A Mirror to Mine

A Mirror to Mine

(“Do you think all God wants are sacrifices—empty rituals just for show? He wants you to listen to him! Plain listening is the thing, not staging a lavish religious production.” 1 Samuel 15:22 [The Message])

While the corners are piled with the world’s castaways
we play wise men and Herod, Pilate and centurions,
enacting ancient stories with smoke effects and children’s choirs.

Give me a single day of passion. A cloudless vision of the womb-love
of God. Give me lace with mud, scratched silver and old pennies found
at the foot of gnarled apple trees determined to offer their fruit against all
odds.

While the borders are crowded with castoff peasants
we buy better security to protect our audio-visual equipment in
our not-so-sacred places. We dig to the bottom of our blue-jean
pockets to give our last dollar for this year’s software update.

Give me a single year of housing. A flag refurled so the colors bleed
into each other. Give me huts and haunts, swollen knuckles and young babies
brought to the foot of our fears. Show me their faces, and hold a mirror
to mine.

Put the nation on pause, please. Give the pastor some time, this time,
to meet Jesus again. And unlock the doors we closed when we feared
politics might enter and become converted. We have one too many flags
in our churches.

“Give us this day our daily bread”: we’ve forgotten how You broke,
and blessed, and gave Yours away.

“Give us this day…” for our mercy seems to have evaporated away.

“Give us this day…” and we will put it in our knapsacks and give it away.

Give us some time, this time, to meet Jesus again.