"Getting Right"

Is there any reason,

That you will not pray,

Is it pride or arrogance,

Or don’t know what to say?

I have had that feeling,

Part of it was shame,

The rest of it was foolishness,

By any other name.

Then there was my anger,

I thought God was to blame,

For many things He didn’t do,

And played a cruel game.

With promises and verses,

What others claimed by faith,

And I was disillusioned,

By what had filled my plate.

So when it came down to it,

My selfishness held sway,

And I procrastinated,

Day to day to day.

The burden grew so heavy,

I got to trackin’ slow,

Like some old worn-out pony,

That cannot hardly go.

I still managed to cowboy,

Could still practice my trade,

And some who thought me handy,

And there were friends I made.

And some of them were prayin’,

I didn’t know for me,

And every single now and then,

I’d get a witness, see.

I’d be off in some pasture,

Lookin’ at the stock,

And some old boy would ask me,

If I knew Christ the Rock.

And of course I told ‘em,

That, yes, I knew the Lord,

But no one thought that I’d been,

Cut by the Spirit’s sword.

And finally it happened,

I fell out on the floor,

I said I wasn’t leaving,

I’d not go out the door,

Until I knew repentance,

And God had granted grace,

And I knew it was settled,

Right there in that place.

And, by God, that’s what happened,

I gave my life to Him,

Which started an adventure,

To this very day has been.

Is there any reason,

That you will not pray,

Don’t let something stop you,

Get down, get right today.

“If you try to hang onto your life, you will lose it…” (Luke 9:24, NLT)

People are hanging on for dear life. But Jesus said if you hang onto your life, you lose. What did He mean by that? He was talking about control, and the illusion that we are in control. We aren’t really, you know. But we think we are, and we want to be, and if someone suggests otherwise it frightens us. It scares us to think we have lost control, but fact is, we never really had it. For example, you can’t control people, can you? No, they do what they want. You can’t control situations either? They go different directions for all sorts of reasons and poof, there they go. So control is really a kind of smoke and mirrors show at best. But if we think we are, then. whether it’s true or not, it’s our reality. Jesus says to give it up. Give up control or the illusion that we are in control. When we lose control to Him, there is both immediate and long-term relief. If you hold it, you lose it in every way loss is measured. But if you lose control to Jesus, you win every way that counts. And that is the heart of the Good News of Jesus Christ. Let go, and save your life.

Lord, help us to surrender control to You, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Jason Rich, jasonrichstudios.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Jason, and God bless you.