Man at war with man
by
Ruth Barnes

Old army barracks, long unused,
Are now a home for refugees.
The barbed wire fence reminded me
Of prison camps across the seas.

A Christian act of charity
Had brought me here, their needs to meet.
I swallowed hard, fought back the tears
And shivered in the summer heat.

I showed my passport, stepped inside
And ill-kempt children swarmed around.
I tried to smile, communicate;
My simple greetings hit the ground.

I reached a building, went inside
A dark and dismal, smelly place.
For those who'd lived here months on end,
How could I tell them of God's grace?

War had torn them from their homes;
Loved ones missing, wounded, dead.
They lived their lives mechanically.
The future held but one word: dread.

Oh, God, Who sees the sparrow fall,
Look down upon your children now.
You know their heartaches, see their tears,
Each quiet sigh, each furrowed brow.

If man had lived as you had planned
All would be harmony and peace.
Oh precious Lord, please speed the day
That Christ shall come and wars shall cease.