Poems & Prayers
A Daily Prayer
Abba, You are Love.
You always trust,
You always hope,
You always believe.
You don’t count our failings against us.
You don’t rejoice in injustice, but rejoice in the truth.
You never think anything evil of anyone.
You always give,
You always love,
You always forgive.
Your love endures all things, overcomes all things,
and Your love never, ever ends.
Abba, You are Spirit.
And You are searching for worshippers
that commune with You in Spirit and in Truth.
Let the truth of my being and the way of my being be one.
Help me be a worshipper in Spirit and in Truth.
Abba, You are Light.
In You there is no darkness at all.
Your Light enlightens everyone coming into creation.
Help us to walk in Your Light.
Help us to live as children of the Light.
For we see what love You have bestowed on us.
That we would be called children of God.
For this is what we are.
But we do not know yet what we will be.
But we know we will be like You, Yeshua, Eternal Son of Abba,
Who is the Father of all Fatherhood,
From Whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,
Who is above all,
Through all,
And in all.
In You we live and move and have our being.
Abba, You are the Father of Lights.
All good gifts come from You.
With You, there is no shadow of turning,
You have no dark side.
You are always and ever only Good.
You are the Wisdom and the Beauty.
You are the Beginning and the End.
You are the Alpha and the Omega.
You are the Father of Compassion and God of all Comfort,
Who comforts us in all our troubles.
So that we can comfort others with the comfort we ourselves are constantly being comforted with.
Abba, You are a Holy All-Consuming Fire.
Abba Alaha,
Yeshua HaMasiach,
Ruach Ha Kodesh.
Father,
Son
and Holy Spirit.
I surrender my life to You, because I trust You, because You are all of these things.
I give You all I have,
and all that I am.
I give You my past,
my present
and my future.
All my dreams,
all my hopes,
all my aspirations.
All my fears,
all my disappointments,
all my temptations,
and all my failures.
Let me walk as Your son in this world.
A manifestation of Your love,
an expression of Your Grace, and instrument of Your Peace.
Let me bring healing and reconciliation wherever I go.
Let Your Kingdom come and Your will be done through me.
Work signs,
wonders and miracles through me.
I thank You for my wife and children,
my parents and grandparents,
my siblings,
my family,
My relatives,
friends,
neighbours
and acquaintances.
I thank You for our pets, animals and plants,
For our ancestors and descendants,
those who have gone before us
and those who come after us.
For everyone I meet and beyond.
Even for our enemies.
Awaken us all to the truth of Your Gospel.
Set our hearts on fire with Your love for us,
And with love for You and for each other.
Forgive us all our failings, cleanse us from all guilt
and shame,
heal all our wounds,
Remove all our traumas
and fears,
Lead us out of all temptation and testing,
and deliver us from all evil.
Warn us from all dangers,
Help us to see how You see,
And help us to follow You in all things.
Clothe us in Your Light,
Immerse us in Your Spirit,
Fill us with Your Love,
Empower us with Your Grace,
Establish us in Your Peace,
Guide us with Your Joy.
Surround us with Your family in Heaven and on earth,
Help us to be aware of them and to welcome them in our lives.
Draw us with Your Goodness,
Overwhelm us with Your Beauty,
Set us on fire with Your Holiness,
Enlighten us with Your Glory,
Flood us with Your Mercy,
Embrace us with Your Comfort,
And unveil Your Son in all of us.
For Yours is the Kingdom,
And the Power,
And the Glory,
Now and forever,
So be it.
In the name of the Father, Abba Alaha,
In the name of the Son, Yeshua HaMasiach,
And in the name of the Holy Spirit,
Ruach HaKodesh.
God Who is above all, through all,
and in all,
In You we live and move and have our being.
God with us,
You are always here for us.
God in us,
Together We are the Light of creation.
© Florian H. Berndt
Abba Father
Pulled from my mother’s womb,
Kicking and screaming,
Always fighting,
Not understanding,
The journey from light to darkness,
From darkness to light,
From life to death,
From death to life,
From comfort to pain,
From pain to comfort,
Never ending ancient memories,
Plaguing my heart and my mind,
Joy and grief intermingling,
Clenching fists,
Trying to hold on,
To things long gone,
To things seemingly long forgotten,
To self-created idols,
To those imposed by an orphan world,
To illusions that never satisfy
Waking up in the darkness,
Waiting for the light,
Riddled with anxiety,
Ready to fight,
Monsters real and imagined,
From fight to flight,
From flight to fight,
From fear to anger,
From anger to fear,
From depression to compassion,
From compassion to love
There finding the Ground of all being,
As my feet reach solid ground,
Above all,
Through all,
And in all,
Among us,
Within us,
And all around,
Coming full circle,
To my Original Beginning,
To the Ultimate Real,
To Love all permeating,
To the Unity of all,
To the Source of all breath,
To safety
Comfort and wholeness
Crying in wonder,
Abba Father
© Florian H. Berndt
Eternal Youth
Grieving the days of old, lost innocence,
lost romance,
lost passion,
without intention,
yet ever so longing for the days of eternal sunshine,
the breeze of cleansing cold,
burning with consuming desire.
Struggling to move forward, embracing the most welcome changes,
wisdom emerging, compassion enhancing,
love ever deepening, walking in the presence of the cool of the day,
while bright shining clouds paint the skies in glorious colours.
Far from being forgotten, we achingly remember the glimpses of ever present past and ever calling ancient future,
where heaven and earth meet and ocean and sky merge into one horizon,
like silver lining announcing the birth of eternal youth.
© Florian H. Berndt
Hiding
It is so much easier to just stay here,
Sitting in my shame,
Hiding in the dark
Don’t even know how I got here,
And I’m so tired
Trying to remember
It is so much easier to just give up,
Wallow in self-hatred,
Soaking in disgust
Have sought so long for a way out,
But only sunk deeper
Into the Abyss
It is so much easier to pretend,
Putting on a fake smile,
Saying,
“It’s alright”
Hoping no one will notice
The dark rings
Underneath my eyes
It is so much easier to remain numb,
Staying out in the cold,
No more wondering what could be
Yet, the fire just won’t go out,
Even though hope is gone,
It keeps on burning
Maybe it would be easier to give in,
Let Love melt away the fear,
And come out of hiding
© Florian H. Berndt
Living on the Surface
So tired of living on the surface,
driven by desires yet to be known,
blinded by darkness, misappropriating
the very flow of life.
Where can I find You,
my hearts one true longing?
Burning desire,
not seeing
the light of life.
I want to go deeper,
sink into Your comforting presence,
where everything unites,
everything is whole.
Even though I can only see a glimpse,
I know I must go on,
there is no turning back,
as I swim far below the surface.
© Florian H. Berndt
Orphan’s Cry
Will you still love me,
even when I am no one of importance?
Will you still love,
even when I am no one great?
Will you still love me,
when I’ve got nothing to impress?
Will you still love me,
when all my dreams are bashed?
So I am hiding my face,
And I am guarding my steps,
Pretending I am just not there,
Or pushing ahead,
Compare and compete,
Pretending to be someone else
Will you still love me,
when I can’t see the road ahead?
Will you still love me,
when I just can’t do it anymore?
Will you still love me,
when I’m stuck?
Will you still love me,
when I am tired of pushing doors?
So I am hiding my face,
And I am guarding my steps,
Pretending I am just not there,
Or pushing ahead,
Compare and compete,
Pretending to be someone else
Will you still love me,
when I’ve got nothing else to contribute?
Will you still love me,
when I am weak?
Will you still love me,
when I can’t pull myself up by my own bootstraps?
Will you still love me,
when I am just ordinary?
Will you still love me?
© Florian H. Berndt
Psalm for Burden Bearers
Blessed is the one
who walks with those who have lost their way
and stands with those on the margins
and sits with those who lost all hope,
who delights in the gifts of their company,
and sees the Image of the Holy One reflected in them.
That person is like a mighty rock providing cool shade and protection,
like a stream springing forth in a parched land -
they will be called sons and daughters of God.
Not so the self-righteous!
They are prisoners
of their own making.
Therefore they are unable to receive the love
they secretly crave.
Yet the Holy One watches over all of them,
for He does not delight in the failings of His children.
© Florian H. Berndt
Reaching Out
Feeling unsettled,
I am reaching out
Into the darkness,
the unknown,
the uncertain.
Is anyone there?
Feeling anxious and lost, Confused by the stories of the world,
I stumble forward upstream.
Why does it feel so heavy?
Long is forgotten the beauty of flowers,
The laughter of children,
the pure joy of devotion.
Is this all that remains?
As I stumble forward, burdened by illusionary
responsibilities,
I am hearing another story resound in the distance.
Could it really be?
There in the midst of our common humanity,
I am learning to pay attention again,
opening up to presence.
How could I’ve missed this?
Basking under the gaze of Love,
my defenses slowly melt away and I touch eternity once again.
Was it always so close?
Words of being and becoming,
and melodies of joy,
blow away the fog of my blindness and the struggle ceases.
Is this what peace feels like?
Wading through the knee deep murk,
I find myself
stronger and clearer,
and the darkness no longer scares me.
Have you always been here?
Yes, I AM!
© Florian H. Berndt