Slaying the Giant

1 Thessalonians 2:8 (New Living Translation)
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers.
8 We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too.

I wrote on Tuesday (Steering the Titanic), about a struggle with selfishness. The words in a song on Ali Matthews' new CD, Window of Light, poked at me this morning. The song is called, "Give it Away," and here are some of the words, written by Ali :

Look at these hands clutching so tightly
To something that might be the chance of a lifetime
The silver and gold we're holding and hiding
So clearly deciding what's yours and what's mine

Give it away
You could just let it go, you know
Love isn't love until it's what you let go of
The moment is fading and freedom is waiting
it might even come back some day
If you give it away

Look at this life, a life of abundance
You know I'm not wanting for anything
I'm just feeding the fear with a quiet reluctance
to hold out my hand with the simplest offering

One of the dangers in writing is that your own words come back to haunt you and your own daughter even quotes them at you "helpfully." It makes me groan because I seem to need "refresher courses" in lessons I thought I had learned!

A poem I wrote only serves to underline the gulf between the aspiration and the reality.

If I am guilty, let it be
Of loving much, forgiving much
Of seeing more than eye can see
Let generosity my trademark be
And if perchance the world should take from me
The Lord will make the balance up—
You’ll see!

Well, here's to slaying the giant Selfishness!

1 Thessalonians 2:12 (New Living Translation)
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers.
12 We pleaded with you, encouraged you, and urged you to live your lives in a way that God would consider worthy. For he called you to share in his Kingdom and glory.

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