Posted on 11/09/2006 6:49:58 PM PST by Knitting A Conundrum
Out of my depths,
the darkness of my sin,
the darkness of being separated,
the darkness of doubt,
of chosing self over God,
the depths of my own hubris,
I cry to thee, O Lord!
You, the last anchor I know,
the first truth that I learned,
the light I long for,
the truth I hunger for --
You, Lord,
You who I have slighted so often,
You who knows my every move,
You who knows,
You -
I cry to Thee -
Forgive me, O Lord,
O Lord, hear my prayer.
Lord, hear my voice,
You who hear all,
You who cry out in the garden for the weight of all our sin,
You who offer your wrists up to the executioner's nails,
You who offer your back to the scourge,
Your face to the mocking,
You who hear me crying out in the darkness
when I think it is only me,
But it is always, always two,
You and I.
In the bitterness of my tears,
Through my remorse, the haze of self-pity,
awaken my heart, O Lord,
forgive me my failings --
change me!
In the sorrow for my shortcomings,
tasting of ash in the light,
when You show me my reality,
heal me!
In the darkness of my grieving,
shaking with the pain of loss,
when You let me know that I am but dust,
and You are life,
and You are reality,
and I am not master,
hold me, O my Lord.
Mold me,
Shape me,
and let me be
as You would have me to be,
transformed by Your love
cruciform,
a love big enough to give all
a love big enogh to drink the dregs of sorrow
a love big enough
to transform the whole world,
tear by tear
to bring that final joy.
Amen.
BTTT
Jesus! whose blood so freely stream'd
To satisfy the law's demand;
By Thee from guilt and wrath redeem'd,
Before the Father's face I stand.
To reconcile offending man,
Make Justice drop her angry rod;
What creature could have form'd the plan,
Or who fulfil it but a God?
No drop remains of all the curse,
For wretches who deserved the whole;
No arrows dipt in wrath to pierce
The guilty, but returning soul.
Peace by such means so dearly bought,
What rebel could have hoped to see?
Peace by his injured Sovereign wrought,
His Sovereign fasten'd to a tree.
Now, Lord, Thy feeble worm prepare!
For strife with earth and hell begins;
Conform and gird me for the war;
They hate the soul that hates his sins.
Let them in horrid league agree!
They may assault, they may distress;
But cannot quench Thy love to me,
Nor rob me of the Lord my peace. {William Cowper}
O Lord our Lord, how Excellent
Is Thy Name in All the Earth! (Ps.8)
TO HIM BE GLORY BOTH NOW AND FOREVER, AMEN. (2Pet.3:18)
Here I stand, Lord, naked beneath your loving eye
in a place where no pretense is allowed.
You know me for what I am,
each area I try to masquerade my weaknesses,
each nook in which I try to hide my sins,
each way I try to cling to what I, not You want of me.
Here I stand, Lord, tasting my tears
as the realization of what I do that separates us
is revealed, veil by veil, through your kind hand.
Forgive me of my hardness,
the lack of love I let mar the creature you would have me be.
Forgive me of my obstinance,
the willingness to forget that I am a creature, not the Creator,
the pretention to being in control,
the desire to build walls to separate me from Your will for me.
Here I stand, Lord, open my heart
and let me see with Your eyes the darkness in my life.
And through Your loving light,
let those blemishes be cleaned and healed,
until I see my fellow man the way you would have me see,
until I turn to you, my Life and my Hope,
first, last and always,
so that I may learn, through Your loving power,
to walk the way You want me,
for Your glory,
this day and always, Amen.
BTTT
FReeper prayer request for young man who is a stroke victim:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1789013/posts
Psalm 35:1Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;
fight against those who fight against me!
2Take hold of shield and buckler
and rise for my help!
3Draw the spear and javelin*
against my pursuers!
Say to my soul,
“I am your salvation!”
4Let them be put to shame and dishonor
who seek after my life!
Let them be turned back and disappointed
who devise evil against me!
5Let them be like chaff before the wind,
with the angel of the Lord driving them away!
6Let their way be dark and slippery,
with the angel of the Lord pursuing them!
..........
Psalm 97:1The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!
2Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3Fire goes before him
and burns up his adversaries all around.
...........
Psalm 18:31For who is God, but the Lord?
And who is a rock, except our God?—
32the God who equipped me with strength
and made my way blameless.
33He made my feet like the feet of a deer
and set me secure on the heights.
34He trains my hands for war,
so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35You have given me the shield of your salvation,
and your right hand supported me,
and your gentleness made me great.
36You gave a wide place for my steps under me,
and my feet did not slip.
37I pursued my enemies and overtook them,
and did not turn back till they were consumed.
38I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise;
they fell under my feet.
39For you equipped me with strength for the battle;
you made those who rise against me sink under me.
LORD of HOSTS,
You have given me Victory in JESUS to fight and resist temptation, sin, and the flesh and win, over and over again, through the Power of your Holy Spirit by the Merit of the Finished Work of Jesus.
You are faithful to deliver me from my enemies.
You have not left us without help but have provided all we need through your goodness and provision.
I thank you LORD for your Love and Light in which we walk.
Strengthen me for and through Battle as I lift the Shield of Faith again.
You are Mighty.
The LORD REIGNS!
1Sa 17:47 And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle [is] the LORD'S, and he will give you into our hands.
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/b/t/btmhints.htm
Be Thou my Helper in the strife,
O Lord, my strong Defender be;
Thy mighty shield protect my life,
Thy spear confront the enemy.
Amid the conflict, O my Lord,
Thy precious promise let me hear,
The faithful reassuring word:
I am Thy Savior, do not fear.
Ashamed, confounded let them be
Who seek my ruin and disgrace;
O let Thine angel fight for me,
And drive my foes before his face.
Without a cause my life they sought,
Without a cause their plots they laid;
Themselves within their snares be caught,
And be my crafty foes dismayed.
My soul is joyful in the Lord,
In His salvation I rejoice;
To Him my heart will praise accord
And bless His Name with thankful voice.
For who, O Lord, is like to Thee,
Defender of the poor and meek?
The needy Thy salvation see
When mighty foes their ruin seek.
O Lord, my God, I look to Thee,
Be Thou my righteous Judge, I pray;
Let not my foes exult o’er me
And laugh with joy at my dismay.
With shame and trouble those requite
Who would my righteous cause destroy;
But those who in the good delight,
Let them be glad and shout for joy.
Yea, let the Lord be magnified,
Because Thy servants Thou dost bless;
And I, from morn till eventide,
Will daily praise Thy righteousness.
My soul is joyful in the Lord,
In His salvation I rejoice;
To Him my heart will praise accord
And bless His Name with thankful voice.
BTTT
BTTT
The midnight seems so dark, and dawn so far away.
The sounds of war are loud, with no safe place to stay,
Except in Your heart, Lord, the one safe place I know -
O keep me close to You, Lord, O do not let me go.
The midnight seems so dark, voices cry out in the night
exploding into to anger - I hear the bloody fight.
No peace without love, no peace outside Your heart -
O keep me close to you, Lord, O do not let us part.
The midnight seems so dark, with a blood smell in the air,
the bitter iron of hatred, lust and sorrow there.
Like war drums the sound of feet marching in the night.
O keep me close to you, Lord, O bring me to your light!
The midnight seems so dark - You know those shadows too.
In grief you prayed alone as our sins laid hard on You.
You felt the whip's hard biting, you took their cross of thorn -
To keep me close to you, Lord, you accepted all their scorn.
The midnight seems so dark, but You gave the way to life.
Your cross the midnight beacon that cuts dark like a knife.
You gave us your all to bring us through the night
To keep us close to you, Lord, safe in Your loving sight.
(to the tune of Noel Novelet (Midi tune: http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/MIDI/noel_nouvelet.mid)
http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/MIDI/noel_nouvelet.mid
Looks like I caught the parenthesis in the html...oops!
BTTT
"I give you all the credit, God;
You got me out of that mess,
You didn't let my foes gloat.
God, my God, I yelled for help
And you put me together.
God, you pulled me out of the grave,
Gave me another chance at life
When I was down-and-out.
All you saints! Sing your hearts out to God!
Thank him to his face!
He gets angry once in a while, but across
A lifetime there is only love.
The nights of crying your eyes out
Give way to days of laughter.
You did it: you changed wild lament
Into whirling dance;
You ripped off my black mourning band
And decked me with wildflowers.
I'm about to burst with song;
I can't keep quiet about you.
God, my God,
I can't thank you enough." (Ps.30:1-5,11,12)
Is Anyone Crying for Help?
God is Listening,
Ready to Rescue you.
If your Heart is Broken,
You'll Find God Right there;
If you're Kicked in the Gut,
He will Help you Catch your Breath. (Ps.34:17,18)
Thank you so, so much for that post, dear one.
But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ
- Galatians 6:14 RSV
The world does not understand this, Lord,
why I should want to bring to mind that sad but holy day,
when You became the curse for us,
when You carried that horrendous burden
far heavier than the wood of Your cross,
the sin of the world on Your sinless, torn and battered back.
Such is the scandal of God in the eyes of the world,
That out of disgrace and misery and pain,
Hope is born.
How heavy the weight of the unrighteousness of others on You,
the Son of righteousness,
hatred and the selfish lack of love piled high on You,
You who are all love,
all that darkness
on the shoulders of You who are always the Light,
as You brought the redemption that a loving God offered --
by Your stripes we are healed.
O Lord, let me think of the crowd that gathered in front of the Roman judge,
pressing close and noisy that Friday morning,
thinking they were upholding the honor of the Father,
but caught up by the world who would not see You for who you are,
and know my sins were there as they screamed for Your blood.
Let me think of the whip and know that my sins were there,
driving the lead tipped leather to cut Your skin,
as You took the punishment that I deserved.
Let me remember how that my sinful hand joined the executioner hammering the nails
through all the times I have chosen to do wrong,
not counting the cost that you so willingly bore to the depths of death.
The world does not understand,
does not want to understand,
chooses not to believe this foolishness of God,
the one thing truly to glory in,
a cursed death that is a marvelous victory,
yet for us who love You,
the scandal of the cross is our one hope and salvation.
Lord,
Let me never take for granted what You have wrought,
and contemplating that day with remorse and with gladness,
remember with a thankful heart how much I am loved,
now and forever.
Amen.
BTTT
Prayer request by FReeper cgk:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1789792/posts
O my Jesus,
I contemplate your poor battered face as I see it in my heart,
Your hair sticky and wet from the blood beneath your crown,
your cheeks bruised and bloodstreaked,
your nose swollen.
I behold the King on his way to his betrothal,
in just those garments that show
the depth of your love,
how far you are willing to go
in pursuit of you bride,
what a bride price you are willing to pay
to dress her in the dazzling white you promised.
Let me contemplate this gift,
and not forget the pain throbbing through your body
because of me, and all like me,
brother and sister in our lack of holiness,
pain you bear willingly,
pain rooted in our lack of perfection,
and our turning away from your light,
pain rooted in our hunger for good twisted into things we should not want,
all braided together like the thorns you wear around your head.
How heavy this burden you carry
on that abused but precious head, O Lord,
and I, with all of mankind, heaped that burden on you,
hammered the thorns into your flesh,
mocked you for who you are,
King and Bridegroom for an unfaithful world.
What reparations could I make
that would make this reality go away?
Nothing.
But, pricked to the heart,
I offer you my tears,
and grief at the necessity,
and bowing before you,
offer you the little love I have,
my heart,
my abject sorrow,
and eternal thankfulness at your willingness to love.
Amen.
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