Pleasing Jesus: Poems for All Occasions

By Chris Reid Ford

The poems in Pleasing Jesus are meant to be read in groups. The book has 12 sections called Occasions. With helpful inner links, you are able to skip over sections that you may not want to be bothered with. Each section works like a separate chapter of thought, with the poems building on one another. The Internet is the wrong setting for reading poetry. That is why we still have books. The greatest pleasure you will have in reading poetry is turning the page and finding another poem that develops an idea with a completely different style. Doesn't sound like much? Wait until it happens to you.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chris Reid Ford
• Release date: Feb 3, 2017
• ISBN: 9780998666815

Chris Reid Ford

Chris Reid Ford graduated from the University of Michigan in 1975 with a B.A. degree in Geography and a Hopwood Award in poetry. Rather than wasting his talents on map-making or poetry, however, he went on to become a talented computer programmer. Chris retired from writing programs in 2015 and began wasting his time on writing poems again. Chris lives with his wife Dawn in Arizona. They have four dogs and one very important horse named Sky.

Book preview

PLEASING JESUS

Poems for All Occasions

— INTRODUCTION —

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MEMORIAL POEMS

CLASSIC POEMS

WORK POEMS

FAITH POEMS

PRAYER POEMS

RECONCILIATION POEMS

BIBLICAL POEMS

DENOMINATION POEMS

RELATIONSHIP POEMS

OBSERVATION POEMS

ANTICHRIST POEMS

END-TIME POEMS

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— POEM NOTES —

— POEM MAPS —

PleasingJesus.com

INTRODUCTION

Covering a broad range of topics, from Gay Marriage to the Fires of Hell, the poems in this book present an optimistic outlook on life with Jesus at the center. The poems make the compelling case that, with Gay Marriage accepted and the Fires of Hell extinguished, we may be able to make it through these Troubled Times.

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There are a total of 103 poems in the book. The poems have been divided into 12 sections, each one with an Occasion and each one with a Tone —

MEMORIAL POEMS — Remembering a Loved One (Personal)

CLASSIC POEMS — Listening to Music (Personal)

WORK POEMS — Working as a Programmer (Personal)

FAITH POEMS — Defending the Faith (Editorial)

PRAYER POEMS — Connecting With God (Personal)

RECONCILIATION POEMS — Seeking Mutual Respect (Editorial)

BIBLICAL POEMS — Studying the Bible (Editorial)

DENOMINATION POEMS — Stirring Up Christians (Editorial)

RELATIONSHIP POEMS — Interacting With People (Personal)

OBSERVATION POEMS — Observing Places and Ideas (Personal)

ANTICHRIST POEMS — Imagining the Beast (Editorial)

END-TIME POEMS — Imagining the Conflict (Editorial)

One of two tones is assigned to each section. Personal poems are those that (usually) have no particular agenda. They are more descriptive, more introspective. Editorial poems are those that do have a particular agenda. They are more opinionated, more dogmatic.

Along with this Introduction, an additional Table of Contents, called PLEASING JESUS, appears at the beginning of the book. It is provided as a complement to the standard Table of Contents.

Two special sections appear at the end of the book —

POEM NOTES provide additional information on each section.

POEM MAPS provide a type of poem index for each section.

There are many links in this electronic edition of the poems. Generally, on a page, the top link goes back, while the other links (if any) go forward.

I frequently include verses from the King James Version of the Bible in my poems. When I do, I display them using bold characters.

Here are two examples —

Thou shalt not steal.

For the scripture saith,

Thou shalt not muzzle the ox

that treadeth out the corn.

And, The labourer is worthy

of his reward.

When I’ve pulled a quote from the Bible this way, I will usually note the location of the verses in the POEM NOTES section. These two passages are Exodus 20:15 and I Timothy 5:18, by the way.

Oh, in case you haven’t purchased this electronic copy of my book, a book I’ve labored on like an ox, buy your own copy here —

PleasingJesus.com

Only one poem from this collection was written earlier than 2014. Many are from 2017.

Please keep in mind that the opinions expressed in these poems are mine alone. Although some of my friends and family members will agree with them, others will disagree (and I know who they are). If you’re not one of them and you want to complain, you should know that I don’t belong to any particular church other than the spiritual Body of Christ. Christ is the head. Complain to him. He knows how to get in touch with me.

And what does he have to say about your religious organization? Oh, he’s already told me that your’s is the one he likes the best! It goes without saying that he didn’t appreciate the nasty things I might have said about your group. To say the least, it wasn’t pleasing to him at all!

CRF

2017-02-10 08:56 MST

MEMORIAL POEMS

––     OCCASION 1     >>

Remembering a Loved One

LOOK AT ME

A MOTHER’S GIFT

THE SADNESS

PLEASING JESUS

SPACE AND TIME

— POEM NOTES —

— POEM MAP —

LOOK AT ME

God said to me, simply,

Look at me.

And I stopped, and I looked, off into

the distance of the Tonto

National Forest.

I didn’t see anything.

And I said to God, simply,

Yes, but what

am I supposed to be looking at?

Then I closed my eyes,

and I looked

more carefully, more

simply,

and I saw him.

A MOTHER’S GIFT

There is no greater gift to a child

than a mother

who loves, than

a mother who gives,

than a mother

who believes in life, who believes

in God, than a mother who reads

bedtime stories, who sings

soft lullabies, who whispers

sweet dreams, who hugs

and who kisses, who gives life,

who gives love.

THE SADNESS

The sadness comes from in between

or out beyond the stars.

I ask you now. What do you mean?

Who do you think you are?

You gave her life. You gave her heart.

Then snatched them back again.

The snatching is the hardest part.

It lets the sadness in.

Please let me dwell in sadness now.

Please let me grieve and cry.

Please hold on tight. I don’t know how.

I don’t know where or why.

The sadness comes from in between

or out beyond the stars.

I ask you now. What do you mean?

Who do you think you are?

PLEASING JESUS

Thank you, Lord. I praise you, Jesus.

Please, Lord Jesus, come to me.

Please come close, come near to me.

Listen closely, hear my pleas.

Please, Lord Jesus, come to me.

Thank you, Lord, for every day

you’re close by me, not far away.

I praise you, Lord, that’s why I say,

Thank you, Lord, for every day.

Please, Lord Jesus, come to me.

Please come close and comfort me.

Listen closely, hear my pleas.

Please, Lord Jesus, come to me.

I praise you, Jesus, all day long.

I sing with you. We sing this song.

We sing it loud. We sing it strong.

I praise you, Jesus, all day long.

Please, Lord Jesus, come for me.

Please come soon and rapture me.

Listen closely, hear my pleas.

Please, Lord Jesus, come for me.

SPACE AND TIME

God exists

outside of space and time.

God is the ever present

here and now with no beginning or end

who exists and lives

outside