We are broken for the castaways
and those who think they have it made.
Broken for the dealers
and those who make deals.
Broken for the confident
and for the frightened.
Broken for the arrogant
and for those whose fate is sealed.
If you’ve given it all away,
no one can take it from you.
You might say, “I just feel empty,”
but so seems the desert
before God sends the rain.
Then watch it bloom!
© Joel Tipple
381
If you want to transport me to a place where faith works,
Load me up,
buckle me in,
take me to church.
Everyone sings!
Can you believe it?
We make a joyful noise!
We serve.
That must be why
they call it a service.
It’s our offering to God.
And yet,
we are the ones
who are served.
We open up to the word.
We test ourselves to prove we’ve heard,
and try to absorb
the lesson we thought we heard
the last time
we went to church.
© Joel Tipple
374
It’s so tempting to keep your salvation to yourself,
protecting it, like a beautiful bird in a pretty cage.
But God’s love really flies out in the real world.
You need to let it show; don’t keep the faith.
Don’t keep the faith, don’t keep it, all locked up inside you.
Don’t keep the faith, growing cold, away from the sun in the sky.
Don’t keep the faith. That anthem always had it wrong, I believe.
Because a glass of water held under lock and key…
will still go dry.
Now the Holy Spirit is a gentleman. He doesn’t go knocking down doors.
He goes where He’s invited and empowers the children of God.
Those born again, are given a part in the great commission
and that doesn’t involve keeping Him on a shelf like a set of laws.
Don’t keep the faith, children, don’t keep it, all locked up inside you.
Don’t keep the faith, growing cold, away from the sun in the sky.
Don’t keep the faith. That anthem always had it wrong, I believe.
Because a glass of water held under lock and key…
will still go dry.
Release it. Sonshine. Release it. Now is the time.
Release it. Sonshine. Release it…
Don’t keep the faith.
© Joel Tipple
373
Except for what peeks out from my upper arms when I’m wearing short sleeves, most of my inked real-estate lies beneath my shirt. My first tattoo was an eagle on my upper right arm. Around four years later I got a dragon that covered the left side of my chest and upper arm. Some time after that I added a tiger on the other side. The scene under the tiger resembles a rocky mountain with trees and a waterfall. It looks as though the tiger could have traveled from out of the landscape below it. Looking at my chest head on, it looks like the dragon and tiger could be joined in a conflict. I suppose there are all sorts of interesting psychological implications one could draw, but frankly I just think it all looks cool.
Now, on to the tattoo represented in the photo above. This is the first tattoo I’ve gotten that is easily seen without my having to remove my shirt. The reactions of everyone except my family or close friends when they heard about or saw my previous tattoos were universally the same: “You don’t seem like the sort of person who would have tattoos.” Really, it has been funny how little that response has varied. Apparently my persona is very straight laced and the tattoos just don’t fit the impression people form when they meet me. The tattoo you see in the photo is on the inside of my right arm. I put it there because the inside of my arm isn’t as hairy as the outside, so it’s a better canvas. But probably the biggest reason I had it inked there is so people will see it and make comments. I want it to provoke a conversation. I gave my life to Christ in my teens, but later on, as an adult, I allowed my relationship with Jesus Christ to lose its high priority in my life. When I rededicated my life to the Lord I began looking for ways to share that. This tattoo is both a symbol of my love for God and a witnessing tool. It is both an outward manifestation of my belief and a way to start conversations. The symbol of the cross represents Christ’s ultimate sacrifice to atone for our sins, so that we may have everlasting life. The sword represents the reverence I have for the word of God. Hebrews 4:12 says: “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
For more tattoo posts and pictures featured in today’s Daily Prompt, click here
© Joel Tipple
355
13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own.
But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind
and straining forward to what lies ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal
for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:13-14 ESV
A mind held to the past
lacks the energy to engage in the now
and what will be.
Endless replaying of foibles and feeble missteps
serves up little more than mud splattered fenders.
God rewards those who seek Him
and a great veil is lifted from our eyes
when we come to accept the freedom gained from surrender.
© Joel Tipple
348
For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Psalm 62:1-2 ESV (English Standard Version)
Resting in the knowledge
that it’s not just talk.
My reality is
God is my rock.
A lot of people are tossed about
fretful because of the news:
war and destruction
in this world.
But in the final analysis
only one house will remain,
and that belongs to the Lord.
© Joel Tipple
5 1-5 “For instance, we know that when these bodies of ours are taken down like tents and folded away, they will be replaced by resurrection bodies in heaven—God-made, not handmade—and we’ll never have to relocate our “tents” again. Sometimes we can hardly wait to move—and so we cry out in frustration. Compared to what’s coming, living conditions around here seem like a stopover in an unfurnished shack, and we’re tired of it! We’ve been given a glimpse of the real thing, our true home, our resurrection bodies! The Spirit of God whets our appetite by giving us a taste of what’s ahead. He puts a little of heaven in our hearts so that we’ll never settle for less.”
The Message (MSG)
Heaven in our hearts,
a bit of beautiful against a background of despair.
So much is haywire in the world
and it does battle with the question we all carry to the cradle
and forward…
is it fair?
This notion of justice we apply with no schooling,
maybe before we ever speak at all,
have you noticed?
Somehow we know.
In our anguish,
we seemingly hire God
and fire Him
at will.
Evil speaks itself into our world
and our notion of justice
becomes one of proximity.
But,
God is still God,
whether an innocent child
dies
in Belfast,
Kampala,
or
Des Moines.
Now, that isn’t the typical
winning marketing formula
espoused by Madison Avenue.
“Thank you very much, Mr. Tipple. Ah, we have your number. No, no. We’ll call you.”
But,
At the same time,
a child is born
in Belfast,
Kampala,
and Des Moines
For those who have passed
and
for those who live,
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
© Joel Tipple
sure as the clouds
play hide and seek with the sun
come a time
the things we’ve done
will be revealed
of our own volition
or without
because of our condition
come a time
we’ll need
to be healed
we can’t get all we need
from those we love
right relationship you see
starts from above
where you are
is where you’re placed
your obedience first
when you seek His face
will nourish you
and those you touch
with the living waters
© Joel Tipple
Matthew 6:33-34
The Message (MSG)
30-33 “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.
34 “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.
I am unworthy,
but I have the keys to the kingdom on my key ring.
It would be sad if I grew old
and forgot what they were for.
I am unworthy,
He must increase and I must decrease.
What’s that sound?
He’s at the door.
I am unworthy.
Washed in the blood.
Seeking revelation of my sin.
It is true, if in my flesh I have lost,
in the atonement of grace, I have won.
Most days when I wake up
and begin the routine,
bleary eyes taking in
a familiar scene,
I start the ball rolling
just the way I should
but life isn’t as smooth
as I think it
could
be.
A lot of days are bigger than me,
I admit.
Okay, most,
okay, all.
I need a little of me,
but much more of Him,
because Jesus is there to catch me
when I fall.
Did you ever wake up feeling like
the loser of a bet?
It’s only the beginning of the day
but you feel like a horse
put away wet.
I’ve never been much
for the sound of retired.
When I’m done being tired,
I’ll have had enough of that.
I need energy to live
through this world to beyond
where I’ll get to sing the rest of the song
and know
all of its meaning.
But that doesn’t come without dropping
the idea my strength is enough.
I’m good with knowing
on You
Lord,
I’ll be leaning.
Write here, Joel. 