A Blessing for the Haunted

A Blessing for the Haunted

If you’re crying
out in horror and disbelief
if your heart can’t take another news cycle
of violence and warfare
of bodies strewn and faces in anguish

you are not alone.

If you’re wondering
Why God
How God
How long, O Lord

you are not alone.

If your soul aches for this world
for those whose names are unknown
and stories untold

you are not alone.

For we bless and pray and call out
knowing the world is beautiful and horrible
safe for some and a war zone for others
we toss and turn, pray and plead
Why, God, why.

Our prayers —
Come
Peace
Please
Why

Our prayers, our sighs —
How long
How long
How long

Our conviction —
being haunted as we look away
while others cannot.

// This post is part of a blog hop with Exhale—an online community of women pursuing creativity alongside motherhood, led by the writing team behind Coffee + Crumbs. Click here to view the next post in the series "Haunted."

// If you'd like to read more of my writing, sign up for my monthly newsletter, Walk & Talk where I share a note of encouragement or a piece of writing on where I'm finding God, along with a few of my favorite things from around the web.