Thursday, November 27, 2014

Annual Christmas Poem: Into the Silence

Into the Silence

Into the silence of a world
weary of waiting
came but a whisper
though
eager hearts wanted
a crescendo of wonder

“Overcome our longings with
shouts and cries of
‘no more tears’”
came the pleas from
so many who thought
God to be asleep
if not dead

But the very awake God
shaped a sound that
was unexpected
and the soft cry of
the child was
heard only by those
who were still listening

So shepherds thought the
stars just might be singing
but what did they know?
No one would listen to them
for they were ones
of no account

And strangers who watched those
same stars heard what sounded
like, “go and seek,”
so they followed their hearts
though some
doubted their minds
and thought their long journey
foolish
  
 So the whisper was discovered
in the awesome silence
of a world surprised
and God said to the silence
and to the seekers and shepherds,
“Emmanuel…I am
now one of you.”

And so now this year
in the midst of so
much noise
Will you listen again
to the silence?
If you do you will hear
God say,
“Love is born for you”

Jody Seymour
Christmas 2014