Tag: god

Thoughts on Conviction

~ Em ~ Leave a comment

Pointing_fingerWhy do we view conviction so negatively? And why do we run from it? Without conviction, how can we expect freedom? The church should be convicting because ultimately Jesus convicted the hearts of the poor and the defeated out of love not arrogance or judgement. He was sent to be relatable not as if He were better than any of the rest of us. And although He was better and without sin, He walked the path of sinners and suffered a death as if He were one. That’s how He changed and continues to change hearts all over the world.

Therefore, if the church is His bride then we need to marry the idea of honest conviction with humble acceptance and overwhelming forgiveness. We should not be afraid to confront other Christians, non believers or doubters. For Jesus spoke calmly but was firm in his expectations. We go wrong when we live out the negative connotation that we’ve given to conviction and we start pointing fingers and turn up our nose at our fellow sinners. A sin is a sin, no matter what the gravity of the situation so we should remember to put ourselves in the shoes of others. We’ve all been through valleys, let us recognize those seasons in others and help bring them through it, not to make them feel guilty but human.

In my experience, the ones that turn away or run from conviction need the most love. And that should be our first sign to humble ourselves and stretch out a forgiving hand. It’s really in our approach as a church. Let us be like Jesus and be honest and convict hearts to better them not bury them. Let us boast of our past convictions to be relatable and humble ourselves as the Father did through His son, Jesus Christ. Let us not condemn but raise up, let us not scare away the broken-hearted but embrace their faults with our own. Let us award honesty with a challenge to go further in faith and deeper in relationships. Then, together we can continue to invite God to dwell within us and within those around us. Lord, convict our hearts so that we may become better disciples and hold us accountable as we shall hold others accountable to Your will and calling on our lives.

Unyielding Heart

~ Em ~ 3 Comments

My love is not the overwhelming kind

Yet my heart is not any less fragile

I may not speak in romantic prose, my tongue may bite

But I will drown myself in suffocating doubt

As my lungs fill with desire

 

I will breathe in even your weightless words

And the fear of breath loss will coincidentally cause a collapse

For the depths of my emotions are a challenge for even experienced divers

Including obstacles to ware off any hungry sharks

Because settling is not a viable option when your hopes are your only life support

 

Then a stillness will come in the free-fall

As my unyielding heart bears the burden of the journey

And the scars of past mistakes provide reassurance to a promising future

Because although my love is not the overwhelming kind

My heart is not any less fragile to cracks of unexpected chances to be taken

Outside The Box Believers

~ Em ~ Leave a comment

Faith cannot be placed into a box.

Yet the faithful feel forced to fit into a mold.

A mold made by doubt within our own kind and carried out by nonbelievers just waiting to say, “I told you so.”

We’re not perfect and though we should strive for it, we shall never let our pride or sense of togetherness make anyone else feel small or not good enough.

Because the truth is none of us would sacrifice our last breath to honor a notion that we did not understand.

Yet we would give up a nourishing meal to live up to standards set by these box makers.

And we become numb to these insecurities because it’s easier to bury scars than to wear them proudly.

Yet when we do, we put ourselves in that same box and fear pushing the envelope might cause gossip and judgments by fellow box dwellers.

But we are not called to be in corners, we are called to break down barriers, be relatable, be scarred, be inspiring.

Be outside the box thinkers.

For Noah’s arc was outside the box.

Esther’s boldness was outside the box.

Paul’s change of heart was outside the box.

So we shouldn’t try to fit our faith inside this little box, we should let it grow into vineyards of luscious fruit.

Let it spiral in directions off the beaten path.

Let the wrong turns and spoiled vines be lessons to legions of followers.

Let them strengthen your heart so that it becomes durable to what ever trials it may face.

For God didn’t create us in our mothers’ wombs to be frail box inhabitants.

We are wonderful, fearless, one of a kind, box breakers formed to be soldiers in His army.

To stand up for what is right by him and to not be held down by these rules that minimize Him.

We are who we are for a purpose and denying what makes us that denies Him.

Let us all love each other for that reason so that we no longer judge each other by denominations or by sins but learn to love with grace and gratitude.

Let us help others out of their boxes to be revolutionaries of their own faith.

For God has a relationship with all of us and it’s in that relationship that we are molded and it’s in Him where we find our strength.

And no box could ever contain the love that He has for us and the love that His spirit will bring.

An Endless Second

~ Em ~ Leave a comment

I sometimes find myself fighting for you to surface

And because I lack in force, I grow weary in spirit

Then our antagonist pushes to sink you deeper and deeper

 

My breath shortens and my heart’s staccato pounding accelerates

Just enough to lose visions of what truly holds weight

I stand puzzled as to where we left off and unsure as to which direction leads closer to you

 

But hope taps on my shoulder as a conductor taps his baton on his music stand

To signify the ready and the set but it’s up to me for the go

And that last second will feel endless as I long for understanding of a future you already know

The Harvest

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The high grass brings comfort to souls that dwell in shadows

It creates curtains of loneliness that are quickly welcomed

As the sun travels the lengthy sky

Spectrums burn through the gaps

Exposing wounds of neglect and self pity

Healing winds seem to go unnoticed

As you can’t see a breeze, only its effects

Yet the green blades of past regrets bend and stretch with each passing moment

Allowing thoughts to salute the tears of yesterday’s sins

For the pasture will continue to be cultivated until the land is overused

And when that day comes the hope will be in the harvest