Oh God please help him to remember what
he's got in fam'ly, now within this life
you've given us, that starts as one cell, not
at all able to choose in times of strife
for good or evil, we must trust to God,
but when the time was ripe, a point would come
where in his plan we'd learn to do a lot
and step up to be humans - & then some.
And now your spirit is deposit paid
to us that's just the first bit, and there's more.
And thus begins a new life. Now we wade
not just through water, but like him implore
God's help where needed (yet he is the boss).
It's just he only thinks like fam-i-ly,
and often will seem like he's at a loss
and asks what things we'd like to do, and see1.
So when you ask, we'd like to boldly say
the truth as it is here, within us now,
but need your wisdom to help us this day
to learn to ask of you the same, somehow.
What would make your heart swell? - as when you peeked
that day at Jordan, oh so long ago.
When you, who really are quite slow to speak,
spoke from the heavens just to let folk know
that this was your own boy, son of your love,
who had responded fully to you with
the honour he thought due to one above.
And you could not be silent to your kith,
& kin who were about. You must speak out,
that's after looking, list'ning, thirty years,
and through most of our history no doubt.
You're quick to listen, even when through tears2.
And "slow to anger" is a quality
about you3 that we love, and want to learn.
Please help your son in all these, so to free
& then display them more, that's not to spearn
the life of God himself, both Goal & Prize,
and Way to be, to come to live at all
the intersections that we see with eyes
wide open, since you gave us sight, and called!
Footnotes
Note this spirit of partnership that characterizes YHWH:
God's desire is to live with his people as their god, and that we would live with him, as his people.
That the Angel, speaking about Jesus's birth beforehand, said: "WITH God, nothing shall be impossible!"
Jesus dignifies those he heals by not simply doing it to them, but joining with them e.g. the number of times where at least one of the gospel writers mentions some way to participate in the process, the people Jesus heals are given to add to it, or complete it. And then Jesus's explicit words to outline invisible ways they have participated (knowingly, or unknowingly) when he says to these same people words similar to "Your faith has healed you." (Mat 9:22; Mk 10:52; Lk 18:42; 17:19 - and any parallel passages). Yet he is not claiming no involvement for himself. No friendship of partnership is one sided, and that is what is implied by the way Jesus does things with people. And in a few passages Jesus (or his sent messengers) spells out both sides together e.g. Mat 15:28; Acts 3:16.
God's own broken heart, "grieved in his spirit", doesn't stop him taking note of Noah, and Lot, and the Israelites. He still hears their cries, comes down, and gets his hands dirty. (Gen 6:5-8; 18:16-19:22; Exod 3:5-10)
YHWH is the God who is slow to anger (Exod 34:6; Ps 86:15; 103:8; 145:8; Num 14:18; Joel 2:18; Nahum 1:3; Jonah 4:2); hence his children are called to be the same (Ps 37:8; Jam 1:21).
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