Living Sacrifice

The words are in me. I am full of them to brimming, and if I do not pour, I will burst.

I pray they are not my own.

We hear of presenting our bodies to God as living sacrifices. It is a pretty vivid picture, right? But we've turned it into a mere cliche. It stirs us, but do we even think about it? A living sacrifice. We have the idea of a dead sacrifice somewhere in the corners of our minds, at least. A bloody lamb on an altar. A naked Savior on a cross. But when we think of a living sacrifice, we become much more tame. This is us, after all. No need to be graphic. We form simple thoughts of handing ourselves to God. Constantly. Because if we're alive, then we're obviously moving, right? So we must keep coming back to God and offering up our desires and opinions.

But where are we returning to, again?
Where do sacrifices go?

Oh, right. An altar.
The image I get is of Aslan tied to the stone table. Of Jesus nailed to the cross.

We weren't supposed to have gone anywhere.

A living sacrifice.

Life lived on an altar.

How's that for graphic imagery?

That was the image I had in mind as I prayed for my day. God looking over me, as I sit on this altar. No ropes or nails on me {that whole 'free will' thing, remember?}. But I stay anyway. Because that's what you do when you radically love someone. You lay yourself down for them. My love is fickle and flawed, but oh, may I remain on this altar!

Let every part of my life be lain on that altar. My time - help me strap that to the stone; I don't have the strength to tie that knot tight enough. My work - may I tread on this altar even as I do my chores, as I make food for customers, as I sweat in the sun. Accept even my art as a living sacrifice - not just the pieces I deem 'spiritual;' affect it all. Saturate my life. Me stretched across that altar, all I am and have before you ... covered in and atoned for by Your blood. Literally dripping in crimson grace that so defies logic that it dares make my stains as white before You. Free from condemnation. Bind my wandering to Thee. Amen.

Comments

  1. AmandaJuly 26, 2014 at 1:29 PM

    "No rope or nails on me. But I stay anyway. Because that's what you do when you radically love someone."

    A "yes and amen" from me today. :)

    ReplyDelete

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