Joseph and Daniel (Part 1)

I'm no bible scholar, but these are just some thoughts...

Two beautiful hearts of men before the Lord; who's lives I have been meditating on:
The life of Joseph and the life of Daniel.

These two men adored and worshipped the Lord in their everyday lives. Their love for God seemed to out way their temptation to fall into the deceitfulness of sin. In chaper 39 of Genesis it says how Joseph was given charge over everything in Potiphar's house. Joseph was merely his servant but Potiphar entrusted him with all he owned. Joseph was also apparently attractive and fine-looking. (v.6) Eventually Potiphar's wife took notice of him and on more than one occasion begged Joseph to lie with her. To which Joseph said:

"He is not greater in this house than I am; nor has he kept anything from me except you, for you are his wife. How then can I do this great evil and sin against God?" (Genesis 39:9)

Sin against God? How many of us would immediatly have such a true and right thought? Joseph knew His God. His realationship with the Lord ment everything to him. But I wonder if Potiphar's wife was beautiful. I wonder just how many times she came to Joseph. I wonder how easy it could have been for him to sneak away in secret since no one was around.

But like I said. Jospeh knew his God. He loved his Lord. Obviously more than his carnal desires. He was not willing to compromise himself. He was not willing to sin...against God. And Joseph? Was just a mere man.

But God! I couldn't help myself!
But God! I'm only Human!
But God! I had no choice!

Maybe you didn't use those words. But at one point or another we've all tried to rationalize our sin.

Then the Lord said to me once...
"But! But! But! There are NO Buts in My Kingdom! My Word is YES and Amen!"
(To His ways.)

Hmmmm...so, what's your excuse? Because I'm all out.

Cheap Grace

I feel like deleting almost this entire blog. Why? Because I have been drinking Cheap Grace. Because somewhere along the line I substituted the real cross of Christ for a fake one. A golden calf if you will and I'm disgusted.

I have written poems and sonnets to the Lord and declared this blog "Love Letters to the Savior". But really, I think they have mostly been love letters to myself. I may even change the title someday. How can I can write all this flowery stuff and still toy and coddle with sin like a toddler coddles it's dirty baby blanket? I have seen it in action. The child wants it's dirty blanket. The parent wants the child to grow up and put away the childish things. The child feels like the parent is holding out on him/her and screams for the comfort of the dirty blanket. God will not force me to stop sinning. But His love has so much more for me, if only I would receive it.

If only we would behold the beauty and the shame of the Cross and really know that Jesus didn't die so that we could mess around and play church in the outer courts. How did I get so dull? How did I become so blind? We cannot serve two masters. We will either love our sin and hate the Cross or love the Cross and hate sin just as the Lord hates it. There is no in between.

I have cheapened His grace. You can't toy with sin and be holy as he is holy at the same time. It doesn't work that way and I lie to myself if I think that it does.

Something has got to change and It's-Not-God.

Gutted

Something has happened to me tonight. I can't seem to stop bursting into tears. For the first time in a very long time I have been pondering Jesus straight up on the cross. It's like I'm seeing fresh just what he did for me. (For everyone) up on that cross. So often, when I cry, it's because I'm crying repentance over my sin. But how often do we weep over the price that Jesus paid for our sins? I wonder how much I would sin less, if I continued to focus on the magnitude of the price he paid for me. How often do we reflect on all the filth that His blood has covered in our lives? I don't know, it's just captivating me right now and I keep thinking..."This really happened." God came down out of the most glorious of places to become flesh and blood and die on a cross so that I might know His redemption. He took my sin. He was stripped naked and suffered unspeakable shame and torture so that I might choose him and be blameless before the Father. I know that sounds graphic, but it's the truth. No one else loves me like that. No one else ever will. I just feel gutted.

Am I right? Is this okay to talk about? I know that the Bible says "Restore to me the Joy of your salvation..." (Psalm 51:12) But I wonder, can we know His Joy until we know His suffering?

Nothing is too hard for God

Jeremiah 32:17

Alas, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by Your outstretched arm! There is nothing too hard or too wonderful for You-"

Healing of the sick is not too hard for God.

Forgiveness of detestable actions is not too hard for God.

To mend and heal the broken hearted is not too hard for God.

Redemption of the most despicable life is not too hard for God.

Nothing, absolutely Nothing is too hard for You, God.

Let Your Will Be Done. Let Your Kingdom Come.

I believe in You. I wait for You. I love You.

Unraveled

You uncover my heart.
Like a string around a spool.
You unravel me.
Gently unfolding,
rotation by rotation in Your hand.
Observing each thought,
each action.
I try to hide,
stay tightly wound,
but the tighter I hold onto me,
the weaker I become.
And it takes nothing for You
to come and unravel my heart
and I become nothing
but a mess of string at Your feet.
Yet how gracious is Your love.
You pick me up
and like a tapestry,
you weave me into the story
you have written.