Bedazzled and Spellbound

 

 

There they sat

Bedazzled and spellbound

Only that it wasn’t a circus

And he wasn’t a clown.

 

Fluent and convincing

He held them in his palm

Some on the edge of their pews

Eating out of his hand.

 

He grew up among them

But migrated for a while

And as a preacher he returned

With panache and style.

 

Isn’t this McNeal’s son?

My, how he has changed!

When he breaks into tongues

It is beautifully strange.

 

 

And the promises he makes

For a financial seed,

And the breakthrough to come

If they only believe.

 

Spellbound they were

Hanging on his every word,

Oblivious to all around them-

Him they preferred.

 

The church was packed

On that Sunday morning,

Hallelujah was on their tongues

As they kept chanting.

 

Filled to the brim

The offering baskets were,

No doubt, many utility-bills

Had to be deferred.

 

If only from today

Their needs could be met

Then it would be worth it all-

For life, they’d be set.

 

 

So, with rapt attention

They gazed on the man

Hoping for a breakthrough

For them and their clan.

 

He was a preacher-man

With great oratorical skills

And all them that heard him

Were greatly thrilled.

 

For two hours or more

And sometimes three

They were held spellbound

By His Majesty.

 

Some saw him like this

Almost infallible

Especially when he would do

A few miracles.

 

 

 

From rags to riches

They had seen him rise,

Yes, this was McNeal’s son

And he wasn’t disguised.

 

And as he had risen

They could rise too

And this he dangled before them

Convincing not a few.

 

It was not about Christ

It was about breakthrough

And they were eating it all up

As though it was new.

 

There they sat

Bedazzled and spellbound

Only that it wasn’t a circus

And he wasn’t a clown.

 

Stewart Russell © January 16, 2024