing loud and strong,
About my God’s love.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 50

December 8, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Another day begins,
The choice is mine,
Praise God,
Or, choose myself and misery,
Two options,
Choose life – or, death.

I love the life path,
It is an eternal unfolding possibility,
Not limited by human intervention,
Every day full of God opportunities,
From the moment my eyes open,
My world is filled with laughter.

The death path is for the ignorant,
Self consumed with their own plans,
They will lead themselves and their family,
Into a life of destruction.
Continuous dissatisfaction will be their reward.

Even when I was ready to give up,
God was getting ready to avenge the lies,
The daily stench of contempt’s voice,
Vomiting up put downs,
Contempt hated laughter,
Every word tried to quench hope,
God was listening to my daily sobs of failure,
When I wilted under a continuous onslaught of hate,
He is waiting for the right time to set things right.

Contempt has chosen a treacherous path,
Death is the end point,
The only hope is to turn to God,
Life is the eternal hope.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 49

December 7, 2015 by Chris Gribble

I felt the hot breath of hatred,
Every day screaming my stupidity,
While wilting under its onslaught,
My deepest parts clung to my God.

The hater was full of himself,
He thought he was God,
Power was his crutch,
Gathering a pitiful group of believers,
Love of money brought hate to full flower,
Its message being dispersed far and wide,
He considered only his own wealth,
When I was left with nothing.

Death is everyone’s reward,
Trusting in human power is the true stupidity,
It doesn’t last – we all end as dust,
Greed is a deadly pursuit,
God hates the vindictive and power hungry,
The hater doesn’t know love,
Nice words are laced with destruction,
He should be worried,
God will avenge their hate legacy,
Goodness is death’s conqueror.

Filed Under: Psalms

Truth’s heartache

December 6, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Creation’s presence flitted past,
A brief flutter of flight,
Truth is in its wings,
But, I cannot find a place to rest,
Always moving to discover,
What beauty is mine to have.

My life is lived yearning,
Unsure of what truth is lived,
My soul slowly dissolving,
Hoped for laughter,
Turning to a downcast spirit,
Catching only its own light,
Glimmering briefly,
Soon it’s dimmed.
Where I have flourished,
Hope is far away.

My restless heart,
Creating answers, seeking hope,
Ends with questions,
Truth is an elusive dream,
With the tragic gap between words and love,
Love’s search must end at its beginning,
So truth can find its home,
Resting in its source,
But, its beauty lived in my heart.

Filed Under: Poems

A reflection on Psalm 47

December 5, 2015 by Chris Gribble

The day is coming soon when all I will do is praise God,
Sometimes I forget to do it enough,
This morning my heart just wants to praise God.
In the midst of a sea of uncertainty,
This is my assurance,
Praise is my new language,
I am learning to be fluent,
Learning new words every day,
Communicating daily to eternity.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 48

December 4, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Each day my first task is to praise God,
I come to him seeking truth,
It flits past me,
When I seek to grasp it,
It slips from my grip,
Like the rainbow’s conclusion,
Tantalizing me I yearn to discover where it ends.

I think about Truth, day and night,
Why does it create pain?
Where does my searching end?
Love’s truth always ends at my beginning,

Truth’s harsh reality is a difficult path,
I feel scared of its uncertainty,
It requires a Holy Trust,
I am not the master of my destiny,
The Lie of sin is that I can know truth,
Holy Trust is a daily finding of Truth.

When I consider your truth this morning,
I can see it confounds lies,
Destroying any chance of dishonesty,
It’s a frightening fate for the dishonest,
A comforting hope for the faithful,
Resting in your truth,
Eagerly anticipating your daily Voice,
Leading me forward.
Able to face whatever this day brings.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 42

December 3, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Confusion is my best description of this life,
Sadnesses abound,
When happiness is my desire,
I long to see a clear path,
That takes me directly to happiness,
Instead I am diverted by regrets,
I cannot see the next step,
Lost is where I found myself.

My deepest unplumbed thoughts,
Are laid bare to you God,
I don’t trust my own heart,
And, its deceitful truth,
My tears of confusion,
Are the only words I can speak.

Lord, take my weeping, sobbing heart,
Open it to your love,
I need to Rest,
Opposition doesn’t understand,
Painful words screaming at me,
God is not hearing me,
He will let me fail.

My stomach churning,
As this new day begins,
Uncertainty is my reality,
I long for God’s voice today,
To speak with clarity,
From the fog emerging truth,
Praise for what will become,
Trust transforming tears.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 39

December 2, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Soon I will return to my source,
I will not revisit this place,
Each fleeting breath is never repeated,
My voice a brief cry in humanity’s babel,
Even when I shout loudly,
My cry is soon forgotten,
Heard for a brief moment ,
Then lost in the crowd’s roar.
I will only speak once to this world,
What will be said about me?

For too long I was silent,
When I watched the pain caused,
By Desire,
I left it alone,
But, it has to stop,
I need to find the Love words,
That transform truth into loving actions,
My soul stirred by knowing the time is, now!
Its constant restlessness, my sleeplessness nights.
Learning to listen to God’s Voice,
Giving me the words to say,
As I look Desire in the face.

In my brief encounter with life,
I trust in God,
The wounds caused by Desire,
When I couldn’t say anything in my defence,
A daily vicious onslaught of word blows,
I cowered,
Each painful lash a reminder of my failures,
Words upon words, lash on lash,
Salted by contempt’s glare.

My lesson is learned,
Eternity is a waiting breath,
My weeping heart,
Will be transformed to a smile,
As I listen to Eternity’s Voice,
Sometimes a whisper of hope,
Then loving laughter,
Always assuring me that I am His beloved.

Filed Under: Psalms

A reflection on Psalm 38

December 1, 2015 by Chris Gribble

My deepest sadness cannot stop me loving God,
I woke this morning sobbing,
As I considered the pain of selfishness,
Deep woundings lacerating hearts.
Emptying souls, draining life,
My plans are useless,
They cannot be trusted,
They are made then you change them,
I am tired Lord, You need to do something,
Please hear the voice of your child today.

I know that I am never far from sin,
I am the least to complain,
But, God why don’t you stand up for your children?
Why do you allow wrong to flourish,
It seems to be always winning,
While your dear children are lost in in a pit of hate,
When will this ever stop?

Nice words cannot cover up what is done,
Love becomes the enemy,
Of those who are deaf to God’s Voice.

I hear the voice of hatred daily,
I see the pain in people’s eyes,
I know its sleepless echo,
I feel its gloating tone,
It makes no sense,
Yet it’s the choice that is made.

In the midst of all this confusion,
I look to my Father,
He listens to my weeping and sobbing,
I know he has it worked out,
Justice is too slow in coming,
But, it won’t be delayed,
Come Lord today,
Lover of the brokenhearted.

Filed Under: Psalms

Forgiveness

November 27, 2015 by Chris Gribble

Forgiveness is a word that terrorises hatred,
Our world is full of random acts of anger,
Expressed in the daily killing and the maiming,
Witnessed by the tears shed daily,
In countless homes, jobs and churches,
We seem hell bent on destroying,
Everything that can be called beautiful,
Our first work is restoring,
Broken pieces,
With forgiveness as the balm.

I see the inflicted pain at work,
In the daily destruction of good souls,
Waking to pain of a world broken by violence,
Words that could be chosen for healing,
Are sacrificed to the brief tingle of revenge,
Why do we hate when love is always a greater reward?
Forgiveness is the comforting word that knows pain itself,
It’s the sound of when we say, “stop!”
It doesn’t allow hope to be quashed,
Seeking the broken pieces,
Scattered in the carnage,
Forgiveness is the bond that holds life together.

Grant me forgiveness today,
Give me the lasting joy of offering hope,
By not joining in the clamour for blood,
Instead make my life a healing balm,
My words a soothing sound,
For the broken lives encountered each day,
My broken heart,
Broken open in plain sight of everyone,
Open to give and receive forgiveness,
Each day a small victory for hope.

Filed Under: Poems

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • …
  • 16
  • 17
  • 18
  • 19
  • 20
  • …
  • 42
  • Next Page »

Chris and April – Destiny Rescue

To find out more click here

Copyright © 2025 · Author Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in