A New Issue! We are so pleased to present to you the poetry of Heath Brougher, Bruce Owens, Mark Weinrich, Veronica Michalowski, Janice Canerdy, Hiromi Yoshida, Don Beukes, and Jason DeHart. And a poem that I submitted, though I really can’t take credit for it – because I believe that Jesus Himself actively helped me to write it as a response to a poem written by another friend of mine. Also in this issue, we’re happy to say, are a personal essay Janine Pickett

(Image: detail of Carmel Splash, by Marie Massey) Still Here (by Heath Brougher) Landscape mostly the same as before, maybe a little less bright, less full of Life, however my body now five years rotted, soaked in a cup of inertia for that period of time. Nearly nonexistent, I am still among these hallowed places of my youth, swirling in the vapors of a false start, left behind, idling, I’ve done nothing but wither in similar fashion along with the land. I’ll have to cut ties

WEIGHTLESS The butterfly basks wings flat and wide gathering every ray of warmth waiting for cold weights of night to fall away, waiting for the paralyzing chill to be driven from its body, waiting for the strength to rise. Knowing the weightless release will come. "But they who wait upon the Lord will get new strength. They will rise... (Isaiah 40:31) ___________________________________________ MAKE ME LIKE THE MOON It does not burn, but how it fills the night. It paints the

(autumn, maple leaves, image by Jimmy Lau, on Pixabay) FROM HER HOSPITAL WINDOW Winter comes early some years burdens October branches already laden by dry leaves with weight of wet snow some bend more break Flowers lift autumn colors to the sun only to feel cold flakes in their petals Heroic leaves and stems slump finally give in Then she wilts minute by lengthy minute rosebud in the snow until ice wind carries her away © Veronica Michalowski, April 3, 2019, about her sister

God’s Aging Vessel I often lie awake and ponder life, more kind than cruel through my many years. The peaceful times by far outweigh the strife, and laughs have flowed more frequently than tears. The future – my tomorrows, oh, so brief – holds challenges. I look to God each day, for He knows all. It’s still my firm belief He has a plan, and He’ll show me the way. The past is an instructor I respect for guiding me through failure and success. The present is the path that will

The Robin Sunglinting wheel of whirring wings— the robin bathes in the shallow pothole’s muddy water, the storm’s pock-marked consequence. Jeweled droplets drip from wing tips and beak, continuous whir of frustrated wings— till it decides to fly away over glistening rooftops toward invisible bodies of water— horizons dripping storm-washed promises. Hiromi Yoshida has been recognized as one of Bloomington, Indiana’s “finest and most outspoken poets,” and was a semi-finalist fo

(stormy sea, image by Dimitris Vetsikas, on Pixabay) Untitled I am at home here among the soft blue waves and I will linger here awhile with the gulls and white herons, even among storms, I will linger and then I will be found In the beauty that created us, at home in that thankfulness In a house built by a throne of stars ... ​© 2019 by Bruce Owens _____________ West Cliff On the sheer cliff, tucked under the wind, preening cormorants, their heads tucked under the wing cover

(Image: Red Creek, by Marie Massey) Cul-de-Sac (In loving memory of Johanna Rosetta Marsh Beukes) Despite a solid foundation of faith and a collective family moral compass of forgiveness, faith, hope, love, mutual respect and tolerance, nothing could prepare me for my own deep-felt loss of a beloved mother, lost from this natural world – I remember briefly popping in the previous day from work just to make sure I could see her sweet smile and hear her gentle voice like molten

Mighty Nation who knows these days what the promise means? Abraham in the desert standing under the stars counting his destiny. Abraham, a real person with moments, problems, the smell of dry living with the hint at something more to come. who knows these days what the promise means except that the promise is still there. Jason DeHart is an assistant professor of reading education at Appalachian State University. His poetic work is forthcoming in English Journal, and he has u

Come to Me Come as you are Ego behind you I look Upon the heart Gaze on Me I made each flower In the Book It is written of Me I do this for you I give My life That you May have peace I stand at your door And knock My hands were pierced For you The Master came to serve In humility Listen to My Still small voice I shed my Blood As an offering The bowl of My body Broken My perfection Will suffice Everlasting is m

Sowing Seeds (See the book of Mark, chapter 4) I’ve been taking an online mini-course called "Love Says Go" by Jason Chin. One of our exercises was "sowing seeds" and we were to go out in public and find someone we did not know to pray for, encourage, or bless. I'm already one of those people who hold doors, usually have a smile on their face, or give a compliment or encouraging word to others while shopping. But this day, on my way to the grocery store, I prayed for the Holy

Comfort, by Fabrice Poussin Peace, by Fabrice Poussin Image by Fabrice Poussin Symphony, by Fabrice Poussin Fabrice Poussin teaches French and English at Shorter University. Author of novels and poetry, his work has appeared in Kestrel, Symposium, The Chimes, and dozens of other magazines. His photography has been published in The Front Porch Review, the San Pedro River Review and more than 170 other publications.

detail of Carmel Splash, by Marie Massey Red Creek, by Marie Massey Winter River, by Marie Massey Mission Courtyard, by Marie Massey Award-winning artist, Marie Massey, has been painting professionally for 19 years and teaching the "Painting in Layers" method for 7 years to adults working in oil and acrylic. Marie founded the Central Coast Plein Air Painters (CCPAP), a group of 380 plus artists living and working on California's Central Coast. Marie's paintings have been juri

Dear friends, Janine Pickett, the founding editor of Spirit Fire Review, has given me the “green light” to expand my role to editor-in-chief. Janine deserves much credit as she was the one who had the idea for Spirit Fire Review, began it, established it, and has worked hard to make this a journal that glorifies God. Janine has expressed being very busy with family responsibilities and that she’s not able to spend as much time on Spirit Fire Review as she would like. She’s be