This is the fourth in a series of ekphrastic poems based upon an Advent art project which Grace Presbyterian is doing to mark the Sundays to Christmas. The project is entitled The Jesse Tree, and you may read more on the Grace Presbyterian website HERE. A talented artist in the congregation has made use of abstraction to interpret each of the Jesse Tree themes which so far have focused on: King David, the Promised Land, the Suffering Servant, and now Light of the World.

Here’s her artwork as it hangs, and the poem it inspires, follows. What do you see?

In darkness we walked, hiding, alone—
Running away but afraid of too:
Being found out, seeing, being known.

And longing colors us in the blue
Of sadness, grief, for the waiting of
The morning when the old is made new.

A promise of joy sings from above
Fills hearts with wonder, faces flushed pink
Our Desire has come to us in love.

Standing on our toes right at the brink,
A door breaks open to the harassed
Who at last, welcomed, may feed and drink.

And Dayspring pours forth into night at last—
The Sunrise visits us from on high
Whom darkness crosses but cannot grasp.

© Randall Edwards 2019.
This poem is for Christ’s church. If it is helpful, please feel free to copy or reprint in church bulletins, read aloud, or repost. I only ask that an attribution be cited to myself (Randall Edwards) and this blog (backwardmutters.com). Thank you.
Artwork: © Adah Freeman 2019, “Light of the World” acrylic on canvas. All Rights Reserved.