A Little Less Anger

A poem and a prayer about rage and reconciliation
Only god knows
Only god Understands
by brian r. godshall © 2023
with thanks to I Kings 19, the Book of Job, Jesus’s teaching in the book of Matthew chapter 7 and Ecclesiastes 5

A little less anger
A little less fear
A year with too little hope
Has at times been too much to bear.

A little less rage
A little less hate
As we turn the page
And pray for a more beneficial fate.

A little less sadness
A little less gloom
As we take the time to listen to others
And step away from a sense of doom.

Don’t tell me what’s up
Don’t tell me what’s down
How can I understand your life
When I don’t understand my own?
To demand or proclaim understanding is to commit the sin of Job’s friends

From the book of Job
But it is the spirit in a person,
The breath of the Almighty,
that gives them understanding.
For we all are like Elihu in the good book
“I am the same as you in God’s sight; I too am a piece of clay.
No fear of me should alarm you,
Nor should my hand be heavy upon you.”
No fear of me should alarm you,
Nor should my hand be heavy upon you.”

Only God knows

But it is the spirit in a person,
The breath of the Almighty,
that gives them understanding
(Job 32:8)
Breathe deeply the hope of that thought
For this is what the Almighty has wrought
For man and womankind to study the word
Of various religions
And lean more closely on GOD.
For a greater understanding may only be one step away
From the here and the now
When we learn how to pray
For listening is a part of any good prayer
That strikes our hearts deeply
To learn and to share
What wisdom we are given when we are silent and then
A revelation comes to us with a hearty amen
As our God speaks to us silently
Thru nature and more
The purring of a cat
Or a baby’s sleepy snore

From the book of Job
It is not only the old who are wise,
not only the aged who understand what is right.
Therefore, I say: Listen to me;
I too will tell you what I know.
It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings
For the idle waste their time in endless chatter but the prudent sing to glory on angels’ wings
It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of queens
For the idle waste their time in endless chatter but the prudent sing to glory on angel streams

The anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God
And a wise soul is open to both a quick nod or a mild prod

For an angry person sTiRs Up conflict, and a hot-teMPered person commits many sins.
Proverbs 29:22

Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit,
For God blesses those who hear the word and fear it
For anger resides in the laps of fools
And stubbornness is a quality held dearly by mules.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts,
So once and for all the enemy may depart
since as members of one body you were called to peace
let ugly conflict and hatred now and forever cease.

The anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God
And a wise soul is open to both a quick nod or a mild prod

From Kings 19

The Wind shattered the rocks
But the Lord was not in the Wind
The Prophet feared being mocked
But the people knew they had sinned

The earthquake shattered the land
But the Lord was not in the earthquake
The people came to understand
They should listen for their own sake

After the earthquake came a fire
But the Lord was not in the fire
After the fire came a tender whisper

When God did finally speak it was as a whisper
And the Prophet came to realize his work was not hindered
When God did finally speak it was in a voice that was meek.
And as the Prophet left the cave
he expected it would be God who forgave
When God uttered a word, it was in a manner of one who is meek
So, the prophet came to know how he too should speak

Why do you inspect the dust in your brother’s eye
And then look to the sky
And ask your God why
Is he so imperfect and I can clearly see
The fault in his life that has come to be
So… Lord…
let me take the dust out of his eye
and his flagrant imperfection will disappear as a sigh

But how can you say all this to your brother
When perhaps there’s something rougher
About you for believing it’s tougher
For the brother to fix himself
Than for you to forgive him and move on.

But how can you think all of this about your brother
When perhaps there’s something rougher about you
For believing that it is tougher for the brother to fix himself
Than it is for the two of you to argue as to whom is the better guru
For you to forgive him, accept and move on.

Ecclesiastes 5 1-3

1Guard your steps when you go to the house of God.
Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools,
who do not know that they do wrong.
2 Do not be quick with your mouth,
do not be hasty in your heart
to utter anything before God.
God is in heaven
and you are on earth,
so let your words be few.
3 A dream comes when there are many cares,
and many words mark the speech of a fool.

Job 32:8
But it is the spirit in a person,
The breath of the Almighty,
that gives them understanding
Breathe deeply the hope of that thought
For this is what the Almighty has wrought
For man and womankind to study the word
Of various religions
And lean closer on GOD.
For a greater understanding may only be one step away
From the here and the now
When we learn how to pray
For listening is part of any good prayer
That strikes our hearts deeply
To learn and to share
What wisdom we are given when we are quiet and then
A revelation comes to us with a hearty amen
As our God speaks to us silently
Thru nature and more
The purring of a cat
Or a baby’s sleepy snore