Surely
A Poem Of Companionship
“Undergrowth With Two Figures” by Vincent Van Gogh (1853–1890)
One of my favourite verses in the Bible is Genesis 28:16:
“Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”” (English Standard Version)
My new poem, “Surely,” was inspired by these fascinating words of Jacob. I wanted it to capture something of that great, hope–filled comfort that no matter what we endure, enjoy and experience—however awful or ordinary—there is One who is always there with us (whether or not we know it at the time).
Today, I pray that we would wake from our slumber and have our hearts quickened and our eyes opened to the beautiful presence of the ever–present Beautiful One.
Surely
Every scrape and struggle,
Every diagnosis,
Every hope and heartache,
Every disappointment,
Every broken night–time,
Every morning chorus,
Every pressured deadline,
Every lazy weekend,
Every not yet breakthrough,
Every boring preacher,
Every whispered promise,
Every fresh encounter,
Every fading friendship,
Every sibling battle,
Every long–grieved parent,
Every long–held lover,
Every sweet shop visit,
Every iced oat latte,
Every new beginning,
Every valedictory,
Every newborn whimper,
Every desperate prayer,
Every mentor’s wisdom,
Every bedside vigil,
Every not expected,
Every saw it coming,
Every cruel plot twist,
Every homely comfort,
Every gain,
Every loss,
Surely the Lord was there—
And I did not know it.
This poem was generated by the author’s human mind with zero AI / LLM involvement.
How does this poem speak to you? I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to leave a comment below:
If you missed the previous offering on Idle and Blessed Poetry, you can read “Search Not” via the link below which includes some honest reflections on problematic aspects of Christian charismatic worship, spirituality and culture:
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Matthew White is an Anglican priest, poet and songwriter based in West Sussex in the United Kingdom. His work has been published in The Way Back 2 Ourselves and Paddler Press. Matthew’s debut poetry collection, “Propelled Into Wonder,” which explores themes of beauty, faith, leadership, and loss, was published in September 2024 to wide acclaim. Matthew is married to Sarah and they have 3 children. You can connect with Matthew by visiting his website and joining the mailing list. You can also follow him on Instagram and can subscribe to “Idle and Blessed Poetry” on Substack to receive new and original poems from Matthew direct to your inbox each week.
Love it! You've inspired me to write a version myself.
This is profoundly beautiful, Matthew. And just the reminder I needed today. Thank you for the blessing 💜