“I do the very best I know how, the
very best I can,
and I mean to keep
on doing so until the end.”
Abraham Lincoln
_________________________________________
I am scared
I mean it
Some very sick people
(it is a sickness unto death)
Have almost unchecked power
And it feels as if they are tearing the world
And my soul
Apart
God is
God is good
But people have an immense capacity for destruction
It appears even God gets tired of it all
Sometimes
“Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain,
Who destroys the whole earth,” declares the Lord,
How do we keep on keeping on
In times like these?
How did Abraham Lincoln keep going
As he looked at the unfinished dome of the capital building
Saw the campfire smokes of the confederacy
And felt deeply how fragile our democracy really is
How did he get the strength to say
All I can do is what I can do
I will keep doing it!
How can we reach the place where we say
I will not tire of doing good
Because I am tired
I am tired of trying to get people to do their homework
Find the truth
Trying to counter the lies that flow over us
Like a river of ooze and slime
Tired of standing up against an ideology of hate and fear
And of resisting people who care about money and power
And not people
I am tired of trying to be positive and not angry
I am tired of the knot in my stomach when I read the news
And see the damage being done to the planet
And to the creatures who live upon it
And as I look into this New Year
What I see is division and destruction
Hate and violence
Injustice and inequity
How do I keep going in the face of all this?
I guess this is where faith comes in.
The belief that, despite what we see and hear
Despite what some churches tell us
God is compassion, inclusion, acceptance,
God abhors injustice and inequity
God is anguished when people refuse to share
God is willing to give God’s self completely
That all people might find life, and find it more abundantly
Can I, in faith, do the very best I know how, the very best
I can,
until I am completely used up
Can I follow in the footsteps of Jesus
Can I live love even as hate does its worst?
Can I stay welcoming
Can I continue to listen and seek to understand
Can I work to help and heal everyone
Who crosses my path?
I believe that although I am a beautiful mess
That God is there for me, will always be there for me
And I believe that God is there for all others
All
Others
That God is waiting
to welcome them into the circle of love
Can I live that belief?
And be present, radically and sacrificially, for others?
Honestly, I don’t know
But I will try, and keep trying
Because I don’t know what else to do
________________________________
This is my anthem (my theme song) for the New Year
Praise to the Lord of the small broken things,
who sees the poor sparrow that cannot take wing.
who loves the lame child and the wretch in the street
who comforts their sorrows and washes their feet.
Praise to the Lord of the faint and afraid
who girds them with courage and lends them His aid,
He pours out his spirit on vessels so weak,
that the timid can serve and the silent can speak.
Praise to the Lord of the frail and the ill
who heals their afflictions or carries them till,
they leave this tired frame and to paradise fly.
to never be sick and never to die.
Praise him, O praise Him all ye who live
who’ve been given so much and can so little give
our frail lisping praise God will never despise-
He sees His dear children through mercy-filled eyes.
Words,
Johanna Anderson
Music,
Dan Forrest
No comments:
Post a Comment