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Don’t fear. Don’t judge. Don’t lust. Don’t rush.
Be good. Believe. Beseech. Belong.
Don’t lag. Don’t hate. Don’t hoard. Don’t strut.
Be still. Behold. Become. Becalm.
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How can I obey the command to be still
When my chest rages on like the sea?
When the echo and ache reasons, “you’re not enough,”
Are you satisfied with me?
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Can I love my neighbor as myself,
When I doubt the worth of my own soul?
Can I love the Lord with all my heart,
When my heart, it seems, is still not whole?
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Jacob and Peter and David and Paul,
Beloveds marked by glimmer and grime—
Men like me on the Potter’s wheel,
With whom you take your time.
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What if you’re forming me slow in your hands,
More patient than I am, more kind and forgiving.
What if your “rest” and your “peace” and your “joy”
Are awaiting me here “in the land of the living.”
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What if commands are promises too,
Since you’ll help me obey all you’ve called me to do.
What if your rhythms of washing and healing
Show something about your point of view:
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When you turned water to too much wine,
Were you preaching a sermon on your abundance?
When you instructed us all to abide,
Were you telling the secret to perseverance?
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After you washed your disciples’ feet,
Did you dump that water out the window?
Maybe, for eyes, you smear mud made with tears;
Maybe, like Moses, our faces can glow.
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Image: My preschool daughter’s painting, “Man and Orange.”
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