Poem: I’ve Had Enough

I’ve Had Enough

by Russell Kelfer

(There is no audio for this poem.)

“Dear God, I’ve had enough”, I cried,
Sure, I prayed “Thy will be done”,
But enough is enough, God, can’t you see?
This Christian life’s no fun.

I’ve prayed and I’ve stayed and I’ve weighed the cost
Through battles and conflicts so tough,
That my heart, weary, broken, grieved and torn,
At last has cried out – “That’s enough!”

I understand: Your purpose is clear.
I’ll be stronger when all this is o’er.
But God, in spite of the grace You have given,
I simply can’t take any more!

There was no reply from God at first,
The silence could almost be heard.
I waited and listened for some kind of reply
But the Master spake nary a word.

So louder I cried and I wept and I wailed,
Pathetically screaming at God.
When all at once I heard His voice
“My child, you’re on holy sod.

You’ve entered the inner chambers of heav’n,
Where only a few dare to tread.
You’ve come to the end of yourself at last,
And now all your dreams are dead.

You have no power. You have no strength.
And no one heeds your cry;
You’ve come to the end of yourself, dear one,
You finally have learned how to die.

You’ve had enough? Oh, blessed one,
In your self-centered world you can’t see,
No one has ever had enough
Till they’ve hung on Calvary’s tree.

You’ve had enough? Enough of what?
Enough pain? Enough suffering or fear?
Did not you pray for more grace, for more power?
And to My heart to draw near?

I’m just giving you what you sought,
The pain is bringing you grace.
The grief is driving self away,
And I AM taking its place.

One day you’ll awaken, My child,
And all at once you will know.
I gave to you just the amount of pain
It took to make you grow.

I’ll tell you when you’ve had enough
No one but I can tell.
Don’t you know, that as you cried,
I matched every tear that fell?

But one day soon, the clouds will fade,
And you will behold the Son.
And from your heart a song will break forth,
A song that will just have begun.

Louder, sweeter, the melody rings,
Till others will sing along.
Soon the Light will begin to dawn,
‘Twas the pain that wrote that song.

Yes, My child, you suffered long,
And yes, that trial was rough.
But, aren’t you glad that I said ‘no’,
When you said, ‘I’ve had enough’?

Next time, child, remember,
No matter how painful it be.
You can’t get too much of what breaks your heart,
For you can’t get too much of Me!

Stop crying, beloved, stop screaming at Me,
If it takes your whole life long.
Just let the music flow into your heart,
Until God develops your song.

Then just relax and let the grace flow,
The world will rush to your side.
They want to hear God’s beautiful song,
Entitled: ‘When all my dreams died.’

The music will never stop playing,
And as others respond to God’s call,
You will know that with suffering’s pen,
God wrote His best music of all!”

DTM Discipleship Tape Ministries
POB 782256, San Antonio, TX 78278
1-800-375-7778 or 210-226-0000
www.dtm.org • dtm@dtm.org • © Russell Kelfer