CHARIS SHALOM

I once built a wall in my heart.
I called it confidence;
You called it pride.
And I bricked it in.
I then built a wall I called faith.
You called it piousness.
And I bricked it in.
Next came a wall I called leadership;
You called it arrogance.
And I bricked it in.
I then built a wall I called compassion.
You called it neediness –
And I bricked it in.
It was easy to put a cover over those walls.
I felt so misunderstood;
I knew I wasn’t righteous,
But it became easier to judge.
It surely wasn’t all my fault…
And I’m surely not that bad…
So, smugly I cozy up
Inside the mortar and gloom,
But after a while the newness wears off
And I miss sharing my heart.
I’m in a box I built,
And I can’t take it apart!
Oh Lord! Please tear down these walls
And let me freshly start;
Help my desire to please You have primacy,
And all other wants fall away.
May I desire brokenness more
Than self-rightness any and every day.