Lakewood Blog

By Micah Risinger

The following poem was written and delivered by Micah Risinger (Worship Associate) last Sunday during his sermon on 1 Peter 4. It is entitled, “Live Like Jesus.”

It’s not a life of glamour and pomp,

of fame and fortune,
of health and wealth,
of power and prestige.
No, it’s rather a life of grief and pain,
of being with the sick and lame,
of knowing well the prisoner and stranger,
even in the face of danger,
of giving your last penny to the poor,
and then giving some more.
Yes, it’s a life of lament but also of joy.
It’s a life of love that lives for the other,
that sees all enemies as sisters and brothers.
It’s a life that finds every reason for grace
and even when it doesn’t make sense.
It is to move beyond the fences of fairness
to the sweeping plains of mercy and awareness.
It is to prepare an open table of bread and wine
for those that would simply come and dine,
those that are thirsting for what’s right and just,
for those who are hungry for what will last,
for something beyond the next regime or political scheme.
It’s the life of living for a loving king
and a kingdom with gates that never shut
because there is no them, there is only us
For all are welcome, all are invited
To the table
To the wedding
To the party,
To the kingdom,
To Jesus.
Live like Jesus
every way,
every day,
every thought,
every word,
every step,
every glance,
every stance
and maybe even every dance.
Live like Jesus and when the day comes
be ready to die like Jesus.
Because, the time will come
when we, too, shall rise.