"God's Goodness" Stories of the Kingdom - Tim Knipp (Luke 11)

Good and evil exist -
there is no avoiding
this.
Prayers fail,
hurt happens
and we wonder 
if God cares.
The ancient question
of God's essential nature
bumps against
our inner eyelids
too often 
to be ignored.

So, how should we pray?

There are formulas
to follow,
principles to adhere to -
enough to make one's head spin.
But is it about me
and what I need to do?
Or is it about
the God I pray to?
Who is He anyway?

He is a worthy father
who provides
and forgives.

He outshines
your best friend,
who will gladly
give you
whatever you need.

His father love
exceeds that of 
the best earthly father
who would lay down
his life for his child.

This is who you address
your concerns to
in this world 
of shadows.

Paint your picture
of God
not by the brokenness
and empty blackness
that assuredly exists,
but by a knowledge
of His essential goodness,
holding tightly
to His hand
at the very rim
of the precipice.