poetry | Craig T. Owens

March 2026
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Poetry Saturday—Smiles

December 1, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

Smile a little, smile a little,

As you go along,

Not alone when life is pleasant,

But when things go wrong.

Care delights to see you frowning,

Loves to hear you sigh;

Turn a smiling face upon her,

Quick the dame will fly.

Smile a little, smile a little,

All along the road;

Every life must have its burden,

Every heart its load.

Why sit down in gloom and darkness,

With your grief to sup?

As you drink Fate’s bitter tonic

Smile across the cup.

Smile upon the troubled pilgrims

Whom you pass and meet;

Frowns are thorns, and smiles are blossoms

Oft for weary feet.

Do not make the way seem harder

By a sullen face,

Smile a little, smile a little,

Brighten up the place.

Smile upon your undone labor;

Not for one who grieves

O’er his task, waits wealth or glory;

He who smiles achieves.

Though you meet with loss and sorrow

In the passing years,

Smile a little, smile a little,

Even through your tears. —Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: burden, Ella Wheeler Wilcox, encouragement, joy, poem, poetry, smile, tears, trials. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—O Little Flock, Fear Not The Foe

November 24, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

O little flock, fear not the Foe

Who madly seeks your overthrow;

Dread not his rage and power.

What though your courage sometimes faints,

His seeming triumph o’er God’s saints

Lasts but a little hour.

Be of good cheer; your cause belongs

To Him who can avenge your wrongs;

Leave it to Him, our Lord.

Though hidden yet from mortal eyes,

His Gideon shall for you arise,

Uphold you and His Word.

As true as God’s own Word is true.

Not earth nor hell with all their crew

Against us shall prevail.

A jest and byword are they grown;

God is with us, we are His own;

Our victory cannot fail. —Johann M. Altenburg

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: God's protection, God's Word, Johann Altenburg, poem, poetry, spiritual warfare, victory. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—What Do You Have?

November 17, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

Moses had a staff.

David had a sling.

Samson had a jawbone.

Rahab had a string.

Mary had some ointment.

Aaron had a rod.

Dorcas had a needle.

All were used of God.

What do you have? —Max Lucado, in You!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Aaron, availability, Bible study, David, Dorcas, God's gift, God's plan, Mary, Max Lucado, Moses, poem, poetry, Rahab, Samson, willingness. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Love In Triplets

November 10, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

The Father says, “I love you, child.”

But those by baser things beguiled

ignore the witness of things wild.

The Son extends His hands to say,

“I love you, child; come, walk My way.”

We nail His hands, then turn astray.

The Spirit, armed with saving grace,

“I love you!” says, right in your face

and takes your heart in His embrace.

So when that small, bright bloom you see,

that lure waved by the Deity,

then from those leaflets, one in three,

receive God’s love, unhurriedly. —T. M. Moore, Bricks and Rungs

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Deity, God's love, Godhead, Heavenly Father, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, photography, poem, poetry, T.M. Moore, Trinity. Leave a Comment »

“Love’s Labor”

June 12, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

Work is no curse; from the beginning we

were made for work, to seek the goodness of

the Lord, to multiply His beauty, love,

and truth, and serve His creatures happily.

When work is as a gift and ministry

received, a sacred calling from above,

then will each labor be engaged with love

and excellence, imparting dignity

and grace to those it serves, that they may see

in every labor a reflection of

the God who by His sacrifice of love

has worked the miracle that sets us free.

You are love’s labor, everyone can see,

especially as you labor long with Me. —T.M. Moore, from his book Bricks And Rungs

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: calling, God's love, ministry, poem, poetry, T.M. Moore, testimony, work ethic. Leave a Comment »

“Common Things”

April 26, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

You never, Heraclitus claimed,

step in the same stream twice.

Appearances may seem the same

(familiarity’s to blame,

or each things never-changing name),

but heed that Greek’s advice.

There’s more to life than meets the eye

or dances on the ear.

The moments of our lives flow by,

fraught with potential we might try;

yet, deaf to their sweet siren cry,

we neither see nor hear.

But hidden in each common thing

and every routine sound,

in leafless trees, on flashing wing,

the song that common sparrows sing,

and each arriving email’s “Ding!”

are wonders to be found.

Step through, then, into unseen worlds

where mysteries abound.

Eternal truths will be unfurled,

and nagging doubts behind you hurled

when your poor soul is slowly swirled,

turned upright and around

in common things profound. —T.M. Moore, from his book Bricks And Rungs

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: carpe diem, extraordinary, Heraclitus, poem, poetry, potential, T.M. Moore. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—In Christ

March 31, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

In Christ I feel the heart of God.

Throbbing from heaven through earth:

Life stirs again within the clod.

Renewed in beauteous birth.

The soul springs up, a flower of prayer,

Breathing his breath out on the air.

In Christ I touch the hand of God,

From His pure height reached down,

By blessed ways before untrod,

To lift us to our crown;—

Victory that only perfect is

Through loving sacrifice, like His.

Holding His hand, my steadied feet

May walk the air, the seas;

On life and death His smile falls sweet,—

Lights up all mysteries:

Stranger nor exile can I be

In new worlds where He leadeth me.

Not my Christ only: He is ours;

Humanity’s close bond;

Key to its vast unopened powers,

Dream of our dreams beyond.—

What yet we shall be, none can tell;

Now are we His, and all is well. —Lucy Larcom

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: crucifixion, eternal life, God's love, Jesus Christ, Lucy Larcom, new life, poem, poetry, sacrifice, salvation. Leave a Comment »

Bricks And Rungs (book review)

March 6, 2018 — Craig T. Owens

T.M. Moore is a first-rate theologian, so everything he writes is well-grounded in Scripture. However, when most people think of “theology,” they think of a lifeless treatise that is boring to read, or perhaps difficult to grasp. But T.M. totally shakes things up in Bricks And Rungs with rock-solid theology presented in beautiful poetic verse.

Bricks And Rungs is all about finding our purpose or calling in life. T.M. says—

“Most people have a sense of being here for some reason. They must become something, achieve something, or come to know something which they consider to be unique to them. Something is out there for them, beckoning them, drawing and wooing them beyond themselves to realize more of something, however that is envisioned or whatever it may be.

“Calling is experienced as a summons from without, a beckoning which resonates with something within, something deeply personal, leading us to aspire to more than what we know or are or have at present. …

“Everyone has a sense of calling. Christians know this to be a summons from God, a command which their lives are intended to fulfill by knowing God and serving Him. The Christian knows that each human being is called to know God and, knowing Him, to serve Him gladly and fruitfully. Calling thus involves our need to be blessed and to be a blessing to others.”

Some of these poems are autobiographical to T.M. Moore, some are reflections on Scripture, and some are musings about how each of us discovers our own calling. But all of these poems will open a window in your soul to hear God’s voice speaking to you about your own unique calling.

Take some time to linger over these insightful words.