At the Foot of the Cross-Tammy Trent

It's Video Sunday, and I thought I'd share this great song performed by Tammy Trent. :-)

At the foot of the cross
Where grace and suffering meet
You have shown me your love
Through the judgment you received
And you've won my heart
Yes you've won my heart
Now I can

Chorus:
Trade these ashes in for beauty
And wear forgiveness like a crown
Coming to kiss the feet of mercy
I lay every burden down
At the foot of the cross

At the foot of the cross
Where I am made complete
You have given me life
Through the death you bore for me
And you've won my heart
Yes you've won my heart
Now I can

Chorus:
Trade these ashes in for beauty
And wear forgiveness like a crown
Coming to kiss the feet of mercy
I lay every burden down
At the foot of the cross

I'm including the lyrics, because perhaps the words of this song are ministering to you as they have ministered to me. Do you long to trade your ashes in for beauty? Have you held on to the lifeless, ugly ashes of past abuses, hurts, sins, or failures? I have lived much of my life unnecessarily carrying things that I was never created to carry; in other words, I carried the ashes of other people's actions against me and my own ashes of sin, regret, and shame, and you know what? Because Christ gave His very own life in payment for my sin, I can wear forgiveness like a crown! I don't know about you, but I love that imagery! I can come to the cross with my ashes; I can lay them down, and I can walk away with a crown of forgiveness. Tonight, I am in awe of that great gift.

But to be honest, I think there are a lot of Christians walking around figuratively wearing their ashes instead of their crowns. Think about it, when you see someone who lives in the grace of forgiveness (someone who has kissed the feet of mercy), you may not see a physical crown, but the reflections of light from that person's life are as real as the reflection of light bouncing off a golden crown. But the reverse is also true. When you see or interact with someone who has refused to lay down their ashes, you sense a lifeless religiosity, a deadened spirit, and a colorless existence. Oh my friend, God has so much more for you! I know because I was once that person. Why have you not made that trade yet?

For me, I held on to my ashes for a couple of reasons. First of all, although I was a Christ-follower, I hadn't even come to terms with some of the things done to me, so how could I lay them down if I wouldn't even recognize them? And then, the ashes I wore were what was familiar to me. I may not have liked them, but they fit like an old, broken in pair of jeans. And with some of my ashes I felt I had a "right" to hold onto them because if I gave them up, the person who caused them would be let off the hook. If they didn't see those ashes, they could just act like they never did those things and go on their merry way. Little did I realize that they weren't seeing the ashes I carried anyway, and I was the one paying the price.

I think of those reasons for holding on to those ashes now, and I realize how foolish they were. Had I seen those things as they truly were, I would have traded them much sooner because a crown of forgiveness was mine to wear when I laid those burdens down!

I don't know about you, but I want to continually lay every burden down at the foot of the cross. Although I am unable to fully comprehend the love that Jesus has for me, I want to live in the freedom of forgiveness and grace that He makes available for me.

If you find your are burdened by ashes, I plead with you to take them to the foot of the cross right now. Bow your heart before Him, and tell Him of those things, and confess them before Him. Dare to trust Him with your most hidden hurts; dare to hold nothing back.

And then.....kiss the feet of mercy; look up into the face of love as He places the crown of forgiveness on your head, and picks you up and places you on solid ground.