A Poetry of the Soul

In this captivating collection of poems from pastor Ken Gibble, readers will encounter the worries, hopes, sorrows, and joys that pour forth from the mouths and hearts of those around us. A Poetry of the Soul serves as a holy exchange, rising from the tension between heartache and happiness, doubt and faith, lament and praise. Let these poetic expressions bring a clearer understanding of what it means to be human and allow them to powerfully transform your life.

"Ken Gibble writes out of an artful understanding of God and humanity in this soulful collection of story-shaped poems. With the heart of a pastor and the pen of a poet, Gibble offers literate slices of life that will be both familiar and unfamiliar to the reader. This is truly the mark of the successful poet: to make the world both familiar and strange and thus invite deeper reflection, contemplation, and meditation.

Gibble’s writing embodies a beautiful poetics of presence. This pastor knows how to lean in and listen to life. His poems, like all good writing, show rather than tell. Since we are indeed God’s poetry, the inspired pastor as creative writer, in touch with the extraordinary power of ordinary experience, invites us to read lived lives as wisdom literature. Most striking is the poet-pastor’s conclusions about what we will remember and what others will remember about us when our lives finally reach the epilogue."

--Scott Holland, Professor of Theology and Culture, Bethany Theological Seminary

Ken Gibble has pastored Church of the Brethren congregations in Virginia and Pennsylvania. He is an essayist and poet whose writings have appeared in numerous periodicals and several books.