Listening

I have never been a strong runner
but I have always been strong willed
and running from You has always been more than my second nature
I was designed to love and praise
but I was destined to be ashamed of my present, let alone my past
Your voice echoes through my very bones
but that's all it is
an echo
A call resounding off the walls of the box of my mind
repeating, repeating, gone
I long for you to write sonnets and love letters across my eyelids
 so that when I shut them you are all I see
I long for you to hold my hand long enough for your finger prints to seep into mine
so that I can feel your story and your human struggle and your holy healing
but do not hold my hand for long
Let me know that I am able to walk on the water of my own feet
Give me ears that distinguish even your faintest call
And when I am faint and weary do not cover my wounds
but let them be tattoos of triumph
A testimony to grace and gratitude
Write your songs on my heart and your life on my lips
When a baby cries people will say it is from lack of food or a need to be held,
and sometimes I need to be held,
but I think they cry from an inborn need to get their message across
And my heart has been crying out more than it's been caving in
And I am learning to get my message across
In a brand new language of love
My Father has flashcards of freedom and signs of sorrows
He has been pulling my heart strings to tunes both new and old
He is teaching me a new language of love
spoken by a shepherd I dare to follow because he dared to take on flesh for my sake
Clothing me in the wisdom of his ways
Calling his beloved sheep through a blessed gate
Into a pasture of peace and restoration
As long as they are quiet enough to listen