Intense hunger
is a scream in the belly
piercing you from the inside out
demanding attention
the sorry state
forty days of fasting
will leave you in.
It is good to remember
that hunger carries no shame
but how we fill ourselves
may well be up for review.
If we knew
God was watching
how often would our hands
disappear inside those
cookie jars labeled
Do Not Touch?
It’s a fair question.
I once turned myself
over to temptation
then swam in a bed of tears
from the guilt of it
suffered a string
of seemingly endless
sleepless nights
devastated that I had
so much as considered
ripping God’s heart out
risking separation from my Lord.
No sin, however delicious
in the moment
is worth that.
So, the next time temptation
came for a visit
I rode that bad-boy out
basking in the smile of my Lord
as temptation’s pain
slowly ebbed away.
Luke 4:1–13