Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: Life (06/15/06)
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TITLE: Six billion, six hundred and twenty-four million, six hundred and fifty-eight thousand, four hundred and seventy-four | Previous Challenge Entry
By Helen Paynter
06/18/06 -
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Population’s time-bomb’s ticking -
Hour by hour the counter’s clicking;
Face past face past faces flicking;
Rubbish hills for vagrants’ picking -
Uncontrolled, the time-bomb’s ticking.
Like a microbe culture, swarming -
Forests scorched, new cities forming;
Belching cars, the climate warming;
Countless selfish voices, storming -
Virulent, mankind is swarming.
Ant-like shanty towns are seething -
Fretful babies, crossly teething;
Effluent their bodies wreathing;
Dying children’s laboured breathing -
How the shanty towns are seething!
Do they sense the Spirit brooding?
Refugees, cold fear exuding;
Silent rich, with thugs colluding;
Cataracted eyes, occluding -
Over each, the Spirit’s brooding.
Can’t they hear the song He’s singing?
Harried Chinese cyclists, ringing;
Kenyan girls, clean water bringing;
Flooded Phillipinos, clinging -
Need to share the joy He’s singing.
Do they hear the Saviour calling?
Angry men in beer-soaked brawling;
Coal-streaked miners, roughly hauling;
Street-wise market-traders, bawling -
Drowning out the Saviour calling.
Do they feel the Father, blessing?
Pin-striped city traders stressing;
Generals with tanks processing;
Tired commuters hotly pressing -
Hostile hearts, but ripe for blessing.
Do they know the Father’s weeping?
Buddhist monks in temples, sleeping;
Proud Montana farmers, reaping;
Work-worn Masai mothers, sweeping -
For their griefs the Father’s weeping.
Lord who sees each sparrow falling,
Hears each individual calling -
Half the world is still unknowing,
Careless of the love you’re showing.
No salvation but by calling,
Cannot call unless believing,
Won’t believe except through hearing,
Will not hear without sound preaching.
Lord of harvest, white and waiting,
Choosing joy by re-creating -
Wake your people who are sleeping,
Send them out into the reaping.
In the time it took you to read this poem the world population increased by 456.
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny ? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. Matt 10 v 29
The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field Matt 9 v 37-38
"Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? Rom 10 v 13-14
All quotations taken from the New International Version
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6,624,658,474 just wouldn't have been as effective! ;)
Terrific time bomb, with the longest title in FW Writer's challenge history!
Loved it!
Here's a question: In math I thought I had learned not to place the 'and' until just before the very last # ie: and seventy-four. I very well could be mistaken so I'd better look it up.
Anyhow, awesome poem, & got me to thinkin.
Blessings! See you next quarter.
Trina<><
Way to go Helen! Awesome job.
Trina<><
PS I had to come back to see if anyone had the answer. I've been so busy reading all of the great entries this week I haven't had the time today to research my own Q.
Then I came across this poem while I was surfing around. Thank you. Well written and very true.