Poker with Paul

I played Poker with Paul today

an argument of truth held concealed

in the hands we were dealt

and the thorns in our sides

Your word morphed into a pop-up book

a house of cards that will never fall

as I try to prepare for a weekend service

that reaches straight into my gushy gut

of insecurities

to face some secret uncertainties

just between me and You

Paul is almost as neurotic as me

so I peek into his love notes

that sound a little more like diary entries

All of us just kickin' back

and laying all the cards on the table

You have the best poker face

not the smug, cocky, I'm-gonna-get-you kind

just that look of

peace

that confidence I wish I could find,

less like poker

and more like Go Fish old school style

a simple card exchange from Your hand to mine
and suddenly I'd be a winner

and You just keep smiling that Poker face

pointing

at Paul and his ramblings

and waiting

until it sinks in

it's not about winning and losing at all

just a conversation with the guys
until it's time to stand up

"Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold." 2 Corinthians 3:12

"Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we're at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight. We are confident." 2 Corinthians 5:6-8

"We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." 2 Corinthians 10:5

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12: 9-10

"So I will very gladly spend for you everything I have and expend myself as well." 2 Corinthians 12: 15

"He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God's power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live with him to serve you." 2 Corinthians 13: 3-4

"I dont know about you but when I asked God for a sign and there was a sign, I thought maybe it's a sign . . . . Jesus didn't say to his disciples, 'come and sit with me'. He said 'Come and follow me." Have you ever tried to follow someone sitting down? It's uncomfortable, and you get a rash!" Mark Beeson, "Town Hall Meeting" Sermon 5/12/2008