Archive - September, 2009

Where is your brother?

Yesterday’s entry in Streams in the Desert had a stirring poem by Archbishop William Alexander. The poem moved me as it spoke to my heart’s passion. Listen to this…

“If I have eaten my morsel alone,”
The patriarch spoke with scorn;
What would he think of the Church were he shown
Heathendom—huge, forlorn,
Godless, Christless, with soul unfed,
While the Church’s ailment is fullness of bread,
Eating her morsel alone?

“Freely you have received, so give,”
He says, who has given us all.
How will the soul in us longer live
Deaf to their starving call,
For whom the blood of the Lord was shed,
And His body broken to give them bread,
If we eat our morsel alone!

Bread Image

Oh Church, I confess to being a glutton, but I can no longer fully enjoy our feasts, the meetings of shared faith. My heart longs to take the abundance of life to those who hunger, those who cry out, those who have no hope.

To those who wait, “I don’t know how to get to you, but I’m coming. Hold on a little longer while I find my way and learn. I want to bring you a bite of hope, a bit of love and acceptance. I’m a coming. Don’t give up.”

To God, “Help me bring the answer to their cries. Show me how to do this. What is your way? Fill me with your amazing love and let it pour over them. Here am I.”

“Where is your brother Abel?” (Genesis 4:9)

Let Not the Music Die

Great Master, touch us with Your skillful hands;
Let not the music that is in us die! ~Streams, p. 335

Play MusicThat line of poetry pierces into the struggle for my passion and alludes to the difficulties of life. Job said:
Is not all human life a struggle? Our lives are like that of a hired hand…who longs for the shade…waiting to be paid. I, too, have been assigned months of futility, long and weary nights of misery (Job 7:1-3).
If you’re like me working toward some beautiful melody or outcome, but find only discord and difficult notes, take heart. God will touch us at the right time and make beautiful music from all our pain and struggles. Your life and work matters to God. Let’s not allow the music in us to die.
 
What awesome worship the sacrifice of playing our music becomes.
Play on!