Song of the Baptist

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Anton Raphael Mengs - St. John the Baptist Preaching in the Wilderness

The wilderness embraces me.
Sand and rocks surround my feet.
The heat bakes my flesh.
It is here,
I stand in communion with Yahweh.  

I have sought solitude for my entire life, 
casting off the temple duties of my father 
to become a nomad.  
I feast daily on locusts 
and the wild fluids of nature.  

I hear the creator's voice 
and I know He hears me.
The Lord tells me 
it is time to come out from the dessert.  
He, 
who I have waited for 
since the days in my mother's womb, 
is ready to claim the course of his life.  

I must make straight 
the path he is to follow
and beckon the repentant to the Jordan's shore.
I must journey
from the solitude of the wilderness
to the persecution of the world.

copyright 2016 - Donald P James Jr

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