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Wednesday 27 January 2016

Book Signing and Ethical Praying.


Book selling and Ethical praying
                                On my book signing days
                                Is it ethical to pray?
                                  “God, please sway
                               That ‘book looker’ to pay
                               Without debate or delay
                               For that book I wrote
                               As, I’m nearly broke!”


                              With my book display I sit,
                              Waiting for someone to pick
                                                               Just one book and discover
                                                                   What’s behind the cover?
                                                                   I’ve done my best to write
                                                                  This genre with life’s insight
                                                                  For people's reading delight!


  Too late now for prayer.
                                                               Sitting here as people stare
                                                              And wonder if they’ll bother
                                                              To go, meet the author
                                                              Or be safe and stay away.
                                                              So, I get tempted to pray,
                                                              “Lord, drag them my way!”

As this silent prayer I utter,
                                                            I fear it’s a wrongful matter.
                                                            God won’t hear this chatter.
                                                             “Son”, I sense His reply
                                                               “I cannot let you try
                                                               And use me to coerce
                                                              People to fill your purse.”

Not all, I admit, tho’ stricken,
                                                          Will like the genre written.
                                                           I, not God, am the salesman
                                                           And He is not my talisman.
                                                          My attitude about how to pray
Must surround my book display,
"Lord, let me honour you today!"



©Ray Hawkins Dec 2015.


5 comments:

  1. Yes! Poetry I can read and understand without having to interpret deep pseudo-symbolism!

    Well said, Ray.

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  2. Amen. We can forget that our job is to bring the Lord glory and not the other way round.

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    Replies
    1. I guess that's why the word 'remember' is so often used in Scripture. Thanks Ian.

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  3. Thanks, Ray--great fun to read but also with a serious message. So easy to fall into that trap of glorifying ourselves, for sure.

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  4. Hi Jo- Anne
    It reveals the conflict of interest I often face - the clash between the spiritual and the carnal, the message or the money. I do hope others see it as seriously funny.

    ReplyDelete

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