“How I Talk to God” by Kelly Belmonte
Ponderings of a Priest:
Coffee in one hand
leaning in to share, listen:
How I talk to God.
“Momma, you’re special.”
Three-year-old touches my cheek.
How God talks to me.
While driving I make
lists: done, do, hope, love, hate, try.
How I talk to God.
Above the highway
hawk: high, alone, free, focused.
How God talks to me.
Rash, impetuous
chatter, followed by silence:
How I talk to God.
First, second, third, fourth
chance to hear, then another:
How God talks to me.
Fetal position
under flannel sheets, weeping
How I talk to God.
Moonlight on pillow
tending to my open wounds
How God talks to me.
Pulling from my heap
of words, the ones that mean yes:
How I talk to God.
Infinite connects
with finite, without words:
How God talks to me.
The poem “How I Talk to God” by Kelly Belmonte was introduced to me this past week when reading the Lenten devotional, The Word in the Wilderness. The poem connected so well with what we read this past week in the parish’s Lenten book study that I felt like it was worth sharing some thoughts.
In Chapter One of Holy Living, Jeremy Taylor addresses that whatever a Christian does, it should be offered with purity of intention to the glory of God: “That we should intend and design God’s glory in every action we do...Which rule, when we observe, every action of nature becomes religious, and every meal is an act of worship...as well as an act of prayer. Blessed be that goodness and grace of God, which, out of infinite desire to glorify and save mankind, would make the very works of nature capable of becoming acts of virtue, that all our lifetime we may do him service. This grace is so excellent that it sanctifies the most common actions of our life...” Taylor recites the words of St. Paul, “Whether you eat or drink, do all to the glory of God.” By having the intention in all our actions, whether religious or of nature, spiritual or common, everything can be made an act of worship and prayer.
You might recall St Paul’s instructions to “pray without ceasing.” This can be understood as devoting one's life to the ministry and mission of God in monastic or holy orders, or reciting breath prayers throughout the day, as in the Jesus Prayer. Both of these have been important in the lives of Christians throughout the history of the Church. Yet, what we hear in the words of the blessed Jeremy Taylor and in the poem of Kelly Belmonte is that prayer can and does happen in everything we do.
During Lent, many of us focus on our prayers, trying to increase the frequency or be more deliberate. While these are good things to do, don’t neglect the rest of your life as a prayer. Say your Daily Offices, include the Litany in your weekly prayers, but don’t forget to listen for God’s response. Not only do we offer all of our tasks to God as worship and prayer, but God also responds to us in the “holy ordinarie”, as George Herbert calls it.
Our prayers are not just a task to complete in the checklist of our daily activities; they are worship and communication with the Divine. It is true, he speaks most plainly to us in his Word, as we read the appointed lessons for the day, and he speaks to us with authority in the words of absolution given by the minister. But the conversation does not simply stop after our “Amen.” God continues to talk to us as “the infinite connects with finite”, in the loving voice of a child, and “moonlight on the pillow.”
The call and response of prayer continues into our everyday tasks. Be mindful to offer all things to God in prayer, through purity of intent. And seek to hear the voice of God to you in the gentle whispers of life, and be ready to respond: “And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.”
God's Peace and a Holy Lent,
Fr. Aaron