One of the most popular post in this blog is the Adrian Plass’ poem. I was re-reading it today.
For the past few weeks…since November, my emotion had been up and down. I really wanted to follow Christ. Yet the passion is not there. What seemed to be easy task like sending out an email and administrative duties, now seemed to be huge and overbearing.
My last post was asking for God to change my heart. To rediscover the joy of following Him and forego all cost.
I am going to be heading up the Mercy Ministry in the English Congregation of my church. My pastor asked me to get two books and read them in order to prepare for this role. I wish I can say I am hungering to read them. I am not. I want to crave for it. But I am not.
One of the books is Ministries of Mercy The call of the Jericho Road. Tim Keller is revisiting the parable of the Good Samaritan. I reflected this parable before (here and here).
When I read the poem on Adrian Plass again…there are few verses that capture my attention:
Are you man enough to see the need, and man enough to go,
Man enough to care for those whom no one wants to know,
Man enough to say the thing that people hate to hear,
To battle through Gethsemane in loneliness and fear.
And listen! Are you man enough to stand it at the end,
The moment of betrayal by the kisses of a friend,
Are you man enough to hold your tongue, and man enough to cry?
When nails break your body-are you man enough to die?
Man enough to take the pain, and wear it like a crown,
Man enough to love the world and turn it upside down,
Are you man enough to follow me, I ask you once again?
I said, Oh Lord, I’m frightened, but I also said Amen.
Man enough to care for those whom no one wants to know,
Man enough to say the thing that people hate to hear,
To battle through Gethsemane in loneliness and fear.
And listen! Are you man enough to stand it at the end,
The moment of betrayal by the kisses of a friend,
Are you man enough to hold your tongue, and man enough to cry?
When nails break your body-are you man enough to die?
Man enough to take the pain, and wear it like a crown,
Man enough to love the world and turn it upside down,
Are you man enough to follow me, I ask you once again?
I said, Oh Lord, I’m frightened, but I also said Amen.
Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen; Amen, Amen, Amen,
I said, Oh Lord, I’m frightened, but I also said, Amen.
So I am back there. Am I man enough to go? And care for those where no one wants to. And man enough to handle the pain?
On the road of Jericho. The lonely road of Jericho. All I see are men lying around beaten and barely breathing. I see families lost and struggle with poverty without hope. I see many of my brothers and sisters seem to impervious of the problem. It is as if no one understands. And all I see are my own hands full of complacency, a heart of a pharisee and not moving an inch to help.
So I will go..I am frightened and I feel lost. And I will go. There is no need to ask why. Because when the shepherd..the GOOD Shepherd calls…His sheep follow.
