Whispered Prayers, a Southside Psalm
Whispered prayers, “Raindrops of mercy”
As eyes and hearts look upward seeking
Billowing clouds with dark shadows of promise
“Dear LORD have mercy on us, wretched souls.”
Jegos, the wind before the rain, stirs
Heaps of swirled cumulonimbus heaving
Into a thunderous rumble, emitting
The one blasting lightning blow.
And the hills to which we lift up our eyes
Are aflame; each and every crevice blazing
Breaking news flashes across our line of vision,
Let justice roll down like dark smoke.
Mercy and justice are not two parallel fence posts
Which corral the love and power of the Living God;
Rather they are woven strands of beauty
Whose pattern is revealed with shifted stance.
Hear O heaven, and give ear, O earth;
For I the LORD have spoken.
And when ye spread forth your hands,
I will hide mine eyes from you:
Yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear:
Your hands are full of blood.
LORD, we kneel, weary and broken,
Hearts ripped open in repentance.
Our ears dull of hearing, and eyes unseeing.
Purge the dross that fouls our nation.
As we gaze across the charred landscape,
With only a splattering of pitter patters
Which threaten to loosen landslides of ashes,
Hope lies buried deep within, And yet.
Rooted and grounded in Love
Reaching down to the sturdy Rock
Against which no winds will prevail, no storm dislodge,
Green sprigs unfurl.
