Burn, Redemptive Flame (Isaiah: Light to the Nations) - Tim Knipp (Isa. 5:18-21; 6:5)

A tapestry of travesties
woven of wayward threads;
a deeply disappointed 
Father mourns the loss -
the severing of bonds,
the sickening snarl of sins
His children wallow in.

Carts loaded with rotting piles
of overripe lies and selfish deeds,
amassed debts to wrongs unaddressed,
greed rationalized
and putrid appetites.
Dragging our groaning loads,
we challenge God
to prove His
worth.

Double-edged words drip
from slack lips,
stab for weakness
and divvy up Truth
to serve it with a slab
of jellied lies.
We gobble it all down
indiscriminately.
Words unworthily shared
or miserly withheld
serve no one.
Words obfuscate and rattle
when they can be jewels
shimmering with
reflected brilliance.

Arrogance is an ugly scar
on an otherwise
beautiful face.
Closed ears
and closed hearts
refuse the possibility
of error
or a better plan.
In "us" we trust,
thank you very much.

It is I who am flawed
as well -
no better than any of us.
I am carting my own load of trash,
cursing words stain my tongue
and I wear oversized confidence
like camouflage fatigues. 
  
So I kneel before
the Father,
knowing my unworthiness,
my shame;
and He touches 
my lips
with redemptive
holy 
flames.