We Do Not Live by Bread Alone

We do not live by bread alone
 or prosper from the things we own.
Yet we can live abundantly
 when our compassion sets us free
to spread the bounty that we have
 to those who need our care.
For by its fruit a tree is known,
 let love be what we bear.

Why worry for the clothes we'll wear,
 or dwell on perils that aren't there?
For when our fears are all we tend,
 we miss the fruit the Spirit sends.
With patience, love and faithfulness,
 our peace and hope shall grow,
like streams that flow in desert sands,
 like blossoms in the snow.

Some things endure and some reveal
 what rust destroys or thieves can steal.
But in our hearts our treasures lie,
 what matters most, we cannot buy.
In music, laughter, time with friends;
 in nature's beauty too,
let simple joys that we can share
 enrich our whole lives through.

text © Allan Baer, 2013 (rev. 2014)
290 Indian Rd. Kingston ON Canada K7M 1T8
email: allanbaer7@gmail.com
website: www.crossroadsunited.ca/spirit