7 Words that describe God- ‘X’:
Xboba
Xenial
Xenolith
Xerlo
Xesturgy
Xmas
Xyresic
You are Xboba from ancient times. You have seen civilizations rise and fall. Scripture says (Psalm 22:28, 66:7) You directed them to keep Israel an obedient nation. Satan says in the New Testament (Matthew 4:8-9) that he controls them. Scripture also says (John 8:44) satan is a liar so he cannot be trusted. You have seen faith rise and fall. Is it stronger to walk on water than to love your enemies? To heal a man born blind than to open the eyes of the ignorant? What does it mean to follow faith throughout time, to witness the effect of Your people? To watch how You have lead them through kings and wars, inventions and paupers, perspectives and philosophies, that would be an education worth having. I would very much like to see that timeline. We scratch at things and claim it is worthy of note and give Ph. D’s to those who study them, but You are the only One worthy of note. Our history books ought to read very differently. Daniel 7:9-10
Your love always challenges me. I know I am cautious with the unfamiliar. You are Xenial. You welcome the foreigner, those who think differently and are from another place. Thank You that we don’t have to look the same, act the same, or talk the same. When I consider myself, how am I any better than anyone else? When I consider another, how are they any worse? All elevation of differences of trait, appearance, accent, background, etc. have more to do with pride and vanity than love. But based on what? Because they were born from a different place? It hardly seems fair or appropriate to gain or lose favor based on things no one chose. Thank You for showing us a better way. You love both the Jew and the Gentile. Hebrews 13:1-2
You clothe me in You. You wrap around me. I want others to see You, not me. You are my Xenolith. You protect me in arms of stone. With cooled magma, you embrace me. I am enveloped and made new. You never leave me alone to fend for myself. I remember when I was a kid, we went on Wilderness Trips. One trip, it had rained for days, worse than any other before or since. It was cold, everything was wet. We camped at the bottom of a hill and were washed out in the night. We climbed up the hill in the dark to resetup camp at the top. I was last and didn’t have a flashlight. I tripped, everything fell out in the rain. By the time I made it to the top, I was shaking uncontrollably with the beginnings of hypothermia. A man named Mark waited for me. He held me in his arms until I wasn’t shaking so bad. The other kids slept close around me that night. Just like Youth Sponsor Mark, and my friends, You surround me and draw me near. Deuteronomy 31:8
Though I’ve learned xerlo means- a person’s place or their things that they keep at their place, You are the One I want most in my home. So for this list and to accomplish this exercise, You are my Xerlo. My home can be filled with top-of-the-line gadgets and appliances, unique conversation starters, comfortable couches and chairs, beautiful art and plants, and thought-provoking colors and interior design, all of which would be very nice but if I don’t have You, it is pointless. I want my home- whether it be a palace or a cave, to be a dwelling place for Your presence. I have been to enough places that carry a different presence. If I were to “scratch the walls”, I feel like the place would crumble. But with You, a place is filled with joy and peace beyond gadgetry. Revelation 21:1-4
I had to learn some new words for this letter and I don’t know if I am using them correctly, but I know Your work in me improves me. You polish me, in a way, and make me shine. Your xesturgical practice makes me better and makes You a Xesturgeon. You polish me by purging me from my sinful state. You clothe me in better robes than I own. You prepare me to shine like a jewel in Your kingdom. You loved me in my unpolished state. I know I was hard and jagged and covered in dust, but Your work of xesturgy made me into what I couldn’t make of myself. I would be lost in a pile of worthless rock. We all look the same without You- striving to matter, striving for gain. Thank you for Your love which makes the worthless into something of great value. Psalm 144:11-14
Tis the season! Well, close. Thank You for coming to us! I don’t think I would have known or even have been expecting. I would have gone about my day ignorant of Your arrival. “Great, another baby. Another mouth to feed. And look at them! In a stable, nonetheless. That’s no place for a birth,” I can hear myself grumble. What would I have done differently? Complain, that’s for one. Maybe plan the trek to Bethlehem a little better, for two. If that is his ‘hometown’, surely Joseph had family or friends there. Fine, say he didn’t. I wouldn’t have my son born in a barn! I’d find a couple or someone to switch rooms with. Old man Jenkins can sleep in the hay for the night! “My wife is having her child for crying out loud!” I’d say. If I didn’t have money, Mary rode a donkey, sell that. No time?! Well, this is just great! Yeah, I’d miss it totally. Merry Xmas! Luke 2:1-21
You are Xyresic, oh Lord. You cut right to the truth of me. Your sharpness never dulls because You want more for me. It is written, “For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and is able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12, WEB) Though I know I am subject to the judgments of man, You know my heart. I am more than safe with You. When I look around at those who don’t know You, they are like zombies- always hungry, never filled. They wander around dazed with arms outstretched trying to find another person to devour. If they would taste You, and submit to Your xyresic Word, they would see and know that You are good. Thank You, Lord, You are the only cure for our zombie-like state. Hebrews 4:12