Believing Prayer

I am intrigued by Jesus’ words to the father of the demon-possessed son, “All things are possible to him who believes.” (Mark 9:23). And later he tells the apostles that only prayer could cast out this kind of demon. (Mark 9: 29).

I ponder the nature of that kind of prayer, a prayer that is a believing life. Here are two poems I wrote a year ago, during our nine-month bible study of the Gospel of Mark. With the poems, I was not trying to cast out demons, except perhaps that of the little-recalled vice of ancient times known as akēdía. Akēdía (or acedia) is spiritual indifference or barrenness combined with zealous material productivity, that is: busyness. Doesn’t that sound like a demon of our times?

In this pair of poems, I sought merely to move into my day in a way pleasing to God - in reliance of him. As both one who prays and believes, and as an embodiment of such prayer.

Shall I live today
as a prayer unfolding
and prayers answered
in that ‘just right’
of a poem
or an antiphon?

Glory to you, O Lord
The frost bows before you
Light lengthens the banner of dawn
And the birds pen love letters to you in song
In that truth
I do not worry.
Just sit and listen into the soundscape
nature in every direction
and within one’s heart.

I AM, in this moment
of beauty and knowledge
what shall we do today?

My pen is ready, O Lord,
My harp is at hand.

Amen.

La niebla, fog – thickening! Tan densa.
I see only what is close at hand
Tufts of winter grasses
Rosemary outside our door
Motherwort in her dead-cane glory
on the other side of my window ledge altar.
The sun has risen
yet I see nothing further
only shapes
the barn and evergreens

Still, I pray Lauds
and write prayer-poems
and decide with God
the shape of the day