Day 1, Every Day in May

This is the first day of May. It also marks the first full day of life for Natalie Renee Nichols, born yesterday at 3 pm by natural birth to my brother and sister-in-law (Samuel and Bethany). I love her so much already and have tried to gather all I can from my brother's sporadic tweets and my mom's antics on skype.

Today is also the start of a month-long endeavor, inspired by @Christinakeeps who was inspired by @frenchtoastgirl to do the thing you love every single day for the month of May.

Well, there are a lot of things that I love doing... most involve laughter, some involve people, many involve words, and a few involve canvas. The one thing I chose: writing.

I know, it doesn't seem that ambitious (because this is already a standing goal of mine), but I'm not just going to try to write on the blog everyday in 'dear diary' style. In fact, I don't even think I need to post every day to be legit about the challenge. I want to do a writing exercise every day, something challenging or new or personal.

I'm probably going to need to look up some writing prompts so I'm not just completely random. If you have any ideas, let me know. If you are doing Every Day in May as well, DO SHARE!

Okay, below is my writing for today. This is in response to two articles I recently read. The first, "Survey:72 percent evangelicals more spiritual than religious" appeared in USA Today based on research by Lifeway. The second, "Separate truths," was written by a religion professor at Boston University and appeared on Boston.com.

Read the articles and then see my thoughts here in poem form.

--------

How Deep the Depths

How faint the fool who treads the way

and tarries about; runs blind to the fray.

How heavy the heart, hardened by years

of abuse and betrayal and manmade fears.

How sad the sigh learned by repetition -

disappointment, abandonment and man's wild volition.

How complete the chasm built with words great;

explanations attempt to determine eternal fate.

How stuffed the souls with semantics and speeches

and tolerant voices crowding out holidays at beaches.

How lost the lonely, desperate to find

a rhyme or a reason to be sanctified.

How dead is this end, and reason to fight

with an honest confession, broken and contrite.

How firm the foundation, without shame

is the cross that bears my Savior's name.

How perfect the peace in God's Word alone

that restores and revives a heart once of stone.

How deep the depths of this great Love, divine,

to reach through foolishness and make the faint soul alive.

-----

.let LOVE FLY like cRaZY.