With This Ring I Thee Wed by Brian Hunter 11/9/14

A ring upon the sovereign hand of God (Jeremiah 3:14),

Forged ere before time was for His beloved (1 Peter 1:20, Revelation 13:8),

Reflects such glorious faithfulness entwined (Proverbs 27:19, 2 Corinthians 3:18),

As trusting babes feed hungrily (1 Peter 2:2-3), bells chime (Exodus 28:33-35).

The covenant thus signed in precious blood (Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24, Luke 22:20)

Doth seal eternity for those inclined (2 Corinthians 1:22, Ephesians 1:13)

To harden not the heart drawn up by grace (Psalm 95:8, Hebrews 3:8-18)

Nor doubt the promises of heaven's call (2 Timothy 1:9, 1 Peter 2:21).

And at the feast prepared for all His saints (Matthew 22:8, Revelation 19:6-9)

A moment long-awaited with great hope (Matthew 24:4-5, 11:23-27, John 14:1-3),

All trials and suffering here proven to be (Romans 5:3, James 1:3)

No less than bricks in place upon the wall (Nehemiah 4:17). 

But oh, "It's hard," we say, fire purging dross

and purifying silver within hearts (Psalms 12:6).

The husbandman plows (John 15:1) yet throughout the night (Psalm 30:5)

For the joy so set before Him from the start (Hebrews 12:2).

© 2014 Brian L Hunter

www.ministryofwritinghelps.com

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"To a Waterfowl" A Critical Analysis

This is a critical response to the American romantic poet William Cullen Bryant’s poem, "To a Waterfowl." Although there is a creative use of allegory which depicts natural objects in the narrative as being equal in meaning to themes and subjects that are completely outside the narrative, the interplay of words, ideas, and sentiments meld and culminate in this poem as a cohesive and sustainable fountain of imagery that led me to deduce, quite romantically, that, no matter how circumstances present themselves in life, every life is directed by the providence of God. https://koalendar.com/e/meet-with-brian-l-hunter

The central motive of the poem does indeed seem to be a moral teaching about God’s benevolent providence. The waterfowl is an allegory for heartbreak. Figuratively speaking, the bird is only used as a visual reference. Allegorically speaking, however, perhaps to people living in the city or people outside the confines of the church, the waterfowl may represent the struggle every individual who has ever existed experiences in life. It seems clear to me that the vulnerable little bird is on a journey and that he has an adversary. This adversary, a hunter or fowler, represents the pursuing threat of death or unknown peril. #writinghelps

Uncertainty in the form of fog alludes to obscurity “through rosy depths” and “crimson sky,” whereas, “plashy brink” bespeaks water, peace, and contemplative things such as choice of direction. Life’s uncertain destination, a “pathless coast” denotes an unseen power. Is this power God? Will there be obstacles to the objective? Intrigue is a common romantic theme, one of embarking on a journey like a river progressing to the ocean. Any traveler is apt to experience weariness persevering alone, outnumbered, overwhelmed, and melancholy in the face of such adversity. “All day thy wings have fann'd.” Yet, as night acquiesces to the dawning of day, frustration and melancholy give way to thoughts of an end to toil and travel. The waterfowl triumphantly arrives at a seeming place of rest, the intended destination where undoubtedly a jubilant scream of celebration is found, albeit muted by contemplation of this illusive achievement or arrival. https://koalendar.com/e/meet-with-brian-l-hunter

Further on, a mention of toil indicates a figurative death on the horizon with day as metaphor for life and night as that of death, the ultimate permanent end to struggle. The bird’s flight and subsequent demise culminates in the phrase, “swallowed up in the abyss of heaven.” Life, “thou art gone.” He who orchestrates all life, God Almighty, from breath to breath and age to age, through all the developmental stages of life, guides each life along its course as He dictates. I, as the reader, was directed to look literally at natural things but think very figuratively about the power of God exhibited in nature with romantic allusions to the Bible through the mention of heaven and the usage of archaic and melodious language such as “thou art gone.” One might say that, with this poem, Bryant killed two birds with one stone. The thematic focus begins with the bird through personification and leads progressively to the author who learns a lesson by witnessing the bird. In this way, Bryant makes the point that every experience counts and is significant both in nature and in life. Hence,  the poet herein makes the poem relevant to the myriad conditions of humanity, the loneliness of both the waterfowl and the author within the sovereign providence of God. 

© 2009 Brian L Hunter 


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Poema 115

Do I really need to tell you?
If God has made you awesomely, what is my mortal word?
The sun shines no less brightly if I wear the darkest shades.
And, liberty not taken, neither hinders nor affords
Vicissitudes regarding you and all your splendid charms imbued
Inherently with autumn hues and scent of ambergris,
Of pine, and moss, and morning dew upon a dale so green
And whispering, ever faintly.

In the background of pure minds
Are all the things you are to Him whose smile you satisfy.
So be not bored my love, my friend, for truth is not denied.
I’ll wait for you, forever now; this love I cannot hide.

For God has placed it deep within and thrown away the key.
No mountain, sea, or ocean shall prevent our wedding day.
Sleep on, sun shining brightly; burn on to meet the night.
I know I need not tell you this, my honest pure delight.

In Christ you live and move and have your being all in Him.
To me you are a dream come true, forgiven, new, and free.
And so I find myself now highly favored to the core, and
Existing in His mind with you, one flesh forevermore.

© 2009 Brian L Hunter 

www.ministryofwritinghelps.com

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Poema 113

Slipping, gripping, and dipping
Into the outer realms of sensuousness, you find
The honey-pot of enticing nastiness seems sweet
Until the bill comes due and you're left wanting wine.

But then, you say, your heart is good and sweet.
You're numb from being broken, lost, and crying.
You're dying breath by breath with no retreat.
And love, the dream, has left you deaf and blind.

But wait; your chariot is yet to come
And cart you off to lands before unseen,
Where you'll be safe from all your past mistakes
And love divine shall make you ever clean.

Oh sleep today, perchance to have this dream.
While dangers of the night predict your doom,
There is a Savior praying even now for you.
Accept and know He's right there in the room.

And so from wallowing in sinful pride,
The Lord's corrective lenses show the light.
Where thirsty travelers meet with living water,
And selfishness moves towards abundant life.

© 2009 Brian L Hunter 

www.anointedwritenow.com

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Poema 49

Static, isolation in the afterglow of glory.

I've been with Him again and felt the flow of life’s purest perfection.

In the rain of effervescent joy, propelled to praise and bliss so intimate,
I'm gleaning in the fullness of the light. God's presence?

Worship? Who can fully comprehend the infinite measure of love's perfection (1 John 4:8)?

Exhaustively? Intrinsically? I know. Convinced there's only one presence that caresses every fiber of my being.

Who should I be? Who have I been? How can I persist when today is just tomorrow’s yesterday?
Renewed, transformed, I contemplate the manner in which this moment within encompasses eternity like a magnificent hologram.

He looks at me, His countenance brighter than a thousand infant eyes.
I’ll never understand just what He sees in me.

I could have been who I thought I was. But now, progressively more conformed to His image (Romans 8:29, 2 Corinthians 3:18) despite myself, and looking desperately into the perfect law of liberty (James 1:5), I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, whose love has rescued me (2 Corinthians 5:21).

© 2009 Brian L Hunter 

www.anointedwritenow.com

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Push Buttons

“For thou hast possessed [set up] my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.” (Psalm 139:13)

Our least favorite events are encounters with passive aggressive loved ones who delight in pressing all the right buttons necessary to create and sustain emotional conflicts. They have known us since we came into the world, hence, they know just how best to provoke us to wrath. While smirking nonchalantly and shrugging their shoulders, pretending to wonder why in the world we might possibly have cause to be annoyed or frustrated with them, they project blame and shut down any productive dialogue by absolutely denying even the remotest fraction of responsibility for the incident. Words at such times only lead us further down a path of unrighteousness, no matter how hushed or polite the tones. Given the sin sick condition of our hearts, it is quite easy for us to murder the esteem, the psyche, and the basic human dignity of our brother, sister, son, daughter, mother, or father with a polished Hollywood smile on our faces. Such is the depravity in this flesh…

Lord, please perfect that love and patience of which I am incapable without You, God the Holy Spirit. Please hold my hand and guide me out of darkness and into Your truth and life. I so desperately desire to live, and move, and have my being in Christ my Savior. Help me, Lord. You alone are my peace and I desperately need Thee every hour. Try my reigns, Lord! Be Thou my vision in this fiery furnace of family dysfunction and confusion. I ask it all in Jesus’ holy and mighty name. Amen.


“Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart.” (Psalm 26:2)


“I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.” (Psalm 16:7)


© 2012 Brian L Hunter

Poema 12

Interwoven interests of a Christocentric nature

Motivate compassion and salve anoints

Unkind aspersions. (Hunter, 2012) 

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© 2012 Brian L Hunter

Turn My Eyes

“Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.” (Hosea 6:3)

Help me, oh Lord, to number my days aright and to bring my heart to wisdom (Psalm 90:12). Whether the report points to cancer, betrayal, or bankruptcy, help me to keep my mind stayed on Thee that I not turn not aside to the right or left (Deuteronomy 5:32). Help me to focus rather on the author and finisher of my faith as the joy set before me so that I, like my Savior, may endure this cross (Hebrews 12:2) looking unto the Father in whose presence there is fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11).

Do not let me waste my trials by refusing to trust you wholly and give you glory for what you have already done. Make me a better witness, Precious Savior, of your glorious perfection and sovereignty in all things. Hallelujah! Oh yes, because in death I cannot give you praise, let every breath that I take therefore glorify thy most excellent name among the nations. How majestic is thy name in all the earth (Psalm 8:9)! Help me to trust you all the more no matter what evil seems to befall me at any given moment. Help me to fear no evil, for thou, oh Lord, are with me. You are bringing me to an expected end, and, no calamity, disease, or disaster shall cause me to stop seeking your face. Hallelujah!

In your presence, cancer or no cancer, is where I want to be, oh God. No affliction shall rob me of it and no unholy mess shall deter me from being more and more desirous of your countenance. Hallelujah! I shall worship you desperately whether it be in the temple or the fiery furnace, my Lord. Yet will I trust you! To live is Christ and to die is gain (Philippians 1:21-23). Help me to abide in you and to have your Word abide in me, oh Lord. Help me to be a witness to your glory and grace no matter what comes or goes in my life. Giving honor to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit always - since these three agree in Heaven as one, in Jesus’ holy and precious name I pray. Amen.


© 2012 Brian L Hunter

Trane Of Thought 3 Jazz Gospel Waltzing

Creativity and improvisation; as God created all that is, ex nihilo - out of nothingness, sculpting what I know as reality out of that which could not be, before my parched awareness was made to swim and dance amid the eternal rhythm of His divine perfection. Hallelujah! Swing! Like Elvin in a mist of blue upon a K Zildjian never again to sing sweet colors, the truth is what I hear and think and know to be the answer to my prayer. Thank you, Lord! Thank you for symmetry among the chaos, beauty for ashes, and a perfect way to a perfect truth that leads to a prefect life here and now in this war. Picasso knew and Rodin too. Snap a shot before the grass withers and dies, before the vapor vanishes in the wisp of a forgotten moment unable to remain. Sustain that instant in the tone and the timbre of a purely tuned tom while others tarry, carried along by the insidious base emotions that so ensnare the hearts of men as beauty enters. The center of more chaste delights than offered in this world waits up yonder in the room of Christ's abode. And so, I linger here listening to Coltrane once again as only my Lord can make the crooked places straight within the narrow gate that beckons now as ever, the day eternally progressing onward to the night of my life. This; this is who I am; a listener through the all of God’s perfection full of grace, may His mercy lead me on to see His face. Amen.

© 2007-2011 Brian L Hunter

Prayer For Light

Lord, crucify the pride in me. Permeate my soul, I pray, with light and let not one crevice in me continue in darkness. Renew, I beseech thee, your covenant in me today so that the only remaining desire that burns in me is the hope of your all satisfying glory and the never-ending bliss your grace affords.

© 2007-2010 Brian L Hunter

Incredible Lightness

The world says to give the offender the silent treatment, shun their Facebook page, and conspire with any sympathizers against him or her. God says to bless and to pray. The reactionary path I take defines whose servant I am and in whom I place all of my hope. Am I a new creation? Or, will I act just like I did way back when it was all about me, my vindication, and my feelings? Lord, wash me with the truth of your Word today and do surgery on my heart with your two-edged sword. Let no root of bitterness spring up and defile me today. Let me be so completely satisfied in you and in your goodness that I scarcely notice when evil is directed my way. I trust in the angels encamped round about me, in your faithfulness, and in your benevolence. You take delight in the prosperity of your servants, oh God, and I thank you. Let it be done in me and unto me according to your perfect will and according to the Word which you have spoken. Amen.


© 2007-2010 Brian L Hunter

Got Hurt?

If you have hurt my feelings or insulted me, my reaction proves my spiritual character and the maturity of my relationship with God. Vengeance is not mine and perhaps it is by your insult that God will make me holier than I was before the affront. "Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you." (Luke 6:28)


© 2007-2010 Brian L Hunter

Blessed To Be

I am indebted, in covenant with The Most High God, united to and in Christ alone, and forsaking all others... Cleaving to Jesus, my only hope, I joyfully contemplate the mystery of being baptized into His death and, having been planted together in the likeness of His death, I shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. Glory!


© 2007-2010 Brian L Hunter

A Critical Analysis of Edward Taylor’s Preparatory Meditations - Poetry

A Critical Analysis of Edward Taylor’s Preparatory Meditations - Poetry 

Taylor’s Preparatory Meditations, poems composed prior to administering the Lords Supper, seem to me to be quite doctrinal or theological in nature and reveal Taylor's complete emotional investment and devotion to a very relational though transcendent God. Rich with expressions of personal insufficiency and longing, Taylor's imagery at times makes evident a love for the pure sound of lexical expression. The best poetry seems to me able to sing itself. Edwards effectively uses extended metaphor and biblical allusions in Meditation 1 when he writes in stanza one, “What hath thy Godhead, as not satisfide Marri'de our Manhood, making it its Bride?” This makes reference to both the hypostatic union of Christology and the Church as the bride of Christ. Such poetry invites the study of the structure and content of word forms as well as theological inquiry. "Preparatory Meditations before My Approach to the Lord's Supper, " is a collection of 217 poems written between 1682 and 1725 and they are, so far, my favorite of Taylor’s poems. His use of metaphor is at times even sensual. I notice the use of strong action words in Meditation 1 such as Confinde, Conjoyn’d, Marri’de, filling Heaven to the brim!, O’re running it, Overflowing Hell, rose a mighty Tide, though thy Person bleed, To quench those flames, feed, etc. Coupled with a relentless cadence toppling forward with powerful imagery not unlike a freight train wherein the glorious supremacy and sovereignty of God as themes are centrally delivered. Most of the meditations seem to include some expression of inadequacy by Edwards, as if he were not up to the task of expressing accurately anything about this infinite, omnipotent, preeminent God who has created Heaven and earth and all that therein is. “My Fireless Flame! What Chilly Love, and Cold? In measure small! In Manner Chilly! See. Lord blow the Coal: Thy Love Enflame in mee.” But this inadequacy seems to then give way to the anointed preacher in Taylor who will sing a mighty song of worship, praise, and prayerful request to the Almighty triune God with fervor and zeal that could not be contained. In Meditation 1 especially, I find Edwards’ exuberance to be sincere and infectious through the sing song musicality of his verses. These poems do not strike me as having been written to achieve critical acclaim. Similar to the work of Anne Bradstreet in a sense, I believe Taylor’s poetry to primarily be genuine and natural acts of worship; simply doing what his Creator designed and destined him to do. Meditation 1 is introspective and conveys the personal and private relationship of a man born into sin with a very transcendent, holy, and infinitely loving God. 

© 2009 Brian L Hunter
www.anointedwritenow.com