Publisher's Synopsis
DESCRIPTION OF BOOK: Cancer Is So Limited and Other Poems of Faith by Robert L. Lynn For forty years Robert L. Lynn has sought to live a life of faith and to record that journey in verse. This volume of 52 poems marks a trail of his spiritual walk toward mature faith. The title poem, Cancer Is So Limited, with its runaway fame, is an example of the power of his poetry. Written to encourage a friend who was sentenced to death by cancer, it circled the earth on the web, attributed to "Anonymous," and has brought hope to millions cursed by the disease. This book's title establishes Lynn as the author of the copyrighted poem, which once generated 167,000,000 internet hits. Many today cling to the poem as their philosophy of life. But Lynn's other 51 poems here also pack spiritual power for those who seek a vibrant and rewarding faith in a harsh and conflicting world. These include a set of poems exploring hard expectations by Jesus of his disciples, encounters of the Christ with Mary Magdalene and Lazarus, the boyhood call of the prophet Samuel, Queen Esther's rescue of her Jewish people, heroic acts the poet has lived through: the fall of communism, 9-11, the death of his father, and the prophetic teaching from the cell of Martin Luther King, as well as bursts of praise, and poems about his life-long pursuit of a serious, intelligent faith. As a new college president when he found students disliked speeches but loved poetry, he presented original poems for his students at least once a year for 22 years. One, "A Prayer for Students," reads in part: I pray that you shall grant: not All-American honor and acclaim but reverence for your holy name; not more training in receiving, teach them, Lord, the art of giving; not the drive to be served by all but, like your Son, to become servants of all. Effective poetry often shreds the chaff and distils truth to its essence. Faith Poet Robert L. Lynn offers a 21st century torch in this book to those engaged seriously in the modern questing towards faith. Dr. Lynn and his wife, Dr. Bonnie Lynn, live in Duluth, Georgia. He has written over 400 poems and won over 100 poetry prizes. A leader in the Georgia Poetry Society, he edited the Society's poetry anthology, The Reach of Song, for three years. He chairs the Johns Creek Poetry Group in Atlanta and is a deacon and Sunday School teacher in his congregation. He has written or edited ten books. This is his third poetry volume. You can hear him recite his poetry at www.robertllynn.com
