Thursday, May 19, 2016

Trinity Faith (Trinity Sunday, May 22, 2016)


The child stands very small,
hidden in a great tall crowd
of ponderers and speculators,
of those who rename and rework
and those who murmur,
“There is no way. I don’t believe.”

She strains to see
who holds their attention,
who is causing such commotion …
but she cannot see.
Their tallness surrounds her
and their voices attempt to drown out
the one voice she is wanting to hear.

But then she hears …
“Come unto me, little children.”
She seems to be the only child
yet he is looking 
into the faces of all.
The little one squeezes and pushes 
her way through the crowds
who, with feet planted,
are still murmuring,
“There is no way.  I do not believe.”
       
In the clearing … in this place
between the ponderers and naysayers
and the One who said, “Come unto me”,
she finds herself running 
with arms open wide,
as any child would run 
toward Love.

The little one expected an embrace from the One,
 but instead he took her hand and saw the bruise.  
“What happened?” he asked 
(knowing all along that someone had slapped 
her hand for not being a part of 
the renaming and reworking and disbelief). 

Yes, the little one expected a hug from the One,
but she received hugs from the Three …
the One who whispered, “beloved child,” 
the One who healed her tiny bruised hand and
whispered, “Forgive and forgiven,” 
and the One who whispered, 
“I will not leave you as an orphan.”
It was too mysterious, yet enough for her.

She  looked at the huddled-together ponderers
and knew that they saw only the One  
and she herself pondered …
“Is that why he called out,
‘Send the little children to me, 
for such is the kingdom of heaven?’ ”

The child embraced the Three…. 
and those huddled together 
still saw only the One,
and still murmured,
“There is no way.  I do not believe.”

©2010  anna murdock

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Why, This Gathering Place? (Pentecost ponderings)


In the one place,
they waited
and prayed
and with
hushed voices,
wondered
why.

Why,
this gathering place?
  
They remembered
the words,“Wait.
Gather together and wait.”
That is what
they had come
together to do -
WAIT.

What was
keeping them
together?

Memories
and murmurs
and questions
filled the room
while waiting 
and Waiting
and WAITING.

They heard
the words
from the One
whose death
and now presence
had moved them
from deepest grief
to bewildering joy -
“Believe in God,
believe also in me.”

It was
slowly becoming
more about
the confidence
in the
continued journey
with him
than the
destination.

Why were they
still in this place?
Why were they waiting?

The puzzle pieces
were falling
into place.
“Whoever has seen me
has seen the Father.”
All that they
had heard 
while with him
became
infallible promises.

WHOOSH!
Their questions
were suddenly answered 
in ways that were
unimaginable to them. 

The Holy Spirit
rested upon them
as tongues of fire.
They were not consumed
but their lives would be
consumed forever.
The Advocate 
made a 
forever-dwelling-place
within each one 
gathered in this place.

HOLY GROUND
REMOVE YOUR SANDALS!

The door is now opened!
The wait is now over!
“Go and tell others!”

YES, LET US ALL GO AND TELL OTHERS!

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Ascension - A Longing Prayer


LORD,
I don’t know how
to look at your ascension
in the same way
as the Twelve.
I really don’t.

You see, we don’t 
wear the same sandals
(my walking shoes
are sneakers) 
nor do we have
the same dust
on our clothes.
I haven’t eaten
beside of you
or laughed with you;
I haven’t wept with you
or looked into your eyes.
I haven’t walked with you
in quite the same way, 
questioned as they have,
feared their fears
or stared at your hands 
like they must have
stared at them.

I don’t know how
to look at your ascension
in the same way
as the Twelve,
with the same history
or intimacy.
I really don't.

But what I do know
is that I long for something.
Perhaps it is the same longing
of one of the Twelve.

There are times 
when I sit
in the dark coolness
of the evening
and look heavenward. 
There is a longing
that I don’t fully understand.
There are other times
when I look into the eyes
of everyone
I pass on the street, 
hoping to see you … 
longing to see you
in the faces of others. 
Have you come back to us?
Have I looked into your face?

The longing is there, 
so strong ….
to stand before you
in awe,
to walk with you
and listen,
to be filled
with God’s Spirit 
and be surprised,
to be sent out 
as a most unlikely disciple.
Is that why you ask us
to gather in one place?
Are you telling me that others
have the same longings?

I am bound by earthly thinking
so perhaps I will never 
completely understand
your ascension.
What I am slowly understanding
is that I am not so different
than one of the Twelve.
I just wear different sandals
and have accumulated
different dust
from my journey.

In my anxiousness,
to understand,
O LORD,
I shall wait ... 
yes, I shall 
joyfully wait 
as you have 
asked your 
disciples to do 
for I am one, too.