What About ME??

I have a confession to make. I like country music! Some of it anyway.

My music of choice is without a doubt worship music of any kind which is pretty much all I listen to these days in my car, on my ipod and in my home. However, I cut my teeth on Country Music and occasionally wander over to a Country channel on a long car drive or if it is Music Awards night on TV.

There is a country song by Toby Keith that was released a few years back. I don’t know enough about Toby to have an overall opinion about his songs or his values but I was very struck by this song. I have always felt like he “nailed” an unfortunate truth about us girls sometimes when it comes to life!
The song is called, “I want to talk about ME!” You Tube would not net let copy it here but do check it out if you are up for a little boot scootin’ bogey!
I was recently reading a Bible story that made me think of that song. Yep, God uses all kinds of stuff to help me “get it”!
It’s the story of Tamar and her not nice brother Amnon found in 2 Samuel 13:1-22. Tamar was the daughter of King David. His Highness David, as you know, had lots of wives and lots of kids. His son Amnon was a bit like his Dad when it came to women and thought he should have anyone his little heart desired whenever his heart desired it.
Tamar was Amon’s half sister, a fact that did not hinder his lust for her or his longing to “get to know her better”. The very sad story of Tamar’s trouble with Amon turns out to be one of the many stories in the Bible that could easily turn into an R-Rated movie today. This is not a nice story and is unfortunately, one all to familiar to women today. At the risk of creating a very long post, I have copied it here for the ease of your reading.
If you know the story, skip the blue part!
2 Samuel 13:1-22

In the course of time, Amnon son of David fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of Absalom son of David. Amnon became frustrated to the point of illness on account of his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her. Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother. Jonadab was a very shrewd man. He asked Amnon, “Why do you, the king’s son, look so haggard morning after morning? Won’t you tell me?”

Amnon said to him, “I’m in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”

“Go to bed and pretend to be ill,” Jonadab said. “When your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘I would like my sister Tamar to come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare the food in my sight so I may watch her and then eat it from her hand.’ “

So Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill. When the king came to see him, Amnon said to him, “I would like my sister Tamar to come and make some special bread in my sight, so I may eat from her hand.”

David sent word to Tamar at the palace: “Go to the house of your brother Amnon and prepare some food for him.” So Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon, who was lying down. She took some dough, kneaded it, made the bread in his sight and baked it. Then she took the pan and served him the bread, but he refused to eat.

“Send everyone out of here,” Amnon said. So everyone left him. Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food here into my bedroom so I may eat from your hand.” And Tamar took the bread she had prepared and brought it to her brother Amnon in his bedroom. But when she took it to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, “Come to bed with me, my sister.”

“Don’t, my brother!” she said to him. “Don’t force me. Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don’t do this wicked thing. What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you.” But he refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her.

Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her. Amnon said to her, “Get up and get out!”

“No!” she said to him. “Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me”. But he refused to listen to her. He called his personal servant and said, “Get this woman out of here and bolt the door after her.” 18 So his servant put her out and bolted the door after her. She was wearing a richly ornamented robe, for this was the kind of garment the virgin daughters of the king wore. Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the ornamented robe she was wearing. She put her hand on her head and went away, weeping aloud as she went.

Her brother Absalom said to her, “Has that Amnon, your brother, been with you? Be quiet now, my sister; he is your brother. Don’t take this thing to heart.” And Tamar lived in her brother Absalom’s house, a desolate woman.

There are so many things that could be said about this horrible story but the thing that I was looking at during my study were the words of Tamar in verse 13…
“What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace?”
I have been there done that!
Not under the same circumstances as Tamar, certainly, but with the same desperation. At 23 years old when I found myself at the bottom of the heap of life, due to my own choices and my own sin, those where the first words that came to my mind…
“What about me? Where can I get rid of my disgrace”.
I was thinking EXACTLY what Tamar was thinking…..
What WILL THEY THINK and what can I do to avoid it?
I have learned over the years that is the enemies best tactic with women. We are surrounded every day with exposure to his con games in one fashion or another. It may be the lure of love, personal sin or the disgusting decision of another, like Tamar faced.
Satan has but one goal and that is to steal the purity, dignity and the personal feelings of value of women from their very deepest parts.
He is the bad guy! He wants to take you out. He wants to have you in a place of desperation and distortion of circumstances so that you will turn your head and heart completely upon yourself and away from God. He wants to steal your influence, your self confidence and your understanding of the ROYALTY of your Birth and your INHERITANCE in Christ.
God’s desire is so very opposite. It is ONLY in HIM and the Fullness of His love that we find ourselves.
When we look full into His face we will see ourselves, regardless of our circumstances, mistakes, violations, lostness, as He see us….Pure and Holy and Adored by Him.
HE is where we can get rid of our disgrace, once and for all!
What about Y.O.U.???
Have you given God ALL of your disgrace?

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4 Comments

  1. Oh Pat, what an amazing word! I can so relate. What about ME? How I have been there. But, thanks to THE ONE AND ONLY GOD, I am free. Praise HIM!! He has brought me from the depths and made me complete in Him. I am forever grateful.

    Jennifer

  2. Pat,
    SO TRUE.
    This is one of your best posts EVER! Every time I hear the words "what about me?" I think about Joyce Meyer doing her wind up robot routine repeating that phrase over and over.

    So much of our troubles start with that very phrase in our own minds and hearts…
    Satan has but one goal and that is to steal the purity, dignity and the personal feelings of value of women from their very deepest parts…He wants to have you in a place of desperation and distortion of circumstances so that you will turn your head and heart completely upon yourself and away from God. He wants to steal your influence, your self confidence and your understanding of the ROYALTY of your Birth and your INHERITANCE in Christ.

    Shout the answer from the rooftops, my friend.

    ONLY IN HIM… will we find confidence, peace, acceptance, wholeness, satisfaction in our deepest parts! Everything else is a counterfeit.
    Blessings to you.
    Cindy

  3. Jennifer,
    Your FREEDOM overflows on everyone who is near you—therefore, what God did for you, He did for the whole world!!
    Have a blessed day girl!!

  4. Cindy,
    Coming from you, I feel like I just got an A++!
    Thank you or taking the time to comment and encourage me!

    ps…Your new website is awesome! I can't wait to slow down long enough to HIRE you!!!! Save me a slot when you get famous!

    xoxo!
    Pat

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