NEW ORLEANS

Change your cry into a song,
Your fear into a prayer.
Let your mind rest on the Word.
Choose patience, not despair.

Turn shame into a beacon.
The scorching is a flame
That scorns the inquisition
And blamelessness proclaims.

Let agony refine you.
Let ashes renovate.
Be born again in beauty.
Your duty consecrate.

Forgive the brutal torches.
Forget the stenching blaze.
The Lord of Wounds and Bruises
Will heal you with one gaze.

Go beyond your pain to His.
Wipe away His drops.
Hold the hand that He extends
Until the terror stops.

(23 November 2008, Glendale, Arizona)