Heartfelt Praise is Original Praise

 I wrote 2 poems called Original Praise. The first one crystallised the ideas I wanted to share using free verse. Being enamoured of rhyming however, i rewrote the poem as a rhyme. Both poems are included in Hail.  The poems were written out of a meditation on what praise really is. At the time I wrote them, I had begun to notice have praise, along with a lot of what was being preached, had become formulaic. You had to start with fast songs. Then move on to slow songs. You had to start with praise and worship. You had to sing. You couldn't have a conversation with God unless it was bookended by words and songs of praise and prayer would not work unless you followed this formula. Singers and choirs were accorded a special place because of their ability to lead us into His presence and there were whole seminars on praise and worship that were bizarre in their prose but amounted to sing and God would do anything for you.