God is faithful.
Psalm 55:22 Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.
As I read this tonight, I wondered about righteousness. I wondered why I couldn't seem to claim it, because I didn't feel deserving of it. But then I got this picture of the King, God the Father, wrapping me in garments. He clothes me in righteousness. And they weren't any that came from my own closet... Jesus gave me His so that I might approach the throne. Garments dipped in the blood of His sacrifice.
And He asks that we would cast our cares on Him... because He cares that much that the little things that drive us to our knees matter to Him. The God of the Universe wants to hear the contents of our hearts... every tiny bit. We give this to Him, and in turn, He sustains us. That is too amazing for words!
My Aunt posted this quote from AW Tozer on facebook, and its BIG... "We please God most, not by frantically trying to make ourselves good, but by throwing ourselves into His arms". Again... it's like a religion thing. Do we take it on ourselves or realize Jesus already took it so we CAN have access to our Father? Why do we spend so much time trying to cleanse what we needed a Savior to do for us, what has already been done? Oh, that I would truly realize that nothing can separate me from His love! Not even me. Not even the chasm created by my shame... thank you Jesus.
Also, you should probably read Palm 55-57.
I felt so restless all week, and even though I knew why, even though I knew I was keeping myself from my Wonderful, I couldn't bring myself there. And when I finally gave up running... there was grace. Hallelujah.
On another note... God has been painting the sky something amazing lately... and it truly proclaims His glory... the colors run with all the measure of His faithfulness, the sky is filled with the intensity of His unending love.
But as for me, I will trust in you. (Psalm 55:23b)
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
I want to be changed by the cross,
to be made new in the love offering that poured out of the blood that Jesus shed as He took the penalty that was MY debt owed. I've neglected the gravity of what the cross stands for. I have forgotten and ignored the price that was paid. I have skipped over the anguish and declared the love of the sacrifice without even understanding what it cost.
And I'll never fully know what it cost to see my sin hanging there, nailed to the cross on the arms of my Savior.
Father, open my eyes to be humbled by how HUGELY UNFATHOMABLE your redemption plan was. A plan that didn't make sense, when it meant giving yourself in a place of a people who didn't deserve your love. And you loved anyway. You loved us in such an intense way that our human minds can't even pierce the mystery of it.
The truth is, no matter how hard we attempt to 'get' it, we never will feel the weight of the stones that were hurled, or the hate that spilled out from the shouts of the crowd. We will never feel the sting of flesh ripped from back, or smell our own blood as it spill from where nails are driven into our hands. We are so far from knowing the weight of the cross. This was OUR penalty. This is what I deserved, in my sin and my shame, I deserved the burn for eternity, separated from my Maker because NOTHING I COULD DO could bridge the gap. And yet, with a fierce love that I don't even understand, He gave EVERYTHING to undo the curse. He purchased me back from my prostitution.
Father!! I cry out to you... let this change my heart. How can I live to satisfy myself any longer? How can I live so selfishly, with my pride in the way? Bulldoze me. Strip my comforts away. Wake this heart that is dead in sin... revive me in grace. Overcome me. Humble me. Your sacrifice is too big to ignore, Your love too great to push away. Father... let me never enter into Your courts of praise without acknowledging the sacrifice you gave, so that I may realize how fully I need you.
to be made new in the love offering that poured out of the blood that Jesus shed as He took the penalty that was MY debt owed. I've neglected the gravity of what the cross stands for. I have forgotten and ignored the price that was paid. I have skipped over the anguish and declared the love of the sacrifice without even understanding what it cost.
And I'll never fully know what it cost to see my sin hanging there, nailed to the cross on the arms of my Savior.
Father, open my eyes to be humbled by how HUGELY UNFATHOMABLE your redemption plan was. A plan that didn't make sense, when it meant giving yourself in a place of a people who didn't deserve your love. And you loved anyway. You loved us in such an intense way that our human minds can't even pierce the mystery of it.
The truth is, no matter how hard we attempt to 'get' it, we never will feel the weight of the stones that were hurled, or the hate that spilled out from the shouts of the crowd. We will never feel the sting of flesh ripped from back, or smell our own blood as it spill from where nails are driven into our hands. We are so far from knowing the weight of the cross. This was OUR penalty. This is what I deserved, in my sin and my shame, I deserved the burn for eternity, separated from my Maker because NOTHING I COULD DO could bridge the gap. And yet, with a fierce love that I don't even understand, He gave EVERYTHING to undo the curse. He purchased me back from my prostitution.
Father!! I cry out to you... let this change my heart. How can I live to satisfy myself any longer? How can I live so selfishly, with my pride in the way? Bulldoze me. Strip my comforts away. Wake this heart that is dead in sin... revive me in grace. Overcome me. Humble me. Your sacrifice is too big to ignore, Your love too great to push away. Father... let me never enter into Your courts of praise without acknowledging the sacrifice you gave, so that I may realize how fully I need you.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Oh, adulteress heart, be settled!
Rest in the all-consuming love of your Bridegroom.
Though you are in the desert
He has brought purpose to each step
and life to what was dead and hardened.
He is leading you, and romancing you
He has brought you here so that only He can quench your thirsty soul
with waters that extend to reach in the most intimate places of your being.
Oh, wandering heart, be still,
for your Bridegroom has given you all you require
His vow is forever, and His covenant unbroken.
You are cherished
and made quiet in His love.
You are made beautiful by His delight in you.
His pleasure rests on you before you even rise with the sun to face the day.
You need only bask in the gloriousness of His pure, passionate LOVE!
Oh heart, so prone to fear and run
BE CAPTURED
Be captivated by the alluring pursuit of the greatest Love you'll ever know
that will be faithful and gentle,
wildly passionate and strong.
He will delight in you eternally, and pursue you enduringly
You are the one His heart burns relentlessly for.
The one He would stop at nothing for so that He may call you His
The one who changes your name to 'Sought After'
He has taken your rags and impurity
and washed you in His crimson sacrifice.
He adorns you with robes of righteousness
and clothes you with garments of salvation.
Oh heart, so hesitant to lose control,
give it all!
Your name is engraved in His hand,
and written into His book of life.
His love burns for you,
jealously, it binds you to Him
so that you who belong to Him cannot fathom the depth of His longing for you
for how passionately He desires your whole heart,
Oh heart, be swept away in the love
that paid the price that you weren't worth,
but the love that allowed you to share in His holiness,
to abide in His courts,
to sit on His throne
to rest in His shadow
and to share in His victory.
.
It is your forever love bond.
Rest in the all-consuming love of your Bridegroom.
Though you are in the desert
He has brought purpose to each step
and life to what was dead and hardened.
He is leading you, and romancing you
He has brought you here so that only He can quench your thirsty soul
with waters that extend to reach in the most intimate places of your being.
Oh, wandering heart, be still,
for your Bridegroom has given you all you require
His vow is forever, and His covenant unbroken.
You are cherished
and made quiet in His love.
You are made beautiful by His delight in you.
His pleasure rests on you before you even rise with the sun to face the day.
You need only bask in the gloriousness of His pure, passionate LOVE!
Oh heart, so prone to fear and run
BE CAPTURED
Be captivated by the alluring pursuit of the greatest Love you'll ever know
that will be faithful and gentle,
wildly passionate and strong.
He will delight in you eternally, and pursue you enduringly
You are the one His heart burns relentlessly for.
The one He would stop at nothing for so that He may call you His
The one who changes your name to 'Sought After'
He has taken your rags and impurity
and washed you in His crimson sacrifice.
He adorns you with robes of righteousness
and clothes you with garments of salvation.
Oh heart, so hesitant to lose control,
give it all!
Your name is engraved in His hand,
and written into His book of life.
His love burns for you,
jealously, it binds you to Him
so that you who belong to Him cannot fathom the depth of His longing for you
for how passionately He desires your whole heart,
Oh heart, be swept away in the love
that paid the price that you weren't worth,
but the love that allowed you to share in His holiness,
to abide in His courts,
to sit on His throne
to rest in His shadow
and to share in His victory.
.
It is your forever love bond.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
here-in lies the chaos
I want to give it all away.
My heart screams for it, longs for it,
yearns for the desire to lose it all for Christ.
But I get so caught up in trying to make sacrifices
that I spend more time trying to count it as loss than in the presence of God.
And how much more would all the things I am trying to lose pale in comparison if I actually dwelled in Christ?!
I run the race, but take my eyes off the prize
and my feet become entangled by the ropes of my pride
and I fall
because I took my eyes off who I was running for
and compared myself to who I was running with.
And all the while,
there was no 'checkpoint'
there was no place I reached that made me any more worthy.
There was just grace.
Teach me Lord to have faith,
to seek relationship
instead of empty religion.
My heart screams for it, longs for it,
yearns for the desire to lose it all for Christ.
But I get so caught up in trying to make sacrifices
that I spend more time trying to count it as loss than in the presence of God.
And how much more would all the things I am trying to lose pale in comparison if I actually dwelled in Christ?!
I run the race, but take my eyes off the prize
and my feet become entangled by the ropes of my pride
and I fall
because I took my eyes off who I was running for
and compared myself to who I was running with.
And all the while,
there was no 'checkpoint'
there was no place I reached that made me any more worthy.
There was just grace.
Teach me Lord to have faith,
to seek relationship
instead of empty religion.
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