Ordinary Pilgrim
Unforced Rhythms
Updated: Apr 17, 2020

Finding The Message by Eugene Peterson was a pretty big deal in my Christian walk. It had been a long time since I was excited about reading the Bible. I use The Message in conjunction with familiar Bible translations and other resources, because it always sparks something in me that makes me want to dig deeper into what I've read.
Here is a poem I wrote, loosely based on the Golden Shovel form (taking a favorite phrase from a book, and using each word in that phrase to end a line in a poem of your own.) It was inspired by one of the first passages I encountered in The Message, read during a time when I was thinking about rest:
"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with
me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with
me and work with me - watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of
grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me
and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."
--Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)