Dec 07 2005
We live lives filled
with others –
other people,
other thoughts,
other emotions,
things that don’t quite belong and
things that are supposed to be.
Whether we want them there or not,
nonetheless,
they are there.
We listen to them too often.
We listen to them not enough.
We run from them so quickly.
We embrace them wholeheartedly.
We have these lives and
we are not alone,
both to our detriment,
but to our ultimate benefit.
APN
Copyright 12/05/2005
Dec 07 2005
Third Week of Advent
December 11, 2005
I approach these verses wondering just exactly what we’re supposed to intuit here. So many proclamations broadcasted; so many promises made; so many injunctions delivered; so many commands shouted out. We are faced with a series of verses in this passages that could receive many divergent interpretations. These verses could contain prophecies concerning John the Baptist’s message, the good news in the message that Jesus would bring to the world, or maybe the kind of life that we as believers in Jesus should live in front of and proclaim to others.
What I am most reluctant to do, however, is to declare that these verses are exclusively referencing some sort of social gospel that we as humans are supposed to enact, through our own efforts. I am most reluctant to do so because it is my first reaction. I do not want to read prophecies here; I want to read verses that compel humans to treat other humans better. Verses about prophecies worry me because they can be so over-blown and over-analyzed that their message is disregarded. Unfortunately though, when I choose to ignore the fact that these verses could be prophetic, I have chosen to not receive the beautiful promises contained in those possible prophecies. Thus, I seek to enter into these verses by allowing them to speak to me, allowing them to examine me, as opposed to my standard tactic of looking for concepts & ideas that are outside the norm, simply because they are outside the norm.
Continue reading “Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11″
Dec 07 2005
This is a poem written by an elder at the church of which I am a member for our service on the Second Week of Advent. He read this during our AM service, and, due to his not feeling that well, I was asked to read it for our PM service. I was taken aback at the breadth of themes presented and the way in which they were all tied together to make a beautiful & coherent whole. After the service, several people came up to me to let me know how much they loved the poem and asked me if I had written it myself. I told them that I had not written it, but that an elder, Paul Randall, had. Such a response to his poem compelled me to inquire of Paul as to whether or not I could include this poem as a part of my series of Advent posts. He granted me permission and you get to reap the benefits of his craftsmanship. Please enjoy, reflect, and comment as you see fit. Again, I give thanks to Paul for his permission.
Poem for Advent 2
2005
Mountain peaks tremble, quake and give way
in a day, or a thousand years
into open-mouthed valleys
swallowing sin and shame.
Grass, so zealously green in the spring,
browns with age, withers, cracks,
tumbles before the breath of God
gathers along fence lines,
lodges with leaves on the sidewalk.
Over newly leveled plains
Righteousness and Peace
outstretch lips to kiss.
A seed falls, roots, sprouts
Faithfulness flowers and bears fruit.
The harvest is the glory of our God.
Winter wheat to be milled, baked, broken.
Succulent grapes ripen on the vine
bursting under bare feet of one unworthy, unkempt
fresh from the wilderness
preparing the wine, preparing the way.
A measure of flour
lumpy, uneven
is shaken, tapped, leveled
heights made low
holes filled in
sifted, for the second time
(the first for the chaff)
the recipe, the way, is prepared.
Copyright © 2005 by Paul Fredrick Randall
