If
You want me to rest,
I
desire it for love;
If
to labor,
I
will die working:
Sweet
Love say
Where,
how and when.
What
do You want of me?
Calvary
or Tabor give me,
Desert
for fruitful land;
As
Job in suffering
Or
John at Your breast;
Barren
or fruited vine,
Whatever
be Your will:
What
do You want of me?
Be
I Joseph chained
Or
as Egypt’s governor,
David
pained
Or
exalted high,
Jonas
drowned,
Or
Jonas freed:
What
do You want of me?
Silent
or speaking,
Fruitbearing
or barren,
My
wounds shown by the Law,
Rejoicing
in the tender Gospel;
Sorrowing
or exulting,
You
alone live in me:
What
do You want of me?
Yours I am, for You I was born:
What
do You want of me?
from
the poem “In the Hands of God”
Over the
next few months I will publish here some of my favorite poems and writings in
celebration of the 5th centenary of the birth of Saint Teresa of Ávila
(1515-2015)—a woman whose life, faith and candor has profoundly formed and
influenced my faith journey!
[photo of floor mosaic: St. John Neumann Catholic Church, Austin @SJNAustin]
