A New Castle by Jake Henson

The trumpet had sounded advancement
A mass of enemies drew near
Our castle walls began trembling
And the danger was ever so clear

They came with numbers unending
And unthinkable weapons of war
Their eyes were engulfed in roaring flames
Like nothing we'd seen before

All that we'd worked for and trusted
Was on the verge of collapse
Our high walls that offered security
Were now nothing more than a trap

The moat that surrounded the castle
Dried up from an earth-scorching heat
Troubles we thought would never arise
Were shaking now under our feet

With a mighty surge, the first wall crumbled
And the others weren't far behind
We found ourselves face to face with the evil
That had broken our well-crafted lines

Then all of a sudden, the sky grew dark
An eerie hush fell on the crowd
The commotion around had ground to a halt
And silence hung like a cloud

A crash of thunder boomed through the air
Like a lion announcing His reign
The fire that roared in our enemies' eyes
Was reduced to a whimpering flame

They slunk back off into the distance
And we all breathed a sigh of relief
'Til we looked at the wreckage around us
And were filled with a new sense of grief

With all that we'd built up demolished
Many bitter tears were shared
Days and weeks had fallen away
Before we realized we had been spared

Newly homeless and humbled
We begin to embrace our new fate
We scrounged and wandered like nomads
Until stumbling upon a large gate

It was firmly secured, but in our desperation
We knocked loudly and cried
Somehow it opened then came a strong voice
That welcomed our party inside

What we observed was amazing
Vegetation of all types was seen
After nothing but dust on our travels
Our eyes feasted on a bright shade of green

It all lead up to a mansion
That was glorious beyond all compare
Again, our journey had dulled our senses
And this sight was too much to bear

We rested and soon had regained our strength
Feeling better than ever before
And lo and behold, we'd only begun
To discover all we had in store

Because all we’d seen looked a little less grand
When the Host of the house was revealed
We knew at that moment we'd wander no more
As the homeless turned into the healed

Now all that remains of our previous life
Are bricks scattered around on the ground
We would have never discovered the mansion
If our old castle wasn't torn down

Jake Henson is a rootin', tootin' South Texas cowboy by day, poet and singer/songwriter by night. His day job allows him to see God's creation up close and personal, and how biblical principles truly come to life in nature. God's goodness in the midst of a fallen world is the inspiration for many of Jake's works.