My heart's prayer

"A Matter of Heart" - by Beth Moore

I've arrived at a conclusion,
maybe on of life's rare finds
that there's not a lot worth salvaging
within this heart of mine.

It's ever ready to destruct
and lie above all things....
It tends to laugh when it should cry
and mourn when it should sing.

I've wasted countless hours begging,
"Fix this heart, Lord please!"
while it stomps its feet, demands its way
and floods with sin's disease.

At last, you're able to get through
and lay it on the line:
"You must give up that heart of yours
and trade it in for mine."

So I cry out with the psalmist,
create within me, Lord
A new heart crystal clear
that only Calvary could afford.

A heart which pounds the rhythm
of heaven's metronome
and issues forth a boundless love
and beats for You alone.

I want to love that which You love,
despising what you hate
and see myself as least of these
oh Lord, retaliate.

The efforts of the evil one
who seeks to make my plea
that of his own, "I'll make no move
til I've considered me."

Peel away my fingers,
finally make me understand
the power to love and please You
can't be found within a man.

So, my Lord, I bring this offering;
a stubborn heart of stone
And ask You, in its absence,
please exchange it for Your own.

I read this today in a Bible study that I'm going through on my own (Living Beyond Yourself - Exploring the Fruits of the Spirit by Beth Moore).

It hit me like a ton of bricks and I'm left pondering agape. I'm left looking at the places where evil's held me by the throat and I've allowed it to. And I'm also left with hope. That knowing Jesus and who He is, can enable me to respond and love others well - and at the end of the day, it is my hope in Him that transforms my heart and my life.

Peel my fingers away Lord. Exchange my heart for yours....