Posted on 04/12/2005 8:52:31 AM PDT by Knitting A Conundrum
Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Matthew 16:24-25
Lamb of God
O Lord,
here, where the wood of my own cross
rubs agains my shoulders,
I begin to realize
that redemption had a real price,
that the blood flowing down your arms
was not theater decoration,
But you, Lamb of God
our pascal offering
slain,
the blood of atonement,
offered drop by drop
with each beat of your heart.
O Lord,
in my sorrow,
in my pain,
in the yielding up
of "not my will, but yours,"
I learn that true love
has real cost,
and grow more amazed
at the reality
of the price you were willing to pay.
Lamb of God,
who takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us
in our blindness
in our willingness to turn away,
in our willingness to disguise the reality
of what you gave,
what you wrought
what you suffered.
Lamb of God
who takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us
and give us the true sight
that will let us see
the reality of your love.
Amen.
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.
Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own, based on law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith; that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Prayer and Meditation ping!
Amen.
Prayers offered up for the Papal conclave.
Meditation bump.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.