Spikes

After Ephesians 6: 10-20 ESV

First spike.

Pound!

I’m not sure why

I’m erecting this tent,

pounding these spikes

of iron. I’m told a purpose

exists that I might see,

or I might not but 

this task is mine,

to pound and secure.

This spike is called Belt,

or Truth.

Second spike.

Pound!

I see the boundaries

set out, a circle, with 

places marked where 

I am to drive and

secure the stakes,

these pointed spikes

driven into dirt,

anchors for the ropes

to raise the hooded 

canvas of the tent.

This spike is called 

Breastplate, or

righteousness. 

Third spike.

Pound!

As I raise the mallet

and hammer the spikes

to drive them deeper, 

I leave enough exposed

to secure the ropes.

I follow the circle line

to place each spike,

counting off the feet

between. 

This spike is called

Readiness, or

the Gospel of Peace.

Fourth spike, pound!

This spike is called

Shield, or faith.

Fifth spike, pound!

This spike is called 

Helmet, or salvation.

Sixth spike, pound!

This spike is called

Sword, or 

the word of God.

Six of us now hold

the ropes and pull.

The tent rises, its top

like a monk’s hood,

calming in that we

know this task nears

its end, mysterious

in that we may never

know the purpose

the tent will serve.

The last rope tied,

I walk the circle,

giving each spike 

one final pound.

I see the iron

has turned to gold.

The featured image “Carved Unicorn” is courtesy of Lancia E. Smith and used with her kind permission for Cultivating.

Glynn Young

Glynn Young wrote his first story when he was 10 – a really bad mystery having something to do with a door behind a grandfather clock and a secret cave. At 14, he discovered Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, but he secretly wanted to write James Bond stories. At 21, he became a Christian, and the verse he was given, Philippians 1:6, became the theme of his life.

He received a B.A. in Journalism from LSU and a Masters in Liberal Arts from Washington University in St. Louis. He spent his professional career in corporate public relations, and mostly executive speechwriting. Since 2011, he’s published five novels in the Dancing Priest series and the nonfiction book Poetry at Work. Since 2009, he’s been an editor for Tweetspeak Poetry, writing a weekly column. He and his wife Janet live in suburban St. Louis.

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