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Letter To Elvis

“Letter To Elvis” by Marc Hosch I never saw your grave, but I saw your statue While on layover at an airport in Memphis, Nashville’s similar but contrarian sibling. You were holding a guitar, strumming an E7 And some thought you barely knew how to play, But I always wondered if you were just shy And virtuosity wasn’t your kind of rock-n-roll. Were you a Pentecostal trapped in a Baptist body Or a Baptist trapped in a Pentecostal body? Were you a good ol’ boy from the South Who loved the Lord and loved his Momma, But life was on and it was yours for the taking, Even if it meant taking the path many-a-man Before you traveled down and never returned? You’d swivel your hips and society jeered, Sneering at the vulgarity of raw human expression. At first, you were agape as you insisted this is how Many professors of faith in church moved when they Worshipped their Heavenly Father with tongues aflame. And I believe you believed that reasoning – at first. But you and I b...
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Colors

“Well,” she said, “there’s always yellow. Sunrise gold, promise of a new day and new mercies as promised to us by God. There’s also red - new blood, new life, holy sacrifices upon two boards of wood for all of us. Or blue. Limitless opportunities, holy renewal, raging depression calmed by outstretched hands. Don’t forget purple, too. Royal and regal, but never too bold if done with the utmost humility…” Her voice trailed off as if to contemplate the other colors and schemes of the rainbow dancing in her mind, trying to see how she could best explain it in layman’s terms. “You’re right,” I said in an assuring tone. “I don’t know what color to paint the wall, either.”
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When Time is Out of Mind, It Slips Away

Well, hello there. My, it’s been a long, long time. How am I doing? Oh I guess that I’m doin’ fine. It’s been so long, now, But it seems that it was yesterday. Ain’t it funny how time slips away? ~ from “Funny How Time Slips Away” by Willie Nelson So… How you been? I know. The last post I published was on June 29, 2020. It was Part 1 of my exploration of The Beatitudes in a post titled “A Way To Be”. I still like it enough that I’ll publish a Part 2 soon. But before I do, I feel as though I owe an explanation of sorts for why the Blogspot silence. Oh, wait. No one cares. Time slipped away, the world continued to turn on its axis, and the world’s civilizations forged ahead without my musings. So I guess I will just write this for my own sanity, then. Truth be told, I hit a wall. When I started this blog, I had an overarching and (in retrospect) romanticized idea of what I wanted it to be. I wanted to post poems, songs, thoughts on socio-political issues if I felt like it, and commentary...
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A Way To Be, Part 1 of 2

Author’s Note: I write this not to prove how holy or righteous I am or to preach. If anything, I write this for my own benefit because I need Jesus every hour of every day. I need the gospel just as much as the next person. I pray you are edified. The Beatitudes have always resonated with me. Even in my elementary school days, I would read those words of Christ in the Gospel of Matthew, and there was always a sense of mystification. I was not mystified in the way of, “I don’t understand it”, but I was mystified in how awe-inspiring it was and the urgency I felt when reading those words. It was if someone whispered into my ear: “Read this, now. This is life .” As I have grown, the Beatitudes have not lost their wonder. If anything, the wonder has grown in breadth and depth. Unfortunately, in the world we live in, the Beatitudes have been turned into whimsical greeting card poetry, a few pithy sayings uttered by a wise man so long ago. To be frank, this humanistic view robs that pass...
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Break Me (Glory Be)

I've often heard the fact that the head and heart are only inches apart. Sometimes, though, it seems a mile wide in terms of knowing what you must do, but feeling the opposite. Even as Christians, I think this struggle is all the more real. “Break Me (Glory Be)” by Marc Hosch Break me, mold me. Shape me into who You want me to be. Lazy is not who or what I want to be in life for You. Break me. My head and my heart Are only eighteen inches apart. But sometimes, the distance seems a mile wide. Lord, as I seek and I pray, Don’t ever stop showing me the way To true life everlasting in which You abide. Rebuke me, correct me. Refute me even if angry because You love. Refusing Your shepherd’s call is the last thing I want to do. Rebuke me. My head and my heart Are only eighteen inches apart. But sometimes, the distance seems a mile wide. Lord, as I seek and I pray, Don’t ever stop showing me the way To true life everlasting in which You abide. Instruct me, guid...
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Bearing with One Another

Do you ever feel that in your local church, you are fine, but it is other people who have… problems? Yes, in our head, we know that we are all sinners and we recognize the baggage that comes with that condition as it is laid out in Romans 3:23. Because of our sin and the blind spots that come with it, however, it is easy for our hearts to deceive us and make us wonder if we really have to put up with [insert name of annoying man, woman, or couple here]. In his letter to the Church in Ephesus, Paul seems to address this quandary, devoting part of Ephesians as a clarion call, its thesis statement being found in Ephesians 4:2 – “with all humility and gentleness, bearing with one another in love…” But let us put “bearing with one another” in the context of Ephesians 4:1-16 and how it benefits not just the individual, but the local church we are part of. Right below is a link to the passage courtesy of Blue Letter Bible to read alongside this post. https://www.blueletterbible.org/esv/eph...
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Strengthen Me, O God

Last Summer, my church went through a sermon series in the Book of Nehemiah. One Sunday, we were covering Nehemiah 6 and this one verse set my mind on fire. Nehemiah 6:9 – For they all wanted to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will drop from work and it will not be done.” But now, O God, strengthen my hands. It led to what you will read below. “Strengthen Me, O God” by Marc Hosch But now, O God, strengthen my hands. Whether I may be lifting sacks of grain, Taking a hammer to the nail, holding a child’s hand, Or turning the pages of Your Scripture. Strengthen my hands. Strengthen me, O God. But now, O God, strengthen my mind. Whether I be waking up with the sun, Laying down at dusk, talking with a friend, Or facing an enemy of any kind. Strengthen my mind. Strengthen me, O God. But now, O God, strengthen my heart. Whether darkness looms or run and hides, Grieving or rejoicing, reflecting or retreating, Or simply praising You with every beat. Strengthen ...
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