Where Can You Turn for Hope When You Are Living in Bad Times?

The news recently has been so discouraging, and every time you hear an update it gets worse.  Now the bad news is not about some faraway person or place it is increasingly personal. Where can you turn for hope?

I believe that there is a God who still loves you and is active in your life to bring you much blessing.  So I wrote this book of poems to encourage you when you are feeling that the world is getting dark around you.

Illustration for the
Poem, Patience

The message in this book of poems is a message that we all need to hear at different times in our lives. In many ways, it says that God is in charge of these difficult times and that He cares for you while you are going through times of discouragement.  It says that you will get through these times, and one of the purposes of God is to bless you when you do.

I believe, and I wrote it out in many ways in these poems, that you are coming to a time and place of good and blessing.  If I could say anything to you, it would be, do not give up, keep your eyes on God, and continue to trust in His goodness. You may not yet see the hope, but it is there, and it is bright.

I hope someday you read my book of poems, Through These Dark Lands Are Edges of Joy, it will encourage you. I have friends who tell me they read a poem a day for a time; others say that they sometimes read it through at a sitting- it takes less than an hour. And when they tell me that it encourages them and helps their faith, and then I feel very humble and grateful.

© A.E. Dozat 2020

The Poet Discusses A Poem From the Book Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges Of Joy

When Battle Plans Go Bad, it is a poem on page 24 of my book, Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges of Joy. If you are discouraged this book of poems will give you hope.

TITLE
The first part of the title, When Battle Plans Go Bad, tells you that this poem is about a struggle that does not turn out well. The second part of the title, A Poem of Success, turns it around. It has a suggestion that there is something about losing a battle that is successful or maybe it is perspective.
It makes you think that perhaps there is a success in our failures.

STRUCTURE
This poem is 24 lines long and each line is less than seven syllables long.
The first eight lines give a picture of the situation we often face
"You feel that
failure follows you
like a stalking hound"
But lines 9 through 17 turns our attention to God who knows your situation with understanding and a solution.

Illustration for a poem,
When Battle Plans Go Bad
From Beyond These Dark Lands
Are Edges of Joy,
© A.E Dozat 2018

Lines 18 through the end offers the hope of giving God your "broken life" and receiving His answer.

MEANING
This poem assures us that God knows your hurt and He already has a solution to your need. At the heart of this poem are the lines,
But God knows your mess.
He understands
And answers
With love,
Acceptance,
Atoning sacrifice,
And an empty tomb.

IMAGE
My drawing for this poem shows a scene of a road entering a landscape where a battle was fought. Broken swords and weapons litter the sides of the road.

This poem assures the reader that there is a victory ahead in spite of our failures.

I chose this scripture to accompany my poem.
“But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:57, NLT

If you want to read this poem it is on page 24 of my book which you can purchase below.

© A.E. Dozat 2019

How an Uber Driver Will Use My Book of Poems in His Ride-share

Why my uber driver friend gives out copies of my book of poems to his riders. 

Let me tell you about it.

Sometimes I work on my writing at one of the cafe areas at the local shopping mall. Glancing up I saw somebody smiling as they approached me. After a moment I realized that this was a dear friend. I asked him to join me and we caught up on what we both have been doing.

My friend is a man of faith and he shared that God is working in his life, some things have gone well and others have not; but he still sees God's loving touch in it all. He explained that driving for uber has helped him to make ends meet. He was excited that driving for a ride-share has given him opportunities to talk to people. Grinning, he said, "It's like I'm a bartender, everybody tells me their problems. They just open up." He offers them the kindness of a listening ear and every day he tells others about his faith in God.

I felt that God was speaking to me to give him some extra copies of my book of poems of encouragement, and his face lit up. He told me that it was a great idea to give copies to people who rode in his uber and that he would keep a few in the back of his car for his riders..  He reminded me that there are times when such a book will speak to someone's heart in ways that a sermon or minister couldn't. He said he knew people would be blessed and encouraged by the poems in the book. He said that just having copies for his riders to see will open up doors of opportunity to speak about God.

Of course, I appreciated the encouragement and felt very humbled by his praise. I hope he has many opportunities to share his faith and the book. I pray that God will be honored and people will be encouraged.

To order my book at wholesale directly from the printer CLICK HERE.

I am very excited that this book of encouraging poems is now available on Amazon. Amazon seems to be the way that people want to shop, so I am glad to make it available on their site. 

I did not write this book to make money but to be an encouragement to others.  That is why I priced it so low. I do not make much and what I do make I use to buy copies for those who need it and cannot afford it. 

© A.E. Dozat 2018

How She Used a Poem For a Thanksgiving Blessing After Her Time of Loss

When she told me her plans I felt like falling on my knees and raising my hands to heaven and exclaiming, "I am not worthy."

Her husband was a pastor for a lifetime, and his passing was a loss felt by many. His eloquence and gracious speech were as legendary as his nobility and integrity. Holidays are a season when a missing loved one is felt in its sharpest and deepest pain. Often, those left behind must deal as best as they can, and his passing will be very hard on them.

One of his traditions was to say the Thanksgiving blessing for a large gathering of family, nieces, in-laws, and friends. This year, the Thanksgiving blessing was in danger of being unsaid because no one felt comfortable taking the place of someone they so revered. No one felt they had the eloquence or right to take his place.

His widow worried that not saying the blessing would dishonor his memory and cheapen a treasured tradition, and even worse, it would dishonor God, for whom the very holiday is meant to celebrate.

Then she got an idea. The more she thought about it, the more it made sense to her. She would ask one of the relatives to read a poem she selected from my book of comforting and encouraging poems. She bubbled with excitement as she told me.

It was the perfect solution for her. No one would have to come up with eloquent words or fear they would say the wrong thing. Since many of the poems speak of God's provision of comfort, she could find one that was ideal for the Thanksgiving Holiday and deal with their loss. Since each person is in a different stage of grieving and the poems all focus on God as the answer for our broken lives she felt reading one would respect and touch each person where they are in that process.

I was humbled to hear of her idea and also very joyful that my poems are used by our Heavenly Father to touch His children.

If you need encouragement or know someone who does, you should order a copy today. You will be glad to have this book.

© A.E. Dozat 12/2/18

The Perfect Thank You Gift, Illustrated Poems of Encouragement and Faith

I am humbled and amazed when people contact me to request copies of my book of poems, Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges of Joy.

To order directly from my printer and receive wholesale pricing, CLICK HERE.

Recently, a lady contacted me to order ten copies as thank you gifts for friends who worked with her on a committee she leads. She said the book of poems was so moving and inspirational that she felt she had to give a copy to each person.

She wanted to give something to each person after they put on a big event. In the past, she would give each one a $5.00 gift card for a donut shop or coffee shop. She decided that, although it would cost twice as much, she would make a book gift instead. She felt it was the right thing to do since several persons were going through difficult times with loss and discouragement.

I am grateful that God uses my book of poems to encourage and comfort people with His love.

I am very excited that this book of encouraging poems is now available on Amazon (see the link below). Amazon seems to be how people want to shop, so I am glad to make it available on their site. 

I did not write this book to make money but to be an encouragement to others.  That is why I priced it so low. I do not make much, and what I do make, I use to buy copies for those who need it and cannot afford it. 

© A.E. Dozat 2018

The Poet Explains His Poem, The Forever Part of The Pain, From the Book, Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges Of Joy

I wrote this poem for my book of hope and faith because I wanted to give hope that God uses your difficulties to bless you in many ways. A time may come when what remains of your pain becomes a gift for others.

To order your copy directly from the printer and receive the best wholesale pricing CLICK HERE.

TITLE
The title is in two parts, the first part is, "The Forever Part Of The Pain." It is an attempt to respect that pain leaves a piece of itself with us forever. We may recover, move on, and heal but there is something that never goes away. This is not something that should discourage us but a reality we can live with.
The second part of the title is, "A Poem of the Gift." This part of the poem is curious and makes the reader wonder what gift there can be in pain. It also suggests that it is a hopeful poem that will point to something valuable.

STRUCTURE
This poem has 26 lines. Each line is fewer than five syllables long. The first half describes the aftermath of pain and how it cools and seems to fade, "After the furnace fires of tribulation have cooled,"
The second section is only three lines and tells us that others will seek us out for this gift.
The last part, lines 18-26, are beautiful and among my favorite in the collection. They tell that the gift left by pain is something you can give to others.

MEANING

Illustration for the Poem
THE FOREVER PART OF THE PAIN
From The Book,
BEYOND THESE DARK LANDS
ARE EDGES OF JOY
© A.E. Dozat 2018

You will get over the experience, but something of pain remains. It is different for each person, and you must draw your own specific about the nature of the gift left by your own loss, it may be compassion, experience, comfort or understanding. But you wouldn't have this gift if you did not go through pain. The surprise is that this gift is not as much for you as it is for others when you share it with them.

ILLUSTRATION
There is a picture of an oak tree with a chair swing hanging from its branch. The chair swing looks like it is for two people sitting side by side. You can imagine two people may sit there to talk about their experiences.

SCRIPTURE
This poem is accompanied by a verse of scripture from the New Testament.
“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, NLT

This poem offers comfort that because of your pain there will remain something that you will have that will bless you and others.

If you want to read this poem it is on page 21 of my book which you can purchase below.

© A.E. Dozat 9/13/18

The Author Explains His Poem, Not Only Are You Known, A Poem about God

My poem, Not Only Are You Known, is a poem of great encouragement. It is from my book of poems, Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges Of Joy, Words of Comfort and Hope. This is a book that will uplift and encourage someone who is going through difficult times.

You can order your copy directly from the printer at wholesale prices. CLICK HERE.

TITLE
I chose this title because I wanted to cause a little curiosity about God's knowledge of you. Of course, as an all-knowing God, he knows your existence, but I want to prompt that there is more to it than that. Yes, God knows you, but that is only the beginning.

STRUCTURE
The simplicity of this poem makes it beautiful. It is only four sentences, and the sentences are broken up into 22 lines. Most of the lines are three, four, or five syllables with a few being six. The praise, "God knows you," is repeated six times each time expressing the depth of His knowledge of you. For example the first is,
God knows you
With all your flaws,
And He accepts you.

Illustration for the poem,
Not Only Are You Known,
From the book,
Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges of Joy
© A.E. Dozat 2018

Each of these "God knows you" statements reaffirms God's love and acceptance of you. In lines 13 - 22 the poem leaps to the ultimate affirmation of God's love where He knows we needed a savior and He provided one. 

MESSAGE
On the surface, this appears to be about how God knows you with all your imperfections; but it concludes by saying that God knew that you needed a savior and sent Christ to be our salvation. The poem assures the reader that although God knows your failings, He still desires to have a relationship with you.

ILLUSTRATION
Illustrations of a road unite the poems of this book. For this poem, I drew a cross beside a mountain road to emphasize The Savior who died to pay for our sins.

This poem is for a person who feels that they could never come to God because they are too evil, or have committed some unforgivable sin. This poem helps them to see that God knows their failings and still sent His son to become their Savior. No matter how far you are from God remember that Christ is still the way back.

THE SCRIPTURE REFERENCE
And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. 1 John 4:14, NIV.

NOT ONLY ARE YOU KNOWN,

A Poem about God

God knows you

With all your flaws,

And He accepts you.

God knows you

With all your trash,

And He esteems you.

God knows you

With all your vice,

And He treasures you.

God knows you

With all your bad,

And He watches for you.

God knows you

With all your sins,

And He loves you.

And since

God knows

That you

Could never find Him

He sent His Son

To die for you

And be the way,

So you could know

Him.

 Adron 6/23/18

You can order your copy directly from the printer and receive the wholesale price. CLICK HERE.

The Poet Explains His Poem Freedom, a Poem of Leaving Darkness.

Freedom is a poem from my book, Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges Of Joy, Words of Comfort and Hope. When you read it you start to understand that forgiveness is possible.

To get it through Amazon CLICK HERE.

TITLE
The full title of this poem is Freedom, a Poem of Leaving Darkness; it suggests freedom will be found when you leave the place of darkness. Darkness may be anything but this poem applies to the specific enslavement of guilt, and the darkness we carry inside.

STRUCTURE
This poem is 27 lines long and most lines are five syllables. At first, it looks like free-verse. It is one of the rare poems in this collection that uses the first person singular of  "I."The I starts a new section of the poem four times.

• Lines 1 through 6 is the "I see you oppressed..." section, where the poem opens up with the observation of the readers struggle with guilt and darkness. 
• Lines 7-13 are the "I would give freely..." where the poem moves to compassion, but with the suggestion that there is a solution to be received. 
• Lines 14-17 is the "I, too, needed..." and "I have found..." section of confession and admission. The "I have found..." is repeated in line 18, I prefer to avoid repeats because they generally weaken a message. I made the exception to satisfy the question of what was found. 



Illustration for Freedom
A poem of Leaving Darkness
© A.E. Dozat 2018 

• The last 9 lines are a declaration of having found freedom from darkness and guilt. The last line of the poem is simple but after you think about you see more than what is on the surface. 

In these posts, I try not to give away too much since I want to sell the book but here is the ending.
This pardon 
He gives
Is so wonderful 
That I would have it 
Overflow to you.

MEANING
I wrote this poem because I know a lot of people struggle with guilt. Guilt is a darkness in our souls that we can't get rid of no matter what we do. I offer the solution that through Christ the Father offers forgiveness because of Christ's sacrifice on our behalf.

ILLUSTRATION.
This poem is illustrated with a drawing of a dark deep valley with a rocky path.  Beyond the valley, the path enters distant pleasant lands.

The scripture at footnote for the poem is ”For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in Whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:13-14, NIV

This poem offers hope that if you are struggling with guilt that there is forgiveness for you if you receive it from Christ who gives it freely.

© A.E.Dozat 6/7/18

The Author Explains His Poem, Patience, A Poem of Him Who Watches

PATIENCE, A Poem of Him Who Watches, is found on page 13 of my Book, Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges of Joy, Words of Comfort and Hope.

I wrote this poem as encouragement for those who feel that they are going through a long time of hardship.

TITLE
The title is two-sided. At first, it could be that we are going through the dark time and must be patient, but, the subtitle, A Poem of Him Who Watches, might be about how God watches over us through our long night, or that we are watching for deliverance through the night. This open-ended title starts the reader thinking right from the beginning.

STRUCTURE
The poem is 26 lines long with grouped rhythms to speed up or slow down the reader. The first nine lines are the opening statement. Lines 1-6 are all short and move quickly, followed by two lines of both five syllables then line 9 is six syllables. The opening combines not only place and time but also experience.
"Those who have lived
only

Illustration for the Poem, Patience,
A Poem of Him Who Watches.
From the Book,
Beyond These Dark Lands are Edges of Joy
© A.E. Dozat 2018

under the cold stars..."

Faith is explored in lines 10 to 19, They vary in length between four or five syllables
"Faith knows the sun
will certainly rise..."

Lines 20 through 22 talks about the comfort of faith that is based on truth.

The poem concludes in lines 23 through 26 by declaring that our patient faith proves our love for God.

MEANING
The metaphor of the stars makes us face eternity with a sense of our smallness and ignorance of what is beyond our place and time. But faith hopes for the dawn and watches in that hope because we know our patient waiting is evidence of our faith in God who is also watching over us.

ILLUSTRATION
The poem is illustrated with a pen drawing of a road leading to the sunrise.

THE LESSON THIS POEM TEACHES
Our lives are a living statement. How we react to suffering speaks to others. This poem helps people see that their reaction to trials must come from a mature thought-out faith. It shows the purpose of enduring hardship.

There are many reasons and explanations for our suffering and no one answer suffices for all, but this poem says that our enduring faith in God during hardships proves our love for God.

The poem is accompanied by this scripture:
“However, as it is written: ‘What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived’ -- the things God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9, NIV.

This poem like all the poems in this collection gives comfort and hope.

© Adron 5/2/18

The Families With Special Needs Conference Request My Book

I was surprised when in a meeting today at work Tom, the Chief Operating Officer, asked me if I was going to the Families With Special Needs Conference in Baltimore next Saturday and if I was going would I bring copies of the book, Beyond These Dark Lands Are Edges of Joy, Words of Comfort and Hope. Tom is involved with Special Needs Family Ministry since his teenage son is severely disabled. He will be one of the key presenters at the conference. He added that families with special needs members are families who have hurt at one point or other and need encouragement and he said he was sure that the book would be a blessing to those families.

I was surprised and not prepared for this. I did not think my book would be such a blessing to people.

I was ashamed to tell him that I wasn't planning on attending the conference because my daughter is coming home for the weekend.

Others in the office are involved in the conference and offered to take some books and give them space on their exhibit table for attendees to purchase. If my coworkers felt the book would be meaningful to those dealing with special needs family members then I know I should go and help with the book table at least for a few hours.

I am overwhelmed by the generosity of my friends and humbled by their encouraging comments about the book and how it is a blessing to many.

© A.E. Dozat 4/23/18