WHO IS YOUR NEIGHBOR...

By Yasen Vedrin 

(The Copper Bowl)

When burdened with sorrow and worried by grief,

Ask God who your neighbor is, for your relief.

And who, like an angel with wings spread around,

Was sent by your Father to this earthly ground.

Not one who is ready for cheap, empty chatter,

To warm you with thousands of words that don't matter.

But rather the other, who carries your load,

With Christ's Holy Love on this difficult road.

In life, made so hard by the thistle and thorn,

May that Friend arrive, with a holy spark born.

To nourish your wretched, sad soul with his grace,

And be Holy Oil for your wounds in this place.

To see in this beautiful picture, so bright,

How all of your pain left your soul in the night,

Yet with Christ-like devotion and sacrifice free,

He asked for no payment or token from thee…

You’ll say: "Oh, my brother! But how could it be

To find such a neighbor for someone like me?

This task is too heavy for my human mind,

For man is a wolf to the rest of mankind…"

Hear now my advice – it is Holy and clear!

Christ in your own heart is the Neighbor most dear!

If fiery words from this verse move your soul –

Then all of your faith in His Name makes you whole.

THE LORD HIMSELF BECOMES YOUR WOUND!

By Yasen Vedrin

(The Copper Bowl)

Are you weary, my brother, of being always banned?

Of tasting no sweetness, being last in the land?

Of being looked at askance, as if you bore the blame?

Like a scrawny old mule, wandering poisoned with shame…

Has this sovereign fate made you weary and sore –

To be hunted with hatred, like a plague at the door?

To see them avert their cold eyes, while they whisper behind,

That amidst all these days, you’re the trash of mankind?

Are you weary of being a target and aim?

Forbidden, denied, on a path filled with shame?

To be the sharp stone where everyone stumbles and falls,

While your last fading flame into loneliness calls?

Even Christ on the earth felt this weariness grow –

With a crown on His head from the thorns here below.

He was mocked and was scourged, he was cursed and condemned,

By a traitor’s kiss sealed, by His own people stemmed…

Are you weary, my brother? Just a moment remains…

And in this brief time, the Lord shares all your pains.

He attracts all our fates, bleeding on Golgotha’s ground…

And to love in this way – only Life can be found…

THE CROWN OF THORNS

By Yasen Vedrin

(The Bird Within You)

The crown of thorns is meekly worn,

In silence, quiet, with no spite.

All earthly questions are forsworn –

If you are wrong or you are right.

In worlds of wild and fierce hounds,

With souls that in the pit remain,

Do not expect a hand bounds

To come and save you from the pain.

Remember well the words of God,

Since Adam’s ancient, distant time,

That thorns shall grow upon the sod,

And thistles rise in every clime.

The fleshly nature cannot share

A way to spare you from the hate,

Even when Morning Star so fair

Shines on your forehead and your fate.

With four sharp nails and thorny crown,

For Holy Words that He once said,

The golden crown was handed down

Upon the Christ’s immortal head.

The crown of thorns is meekly worn,

But you just smile with love and grace,

For you perceive why you were born

To face the hardships of this place.

And Christ in you will be revealed –

Upon the Cross, a Rock so brave.

The sacred Meaning is unsealed:

To taste His Crown before the grave!

WITHIN A SIMPLE THISTLE'S THORN

By Yasen Vedrin

(The Copper Bowl)

Even within a simple thistle’s thorn,

The life retains its everlasting meaning.

For into this wide world you have been born,

Do not complain about your fate or leaning.

Because the simplest words that we may speak,

In time reveal a wisdom grand and high.

The grass at dusk lies dry, and dark, and meek,

But morning dews descend from out the sky.

"A thorn, O poet? – you may start to chide –

Can't you perceive? The donkey eats it whole!

Would you connect the human fates and tide,

With things that no one permits in their soul?"

I do permit, but who will understand!…

Let me catch up with my poetic thought.

A simple thorn connects across the land

With the "Hosanna" that the scriptures taught.

Upon the donkey – noble, loved and blessed –

The Savior passed along His earthly way.

Jerusalem with Holy Spirit dressed,

Shone like Eden Garden on that day.

But how to bear a Sacrifice so deep,

Prepared to love the world until the cross?

The donkey ate its breakfast before sleep.

The glorious beast ate thorns without a loss.

And even God's own Crown upon the tree –

Was paid for with a wreath of thorns and pain.

What wiser, more brilliant lesson can there be

For our troubled nature to sustain?

To be or not? Not what you used to be…

A classic writer wrote this truth sublime.

Even within a simple thistle, see –

The life has hidden wisdom for all time.

RUN, OH WRETCHED MAN!

By Yasen Vedrin

(The Copper Bowl)

Run, oh wretched man! Run far away

From the temptations of this world of sin!

It is a gateway to the hell today,

Devouring all the human stench within.

Like righteous Lot, who never turned his eyes,

But left the chains of Sodom far behind,

Let that same Faith within your spirit rise,

So that eternal safety you may find…

Run, oh wretched man! Squeeze every trace

Of your last strength to flee the world's domain,

For human souls are poor in every place,

When crushed by heaps of misery and pain,

Yet they are bright and wealthy in their part,

If Jesus comes inside them to abide,

To bring His comfort to the sorrowed heart,

And heal the Cross where all the fears collided.

Run, oh wretched man! With eerie snares

The godless path is covered and concealed,

And evil’s metal tongs and heavy cares

Have gripped the selfish flesh and will not yield.

But Righteousness alone can save the soul

Through Christ’s pure Blood, poured out to set us free!

Outside of it is worldly chaff and toll!

Within it – God’s own Holy Majesty!

Run, oh wretched man! I pray you, flee

To Mount Sinai’s eternal, sacred crest!

Do not delay a day, a hour to be,

But give your feet to God’s divine behest!

And then, blessed and noble in your soul,

You will become that Holy, faithful deer,

Who stands before the Throne, complete and whole,

With Spirit quenched forever, without fear!

ETERNAL FOR ETERNITY!

By Yasen Vedrin

(Pearl Seeker)

Eternity behind a veil is hidden

From human eyes of mortal clay and dust.

In it, a prison for the rogue is bidden,

And for the wretch – a beam of light and trust.

It is a new beginning when we perish.

A fateful leap the spirit has to take.

Existence – between black and white we cherish.

An end – that God or devil has to make.

How each prepares for what is coming later

Is every mortal’s choosing and their way.

Between the Son of God and the betrayer

The world is split and divided today.

The destiny has drawn a line so slender

Before the Heaven’s Life that will endure,

But creation fails its logic to surrender

And bets on earthly roots to feel secure.

From Adam’s clay to Rock that will not shiver,

A heavy price is paid for every name –

A Holy Offering from the Great Giver,

For man born in the Christ’s eternal flame.

If by the Rock you find yourself attracted,

And for the Truth you stand forever brave –

Then for Eternity you are Eternal, transacted,

Triumphant over death and over grave…

THE JUDGE IS COMING VERY SOON…

By Yasen Vedrin

(The Rise of the Fall)

The world forgot about the Lord,

Ruled by a dark, oppressive king.

No righteous Abel is adored,

But praise to wicked Cain they bring.

The rivers run with crimson blood

Midst graveyards spreading far and wide.

The villain whispers through the flood,

With vengeance that he cannot hide.

For more explosions, fires to start,

For mountains built of corpses slain.

The evil rushes, plays his part,

To shoot without a sense of shame.

A life erased just like a blot,

Worth nothing but a single lead.

Where is the human fate and lot

Along the lifelong path we tread?

Will now a tooth or just an eye

Return the toll to Justice true,

When sorrow piles up to the sky,

Like lava that a volcano threw?

O, world of ruin, world of hate,

Sunk down into the deepest hell!

You chose with poison your own fate,

Rejected Grace and God as well.

For nowadays, when brother fights

With brother till their bodies bleed,

You fire up their deadly slights

With rockets, bombs, and guns of greed…

I do not wish to mourn your wall,

For you are Rome in ruins, lost.

A cursed Nero is your thrall –

The sin of your own guilt and cost.

But soon the Judge will come in might,

Like shining lightning from above,

To bring His payment in the night

Through Judgment of His broken love.

A WISE LESSON

By Yasen Vedrin

(Pearl Seeker)

Let every man be guided by this lesson, wise and grand –

The path we walk will always lead us to the Father’s hand.

And like a river, wild and deep, time flows and races joyed,

Though between the old man and the boy a lifetime is deployed.

How you have clothed your naked soul – beyond you’ll truly know.

The finest linen is the Saint. The lust – a corpse below.

The Cross – an image without time. The silver coin – a pit.

By how a mortal man is dressed – for Christ or Hell he’s fit…

And in this world, it’s worth it all to bear the Evil’s spite.

Even if the wicked rules, sustained by lies and might.

A Judgment Day will part the souls to worlds of different kinds.

The Heaven holds a peaceful bed; the deep, the beast unblinds…

Today the man must learn himself through dark and blinding light,
That for his soul’s eternal fate, a Price was paid in might.

And there beyond, no human soul can pay for any cost.

But here, Golgotha loudly calls to save the sinner lost…

IF YOU JUST OPEN UP A DOOR…

By Yasen Vedrin

(The Copper Bowl)

I hear a wretched stranger’s voice,

Who came to seek a word from me:

"Ah, please, help me to make a choice,

My soul is shrunk in misery.

I see no point to stay alive,

The darkness presses on my eyes,

For by my nature, wrong I strive,

And crooked, like a piece of trash, one dies.

Tell me, what is there left to do?

Where can I hide my life away,

When every word is false, untrue,

In this same fate of dark decay?"

Just questions... And the cold wind blows

Through doors that opened up in vain.

And Jesus cannot heal the woes

Of souls inconsolable in pain.

But looking at the wretch ahead,

I choose to speak a word of grace,

As he sits sadly near my bed,

Upon the pavement's lonely space.

"Ask Wisdom softly in your mind,

She’s ready now to speak to thee:

If you just open up a door…

The other closed at once will be.

For Someone’s standing out there long,

He waits your faith to be awake.

His Light is beautiful and strong,

The darkest shadows it will break.

He knocks so gently. Like a dream.

He wants to sup with you tonight.

Don't keep Him out in the extreme,

And let the Evil crush your might.

For He has saved so many souls.

And you He will forever save.

It matters not your past misgoals,

Once on the Holy Path you're brave.

A life unseen, unlived before,

Will flow in you with Heavenly Blood.

With yearning, open up His door.

It brings the martyr Peace from God..."

The stranger rubs his eyes so bright.

He opens up the Door of white.

And right amidst the Heavenly light,

His shining soul is filled with sight.

And with a crash, the other door

Slams shut into the darkness deep.

While Satan screams forevermore,

Crushed in the night, no more to sleep...

WOULD YOU DESIRE TO BE A BIRD!

By Yasen Vedrin

(The Bird Within You)

The Earth attracts all earthly matters.

The secular world roars and sighs.

A joyless prison breaks and shatters

Within the darkened, weary eyes.

A tiny spark of thought is needed

To set the heavy heart aflame…

If to a bird’s flight you succeeded –

Look up with faith in His great name.

Through pain, through hardships and afflictions,

Through all the terrors we have faced,

Seek God to guide your convictions,

And wings by Him will be embraced.

To join His flock, so pure and bright,

Of righteous souls that rose above.

And in your soul, it will be summer,

When you are lifted by His love.

For nothing else has any meaning,

No other choice is true or clear.

The world is ruled by serpent’s scheming,

For thousands of long years down here.

The Earth, by demonic poison stained,

Takes countless bodies to the clay.

The mole digs hopelessly, enchained,

To find the Covenant this way.

Alas! From flesh and mortal nature,

The timeless wings can never grow,

And flying to the sky's high stature

Is only wind and mist below.

The wretch must surely face disaster,

Endure the quakes of grief and loss,

Before the grateful heart will master

To look at Jesus on the cross.

This is the only aim worth staying,

In worlds of traps and shadows dim.

If you desire a bird’s essaying –

Accept the wings that come from Him.

TO GOD THE FATHER!

By Yasen Vedrin

(I Kneel Before You)

You are my Sanctuary, Holy,

The Temple of the waters live!

And I am Yours, forever, solely,

When in my heart Your Son will thrive!

And in Your Love, completely given,

He shines and touches with His grace,

So that a perfect gift from Heaven

May testify before Your face.

With that same boundless, mighty Will

With which You move the shining stars,

With that same Will – I pray You still –

Guide all Your faithful through their scars.

Let Christ shine bright in every soul

Amidst the darkness, blind and vast,

Before, like comets to their goal,

They reach their Heavenly Home at last…

With these pure words I now implore You,

And cast my anchor – there beyond,

Where the Eternal waits before You,

And all our earthly paths respond…

YOU ARE MY EVERYTHING, LORD!

By Yasen Vedrin

(I Kneel Before You)

You are my Sun, ever Holy!

You are my Bright, radiant Day!

You are God’s Gold for me solely!

You are my Yoke and my Way!

You are my Friend, true and giving!

You are my Peace in all grief!

You are my Sculptor, all-living!

You are my Door to relief!

You are my Power, God-given!

You are my Cross and my Star!

You are my Breath, when heart-driven!

You are my Stream from afar!

You are my Meaning, Faith-founded!

You are my Blessing from high!

You are my Altar Fire, bounded!

Love that in spirit won't die!

THE LORD IS DEARER STILL!

By Yasen Vedrin

(I Kneel Before You)

Even if my brief life

Must be paid for with grief,

In the Heaven’s high strife,

The Lord is dearer still.

Though I carry this load

On my back, growing weak,

On the Covenant road,

The Lord is dearer still.

On no cushions I rest,

I am bruised by the edge,

But I say to my chest:

The Lord is dearer still!

Through the malice I go

From the venomous bite,

Yet despite the snake below,

The Lord is dearer still!

Not accepted, denied,

By no mold am I bound.

With my love as my guide –

The Lord is dearer still.

I’ve a path with a Cross

To the rays from above!

So through profit or loss,

The Lord is dearer still!

THE HARP OF DAVID

By Yasen Vedrin

(I Kneel Before You)

The Harp of David plays so clear and bright.

The olive tree brings forth its fruit again.

God pours His Holy Spirit and His Light,

Faithful to His people and to men.

The White Dove spreads His wings above the land,

Creating mighty faith within the soul.

Strong in His Word, with glorious deeds at hand,

The Lord burns in our hearts to make us whole.

So much has passed, and little now remains.

The latter rain is falling from above.

The Bride in pure attire breaks her chains,

Awaiting marriage with her Heavenly Love.

The pearly gates she gladly will unfold

In that most blessed, Holy moment's sign.

The cups of wine will fill up, as foretold –

The Spirit, sung by the Eternal Vine.

The Temple built of pillars white will gleam.

The City will resound with hymns of praise.

And Glory, like a long-awaited dream,

With longing palm leaves will its power raise.

And like a story – beautiful and grand,

A gift for life that is forever blest,

The Harp will play across the Holy Land,

By David’s wondrous Spirit repossessed.

A RIDER WITHIN YOUR TRAIN

By Yasen Vedrin

(I Kneel Before You)

You will come, O Lord Jesus, to reign,

On a horse, white and strong, with proud hooves.

Over skies hushed by calls and in pain,

Your deep Holiness all the world proves.

Right behind You, on horses of white,

All the Saints who were faithful will ride.

And Your foe, bending knees in the night,

Down to dark, endless chasms will slide.

Give me now Your grand Faith and Your Sword!

Let me ride within Your Holy train!

And my spirit, far-reaching, O Lord,

Will fly high with You over the plain.

To Your Throne – up in Zion’s great crest!

To the gates that are pearly and bright!

I will come, O Lord Jesus, addressed

On a horse with commands woven white!