Two Poems (from the Collection - Pictures of the Messiah)

The Edge of His Cloak

(Matthew 9.18-26; Mark 5.21-43; Luke 8.40-56)

Blood flows

and weakness ensues.

The strength to face my days lessens.

There is little

compassion

for the sick

if hemorrhaging scars the ailment.

This flow

makes my flesh unclean

and all who touch me

are impure for the allotted days.

As I near the moving crowd

those who know of my condition move away,

afraid that I might brush against them

and stain them.

I have heard rumors about You.

You are my final hope.

My offerings have gone unanswered.

My prayers have been unheard.

I struggle to reach You,

using all my strength to close the distance.

I want to simply touch

the hem of your garment.

I know You can make me well.

“Who touched me?”

Your voice frightens and sooths.

I have overstepped my boundaries.

I am a woman

plagued with a menstrual curse

and You are a man.

I have defiled You.

Please Lord forgive me,

for being so bold as to reach out

with my soiled hands,

with fingers tainted by my own blood.

I tremble at Your feet,

under Your gaze,

knowing I am healed

and no longer dirty.

Only Sleeping

(Matthew 9.18-26; Mark 5.21-43; Luke 8.40-56)

Anguish tears through my soul.

The sickness has not left her body.

She is frail,

this child of mine.

I hold tight to a rumored, final hope

that the teacher I’ve heard mentioned

can heal the world my soul is immersed in.

I cannot lose her.

Her shallow breathing causes my heart to ache.

Despair ravages my soul

and makes me cry out to God,

asking for His forgiveness.

You follow me,

back to my home,

where my daughter lies dying.

I have pleaded and You have taken pity.

You kneel beside her mat.

I witness no rising of her chest.

I sob,

I am a parent who has lost a child.

The greatest possible pain of life

engulfs my being.

Arise little girl.

Words foreign to the ache in my heart

fill the room

and eyelids flutter before opening

to gaze upon the one who gives life.

She was only sleeping

and the teacher woke her from its depths.

copyright 2016 - Donald P James Jr

From the Collection 'Pictures of the Messiah'

Available on Amazon.com