I started this in church one morning. That may seem strange; to write poetry while in church but often that is where God gives me an idea. This idea had actually came to me a couple of weeks earlier while in church but I could not find the right words to start it . Then on this church morning, the first two stanzas came to me which I hurriedly wrote down in the church bulletin. When I got home, I picked up my computer and this is the result.

Crossing Over.

The man beckoned me
Come, step across to me.
I looked and said,
I cannot, the span is wide
And the gulf too deep.
He held his hand out
And said, “It’s okay, I will help you;
For the same has been done for me.

I pondered what he said
But still was filled with dread.
I said, “If I step out, I will fall,
And surely I will be dead.
A slight smile touched his lips
And a twinkle was in his eyes;
Yes, he said,
To step out can bring death,
But I tell you I will catch you
And you will live.

I looked right, then left,
Then deep into the labyrinth.
To step out felt like foolishness,
For his reach could not span it.
“How is it you will catch me,
When your arm cannot reach me?
The span is long and the gulf is deep,
Surely there is another way.”

I turned and began to walk away
When over my shoulder I heard him say;
“Go where you go and walk where you walk,
But to cross this void, there is no other way.”
Still I journeyed on with the gulf on my right,
Hoping to cross but the gulf was too wide.
As the sun set and it became night,
I heard the man cry,
“Come, step to the other side”.

Anger swelled and I answered back,
“To step out onto the gulf
Is to step into the dark.
For I know I cannot reach
Your arm stretched out for me.
To step into the labyrinth
Will surely be the death of me.”
As the man replied
I could feel his smile,
“ The gulf may be deep,
But the span is not wide,
Now reach out your hand
And I will help you to this side.”

I had grown tired and had had no water;
In my mind, I began to ponder,
“I have wandered far
And know not where I am.
I could return to where I was before,
But I would still be lost,
I knew the only way
Was to step across.”

I yelled across the void,
“You promise to catch me?”
And I heard the man say “Surely,
It only takes one step to get to me”.
I stood and approached the gulf,
It still was deep and wide,
And the man’s arm seemed a long way away.
With fear in my throat, I closed my eyes
And took a step toward the other side.
For a moment I thought I would fall,
Then I felt the man’s hand and strong arm.
I looked up into the man’s face
And for a moment it changed
And I saw the face of Jesus,
And just as quick it was gone
And I was on the other side.

I stood before the man
And he grinned a big smile,
“See I told you the span was not wide”,
And with that he turned
And began to walk away.
As I began to follow,
I turned my head
And there on the other side,
Was a man staring at the gulf,
Seeing that it was deep and wide.

I yelled to the one who had helped me across,
“Another needs help”.
He smiled back at me and said,
“You know the way.”
For a moment I did not understand
But then I turned and yelled to the man,
Here reach out, grab my hand.