Let-There-Be Language

Then God said,
“Let the earth bring forth grass,
the herb that yields seed,
and the fruit tree that yields fruit
according to its kind …"
And so it was …
And God saw that it was good.
Gen 1:11-12

Sea Creatures

Then God said,
"Let the waters abound
with an abundance of living creatures
… So God created great sea creatures
and every living thing that moves,
with which the waters abounded,
according to their kind."
And God saw that it was good.
Gen 1:20-21

Birds

Then God said,
"… let birds fly above the earth
across the face of the firmament of the heavens.
So God created … every winged bird
according to its kind."
And God saw that it was good.
Gen 1:20-21

God's Word is Faithful

… as the rain comes down
And the snow from heaven,
And do not return there, but water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud …
So shall my word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
Isaiah 55:10-11

Sweet Fruit

A man will be satisfied with good
by the fruit of his mouth
Proverbs12:14

Garden Language

Garden Language

… the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;
It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice,
Even with joy and singing.
Isaiah 35:1-2

God simply said “let there be …” and whole worlds were created. Then he created us in His image and likeness, coding us with the same creative-faith potential. When we speak forth God’s promises and purpose in faith, our words fall like seeds in a garden. They anchor down into the soil, and though we may not see any evidence of their being for a while, eventually sprouts begin to shoot up, then flowers, fruits, and maybe even trees. Words can change desert landscapes into palm oases and spring-watered gardens. That is the beauty of faith and the reward of believing God. Circumstances can be re-ordered and wholly reversed by declaring spiritual truth into tangible reality.

Though it may seem a small thing, thankfulness is like spring rain to this our garden. It waters our hope, and purifies our heart. It fills our soul with fragrance which is pleasing to God. So whether we are sowing in tears, weeding with weeping, admiring ripening fruit or finally gathering a harvest in joy, we need to cultivate an attitude of thanksgiving and gratitude before God. Thankfulness brings the warm glow of sunshine to our lives even in the midst of spring drizzle. Thankfulness blossoms our soul with garden goodness.

I know the sorrow of journeying across seemingly endless desert. Yet, I also know the joy of finding pools and sweet aquifers below the surface. I hold on to God’s promises for my life – the ones offered in His Word and the ones specially designed for my life. I water them with my faith and thankfulness. Every day is a day to keep on believing. Along the way, I see a trail of flowers and hear birdsong that tells me that these promises are as true as the One who spoke them. God has taken me around the world when I had no money in my pockets because I poured golden faith into my prayers. That’s how I made it to Taiwan. God opened closed doors of opportunity in a flowing gush when I opened my mouth and declared good things into being. That’s how I landed in Korea. Whether through bold proclamations or song-filled worship, the faith-filled Word causes beautiful things to bloom.

Whether your skies are azure or whether the clouds are grey, now is the time to do some personal landscaping. Pray, bless, encourage, be thankful. Plant your flower patches and cultivate your orchards, because one day they will bring refreshing and sweet fruit at a time when they will be truly needed; and remember to offer bouquets and fruit-basket gifts to your neighbours and to God Himself. Be kind to others, be kind to yourself … be good to God. Bask in sunshine and sing in rain. Sing to your sorrow, and splash a rainbow across your world. Stroll through the showers singing and skipping, with your rainbow umbrella spinning in joy. For the colour of what you say will paint your day. Golden language is a divine promise.

Let your words be true
Do not lie to one another (Col 3:9)
Always be thankful towards God
In everything give thanks (1 Thess 5:18)
Navigate life by steering your tongue
… ships … are turned by a very small rudder … so the tongue (James 3:4-5)
Guard your lips
Don’t curse, make rude jokes or speak filthily (Eph 5:4)
Utter God’s Word
[speak] to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs (Eph 5:19)
Affirm God’s promises
I … meditate on your promises (Ps 119:148)
Garrison your life with prayer
[pray] always … being watchful (Eph 6:18)
Ever speak in faith
I have declared your faithfulness (Ps 40:10)

Word Craft

I love words - big ones, little ones, funny ones, sweet ones. I love juggling them around and creating pretty sentences. If I circle them in a different pattern, I might string out a phrase bursting with drama, or one sugar-dusted with sweet sadness or yet again flowery prose that blossoms with poetry. I love lyrical words like “quaint”, “crystal” and “quest.” I love hopeful words like “horizon,” “rainbow” and “spring.” This special craft courts literary class and creativity. I ardently admire its artistry. I love painting with words. I dip my brush in my imagination and create an emerald hummingbird shimmering in tropical brilliance; a dab here and a dab there and soon it is flitting in a garden full of blushing hibiscus. A few deft strokes and a whole beautiful day comes to a beautiful end with a rosy-lilac sunset. I love words. I celebrate speech that sweetens my soul with kind ointments. I swoon with language that charms my senses. I tipple wine-wording that dances and plays and frolics – dancing across my thoughts like a rainbow kite – giddy with delight. I love words. I love language. I love crafting beauty with speech – jeweled moments, pacific feelings, human fragility, and forever promises. For magic unfolds, songs are sung, nobility orates, life tells tales, truth is unveiled, humanity breathes, creation choirs … with let there be! … language.

©NnekaEdwards2010

I'll Sing to You

I’ll Sing to You

I’ll sing to you O desert
I’ll sing until you bloom
With rose bouquets and lily sprays
‘Til gardens bud my dunes

I’ll sing to you O sorrow
I’ll sing until you joy
I’ll thank my King and worship Him
‘Til perfume scents my oil

I’ll sing to you O night sky
I’ll sing until you glow
With twinkling art and shooting stars
‘Til promise fills my soul

I’ll sing to you tomorrow
I’ll sing until you come
I’ll wait for dawn in golden song
‘Til night becomes the sun

I’ll sing to you O desert
I’ll sing to you O sorrow
I’ll sing to you O night sky
I’ll sing to my tomorrow

Let fragrance bud, let joy be sung
Let sunrise warm my dawn-glow

Song is streaming from this vessel
To fill what empty seems
In Perfect time, His promised wine
Will flow through my heart dreams

His will divine with faith entwines
To craft what is to be

©NnekaEdwards2010

Pepper-Mouth Polly

Pepper-Mouth Polly

Polly was a sailor’s gal
And loved to chatter loud.
Her coloured conversations
Always drew a humoured crowd.

People called her “pepper mouth”
For swearing was her fame.
In fair-to-fine or tempest mood
Her words all stunk the same.

For every other thing she said
You would have blocked your ears
If you were of the proper kind
Who learnt to speak with care.

But shipmates loved to hear her talk,
And whispered near her cage
Every kind of foul-mouthed filth
From which she tore a page.

She would curse as no one could
For that was all she knew,
Until a kindly gentleman
Joined the seaman crew.

When pepper-mouth would bleep and blip
He’d pipe up, “That’s not right.
Your vocab’s far too finite
For a creature that’s so bright!”

On evenings while the sailors boozed
He’d sit right near her cage,
And read her lofty Shakespeare verse -
Poems, prose and plays.

He spoke to her of lovely things.
She cawing would rehearse,
‘Til to the shock of everyone
Pol simply would not curse.

She gave her owner quite a speech
That left him stunned and shamed,
Scolding him for ruining
Her nature and her name.

Her oratory so moved the man
He knew not what to say.
Four-letter sprees a no-no
He now deemed outright profane.

Now every day he plants himself
Right next to Polly’s cage.
She schools him in the art of speech;
His Polly Parrot sage!

©NnekaEdwards2008