10/17/2009

 

 

Shepard In High Places

 

 

O great Shepherd, make my feet like hinds’ feet. I am willing to go with You up to the mountain of High Places. Change my name O God-Put that thorn of love in my heart. Draw me- I will run to Thee. You are my hearts one desire. Bring me to Thy royal house to dwell there in Thy presence, O my King. Perfect me in Your love, let me rise up and go away with Thee -I have found You, whom I loveth so, I have held You and now I can never let You go. You are the Rose of Sharon, the Lilly of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star. Oh come. Oh come Sweet Shepherd and take my hand to walk up to the High Place together with Thee.

 

Oh lift me up to the High Place of love so I may receive the power to pour myself down in utter abandonment of self-giving. Uphold me by Your hand, support me by Your strength and send Your guide to lead me where You want me to go. I will trust You and do whatever you want.

As I look upon the face of my Great Shepherd, I realize I cannot doubt you, nor can I turn away from following You. In the entire world I have no one but You. Help me to follow You even though it seems impossible. Help me to trust You as much as I long to love You.

You, O Lord, who is so strong and yet so gentle, be not less faithful and gracious to me, weak and cowardly though I am.  You delight in delivering me from all my fears and take them to the High Places. I will go with You, lead the way my Shepherd. Your Peace and Your Joy will be fulfilled in me as I follow You.

O deliver me from self-pride, O God. Do not let him take me by the hand and lead me astray. Come to me, my Shepherd! Come quickly!  Rescue me, I am reaching out my hands to You, O God. Pride had trodden on my feet, O God. Deliver me, My Shepherd- I repent and ask Your forgiveness my King!

I love You enough Great Shepherd to accept the postponement and the apparent contradiction of Your promises, and I will go down into the desert wilderness. I will go with You, for You know I do love You and You have the right to choose for me anything You please.  I humble myself before You, my King - I give You my rebellious will, I surrender all to You Lord Jesus. I willingly lean on You.

O Sweet Shepherd  take me by the way of Egypt so I too may be thrashed and grounded into the finest powder to become bread corn for the use of others. Bruise and break me to be used of Thee. Like clay on the potter’s wheel, mold me and reshape me, Master Potter, do with me, as You will -I want to be clay in the hand of the Master Potter.

Refine me, O God, as gold being smelted and where the dross is removed in the furnace. “O thou afflicted tossed with tempest and not comforted, behold, I will lay dry stones with fair colors and lay thy foundation with sapphires.  I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, all thy borders of pleasant stones.” (Is. 54:11)  Turn Your hand upon my heart, purge away the dross, and refine me in Your fire and remake me at Your Cross until I can shout my name is Acceptance with Joy!

O, cross the desert sands as swiftly as You can my Shepherd, I need Thee! “When You hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”  O Lord, I thank You for leading me through the wilderness. I was so empty and dry, but waiting thy time to be filled to the brim with Your flood tide of Love.

Come to my deliverance and hurry, O my Lord-before Resentment, Bitterness, and Self-Pity manages to take complete control -Rescue me, my Shepherd! I give up and rebuke the weeds of impatience in my heart. Forgive me, O Lord for thinking that You were allowing me to follow the path of impatience and that You had forgotten Your promise to me. I tell You now with all my heart that You are my Shepherd whose voice I love to hear and obey.  I will wait patiently until You give me my hearts desire.

Lord Jesus, I lay down my whole will to Thee as a burnt offering. I delight to do Thy will, O God. “And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about; therefore I will sing praises unto the Lord; Yea I will offer the sacrifice of joy and will praise the Name of the Lord.” (Ps 27:6)

Behold, Lord Jesus, here I am; Thy handmaiden, all that is in my heart is Yours. Welcome Great Shepherd, a thousand times welcome, all that I have is Yours to do as You please.

O Lord, rescue me again for I am oppressed; help me, my fears have taken hold upon me and I am ashamed to look up. Your word says, “You have a very tender compassion for those who are afraid.”

 

Sweet Jesus, the path You have chosen for me looks so dreadful, so impossible. I turn giddy and faint whenever I look at it. Forgive me Lord, You told me You would make my feet as hind’s feet and set me upon my High Places. You have brought me on purpose to this back side of the dessert where the mountains are steep and where there are no paths, but the tracks of the deer and of the mountain goats to follow where Your promises will be fulfilled.  Now I shall see what You will do.  You will turn my weakness into strength and my fear into faith, and that which has been marred into perfection.  Your special work is transforming me into an extraordinary vessel.

Lord, I believe You can change me into a mountain goat and get me to the top of the mountain! Whatever it takes, Master, have Your will and Your way in me. Nothing else matters.  I lay my will down before You, my Shepherd as I climb towards the mountain of Love. “Whom have I in heaven but Thee, and there is none upon earth that I desire but Thee.” O Master Shepherd, I want to go higher with Thee. Lead me, O God, to the next stage of my way to the High Place. Even if You lead me through the Valley of the Shadow of Death itself, I need not fear, for Your rod and Your staff will comfort me. “I shall shalt not be afraid of the terror by night; nor of the arrow that flieth by day, nor of the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor of the destruction that wasteth at noonday. Though a thousand fall at my side, and ten thousand at my right hand, it shall not come nigh me…For You will cover me with Your feathers and under Your wings shalt I trust. in Thee.” (Ps 91:4-7  )I put my trust in You, my Lord. I love You deeply and I trust You completely and I long to trust You more.

Lord Jesus, My Shepherd! Help me! Where are You? Don’t leave me! You may do anything, Master. You may ask anything, only don’t let me leave You. If you must deceive me, my Lord about the promises and the hind’s feet and the new name, indeed You may; only do not let me leave You. Do not let anyone or anything turn me back to that old self.  Your word says, no one, not even my shrinking heart, can pluck me out of Your hand. Your Word says, “This delay is not unto death, but for the glory of God.” O remember Your promise, my Lord, My ears shall hear a word behind me saying,  ”This is the way, walk ye in it, when you turn to the right hand or the left.”

Yes, Lord, I will bear this too, as I go down the path of forgiveness into the Valley of Loss. If that is Your choice for me, I will go where You want me to go. “Entreat me not to leave You, or to return from following after you; for where You go, I will go; Your people will be my people; and your God my God. And where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me and more is ought but death parts you and me. (Ruth 1:16-17)

With my whole will, O God, I want to satisfy You and please You. My passion and desire  is to be near You, my Shepherd. All I want in life is to follow You forever. Nothing of this world can fill the void in my life but My Shepherd. Nothing else matters I only want to love You and do Your will for my life.

I cast myself down in total abandonment to Thee, my Shepherd. I want that joy unspeakable, and full of glory in the abandonment of Your loving arms. I have only one desire; and that's to go down and down and down to give myself with no reserve or holding back of any kind to Thee.

O my King, My Master Shepherd, I want so desperately for a piece of burning coal from Your alter to touch my lips and cleanse me of all iniquity. “Lo, this has touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.” (Is. 6:7)

Bind me to the altar in some way so that I cannot move. I do not want to be found struggling while Your will is being done. “ Lord God You are my strength, and You will make my feet like hind’s feet and You will make me to walk upon High Places.  To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.”  (Hab 3:19) I long to go higher with Thee. Lord, open my eyes to see more of Your light. Help me to a fuller understanding. I want unbroken fellowship with You, my King. Walk with me where I walk, sit with me where I sit and allow Peace and Joy to accompany us.

I accept with joy all that You have allowed to happen to me on my journey and everything to where the paths lead. I am never to avoid it, but accept it and lay down my own will on the altar and say,  ”Behold me, I am your handmaiden.” I have learned to forgive, to let go of bitterness, and to grow in Your love. I have learned that You do not see me as a weak and crooked or cowardly vessel but You see me as Your designed me to be from the beginning. You always treat me as if I were a queen, with much love and graciousness. My Lord, I want to regard others in the same way. There is no circumstance in life, no matter how crooked, distorted or ugly it appears to be, if I react to it in love, in forgiveness and in obedience to Your will, it can be transformed.

I must remember that as long as I live in agape love and in joy and acceptance I can never again become crippled, and I can follow You where ever You lead.. I’ll be able to go down into the Valleys of the world to work with You there, and it's where the evil and sorrowful and ugly things there I need to overcome.

O great Shepherd, take my hand and lead me, teach me how to reach others as You teach me Your ways. Teach me and I will say it for You as Your willing vessel. Let everyone in the valleys of un-forgiveness, of bitterness, of gloominess see what You have for me. when they see Joy and Peace accompanying me. I do think  that in the end You can help them too. I plead for them my King, that their misery and loveliness and sorrow will make them more willing to listen to news of Your grace and of Your desire to help them. I want to pour out my life in gladdest abandonment, leaping down with You to the sorrowful, desolate places below, to share with others the wonderful new life You have given to me. Let me pour fourth myself in Love’s abandonment of self-giving.

 

 

Written and compiled by VSD-G