Would he ever really let his secret out?

I felt like I could never obey him,

I listened to my church teachers quite well -

so well, indeed, I heard beyond their word

to nuances: the oft repeated bell-

tones, times, and smiles and frowns and whispered fears,

and all the time forgiveness from my sin,

instead of walking confidence, which hears

so deeply, then speaks words that travel in,

& bring their hope, and foster faith & love,

this week - to crush that serpent under heel.

O God, your attitude, come from above

us to this Earth, into he who could feel

the pain, the misery, and came to find

the children who came from your heart that’s true;

who loved them such that he would clean and bind

their dirty wounds, and staunch their bleeding too.

His walking into stories of back then

brought life and light, and love and hope, and peace,

and often either joy or scowls, for when

he chose the folk to hang out with (with ease),

it wasn't those who weekly “went to church”

(except they broke their self-imposed rules to

get close to Jesus, then, “left in the lurch”,

to learn from him the way to life, & you)!

And when they did they heard the strangest word,

I'm thinking still about it, daily like,

“Deny yourself, take up your cross (absurd?),

and follow after me my little tyke!”