A Sacrifice Worth Living For

I thought I was ready to die,
Why, why my heart would pry,
Into the mind of God,
Years later, still here,
Shed many more tears,
Relived so many fears,
What is it You would have me to do?
Live to glorify You,
by making worldwide fame,
Or should I keep on making stew,
be a godly wife & keep my heart from strife?
In this life I find pain & heartache,
Times of rest by a lake,
Am I livin' for You or my sake?
I know I don't want to be fake.
What should I do?
Seek the lost & few
that will follow You?
What about the world wide oppression:
Those who starve with those who overflow,
Those who are beat & afflicted, & those living in depression, so many loving sin?
It's hard to have peace within
The confines of a life
Filled with strife:
All the discussions & repercussions
of what is right & wrong, evil & good,
It can be so hard to be understood.
Dear God that is true,
& everyman a would be liar,
What should I do?
How to stay sane,
in the daily mundane
How to keep focus,
Amidst a pestilence of evil,
Damaging more than all the locust.
The heart would faint & mind grow weary,
With all the media news that makes me leary;
To know a speck of what You know,
of all the evil,
It's pain brings me low,
But I still don't know :
Do I rise up,
What is the cup
You have for me,
Do I quietly keep your commandments:
Work no ill to my neighbor,
In love labor,
Look not upon man or woman to lust,
Lest I turn to dust,
Turn my cheek to the foe,
And for my enemy the extra mile go,
Lay myself to the ground,
that another disciple may be found,
With all my strength & all my mind,
Love You,
that I may seek & find,
First the Kingdom to come,
that Thy will may be done?
If I do all these
will it please?
Christ has pricked the mind
of all mankind,
He is my example,
Do I not possess all that is ample,
To live selfless as He?
From all ungodliness flee:
fornication, self-abuse
drug use,
wanting other people's things;
Lust of the eyes that brings,
adultery, murder, violence,
Violation of the innocent,
over eating, unrestrained passions,
dressing in vain fashions,
strife of heart, lack of forgiveness,
without order, living in a mess,
The list goes on,
Flee these & be strong
For the love of Christ I must not do wrong.
If I stumble once, please not twice,
Oh Dear Lord I cannot be nice,
when I seek my own; I cannot continue in sin,
if I should ever win,
The seen, yet unseen war,
There are souls within, many do not care anymore,
But I know it's worth fighting,
In the end sin will have its sting,
never-ending pain,
joy you cannot feign,
All you choose for self in vain.
Counting the cost,
I know it's not worth the loss,
Life on earth, will I seek to be happy here,
or let it burn off all my dross,
To You Oh God let me surrender fear:
Fear not bodily pain
suffered for Your name,
Fear not letting go
of all that I would have
From day to day, keeping silence,
Tearing down every fence,
Suffering long & having patience
Fear not the face of man or foe,
Defaming & rejection
Knowing it'll bring me into Your perfection.
Help me to let go,
And on this earth sow:
Truth in the hearts of children & those who do not know,
repentance in those who grow,
in contrary directions.
To live this life as Christ in His perfection,
Certainly we must be able.
He was born lowly in a stable,
a Carpenters son,
Your life wasn't about having fun
From Your youth You went about Your FATHER'S business,
You honored Your father & Your mother,
Feared none other,
Than God above,
You taught us true love:
An existence void of self-interest,
and this I believe is the test,
It's not that we should work a miracle
But that we break the cycle,
Of humankind,
Lost & blind,
For all those reading this rhyme,
Do you see,
Here I plea,
With you & me,
We're living in a world with sin
There's a war within,
The only war that's worth the fight,
Is against our selfish desire,
Win this battle,
be free from eternal fire
Yet, warring for this alone still selfish we are,
Dying to self for the love of God & neighbor,
Is by far
A sacrifice worth living for.

(Written by:  Pilgrim Friend)