All that I am is yours...

...My peace...
...My joy...
...My righteousness...
...My love...

Have it all...

As Jonathan David Helser said, "How many times has my son come to me saying 'Father, I beseech thee! If thee could spare one bit of food from thine cabinet...'?" We don't hear children saying many things like that to their parents because they already know that what the parents own is theirs as well.

Our Father wants to give us good things. He wants to bless us. He wants us to be comfortable in coming to Him. He wants us to know He is listening. I don't know how many times that God has reminded me that He is listening. Just yesterday He spoke a word to me that brought me to tears, knowing I had not cried out in vain. I had spilled out my heart and He said, "I'm listening". There is nothing more comforting than the Father's embrace.

We must never forget all His benefits (Psalm 103) and the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross for us. He laid His life down for a relationship and a partnership. He is completely open to us and wants us to enjoy life with Him. Let's not waste another day holding on to what we're afraid to let go of or waste it selfishly storing away what's been freely given. Let's freely give back what we've been given and let's live in full surrender to the One who gave it all for us.

Because He first loved...
Because He gave His all...
Because He first surrendered everything...
Because He first suffered and took it all for us...

I can love.
I can live.
I can give.
I can surrender all.
I can suffer and take everything,
with His strength, His peace, His love,
surging through my veins,
sustaining me,
with You, Lord,
I can do anything.

Father, You give good gifts.

Nights like these, I just can't sleep...
Like the psalmist, I lie on my bed and meditate.
For all that You've done,
I am ever grateful.
What if I had to spend life climbing
Rung after rung,
A never-ending spiral,
A cycle,
That I could never get myself out of?
Just to reach the top
and find I had still
Fallen short,
Of all that you are:
Perfect,
Holy,
Blameless,
Merciful,
Gracious,
Loving...
Enough to love a wretch like me,
Compelled to save and set me free,
Overwhelmed with a passion to never leave.
You sent Your Son.
He died for me.
Yet, that was not the end...
After you set me free
You made sure I'd never be alone
You couldn't bare to be apart from me.
Now when I'm weak,
You carry me.
Now when I am hungry,
You fill me up.
When I am lost,
You guide me.
When I find myself in the midst of darkness,
You outshine the darkness,
You remind me that I'm not alone.
You empower me.
You encompass and protect me.
Burning within,
You fill me
with a joy this world cannot explain...
My heart cannot contain the love
Exploding from deep inside!

Alice, at last

I seem to have fallen down again,
Tumbled into a hole I can't climb out of.
I go to speak but everyone else is a world away.
I try to think of some other way to reach them
But it feels like I've bumped my head.
No words come out.
So I continue on about my day
This potion is making me move slowly
"Time is ticking," you say
Yet I can't seem to quicken my pace.
Everyone is so happy here,
I join the tea party
Hoping that my joy will be restored.
Laughter and dancing fill the room
I just can't seem to find it in me
To bring myself to participate.
It looks like fun,
And there is a hint,
A faint memory
Of what used to be.
A girl that enjoyed and readily did these sorts of things.

I roamed far like this
Searching for a way back
To the place I had come from,
Yet I found myself deep in a dark forest
Where the laughter of the mockingbird grew.
There was no hope in sight.
Then I looked up
And I found...
You.
With a gentleness about You,
You spoke to me.
You led me and guided me,
But most of all You were the best companion I could have ever had.
You readied me for battle
And when the battle came
You were there.
As I moved swift and bold
With a courage none had seen
I remembered everything You said and it kept me alive.
With every moment I looked forward to simply being with You forever.
Though the dragon was big and fierce,
I saw past its tough facade.
With a double-edged sword raised high
I looked it in the eyes,
And told it to go.
Shocked it turned away
But it was too late...
It met its fate.
Then I turned to see You standing there,
With a look of contentment you stared.
"Alice, at last."
You had seen it all along,
What I was afraid was gone.
With You...
And only with You
I know that I can make it through.