Interview by Andrew Spencer, TGC.
Stephen Witmer, In All Things Thee to See: A Devotional Guide to Selected Poems of George Herbert
Sometimes poetry helps us understand truth that logical reasoning cannot. Describing the effects of a severe health crisis, Ben Palpant writes, “I could not track an argument in prose, but I could follow a line of poetry to where it disappeared in the grass.”
That is, no doubt, why so much of Scripture is poetry. When David writes, “My soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water” (Ps. 63:1), it communicates more vividly than simply stating that he’s distraught. Poetry communicates in images and ideas that go beyond the words on the page.
Yet many of us read little poetry in our prose-dominated age. That’s why Stephen Witmer, lead pastor of Pepperell Christian Fellowship Church and a TGC Council member, curated 40 of George Herbert’s poems with devotional commentary in his book In All Things Thee to See. Herbert (1593–1633) was a faithful pastor and author whose deep faith overflows the lines of his poetry and points us toward Christ.
I was delighted to have the opportunity to interview Witmer about his recent book.
How did you learn about George Herbert?
It was a bit unusual. Of course, George Herbert is best known for his poetry—he’s widely considered one of the greatest spiritual poets of all time. But I came to him via his only published work of prose.
Several years ago, while writing a book on small-town ministry (A Big Gospel in Small Places), I learned that Herbert had written a manual for rural pastors, The Country Parson, which remained hugely influential for hundreds of years.