Daily Devotional for April 19

 

April 19                                                               Luke 6:27-38
 

               State Hospital

                  Hannah and Myra. Both survived
                                The Jewish camps.
                       Both used bony fingers to
                              Pick away the lice
                        On other thin companions.
           Tattooed numbers on upper arms remind.
                              Hannah visits Myra
                        In this place of endless
                          Mumbling, wasted souls.
                     Hannah, so strong, resigned.
              Forgiving; forgiven of the torture,
                    Never (no, never) forgetting.
                  While Myra, eyes turned inside,
   Smoking cigarettes and humming childish tunes,
                           Forgets in her rancor
                         How to move among souls
                            Who mean you no harm.
               But Hannah knows the saving craft
                       Of walking next to hatred
                       Without ever being stolen.

Dear Creator,
I'm not sure what makes the difference between a real learner
of your truths and one who only appears to be listening.
Whatever be my lessons in this life, I ask your patience as you
teach them to one who is nearsighted, and perhaps a little deaf,
but who hopes to compensate with persistence.

​

 

From The Road to Emmaus - An inclusive devotional Edited by Joseph W. Houle

Emmaus House of Prayer - Washington D.C.198