lower still

Come, oh come! let us away--

Lower, lower every day, 

Oh, what joy it is to race

Down to find the lowest place. 

This the dearest law we know--

"It is happy to go low."

Sweetest urge and sweetest will,

"Let us go down lower still."

Hear the summons night and day

Calling us to come away.

Hannah Hurnard - The Water Song

Hinds Feet on High Places

lower still

strip pride away

till I can in stillness sit 

beside my Lord

simple, humble

no thought of self

but all of Him

seeking that still spot with Sandy

 

journey

closer, ever closer

to the heart of God

this is where I journey

during these days of awe

these days of His sacrifice

with every breath He drew

He knew what lay ahead

and He knows still

for you, for me

for those He calls His own

He knows where we will step

and where we will fall

holds out a helping hand

to right us again

but we have to reach back

how often are we too proud

or too ashamed

to ask for and receive 

that assistance so freely given?

pride and shame

two sides of the same coin

that I have flipped, over and over 

for far too long

and I am weary of the weight

of carrying this idol

that turns my eyes away from

all I truly want to see

leading me to walk alone

in the illusion of my own strength

enough, my heart declares

enough, my spirit cries on its knees

allowing true repentance to fall

blending bitter into tears

strip me

let nothing come before You

as I journey to Your cross

that I may be forever Yours

when I behold the empty grave

Love God, your God, 

with your whole heart: 

love him with all that’s in you, 

love him with all you've got!

Deuteronomy 6:5 The Message

jamming with Bonnie

 

reflect and shine

Do you ever wonder if you possess anything useful to God's Kingdom?
I do. So I asked -
what have I to offer Lord to You and to the world?

I opened my journal and my heart to hear His reply:

Your willing heart and your availability are a gift to Me.

As you surrender and allow Me to do as I will, it matters not at all what you have for I Am able to use what I have, in you, through you.

It is your capacity to be empty.
To retain this gift you must release all pride.
Knowing it was Me Who stooped low, it was Me Who reached high.

Never claim a bit of the glory as your own.
Reflect and shine.

For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure.[a] This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. 2 Corinthians 4:6-7 NLT


walking with Emily in imperfection

 

His Cross - my cross

It is a fine line my Lord asks me to walk

that narrow road from death to abundant life

to thank Him for His cross

and shoulder my own

My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20 NLT

My spirit knows the truth of these words, but my flesh, oh, my flesh! Day by day, often moment by moment it struggles to ressurect itself. Perhaps this is what prompted Roy Hession to write in The Calvary Road:

But dying to self is not a thing we do once for all. There may be an initial dying when God first shows these things, but ever after it will be a constant dying, for only so can the Lord Jesus be revealed constantly through us.' All day long the choice will be before us in a thousand ways. It will mean no plans, no time, no money, no pleasure of our own. It will mean a constant yielding to those around us, for our yieldedness to God is measured by our yieldedness to man. Every humiliation, everyone who tries and vexes us, is God's way of breaking us, so that there is a yet deeper channel in us for the Life of Christ.

Help me look to Your cross and lay down my rights that Your life might be reflected in me, not to my credit Lord, but for the glory of Your Name.

Flashback Friday - Forgetting

This week Jo gave us this prompt:

"Let's just run with the theme of FORGETFULNESS. Write about a time when you forgot something or someone. Or write about an experience or person that was UNFORGETTABLE."

I have to take a deep breath, dive in, and trust you won't laugh so hard and so long that I'll never be able to show my face again. But since I know that God despises the proud I submit my tale in humility.

We had recently moved from Rick's home town to a much smaller town about 30 minutes away. He was settling in at his new job and I had quit my work as a cashier at Safeway Foods to work as a cook/waitress at a local diner. Rick would leave to walk to work at 7:30 and I would usually find things to do around the house until it was late enough that I'd have to drive the few short blocks to make it in on time before the breakfast customers started arriving.

On one particularly clear day I decided I would walk, so I made sure I gave myself lots of time. I was enjoying the feel of the warm air and the opportunity to observe the state of everyone else's vegetable gardens as I passed by. Much nicer than driving, I thought, and made a mental note to do this more often.

I actually arrived with much time to spare, so the owner suggested we sit and chat over a cup of coffee or two. I poured us each a cup and brought them to the table. I sat and lifted the cup to my mouth... and... by the grace of God alone, before I parted my lips I realized that I had left home without wearing my false teeth. Now I'm not talking about a tooth or two here and there.. but a full denture on the top and a partial bottom plate that filled in for all but 3 remaining real teeth.

My hand went to my mouth immediately and turning my head I muttered about having to run back home for a minute, promising to be back before my shift was due to start. Instead of a leisurely cup of coffee, I power walked back to the house, mouth shut, fixed my teeth in place and drove back. Not quite the best way to start what had seemed to be a good day.

Now, when you stop chuckling, go visit Jo at Mylestones and add your own Flashback Friday