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"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age..." Eph. 6:12

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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

The Book is Coming!

For many years and from many different people I've been hearing the same request. "You should write a book. Your story needs to be told." I heard it twice in the last two weeks alone. So a few days ago I sat down and wrestled with possible concepts. How am I going to make this work? I have so much potential material. It's kind of like looking into a pantry full of food and trying to decide what kind of meal to make. Is it going to be full scale fancy schmancy or more laid back, paper plates and plastic? Is it going to be decadent and robust or light and fluffy like dinner rolls? So much to think about! Then I remembered a poem I wrote a few years back. That poem combined with a prophesy over me from when I was a teenager created the inspiration. So here's the poem that will start it all. I still have much more work to do before I can get started but here's the rough idea. The book is coming!


The Cave


A little girl kneels by herself, alone in a dark cave. Her clothes are worn and tattered and dirt covers her face. Every day she comes here looking for some peace from the storm that rages on outside and oh, how she grieves. Her tiny little body pours out the tears each day and every day her prayers are heard from inside that cave.


Then one day she cries out, “Oh God, if you’re there, please come and take the pain away. Please tell me that you care. I am just so lonely and I need to be loved. Oh, God if you’re listening, will you come? Oh, will you come?”


Then out of the silence of her aching, grieving soul a man appears inside the cave, standing at the door. His clothes are bright and shiny, the purest shade of white. His face is full of kindness, there’s forgiveness in his eyes.


She looks up from the ground where her tears soaked up the earth. She sees the man she prayed for and her heart begins to burst. He enters the darkness and gathers her in his arms, walking toward the sunlight to a place that’s dry and warm. Then suddenly they’re standing in the middle of a field. The sun rests on her shoulders and dries up all her tears.


She looks to the man that rescued her and glances down to find no longer worn and tattered; she wears a sparkling dress of white. He reaches out to touch her and puts his hands upon her face. No longer streaked with dirt and grime, she’s been washed by his grace.


“I heard your cries of grief, my child and when you called for me; my heart was overjoyed at the chance to set you free. I promise from now until forever you’ll never be without a friend. When you call I’ll answer and hold you once again. The loneliness will be no more; my love will make you whole. And when your heart is grieving, I’ll hold you in the storm. You will have pain but don’t be scared. I’m right here all the time. The storms may rage but rest assured joy is not that far behind. Take heart, my child and come to me whenever you need love. I know the plans I have for you. I can heal you with one touch.”


She looks into his eyes that seem to reach into her soul and she walks into his loving arms. She’s not grieving anymore. She cries her tears of joy in his strong, fatherly embrace and whispers in his gentle ear, “Can I touch your face?” He steps away and takes her hand and pulls it to his side. “Someday my child, just wait and see. We’ll be in paradise.” And so they walk down the road that leads to home, she in her white dress and he in his crown of thorns. The journey is a long one and she’ll fall along the way. But never again will she be alone in that dark and dreary cave.
Posted by Sherry at 12:35 PM 1 comments Email This BlogThis! Share to X Share to Facebook

Monday, October 24, 2011

Jekyllina and Hydette

This is a re-post from an old blog. It seems appropriate to share it today because this happens to be where I am right now. If there was a female version of Jekyll and Hyde, I'm pretty sure I would be her.


January 23, 2000
Every drive home is the same. I hold her face in the dirty toilet of unforgiveness and anger. I force her to breathe the stench of rage as it blinds her eyes. She has no choice but to succumb. I can’t recall when it started, surely before I got out on my own. It’s been a routine for as long as I can remember. She tries to free herself from my grip but my hands are strong. She squirms beneath the weight of my depression but only gets pushed harder into the filth. “You hideous creature!” I scream at her. “You don’t have the right to breathe like a real person!” Her tears fall like Niagara Falls into the well and she becomes weak and tired from the powerful force. The harder she tries to fight off the attacks the worse they get. No wonder she’s always tired. She spends her days being the abuser and her nights wrapped up in tears that refuse to go away. I see her there, her little body crushed and broken and I cry my own tears, the haunting lullaby of a soul that fights for attention and loses over and over again. When will I love her? When will she accept my broken pleas for mercy?

June 22, 2009
Still Standing
I am wounded but I'm ok
I've been beaten but I'm not afraid
You may catch me in a moment of weakness
Knocked down for a time or a season
But I'm still here and the gloves are still on

Cause there's still a lot of fight left in me
No, I will not go down so easily
You may have won this round but I'm not backing down
Hang on for the fight of your life
Cause as soon as you turn in for the night
That's when I'll rise

You think those little jabs are wearing me down
Can't wait 'till I give up and hit the ground
One day I'll cave from the weight of your hate
and you'll win

But what you fail to understand about me
Is that I'm trained to live in victory
My strength may wane but I'll come back again
Because I already know how this ends

Your lies, they can't hurt me
Your games are just annoying
Care to re-load for your next attack?
Don't worry, I'll still be here when you get back

Cause there's still a lot of fight left in me
No, I will not go down so easily
You may have won this round but I'm not backing down
Hang on for the fight of your life
Cause as soon as you turn in for the night
That's when I'll rise 
Posted by Sherry at 11:07 AM 1 comments Email This BlogThis! Share to X Share to Facebook

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Beautifully Blameless


“Help me, Daddy! I’m slipping and I can’t hold on!” In the stillness and the quiet I hear his soft and gentle voice. “I AM with you. I will not let go.” After several weeks of fighting in the trenches I am battle scarred and weary. I am not strong enough to hold onto my Savior anymore. I am exhausted. In my mind I feel like I have failed the test that was set before me. I made bad choices and I have let down my Father. I am a failure. In the stillness and the quiet I hear his gentle voice. His perception of me is so different from my own.

“My daughter, lift up your head. A great battle has been fought and won. Not only did you resist temptation, you shared my Gospel with one who otherwise would not have received it. Well done! This day I have rolled away your reproach. You are blameless in my sight.”

In my mind’s eye I was only able to see the mistakes and bad judgment calls. In God’s eyes he sees the truth.

“I have removed the load of your shame, tossing it aside like the filthy garment that it is. You are blameless, treasured, and adored. Eat of my produce. All that I have is yours.”

I am starting to understand another great truth about my God. During the times when I feel the most defeated and unworthy, He is the most proud of me. As he sings to me during the quiet hours of dawn, I hear his heartbeat in the darkness. “You are right, you did fail. You failed to hide secrets. You failed to act on impure thoughts and motives. You failed to bring dishonor to me. You failed to make me love you any less than I already do.”

Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him… Psalm 37:5


 Photo courtesy of Eric James Photography
“Everyone will look upon your justice and righteousness as the sun. You will blind them with your radiance.”

As long as we are walking in His Truth, we are beautifully blameless. No matter what.
Posted by Sherry at 2:13 PM 2 comments Email This BlogThis! Share to X Share to Facebook

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Her Sister's Hero


She is the most beautiful creature I have ever known. She sparkles from the inside out, lighting up an entire room with her joy. While I miss her terribly I understand that this time away is necessary. She is becoming a fully grown woman, exploring her independence and freedom. I could not be more proud or honored to share my DNA with her. In a fascinating irony, I look up to her as much as she looks up to me.

“…And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces but the Lord was not in the wind…”

For years I have listened to her begging and pleading. “Please write a book. You have a gift and the world needs to hear what you have to say.” Her confidence in my ability is both humbling and frightening. While the world may take little interest in what I have to offer, my baby sister is on the edge of her seat waiting for me to take the world by storm. Her latest request could not have come at a better time.

“…and after the wind an earthquake but the Lord was not in the earthquake…”

Crippled by discouragement, the last several days have driven me to the edge of despair. Like Elijah in the desert, I have been curled up under my own broom tree. Despondence and self-pity have taken up residence for free in a place where the rent is not cheap. Out of sheer desperation I empty my soul onto paper, penning words that somehow confirm her beliefs. If I thought as much of myself as she does what great things might I be able to accomplish?

“…and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.” 1 Kings 19:11-12


Dear Self,

I’ve heard a lot of negative talk lately from the self-pity committee in your head. I understand that you are discouraged, dejected, and deranged. You feel under qualified, under appreciated, and under stress. You’ve got obligations, distractions, and responsibilities that keep your brain on overload. I get it. You feel like you’re not good enough, talented enough, or important enough to do the job. You feel insignificant, unworthy, and unprepared. I get it. I get it.

Here’s the thing about all these excuses. At the end of the day the plain truth is that it doesn’t matter how you feel. That’s right, I said it. Your feelings don’t matter and here’s why. God gave you a job to do and that’s the bottom line.

The truth is that you are good enough or else you wouldn’t have the ability to do this job in the first place. The truth is that people are responding to your efforts, even if they’re not saying a word. Speaking of which, when did you start caring so much about what other people thought? There are only two opinions that matter and yours is subjective.

The truth is that you have the power to be extraordinary. The truth is that with a little hard work, your voice could reach places you only dream about. The truth is that not only do you deserve to be heard, you are obligated. The truth is that you are more than capable of making your dreams come true. The only thing holding you back is you. What are you waiting for?



Posted by Sherry at 10:18 PM 1 comments Email This BlogThis! Share to X Share to Facebook
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Sherry
I'm a wife, mother, daughter of The King, and graduate of LongridgeWritersGroup. My work can be seen at Faithwriters, The Cypress Times, FaithReaders, and Everyday Christian.
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      • The Book is Coming!
      • Jekyllina and Hydette
      • Beautifully Blameless
      • Her Sister's Hero
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