To be broken is the beginning of Revival. It is painful, humiliating, but it is the only way. It is being "Not I, but Christ” (Gal 2:20), and a "C" is a bent "I." The Lord Jesus cannot live in us fully and reveal Himself through until the proud self within us is broken. This simply means that the hard unyielding self, which justifies itself, wants its own way, stands up for its rights, and seeks its own glory, at last bows its head to God's will, admits its wrong, gives up its own way to Jesus, surrenders its rights and discards its own glory - that the Lord Jesus might have all and be all. In other words it is dying to self and self-attitudes.
strip away
layer upon layer
ashes and dust
scattering
and still
too much of me
remains weary of the I
stiff, hard, straight
aching deep
to be pliable
yielding
forgetting
to be bent
I must be
broken
Strong message here. "To be bent I must be broken." -- this definitely rings true!
ReplyDeleteinteresting on the I and C - the being bent - i def. think there's also healing in the brokenness and something new and strong that grows out of it..
ReplyDeleteSo true that in order to become something new, we must give up neing what we are. Blessings on your journey ... smiles
ReplyDeletenice...i like your play with the letters and their meaning...and yes, bent in submission, broken over the things of his heart....letting more of us go...
ReplyDeleteThis poem reminds me of all the resistance that goes before. Lovely work.
ReplyDeleteA lovely and meaningful message ~ Thank you for sharing ~
ReplyDeleteClever and expressful, Nicely created :)
ReplyDeleteThis is uncommonly well done.
ReplyDeleteWill I ever get there? Where my will and my pride surrender to His will with all trust, confidence, and peace. Yes, brokenness brings it about to a certain extent but the gentle bending works better on me.
ReplyDeleteGood post.
I don't think to bend means we must be broken. But I am thinking about a "break through."
ReplyDeletelet it be so :)
ReplyDeleteLife is too like this, layer over layer
ReplyDeleteThe idea of creative destruction seems so contradictory, but I guess nothing new emerges until the old is obliterated, or at least abandoned. You show these contrasts nicely in this piece. Fine job.
ReplyDeleteTough truths written beautifully, in a fresh way...and He also was broken for us - praise!
ReplyDeleteYou get to the heart of this, and with a tight write that is just so good.
ReplyDeleteI'm swinging over from Emily's. That's a hard, yet oh so essential, truth, isn't it? I've not heard of this book. If that brief excerpt is any indication, it sounds like a provocative read. I'll check it out. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Carolynn
I tried so long to not only stay away from being broken, but to ignore when I was undergoing the process. Some bend easily --- like putty. Some, like me, are much stiffer.
ReplyDelete