A Meditation:

I bring my tender wounds to you, O Lord
Except you heal, unhealed they will remain;
Wounds won in battle from an alien sword;
Wounds caused by folly: by excessive strain.

I bring some, Lord, with pride, and some with shame;
Some wounds bear witness to my finest hours
As, with the loyalty of faith, your name
I bore determinedly ‘gainst Satan’s powers.

But some of these my wounds, ought not to be:
Within your household, Lord, piercèd was my soul.
These other woundings? Lay the blame on me
When in my frailty I lacked control.

But you are healer, Lord! Stretch out your hand,
That in your grace and wholeness I might stand.


Albert William Thomas Orsborn