Moses once passed a shepherd at his prayer
And paused to hear this simple man declare
His love for God by promising to tend
To the Almighty’s every need and lend
Him all the comforts that he could afford
Promising milk and honey to the Lord.
Hearing which Moses flew into a rage
He asked the shepherd, “How can you engage
In idle bribes and chatter in this way
With Him Infinite, and how dare you pray
To God as though he were some needy friend?
Stop offering these silly things and bend
Your body and your mind in total awe
And pray as you were taught to pray. No more
Of babbling about baubles to the King
Of all the heavens that infinite thing
Which surpasses all our worlds and resides
Beyond the light of a thousand suns, besides
You must know that we mortals have no right
To involve God in our miserable plight.”
So saying, Moses left the shepherd and
Went on to prophesy to all the land.
Then God breathed these words into Moses’s ear
“You know that shepherd? You were too severe
With the poor man; he wanted to convey
His love for me, so he began to pray
And what he said came straight from his heart
You must have heard, he was willing to part
With anything he owned or thought would please
What better worshippers are there than these?
To tell the truth, Moses, prayer has no form
Like inner lightning, shapeless as a storm
In its sincerity resides its force
No other value shapes this intercourse.’
Then Moses sought the shepherd out again
To admit that he was in error when
He interrupted him and specified
How he should pray. Then on that same hillside
Both Moses and that joyful Shepherd knelt
And each offered a prayer that was heartfelt.