Prodigal

I wrote this poem years ago and until this time have kept it to myself.  I will post more soon, I pray that they can be an encouragement.  We pursue so many worthless things yet the Lord is willing to redeem us.  Grace!

Why do I not fear You, Lord?

Like a son with no respect,

I have greedily accepted the life and provisions You have offered,

Yet I deny Your position in my life,

I deny Your authority.

I take Your love, Your grace, and Your mercy,

I drink deeply of the freedom You have paid dearly for,

I devour Your treasures, relishing them.

Then I spit them back at You as though both You, and they, are worthless to me.

I walk away from glory as if it is a meaningless bauble,

And my wicked heart embraces meaningless baubles as though they are glorious.

But inside I am still the son that gratefully accepted Your love, grace, and mercy.

And I am angry, because I know the weight of my sins.

My regrets could tear down mountains, or pull the earth inside out.

Within me there is despair, because I have hoped in my selfishness

And cannot hope to have hope again.

I have squandered my inheritance on prostitutes,

I stood on every high hill and under every green tree as a harlot,

And gave away that which is undeniably Yours; my praise, my adoration.

Time after time, again and again, I spat in Your face.

What have I?  What did I ever have?

Even my arrogance and pride have been stripped bare.

Everything I am is from You. And You are my sustenance.

There is nothing unalienable.  Apart from You, I have nothing of worth.

And though I should not hope to have hope again,

I remember Your kingdom where I sipped sweetly of Your grace.

I begin to seek that kingdom, and I trust, as I wait longingly,

That through Your power my soul will never again despair,

My iniquities are covered by the death of Jesus Christ,

And I will drink of Your love, Your grace, And Your mercy on every high hill and under every green tree.

And I will never thirst again!