Searchin' for Jesus in all
these places, is He in this
baby's coffin goin' in the
ground, is He in this
hurricane blowin' down,
is He in this Army gun
spittin' fire at strangers,
Searchin' for Jesus
in all these places, ain't
findin' him nowhere.

Bob Salsbury/Unbearable Bobness of Being

DFO: Bob's poem, "Blues for the Christ," has been on my mind since I first read it. Poignant. Sad. Powerful. His fine rhyme, however, hasn't been my experience. I've encountered "The Christ" at the scene of a school bus crash a quarter century ago that killed 5 teens. I've experienced his presence again, coffin side, when I buried my father and handed my stillborn daughter to a nurse, never to see again. He's been there in the darkest hours of my adult life. I know he's there on the battlefield and in the hurricane, not condoning the horror but offering strength to cope with this life and hope for what exists beyond. The misery that comes into our lives can be interpreted as evidence that He's not there. Or as an opportunity for grace to drive us to Him.

---

---