Guatemala in Verse.

This week, I have been trying to find a way to explain to you what my time Guatemala was like. There are many ways to portray what these last few weeks have looked like: I could tell you the events and what our days consisted of, which was mostly asking the Lord what he had for us that day, slowing down, and loosing time in the presence of the Living God. I could tell you what I learned in the two weeks we were there or give you a list of the people God allowed us to encounter and love. Or, I could paint a picture, one story that would give you a glimpse into our day. But all these things seem minimal to depict my time in Guatemala.The only way I can seem to express everything that God has done is from what first flowed out of my mind when reminiscing on the ways God affected me in these last two weeks and that is in verse, hopefully it will lead you to understand my time in Guatemala. Here goes:

 

I’ve sat in peace on this shore for so long

Believing with certainty that nothing would go wrong

But I was Wrong.

 

With every ounce of my body and every scrap of my soul

I’ve wanted to touch these waters with just the tip of my toe

But I Can’t.

 

Because In this sand I’ve been sitting

And in these lies I’ve been living

But for too long have these grains made my home

And for too long on these beaches have I been scared to roam

But I’m Scared.

 

Then one day—there was a breeze.

And that breeze turned into a wind

And that wind turned into a storm

And no longer could the waters hold its roar

But waves crashed upon Humanity’s Shore

 

They rolled and they tumbled and bellowed deep

And with no choice, I awoke from my great sleep

With the thrash of a wave, I was hurled out to sea

And there was no calm to lift my head and breathe

Chaos in the midst.

No beauty in the distance.

No Horizon.

No Sun.

No Hope to Perceive.

I cried out, “Oh God! Won't you set me free?”

But Free I Was.

 

For in the waves that had come crashing down

My fear and unbelief was surely found

For so long to these troubles my heart was bound

To understand faith, my feet needed ground

 

But ground there is not

For in this sea, I’ve encountered my lot

In my net of transgression, I have surely been caught

And if tangled I stay, I will surely rot

 

But tangled I am for with all my might—

I try to fight.

Fight to hide.

Fight to cope.

Fight to stay tied to these unforgiving ropes.

But in these ropes, there’s still hope.

Because as I fought—

I heard a whisper.

 

A peace from the depths rising above

Although the storm had not called for a Branch or a Dove

A murmur of a heartbeat echoing around

That Beauty and Goodness still abounds

 

From the Heartbeat that holds these waters in place

The same Tune designed time and space

And that Song has rung from the very start

And resounds throughout my own feeble heart

 

Yet, from time to time, in the sand I wish to hide

But because, in these waves, I had to die

So forever in His waters, I will always abide

A child, an heir, a begotten bride

 

For so long I've wanted to sit far from trial

On this beach of contentment and bask in denial 

But in this great mercy of His, He shook me to the core

When he called the waves to crash on Humanity’s Shore