I know I said this last time, I am sorry for the delay between posts. My schedule is keeping me busier than I thought so I haven't had time to write for this blog much in the last month. I am not going to make any promises about when the next post will come. It is my intention to be more regular, but who knows?
I don't know if this post will mean anything to anyone but me, but it has been on my heart for a few days now and I need to get it out. Please bear with me, it is a little different that what I normally write.
Drip... drip... drip.
They all come flooding back to me at once. It is as if I am reliving every single one of them; every one of my sins, in a line that seems to stretch on forever.
Drip... drip... drip.
I can't bear up under their weight. It is more than this body can stand. I am being dragged under by the weight of them all.
Drip... drip... drip.
My guilt is more than I can bear. I try to bury my face in the dirt to escape the eyes of the world. I just want to hide, to disappear so no one can see my guilt.
Drip... drip... drip.
What was that? Something just dripped on my hand. There it is again. With great effort I force my eyes up from the dirt.
Drip... drip... drip.
It splashes on my face now. There is a figure above me, I try to focus on it. It is a man, but he hardly looks human anymore; except for his eyes. His eyes penetrate deep into my soul. I know in an instant he knows all of my deepest secrets. He knows how dirty my soul really is, my guilt doubles for I know those eyes see all of my sins.
Drip... drip... drip.
I realize it is his blood that is dripping on me. With great effort, the man behind those eyes says, "This blood is for you." The blood starts to fall more freely now. It begins to wash over my whole body and as it does, I feel the weight of my sins easing. it has completely covered me now and my burden is gone; like it was never there.
I get up and start to walk away and almost instantly I feel the weight of my sin start to settle back on my shoulders when I hear...
Drip... drip... drip.
and I am once again free of the burden.
The blood of the only truly innocent man was poured out on a dusty hill outside of Jerusalem so that all of us could be cleansed of our sins. Do you hear it dripping in the dirt? Do you feel it splashing on your hands? Will you let it wash away your sins?
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Saturday, September 1, 2012
How Much Are You Worth?
Sorry for the long time between posts, I have been really busy with the start of school and volleyball. I will try to be a little more regular in my posts now that things are settling into a routine.
I have a basketball card that is supposedly worth a little over $300. I have tried on several occasions to sell it and have been unsuccessful, nobody has been willing to pay what it is "worth". You see the problem is, something's worth is determined by what the buyer is willing to pay for it. If no one will pay $300 for my card, it isn't really worth $300.
Because of my job, I spend a lot of time around teenagers. As the girl's volleyball coach, much of that time is with teenage girls. I have come to see how little a lot of girls think they are worth. (I do see this in the boys too, but not to the same extent.) It pains me whenever I hear a girl talking about how worthless she is or how ugly she is. It makes me want to ask them, "Do you know how much you are really worth? You are worth what someone is willing to pay for you and you have already been bought. You were purchased by God and He paid the ultimate price. He paid His Son's life for you." We have all been purchased by God at the ultimate price. God thought that each one of us was worth the life of His only begotten Son. That means God thinks we have great value. We need to start viewing ourselves and others as God does, as people of ultimate worth.
I have a basketball card that is supposedly worth a little over $300. I have tried on several occasions to sell it and have been unsuccessful, nobody has been willing to pay what it is "worth". You see the problem is, something's worth is determined by what the buyer is willing to pay for it. If no one will pay $300 for my card, it isn't really worth $300.
Because of my job, I spend a lot of time around teenagers. As the girl's volleyball coach, much of that time is with teenage girls. I have come to see how little a lot of girls think they are worth. (I do see this in the boys too, but not to the same extent.) It pains me whenever I hear a girl talking about how worthless she is or how ugly she is. It makes me want to ask them, "Do you know how much you are really worth? You are worth what someone is willing to pay for you and you have already been bought. You were purchased by God and He paid the ultimate price. He paid His Son's life for you." We have all been purchased by God at the ultimate price. God thought that each one of us was worth the life of His only begotten Son. That means God thinks we have great value. We need to start viewing ourselves and others as God does, as people of ultimate worth.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Beggar's Invitation
I have been thinking about how we Christians react to the "sinners" that live among us. All too often we react in very negative ways. We really aren't any different than the Pharisees that drug the woman out into the streets to stone because she was caught in the act of adultery. I have been thinking about how we should treat them. I figured we should take our cues from Jesus.
So let's look at how Jesus reacted to the sinners he came in contact with. Consider the woman I mentioned above. The Pharisees, and much of the crowd, already had the stones in their hands, when they asked what Jesus thought they should do. His answer? "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." His point? We are all guilty of sin. If we are going to accuse one person of sinning, we have to hold everyone accountable for their sins.
You see, Jesus came to change the way we think about sin and righteousness. Without Jesus there is only the law. The law can point out your guilt, but it can do nothing to save you from it. Jesus came, not to condemn, but to save. Unlike the law, He can redeem us from our sins. Our job is to be His ambassadors not to enforce the law. Enforcing the law is God's job, so let's let Him worry about that. Our job is to lead the sinner to Jesus and that is much easier to do in love than with stones in our hands. If the church doesn't have room for sinners where should they go? Does that mean we should lower our standards? No. Jesus led a blameless life and He did tell the woman to, "...go and sin no more." but his first reaction was always to love first. If we are to truly be Christians, literally little Christs, we must act like Him. Our first reaction should always be to love first.
I have been writing this blog for several months now and felt it was time to expound on the name, Beggar's Invitation. We are all sinners. We have have fallen short of the glory of God. We as Christians are no more than beggars who have been shown where to find bread and our job is to tell the other beggars where to go to find the bread. Our job isn't to point out the faults of others, remember we are all in the same boat. We are all beggars, we just know where the bread is. So go out and find other beggars and invite them to join us in the feast at Jesus' table. Go extend a Beggar's Invitation.
So let's look at how Jesus reacted to the sinners he came in contact with. Consider the woman I mentioned above. The Pharisees, and much of the crowd, already had the stones in their hands, when they asked what Jesus thought they should do. His answer? "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." His point? We are all guilty of sin. If we are going to accuse one person of sinning, we have to hold everyone accountable for their sins.
You see, Jesus came to change the way we think about sin and righteousness. Without Jesus there is only the law. The law can point out your guilt, but it can do nothing to save you from it. Jesus came, not to condemn, but to save. Unlike the law, He can redeem us from our sins. Our job is to be His ambassadors not to enforce the law. Enforcing the law is God's job, so let's let Him worry about that. Our job is to lead the sinner to Jesus and that is much easier to do in love than with stones in our hands. If the church doesn't have room for sinners where should they go? Does that mean we should lower our standards? No. Jesus led a blameless life and He did tell the woman to, "...go and sin no more." but his first reaction was always to love first. If we are to truly be Christians, literally little Christs, we must act like Him. Our first reaction should always be to love first.
I have been writing this blog for several months now and felt it was time to expound on the name, Beggar's Invitation. We are all sinners. We have have fallen short of the glory of God. We as Christians are no more than beggars who have been shown where to find bread and our job is to tell the other beggars where to go to find the bread. Our job isn't to point out the faults of others, remember we are all in the same boat. We are all beggars, we just know where the bread is. So go out and find other beggars and invite them to join us in the feast at Jesus' table. Go extend a Beggar's Invitation.
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