Here's a prayer-poem for the Baptism of Jesus, which is this Sunday.
Water Breaks
Frozen, it expands
until it cannot be contained
by pipes too fixed and firm
in their places.
Rushing, it roars
through canyons and down streambeds
washing away dust,
mud, rock, road,
truck, house, church,
town.
Pulsing, it pours
or trickles down the legs
after months of suspending
a growing miracle
as another woman
crosses the threshold
toward meeting her descending child.
Lapping, it opens
as a man's head emerges
from the quiet murky mystery
into shimmering, dove-shaped
light.
Dripping and dancing, it blesses
infant, child, youth, adult
with the grace that goes before us,
tearing down walls
between sisters and brothers,
smashing the chains of alienation,
anger, judgment, fear,
addiction, apathy, despair,
and death.
May the water within you
and around you
break
in ways that make life
and wholeness
more possible each day.
Permission is granted to use this prayer-poem in worship. Please acknowledge with (c) Kerry Greenhill, 2014.
