“Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.”
Luke 18:4-5
Yeah how long must you wait for it?
Yeah how long must you pay for it?
Yeah how long must you wait for it?
Oh for it
– Coldplay
I find that when I come to the end of myself, there He is, waiting. Wading through the brush, and the dirt and the branches, through the people and their ideas and opinions, through the various voices, news stories and religions, past thought aisles and philosophy, until I get to…silence.
At the end of rainbows are struggles and in preparation for the rainbows is testing. And at the end of testing is justice. After persistence and panting, searching, seeking, underneath and up above. Continual crawling and ultimate mercy, the fight to get those who are unloved to the front of the line for some food. The harder I seek the dirtier the road, the further I walk, the further I see the people who need to be seen. There are hungry people who need food. If I am not fed, if I do not struggle, if I do not writhe and beg to set myself free from the world, how then can I find and teach those that are drowning, shouting, hurting, haunted, barely living, barely holding on…
I am not mad that God has not acted, I am mad that I have not. That I have not spoken when I should have, or spoken too much, or not enough. I should’ve begged longer, held on longer, not given up on my prayer for the weary.
Could I not even watch and pray one hour?
I have failed but stand back up. I need to see with the eyes of God. She hurt me, so what? She is hurting, she deserved her own justice, but may have never got it…
Fairness is universal. Evil is the same wherever you go. Beg for the fairness we do not deserve ourselves. Beg for the justified soul that your enemy does not deserve. Twist and turn the hurt into a prayer for your foe’s salvation. Pray continually…
Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Philippians 4:8 (NLT)
I was lawless and corrupt, I was lost, I was searching, I was begging, I didn’t deserve even one drop of the blood that flowed from the veins of my savior. Justice would have been my punishment for what I deserved. But in His mercy, His infinite mercy, my infinite begging, I found Jesus. He laid justice upon me when I deserved demise. He declared me His child when I deserved the gravest of penalties. He gave me His robe, I should have bore His thorns.
When we crawl, when we stretch, when we continually ask to be better than we are, when we never stop failing to reach for Him, we are justified, we are saved, we are made ready to extend our arms to the ones that need it most.
Most humble and eternal God, your justice is radical and eternal. Place within us the widow’s desperate call, asking you to save the lost and lonely and all the sinners like me who don’t deserve it. I will never stop asking you Father for your mercy. Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on us.
Amen
Church Set Free 
Reblogged this on Talmidimblogging.
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Thanks brother 🙂
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you’re very welcome Sister!
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Amen. ❤
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Reblogged this on There's Something About Mary and commented:
Head on over to Church Set Free for our day of “Justice.” This is my contribution to today’s topic of conversation. So blessed to serve with this wonderful group of people, different backgrounds and denominations from all over the globe. Love you all!
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And….amen!
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And you, Mary, turn it inward, looking humbly at your own thoughts and actions, always thankful for The Gift.
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Yes, I am learning that it is the way…
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And I am learning so very much from you.
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🙂 He is so good isn’t He? It hurts yes it hurts, but the more I see the more I remain quiet in Him.
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I find that peace I always longed for when I am quiet with Him; hearing His whisper, feeling the soft breeze of the Spirit. I am warmed by His embrace whenever I go there and invite Him in. I simply need to allow myself to go there more often.
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Yes, me too 🙂
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Reblogged this on FOR THE LOVE OF GOD and commented:
This is part of Church Set Free’s “Kitchen Table Conversation,” a monthly “roundtable” discussion on a single subject from different perspectives by different authors. Please check out the original sites and authors.
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Sister M, what a great way to demonstrate justice and God’s grace in applying justice to us through Christ! I am always interested to see how you are going to apply an article to your Title of that article. Does that sound weird? Well you have a unique gift and that’s what makes me appreciate the Holy Spirit’s work within His body!! I look forward to your writings!
And,
Most humble and eternal God, your justice is radical and eternal. Place within us the widow’s desperate call, asking you to save the lost and lonely and all the sinners like me who don’t deserve it. I will never stop asking you Father for your mercy. Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on us.
Amen
I agree with you in this prayer and even though this is a “virtual world,” the blogosphere, it is a place where two or three CAN and do gather together and many times in “one accord” and so I and any other brother and sister agree in prayer with you in this request.
Amen and Amen, Come quickly Lord Jesus!
God bless you Sister M for this!
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Wanted to also tell you, the Coldplay song is so very appropriate for this!! Thanks for that also!!
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Thank you, I thought so when the Lord placed it in my heart 🙂
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I can feel the Holy Spirit through the computer screen! Seeing that prayer repeated back gave me chills. I agree with you in prayer and love you so very much my brother in Christ. I am blessed to write alongside you and serve the Lord Jesus next to you.
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