Alone in an empty room, the clock ticks, resounding off the walls. But time stands frozen, as if preserving the stillness of the night. Shadows remain present in the lonely abode, like the pain in my soul. A haunting reminder that becomes worse than any religion can conjure in their minds. My anguish food for the demons and hellhounds torturing me, like a panther playing with its prey before swallowing it whole.

“Why God? Why me?” I whisper, the pain and anger dripping from my cheeks, as I fall to my knees with nothing to lose. Evidence of my heartbroken spirit bare to a Higher Power, I cry out. The loneliness creeps through my veins, with no one to provide reprieve. No creation that walks upon the Earth can lift my mood. Not even a heavenly spirit can console me.

The wound within my soul festers with every mockery thrown at me, a reminder that I am unworthy of salvation. A lone vagabond I have become, left to the mercy the night has yet to bring. But in the midst of the suffocating torment, I’m reminded how my Creator is with me along every broken path. Nothing in heaven or earth can provide rest and safety like the embrace of my God. A precious child I am to the great I Am.

“Why God? Why me?” I ask once more, this time willing to follow Him and break free from my prison. I clasp my hand in His in complete trust wherever life may take me. With every footstep I take, I leave behind any doubt and anguish, letting go of what kept me in chains, leaving behind all that hindered me in the dust, finally allowing the Higher Power I know to wipe my tears and remind a sheep like me of the worth of my existence. 

Editor: Lucy Cafiero