They Asked Me

An Original Work / November 11, 2021

Strangers called on me one day,
Asked me if I’d kindly pray
For their neighbors, for their friends
To find Jesus, accept Him.

“Sure, I will,” I said to them,
“Pray they give their lives to Him
Fully, truly, not in jest,
Not to falsely Him confess.

“Pray they forsake lives of sin,
Choose that they will follow Him,
Let Him be Lord of their lives,
Go on not to sin contrive.

“Pray they obey every word
That from Jesus they have heard.
Pray His Spirit not resist,
Not on sin to still insist.

“Pray their idols throw away,
Obey Jesus every day,
Walk with Him where’er He leads
On His word to daily feed.”

**

“No! No!,” they said, “not what we meant,
We want the truth that man invent,
The one that says that we can play
Now with our sin, now every day.

“We want the grace that not requires
We live our lives as God desires.
We want forgiveness of our sins,
But we don’t want to live for Him.

“We want the Jesus who would say,
‘Forgiven you are, go and play.
Not worry ‘bout your lives of sin,
Do what you want, it’s all forgiv’n.’

“We want the God who does not see
When we choose sin and to deceive.
We want the gospel, says, ‘Believe,
Live how you want and heav’n receive.’”

**

But “No!,” I said, “Not how it works.
Can’t live in sin and receive perks.
Not die to sin, not obey Him,
Your sins, they are not forgiven.

“Obey your Lord, do what He says,
And you can live with Him instead.
Now follow Him, go where He leads,
Eternal life you will receive.”