Zach Uram's Blog

  • new poem

    “afternoon musings”

    Water gushes across the window pane
    Oh what a torrential rain

    The cool Spring air
    So refreshing and fair

    The fierce wind gusts and blows
    Following a path only God knows

    I thought of the rain which fell
    After Christ’s death knell

    His precious blood washed away down the hill
    All in accordance with the Father’s will

    (c) 2016 Zachary Uram

  • New poem

    “Election”

    Oh sweet joy I’ve come to know
    Because of His unmerited grace
    Eternity with the Lord I will face

    Christ paid the ransom for my soul
    I’m free from death and sin
    Oh what a great propitiation

    We are all blackened by sin
    But we need not remain in darkness
    God has given us the Lamb glorious

    You can’t earn salvation
    No it must be a result of grace
    We’re no longer lost in disgrace

    This wondrous Election is so sublime
    From the world’s foundation we were chosen
    The regenerated souls and the damned frozen

    If you are lost
    And hurt and bruised and lame
    Then repent and call upon His Name

    Now praise the Redeemer
    Let the trumpets sound and angelic host sings
    Our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings

    (c) 2016 Zachary Uram

  • new poem

    “an autumn day”

    a cold breeze passes
    leaving goosebumps

    i exhale
    and my breath is visible

    walking in the park
    leaves satisfyingly crunch under foot

    i take a sip
    of my pumpkin spice latte

    it is refreshing
    i behold the trees

    the many hued leaves
    create a rich tapestry of color

    i arrive home in time for lunch
    french onion soup

    i smell the sweet carmelized onions
    it is topped with melted cheese

    a pleasing meal
    nourishing and earthy

    i sit by the window
    reading a book

    soon it is evening
    i wear a comfy sweater

    i drift asleep
    dreaming of a Thanksgiving feast

    by Zachary Uram, (c) 2015

  • A Poem Untitled

    photographs are interesting
    yet also strange

    capturing a real life,
    in motion

    a moment immortalized,
    frozen in time

    what stories would we hear
    if they could speak

    information lost
    so much is unsaid

    we do not perceive all
    hidden forever

    but we do see dimly
    just a glimpse

    (c) Zachary Uram 2015

  • Jarvis and Bach

    Australian author Martin Jarvis starts with an astounding assertion, that Bach’s second wife Anna Magdalena Bach wrote not only the Solo Cello Suites, but other major works attributed to Bach as well.  He expects us to go along with him with basically no real evidence. The much ballyhooed handwriting analysis is a joke, and it has been debunked by real Bach experts. And make no mistake about it Jarvis is decidedly not a Bach expert. For a thoroughly devastating critique of Jarvis and his absurd thesis please read this article written by eminent Bach scholar Ruth Tatlow. It’s a wonderful rejoinder! Even if every single Bach work we have extant was written in Anna’s hand it doesn’t mean anything more than she was an efficient and trusted copiest. To read between the lines and presuppose this ink being in Anna’s hand somehow proves her authorship is truly absurd and defies logic!

    Jarvis has produced a documentary and a book to document his wild theories. I’d watch the documentary if it were available for free on YouTube, but I certainly won’t be contributing any money to a person who is trying to make a name for himself with shoddy scholarship and sensationalistic claims about the greatest composer in history! The same for his book.

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  • depression redux

    lost in a dark abyss
    mired in an unceasing melancholy
    my soul aches
    a cold darkness engulfs me
    it chills me to the bone
    waves of dread wash over me
    i cry out in despair
    my mind is numb
    yet at my worst He is still present
    Christ’s love reaches me
    even in my lowly wretched state
    how amazing and wonderful
    thank you Lord!
    i will keep running the race

    (c) By Zachary Uram, 2015

  • rant

    The black leadership in America is abysmal, it has desperately failed the black community. All I see is victimization and race baiting, it’s all politics to them. Blacks keep voting for Democrats and nothing changes. If you elected strong, intelligent, conservative black men like Allen West you would see changes in the black community IMHO. And you need better leaders than the likes of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson! Another thing, my family are immigrants (legal ones), and had absolutely nothing to do with slavery so I’m tired of being blamed for past injustices.

  • How shall we worship

    Within the Christian church there are two basic forms of worship: the regulative principle of worship (RPW) and the normative principle of worship (NPW). Basically the regulative principle allows only that which is explicitly mentioned in Scripture. And the normative principle allows anything which isn’t explicitly forbidden by Scripture. In many RPW churches you will find exclusive psalmody (EP). With exclusive pslamody the Psalms contained in Scripture are the sole form of music permitted in worship. They are sung by the congregation and no musical accompaniment is permitted.

    I favor the normative principle, it gives us the freedom to praise God using all of our talents and utilizing the best hymns and sacred music of the past. I find the regulative principle to be overly restrictive and not supported by Scripture. We have examples of people praising God using instruments in Scripture. I cannot imagine that when we perform Bach’s sacred cantatas we are somehow sinning against God and that the music is not true worship! There is lots of legalistic thinking in proponents of EP so be careful if you run into them.

    Here is a good article which discusses these issues.

  • A Christmas poem

    The Christmas Star shows the way
    To the manger in Bethlehem
    Filled with hay

    The animals gave watch
    As our dear Lord was born
    On a crisp Christmas morn

    Christ came to save us all
    Man was lost in sin
    Since the Fall

    Out of love
    Christ came to earth
    To win us second birth

    Repent and submit to Him too
    Be born again
    Your life is anew

    Make Christ your Lord
    And Savior today
    Do not delay

    So rejoice and be glad
    Eternal life
    Is now had

    Decorate the Christmas tree
    Sing carols and stroll in the snow
    Have some egg nog and let your cheeks glow

    Have colored lights that shimmer so bright
    May there be peace on earth
    On this magical Christmas night

    So be jolly and full of cheer
    Let Christmas mirth
    Herald Christ’s birth

    (c) 2014 Zachary Uram

  • More on tattoos

    I must admit that I *hate* tattoos. When I see them I feel a strong sense of revulsion. When  a girl has tattoos it seems even worse. I have seen many girls who were beautiful, yet they ruined their beauty by getting awful tattoos. The trend used to be that women would get a small tattoo on their wrist or ankle, but now the trend seems to be huge garish tattoos which cover the entire arm or half of their leg. I could not bear to marry a girl who had tattoos. It would drive me crazy! I know we have freedom in Christ, but it’s interesting that tattoos were forbidden in the Old Testament. Only pagans got them! Tattoos are now so prevalent in my city among 18-50 year olds that I think those who don’t have them are actually now in the minority!