The Lords Prayer

The Lords Prayer
Mathew 6: 9 – 13

Dear supernal Father,
heaven – so far away,
yet, it’s in our earthly reach.
Sacred is Your name!
Your name we will not breach.
In every age – so ordained
not be cursed – profaned,
to speak His name in vain.

Love the Father, love the Son.
Please don’t damn, the Father,
Please don’t curse the Son.
Hallowed be Their Person,
Hollowed be Their Name.

His name must not be stained;
too often mocked – defamed.
Sacrilege at worse, carelessness at best,
dismissed – devalued – disdained,
done in anger or in jest – but none the less,
another way to stain His name,
to take His name in vain.

All on earth – think it through;
How we speak – think and do.
Holy things in life there is;
has always been, will always be,
His name is one of them for me.
Never, never take in vain,
Never, never to defame,
whatever form it takes,
His Person or His name. 

All of us will sleep one day,
One day, we will awake;
vainly threw His name about,
needless sin we should not make.
Honor Father’s name,
Honor Son the same!

Where Heaven is,
exactly, we’re not sure.
Yet, we’re rest assured,
Heaven is a place.
Place we see by faith.
God’s earthly presence felt;
in solitude, in quiet time,
on earth – it’s so sublime!
His presence felt is sweet and real,
foretaste of Heaven – on earth we feel. 

Heaven! Angel’s habitat,
Jesus Sovereign Chair,
Father’s Presence Stare,
Heaven’s Host – yield to Father’s Will,
not unfaithful – not unsettled there.

On earth is where,
we struggle – stumble still,
to do the Father’s Will.
Weak and frail this flesh;
misguided in the mind,
fear and lot’s of pride,
greed and lust and envies,
never ending enemies.

The way to do His Will,
as much as flesh and blood can do;
think and do the Golden Rule;
Love the Lord our God,
heart – mind – strength and soul.
Love our neighbor as ourselves.
Follow this will partly make us whole.
All else we pray will fall in place;
Pray God we give our heart and will,
Pray God to give us faith an grace!

Amazon Mountains – lonely, cold and dark,
waiting for a train – Basin in Brazil,
I saw and heard the poor of poor,
wrapped in blanket – concrete floor.
Few people at the station – late and most remote,
heard an echo prayer, off the station walls;
for daily bread and blanket – I heard him ask and thank our God.
This young voice it pricked me in my heart,
this prayer for daily bread, my conscience pierced!
Expect the more should we, demand the more should I?
Why the more, don’t we have enough – warmed and clothed and fed?
Pray dare, how dare, for us to ask for more our daily bread.

Seek the good life – some boldly misled to preach,
Yet dear saint, the Word and Spirit – in secret speaks;
the good life oh no! The life that’s good – to seek and reach.
Oh soul of faith and prayer, take heed,
less of what we want – more of what we need.

All we really need is daily bread!
Need no mansion – more square feet,
just safe and clean to lay our head.
The kids – the future – consider,
give them what we didn’t have,
or what we had and failed to thank,
yet, we swam and never sank.
Give the kids the best of tools,
Oh God forbid in public schools.
Halls of Ivy –  is what we seek.
Mom and Dad such pride they speak.

If we have – more than we need,
the sprawling house, the Ivy League,
could we think – of those who aren’t our seed?
Could the faithful show their grateful;
to higher power, undeserving, do we not concede?
Let us share our more of things! 

Two of one grand thing, we do not need.
Help the homeless those derailed; and more than just to feed.
Help the poor; no curse and hurt, be kind and do good deeds.
Help disabled too; normal fruitful life to lead.
 Enough is enough!
Something less for flesh – something for our soul.
The bread we daily need, enough this promise be.

Omission – commission – admission,
must admit we have all sinned;
allowed – promoted – committed.
Sinners yes, transgressors yes,
yet forgiven, yes cleansed and blessed!
Sins we see – He see’s His Righteousness;
unseats the shame and guilt – our conscience free,
The Cross the Blood, His love for me.   

We’ve sinned against so many,
they’ve sinned our way so much.
We’re just a bunch of sinners,
We need Redemption’s touch!
Too often others, we accuse.
The same in us, we do excuse.
Think of who we were back then,
think the mess we are today;
try not to charge their sins to them,
the hurts – misdeeds the’ve sown.
If we don’t, this prayer we hear – our sins,
that God just might impute our own. 

Learn about Your way;
The Spirit – the Word of God does say.
Look above and around, see Your works at play;
Sky – Earth – Water too,
and what He’s done for human clay,
so much, and much, and much much more,
so much for us to look to You, to love and to adore.

What You give us – what You don’t.
We learn by both – way we’re shaped and honed.
Learn our lessons hard – pray no need to do.
If chastise to teach us, please be quick and make it stick.
The spirit very willing – flesh is very weak,
Work hard to give our supple souls to tweak.
Lead us not, deliver us, from lessons hard – hope no need to do, 
to expel the evil from us, we pray to follow You.

Kingdom and Power,
Glory on earth is shown.
Grace and Faith and Word Alone.
All to the Glory of God!
Salvation’s rests in this alone,
to grand a verse – no more to say,
this meager feeble poem.
Only God has asked us Praise! 

Joseph C. Hutchison, Rochester Hills Michigan

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