The call has come to contemplate,

To test the soul and meditate.

The light declines on this year’s day;

Time to pause; “Consider my way”.

 

The graphs are drawn, the balance weighed;

I’ve sinned a lot, my heart has swayed.

Stunted growth exists for sure;

Pride within each corridor.

 

The journal speaks of grief and pain,

Of hours of study and physical strain.

The pages show a pattern most plain-

God-sufficient continues to reign.

 

Books were read and letters composed,

Sermons written; the truth exposed.

Sports were played; new skills emerged;

Friends have left, our paths diverged.

 

Some have wed, and some have died,

Some have fled, and some revived.

The many hues of ministry

Demand complete dependency.

 

Have I grown and have I changed?

Or have my goals been rearranged?

Did I pursue what matters most?

Or live in ease, content to coast?

 

When I think of all He’s done,

He stands without comparison.

A God who always meets my need;

The means by which I can succeed.

 

The tails of God’s corrective whip

Have oft been used my pride to strip.

Conviction’s goads have pierced me through,

The Love of God ever in view.

 

In gratitude I now proclaim:

“Sustaining grace, despite my frame,

Has been the anchor of my soul,

The certainty my God is in control.”

 

To this year I bid farewell,

And disembark this carousel.

Persevering to obtain,

Looking t’wards the higher plane.

 

Storms there’ll be and wars to fight

Victory promised through His might.

Walking with Him all the way

Heaven’s closer day by day.

 

~ Written by Daniel Kriss, December 29, 2019

Contemplating the past year and standing on the precipice of a new year.