Papa God

Papa God will take care of you

Papa God will see you through

Don't give up and don't give in

Give it all to Papa God

No matter your sadness

No matter your fear

Papa God is always here

Reaching out to pull you close

Whatever your trouble

Papa God knows

Remember His promises

They're all true

Lean in to the love

He has for you

Don't give up and don't give in

Give it all to Papa God

Penny Fairman
2003

Poetry Party 2010

January 22, the boys and I are hosting a Poetry Party. We're memorizing poetry to recite. We're writing poems to read. We're planning what fancy desserts we'll make. We're pondering how to make a "stage". And we're learning a bit in the process. :)

I'll give more info as it comes together. For now the first few posts I'm planning will let you in on what we're memorizing.

So here it is...W is memorizing the following poems....

Stupid Pencil Maker

by Shel Silverstein

Some dummy built this pencil wrong-

The eraser's down here where the point belongs.

And the point's at the top-so it's no good to me.

It's amazing how stupid some people can be.

A Bird

by Emily Dickenson

A bird came down the walk,

He did not know I saw;

He bit an angleworm in halves

And ate the fellow, raw.

And then he drank a dew

From a convenient grass,

And then he hopped sideways to the wall

To let a beetle pass.

The Spider

by Jack Prelutsky

The spider, sly and talented,

Weaves silver webs of silken thread,

Then waits for unobservant flies

...To whom she'll not apologize.

Hope you're having a happy day,

Great is the Lord

I will exalt you, my God the King
I will praise your name for ever and ever.
Everyday I will praise you
And extol your name for ever and ever.
Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
His greatness no one can fathom.
One generation will commend your works to another;
They will tell of your mighty acts.
They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty,
And I will meditate on your wonderful works.
They will tell of the power of your awesome works,
And I will proclaim your great deeds.
They will celebrate your abundant goodness
And joyfully sing of your righteousness.
The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
Slow to anger and rich in love.
The Lord is good to all;
He has compassion on all he has made.
All you have made will praise you, O Lord,
Your saints will extol you.
They will tell of the glory of your kingdom
And speak of your might.
So that all men may know of your mighty acts
And the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And your dominion endures through all generations.
The Lord is faithful to all his promises
And loving toward all he has made
The Lord upholds all those who fall
And lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
And you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand
And satisfy the desires of every living thing.
The Lord is righteous in all his ways
And loving toward all he has made.
The Lord is near to all who call on him,
To all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
He hears their cries and saves them.
The Lord watches over all who love him,
But all the wicked he will destroy.
My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord.
Let every creature praise his holy name
For ever and ever.
Psalm 145
NIV

Sing His Name Forever
The Lord lifts up the fallen
And those bent beneath their loads
He’s always right beside us
Traveling our weary roads
He’s near to those who call on him
And righteous in all his ways
He protects all who love him
He’s great and worthy of praise
So sing his name forever
Don’t let your voices fade
For he is good to all
And has mercy on all he’s made

Penny Fairman
2002

Solitude

Coffee and a Smile
I'm tired and sick
But I am not quick (to slow)
I need you more
Of this I'm sure
I need to listen
And yet I shout
I need to cry
And let this out
But I drink my coffee
And smile my smile
Missing you all the while
Longing for quiet in which to hear
Longing to feel you pull me near
And yet I do not sit
My busy-ness I do not quit
It is me that keeps me away
I am the one that orders my day
It is me creating this space
That keeps you from your proper place

By Penny Fairman
2006


Have you ever felt the way I felt when I wrote this poem, too busy, using caffeine to keep you going, missing God and yet not creating a quiet space in which to be with him? There is something to be said for solitude. It’s not a spiritual discipline that comes easy for me, but when I take the time to be alone and quiet with God I am never ever sorry.

Make a Joyful Noise

SHOUT LOUD
Creation of the earth

stand and raise your voice
Shout loud to our God

In his name rejoice
Share with him the joy

he’s filled you with
Let it flow from your heart

like a lyrical gift
Our God is genuine

He’s living and true
Our blessed Creator

and Shepherd too
Come into his presence

in glad celebration
Learn and speak the language

of adoration
You cannot be too grateful

too generous with praise
For the Lord, our God is beautiful

wonderful are his ways
His love and his loyalty

will always endure
For all generations

forever more

Penny Fairman
2005

(Psalm 100)

It took me a couple of years to get comfortable with praise in my daily interactions with God. So I started paraphrasing and rewriting the Psalms to get me going. A lot of people do this and for good reason, it really does help. I believe that because God loves us, our praise is his pleasure. So shout loud and make a joyful noise.

Sing His Name Forever

Sing His Name Forever
The Lord lifts up the fallen
And those bent beneath their loads
He’s always right beside us
Traveling our weary roads
He’s near to those who call on Him
And righteous in all his ways
He protects all who love Him
He’s great and worthy of praise
So sing His name forever
Don’t let your voices fade
For He is good to all
And has mercy on all He’s made
Penny Fairman
2002

Inspired by Psalm 145

Tree Poems

Trees by W

Trees

Roots

Enjoy

Explore

So many

Trees by J

Tall

Red Leaves

Everywhere

Evening wind

Squirrels eating nuts

Trees by Penny

Towering

Refuge

Enormous

Exhale

So pretty

Hope you're enjoying autumn this year!

Pure Joy

Consider it pure joy

Whenever trials are faced

For you develop perseverance

In the testing of your faith

Perseverance must finish it's work

For you to be complete

For you to be mature

Not lacking anything

written by Penny Fairman

James 1:2-4

The Plan

Walk quietly

Be captivating

Embrace my hope

Wait on the Lord

Everyday's a Celebration

On occasion I have the pleasure of singing my children to sleep. We love hymns and old songs I grew up with, but I do have a favorite song to sing to them. It's a song I wrote...well kind of...it's a song God gave me the words to in answer to a desperate prayer. I can't write out the music but I thought I'd share the words with you.

EVERYDAY'S A CELEBRATION

by Penny Fairman

Everyday's a celebration

because I'm part of God's big plan

He gave me life so I can live it

Walking with him hand in hand

Love, joy and peace

Patience, kindness and goodness

Thankfulness, gentleness and self control

God give these things to me

so I can give them to others

You have a plan for me

and so I sing

(repeat entire song as many times as you'd like)

A New Creation

I'm journeying toward a permanent escape

From the darkness that has distorted my shape

I will not allow the enemy my trust in you to shake

For I know with the life I'm giving you a new creation you'll make

Penny Fairman

2006

Bus Stop Love

She sits there cold

Her eyes are wet

She's exposing herself

She's no dignity left

Sitting on a sidewalk far from home

Somebody's daughter's been left here alone

"Lord God in heaven

I'm praying to you

Reach out and touch her

Show her the truth

and your love"

He's looking around

With pleading brown eyes

He needs a ride

But I must confide

I'm thinking of home

of the faces I face

So I do not risk sorry

Instead I stay safe

"Lord God in heaven

I'm praying to you

Reach out and touch him

Show him the truth

and your love"

Most days I'm broke

but I find a five

and I'd thrown on my sweater

but the car's warm inside

So these are my gifts

to the pleading brown eyes

and the crying girl who feels

she has nothing left to hide

"Lord God in heaven

I'm praying to you

Reach out and touch us

We all need the truth

and your love"

Penny Fairman

June 2005

The Pirate Cowboy

He's a pirate and a cowboy.

It's true, he wears an eye patch and a black felt cowboy hat.

He smokes mini cigars the way most smoke cigarettes

(are mini cigars and cigarettes the same?).

He wears cowboy boots and a big belt buckle

and he's been known to scare little children by uttering a single word...arrrgg.

He likes it when they point and call him a pirate but the truth is he's more cowboy than anything else.

He writes country music with sappy love lyrics,

he collects arrowheads and fossils that he finds on the family farm.

He loves to play guitar and drink beer

and if he can do both he's really living the good life.

He's wrinkely and tan from building and pouring concrete.

He's harsh and gruff when disturbed and yet I have seen him cry.

I miss him almost all the time.

More than he's a pirate,

more than he's a cowboy,

he's my dad.

Rusty Chain

I'm wired with desire

and a hole only you can fill

you've linked my heart to yours

yet you've given me free will

I'm spilling over with passion

but sometimes it's rebellion

You lead me by quiet water

but I feel like a raging storm

And I feel like a rusty chain

in desperate need of you

falling in a fallen world

awaiting your breath anew

The first poem I ever wrote...age 7

I am a cloud

I float in the sky

Now it's time

To say good-bye

CACTI

Prickly
Unforgiving
Dangerous
On the outside
I’ve never seen the inside
But I hear there is nourishment
How do you defend yourself from the outside to get to the inside?
What could possibly protect you from the pain of thorns?
Not to mention the anticipation of the pain.
Is it worth it?
To risk a prick?
Only the very brave would even try, I’m sure
Am I brave?
I don’t think so
I guess only time will tell

SHOUT LOUD

Creation of the world

stand and raise your voice

Shout loud to our God

In his name rejoice

Share with him the joy

He's filled you with

Let it flow from your heart

like a lyrical gift

Our God is genuine

He's living and true

Our blessed creator

and Shepherd too

Come into His presence

in glad celebration

Learn and speak the language

of adoration

You cannot be too greatful

too generous with praise

For the Lord, our God is beautiful

Wonderful are His ways

His love and his loyalty

will always endure

for all generations

forever more

Penny

May 2005

inspired by Psalm 100

GRANDMA IN THE HOSPITAL WITH A BROKEN LEG

Terry cloth rag cooling your face
Eyes and heart longing for another place
Family fluttering by your side
Long awaited chitchat on their minds
You’re hands and head raise to kiss and embrace
With my arms around your neck and my lips against your face
I wish to be the healer of your bones
To soothe your pain so you can go home

But I know your burden I cannot relieve

So a granddaughter's affection is all you receive