Don't Miss It: Isaiah series - Christian Lindbeck (Isa. 58)

This is not a business transaction
between you and I.
I will do what I will do
and you will respond;
it should flow from you
like a rising song.
Yet you whine and stamp
your foot
when you've met the bare
minimum requirement -
fasting -
while despising immigrants
and the needy.
You have missed out on my heart
in the interest 
of going through the motions.

What's the point?

Don't come to me
with empty rituals
and petty rules,
measuring out piety
in tenths and not a penny more,
while your heart
remains unchanged.

If you love me,
you will respond
by loving the broken,,
by freeing the prisoners,
by giving your possessions
to those in need.
You will no longer
let ugliness spew forth
from your lips in my name,
judging and sneering
at others whose lifestyles
or skin color
you despise.
You will take action
to stop the degradation of
any of my creations.
You will deny yourself
to give to others,
not to impress me with your
holy dedication.
You will look into the 
runny eyes of the homeless
and destitute,
past their toothless, whiskered
faces and see
souls that I love dearly.

Then, then
will you worship me
in word and in deed
and you will see
the uprising of hope,
the breaking forth of life
and light
to heal and comfort
the lost.
Then will your path 
be clear
and I will walk it 
with you,
and fight for you. 
I will lift you up
and nourish you,
watching you blossom
in a profusion
of lavish colors;
the barren tree 
will again bear fruit
to feed
and restore
the earth.