Knowing You better would be such joy
Deep in my heart You would peace deploy
Hope springing forth in the darkest hours
Purity grow as the brightest flow’rs
But sinful passions too often rule
Perverse* actions make of me a fool
The Spirit is quenched by my poor choice
I groan within and give grief a voice
I may God pursue with heart tender
By His Spirit complete surrender
Daily repent, always move toward Him
Extra pursuits and wayward paths trim
Worship the Father with praise and praying
Hear His Word through reading and preaching
Devoted to the truth where’er it leads
Truth more than life that for the lost pleads
By diligence know Him and find rest
Even when I am put to the test
Communing with my Father and Lord
By His grace growing deeper and toward
When I arose last Sunday morning and was reading the Scripture and praying, I thought to myself, I have not had a poem come in quite sometime. So, I ask my Father if He would give me one that would focus on Him. A few minutes later the first stanza came rapidly. On my drive to church the first two lines of the second stanza came. I kept having to repeat them so that I would not forget. When I arrived at the parking lot, I quickly wrote them down. The rest of the verse came soon after I had greeted fellow believers and sat down in the pew. During the sermon I was executing some major multitasking by writing the third stanza and listening and taking notes on the sermon. I recognize my pastor for the fourth verse, because it is my distillation of the statements he made that most grabbed my attention. The last verse came during the afternoon down time.
*The idea of perverse is a “turning away from what is right and good”, not just what we consider to be sickening evil. All sin is abhorrent to God.
Business on Parade
Posted in Cultural commentary, General, Influence, Photo, Poem, Random thoughts, tagged Art, Business, Corporate, Poem, Sarcasm on January 22, 2019| Leave a Comment »
While sitting quietly the other day, I noticed once again a print of an ink stippling on my wall. It was given to me by the artist, Paul S., over 35 years ago. I offer my students the opportunity to interpret its meaning each semester. They have little context for understanding what the picture could mean. As you read the poem by which I tried to interpret it, consider three details: when it was drawn, over 40 years ago; the fact that the wind up key was not in the original drawing (added to soften the message); the driver is a self-portrait of the artist:
Business on parade
Corporate charade
Self-importance stance
Condescending glance
All dressed to impress
Picture of success
Lean and hungry look
Sales castling rook
Off to war we go
Corporate G.I. Joe
Competition war
Watch our profits soar
Take seriously
Capitalist free
Make a better place
Of our world and race
Bosses all are we
We work for a fee
All cogs in the wheel
We stagger and reel
Get on the bus
That’s left even us
Once to camp and play
Now late at work stay
Thus we bid adieu
Commitments renew
Now hard on the track
Taking business flak
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