Something Dangerous

I did something dangerous yesterday;
I said “Yes” to God.
He hadn’t even asked me to do anything.
I just had felt it was a day for saying “Yes”
to anything that God wanted me to do.

I have been paying for that all day at work!
God doesn’t waste any time!
He didn’t give me any time to change my mind!
Work has been piling on me today,
difficult work.

I’ve been asking myself all day
what on earth possessed me
to say an unconditional “Yes” to God.

Yet I find myself thinking,
“How could I possibly have said ‘No’?”

© Claire Murray

Nuala with the Hula

Lord,
Nuala with the Hula stands confidently
at the end of Queen’s Bridge,
arms outstretched before her,
proudly offering her hula
to someone I can’t see.

It strikes me that this is the way I should be with you, Lord,
standing tall, fearless, self-assured,
absolutely convinced that what I offer to you
is exactly what you want from me
and that my act of giving it to you
is something that you delight in.

That’s the way I should stand before you
every time I’m doing something for you,
doing my best for you,
secure in the knowledge that for you
my best is always good enough
no matter what anyone else thinks,
no matter what I might think,
aware that as you watch you’re thinking,
“That’s my Claire. Isn’t she just great?”

Nuala with the Hula stands confidently
at the end of Queen’s Bridge
and invites me to stand tall and without fear
in the presence of you, My Daddy,
at all times.

(c) Claire Murray

Everything Is Possible!

As I cycled to work each day
I watched with interest
as the construction men and engineers
built a huge ball
out of industrial sized pieces of steel,
just like Mecanno.

When it was complete
they began work on a second ball,
even bigger than the first.
I watched it grow.

Pól Óg read the newspaper
and informed me
that the smaller ball would be built
inside the massive ball.
I doubted that.

The smaller ball was left untouched
while the huge ball grew taller and taller,
rounder and rounder.
Over the months I watched
and decided that Pól Óg was mistaken;
there was no way
that the smaller ball could possibly go
inside the large one.

As I cycled to work one morning
I made a mental note
that the big ball was near completion.
I was disappointed for Pól Óg.

But as I turned the corner on the Westlink
on my way home again that same day
I saw something that made me stare.
A huge crane was over beside the two balls
and suspended from it
was the smaller ball!

I watched in amazement
as the smaller ball was lowered
inside the bigger ball.
I laughed with joy.

Then I heard Jesus declaring, laughing,
“Didn’t I tell you
that nothing is impossible?
You just have to think
outside the box!”

© Claire Murray

Learning to Ride My Bike

Lord,

I caught a glimpse of you
as I drove through the tree tunnel
on my way home.

I was about eight years old,
with black hair in pig tails
wearing a light summer dress
and a yellow cardigan,
perched, white-faced,
on a big two wheeler bike.

You were running along behind me,
hand lightly gripping the saddle,
ready to steady me should I start to topple,
ready to let go when I would be confident enough.
You were so serious as you ran,
determined that no harm should come to me!

And as I watched the two of us,
I just had this sense
that this is how you are helping me to sing
all on my own.

I was overwhelmed.

(c) Claire Murray