THE ONION

I was an old onion before Christ set me free
Layers upon layers of iniquity.
An ugly old onion whose fragrance was strong
That my Jesus bought and loved all along.

Unknown to me what He was going to do
Of what He was planning, I had not a clue
Pulling each layer off one by one.
In order to make me more like Jesus the Son

The first layer wasn't so bad
I saw all the sins that I knew I had
They wer easy to fix, just change the way I talk
And learn more of how He wanted me to walk.

Reading His Word, and learning again;
How to put aside my life of sin.
But the next layer was pulled which hurt more
He was getting closer to the core.

Unknown what He would find there.
I simply gave it to Him in prayer.
As another layer was removed, He started to cry
Pulling this layer brought pain to my Father on high.

And I was crying over the sadness I felt
The brokeness and all of the guilt
Past memories that I thought were gone
They were buried under layers disguised in a fragrant
so strong.

As onions peel more and more;
And they put tears in our eyes as we get close to the core
So my Father wept over my pain;
Giving me a balm of comfort and strength to sustain.

"NO MORE LAYERS." I would scream.
So he continued to peel them off me.
"I'll have nothing left my Lord, what will I do?
I'll be nothing but a worthless core to you."

But He just said "Trust me," and continued to peel
I was sure He was blinded to my pain that was so real
Year after year I shrunk more and more and more
Until all that was left of this onion was a core.

It was then that I begun to understand
As the Lord embraced me in His loving hand
He said, now and only now can you be;
The creation that will minister before me.

Clothed with the righteousness only from above
Gone are your layers of self so you can be filled with my love.
He took my layers of sin, hurt and pain;
And clothed me with love, truth and mercy in His Name.

Yes, we are all onions, learning with each day
How to overcome as each layer is taken away
Some layers tear and pull at our heart;
While others grieve us to our innermost part.

But we are nothing but an ugly onion wihtout Christ
Layers upon layers of pride, sin and strife
Only God can take those layers away. If you know Him -
You are clothed with His righteousness, and have strength -
to live each day.

AUTHOR UNKNOWN