Famous One- Chris Tomlin

You are the Lord
The famous one
Famous one
Great is your name
In all the earth
The heavens declare
You're glorious, glorious
Great is your fame
Beyond the earth
You are the Lord
The famous one
Famous one
Great is your name
In all the earth
The heavens declare
You're glorious, glorious
Great is your fame
Beyond the earth

And for all you've done
And yet to do
With every breath
I'm praising you
Desire of nations
And every heart
You alone are God
You alone are God

You are the Lord
The famous one
The famous one
Great is your name
In all the earth
The heavens declare
You're glorious, glorious
Great is your fame
Beyond the earth

The morning star
Is shining through
And every eye
Is watching you
Revealed by nature
And miracles
You are beautiful
You are beautiful

You are the Lord
The famous one
Famous one
Great is your name
In all the earth
The heavens declare
You're glorious, glorious
Great is your fame
Beyond the earth

Thankfully....

When it doesn't make sense......
What a hard place to be.

I know.

And when it is hard to trust.....
that, also, is a hard place to be.

I know.
Been there,
done that.

Maybe still having trouble with the trust sometimes.

It's so hard to be at peace then.

How are we to be at peace when it is all a dark, endless blur of pain?

I don't know,
not really.

I do know that

God is good.

God is with us.

and that he has a plan that is
better
than
mine.

His plan never is stopped.
Never is ruined.
Never destroyed.

When I'm wondering where He is and what He's doing in some of my friends lives right now.
All this pain.
It's sweeping over them
and I can't see Him yet.

He'll show up.
He saves the drowning.

He has it all under control.

Thankfully. (:

Love:)

R

Good day....

this......

plus this.....

equals a very relaxing evening.
I hope your Sunday was as great as mine was!!!
A thought today....

“Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.  The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
Exodus 14:13b-14

Love:)

R

A way through the sea

So.....the past few weeks, and for the next few months, our church has been hearing a different story each week. Then, our pastor has preached on it. The focus is basically how the big, overall Grace story intersects with all the little ones.  It's been amazing, and I've posted about the telling of the Joseph story.  I've been asked to tell this week's story. I'm a little nervous, as I'm the first young person to do it(!) and it's for all three services, but I'm also incredibly excited. I get to tell the story of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea.
 It's been funny that as we've been hearing these stories in church, the discussions that my small group{What we do instead of youth group} have been very similar to the stories. This week is no different.

Last night four of us girls and our three leaders sat squashed onto two couches after dinner, and talked about what we've had going on with us lately.
  To be honest, it's some really hard, crazy stuff. We were talking about Phillipians 4, specifically verse 6, and one of the leaders pointed out that {in the New Living Translation} its tell God what you need, then thank Him for what He has given you . So we were discussing one thing we each needed to ask God for, and one thing we were each really grateful for.

A lot of us are asking for miracles. We're looking into these crazy difficult circumstances, and maybe not seeing many options.  I got to thinking about the Red Sea story that I've been immersed in all week, and wondering if maybe it was kind of applicable for us right now.  The Jews stood on the shore of the sea with no boats, no way to cross, no time to go around, stuck between it and the onslaught of the Egyptian army. They had no feasible options, and they were sure they were about to die. They were scared. God tells Moses:
 
"Stretch your staff over the water in front of you"

Moses does what he asks, and they are protected form the army behind them while a wind dries up the very ocean in front of them. You know the story. They walk across the sea on dry land.
I kind of brought that up, and pointed out that when they thought they were done for for sure, something big happened. One of the leaders {All three are awesome, by the way} kind of grabbed ahold of that thought and summarized it really well.
"So pretty much," she said, "they saw these two ways, but God provided a third, much better way that they didn't even see or think of."
Yes. Exactly.
And I think of all these stories we've been studying where in the little picture story, all there is is pain. But in the big God-story, it is something far greater. And the phrase that reverberates across the centuries from the Joseph story is this.
What you meant for evil, God meant for good.
All these miracles we're asking God for right now, we're not seeing the way out.
His plan though, is far, far, greater than what I see.
And I do know ho the story ends.

Love:)

R

So good

This crazy dance we call life.....
it's so good.
We are so blessed.
God has these big, amazing plans that we don't see.
And that we do.
But even as He is taking care of the big plans-
He's all the more in the little plans
the little plans of our little lives that
He
Delights
In.
Loves.
Because we are His.
Isn't that amazing?

And He is our shepherd,
walking beside us,
protecting us,
blessing us,
with us forever.

So good!
Yes?

Love:)

R

What if I stumble?- dcTalk

The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today
Is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips
Then walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyle.
That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.

What if I stumble?
What if I fall?

Is this one for the people?
Is this one for the Lord?
Or do I simply serenade
For things I must afford?

You can jumble them together
My conflict still remains
Holiness is calling
In the midst of courting fame
'Cause I see the trust in their eyes
Though the sky is falling
They need Your love in their lives
Compromise is calling

What if I stumble
What if I fall?
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all?

Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble
And what if I fall?

What if I stumble
What if I fall?
You never turn in
The heat of it all
What if I stumble
What if I fall?

Father please forgive me
For I cannot compose
The fear that lives within me
Or the rate at which it grows

If struggle has a purpose
On the narrow road you've carved
Why do I dread my trespasses
Will leave a deadly scar
Do they see the fear in my eyes?
Are they so revealing?
This time I cannot disguise
All the doubt I'm feeling

What if I stumble
What if I fall?
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all?

Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble
And what if I fall?

What if I stumble?
Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that
You're up against a wall
It's about to fall
Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that

Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that
You're up against a wall
It's about to fall
Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that

I hear You whispering my name
(You say)
My love for You will never change
(Never change)

What if I stumble
What if I fall?
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all?

Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble
And what if I fall?

What if I stumble
And what if I fall?
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all?

Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble
And what if I fall?

What if I stumble
What if I fall?
You never turn in
The heat of it all
What if I stumble
What if I fall?
You are my comfort
And my God
Is this one for the people
Is this one for the Lord

Thought provoking, yes? Old song, great song. Old band, great band.

Love:)

R

God is.....

The man stands slowly up from his chair, comes to the front of the room.
He stands beside the pastor, is introduced.

Many of us know his story, some do not.
He founded an influential ministry to rural teens around us, has faithfully served God, followed where led. His ministry has been a lifesaver to countless teens. Now he is retired, but these years after determent haven't been easy.  Today he is here to tell us the story of Joseph, and how he relates to Joseph.

He tells us in slow, halting words of Joseph's rise, his fall, his eventual triumph. Of the years in prison, the years as Pharaoh's right-hand man.
God, he tells us, never left Joseph, never stopped blessing Joseph. Though Joseph couldn't see at the time, what men intended for evil, God meant for unimaginable good.  Then he begins to tell us how he relates.
"I am in a kind of prison," he says. " I am having things taken from me all the time. That prison is called Parkinson's disease. It began with the stiffness. And loosing my balance. Then the tremors started in my right hand, and would not stop." He holds out the hand that has been gesturing up to this point, and held still, we see the shaking all the more.
  "Then," he tells us, "I began to loose my ability to form sentences, and to think of the right words. .......I spoke for a living." He pauses to let the weight of that statement sink in. "We, we are doing all we can to keep the disease at bay. This prison is taking a little of my life everyday. But you know, its not going to define who I am. And the hard points in you life don't hve to define who you are. Because we have a relationship with the Father."
"I'm going to tell you four things that give me the ablity to stand, and after I say each one I'd like you to repeat it back to me."
We, the congregation, nod our assent, wondering what he'll ask us to say.

"God is sovereign."
The room echos with it as we say it back.
"God is sovereign."

"God is present"
All this path he has walked, still he knows it to be true. We echo him.
"God is present."

"God is good."
This is a funny kind of liturgy to hear from someone who is slowly having everything taken from him.
But......then again, maybe it is the only kind of liturgy you can have left. Because really, these truths are the only things that hold us when all else shatters. We know they aren't going anywhere. Voices all around echo this supreme truth.
Yes,
"God is good."

"And," He pauses, with a twinkle in his eye, "I know how the story ends."
There is a pause as this washes over us.
"I know how the story ends!"


.....Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.  And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.  The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
Revaluation 21:1-7 ESV


Love:)

R

Instead of a show- Jon Foreman

 I hate all your show and pretense
the hypocrisy of your praise
the hypocrisy of your festivals
I hate all your show

Away with your noisy worship
Away with your noisy hymns
I stop up my ears when your
singing ‘em
I hate all your show

Instead let there be a flood
of justice
An endless procession of righteous
living, living
Instead let there be a flood
of justice
Instead of a show

your eyes are closed when you’re praying
you sing right along with the band
you shine up your shoes for services
but there’s blood on your hands

you turned your back on the homeless
and the ones that don’t fit in your plans
quit playing religion games
there’s blood on your hands

Ah! let’s argue this out
if your sins are blood red
let’s argue this out
you’ll be white as the clouds
let’s argue this out
quit fooling around

give love to the ones who can’t love at all
give hope to the ones who got no hope at all
stand up for the ones who can’t stand up at all
instead of a show
I hate all your show

a little thing

I think sometimes I underestimate the strength of small things.

Smiles.

Quiet words.

Little gifts.

These are big things.

Honestly,

I want all of me to point to Christ.
It doesn't.

But I hope more and more it is.

Through Him alone.

So today, my friends-
know.....



By me.

But more than that-

by Him.

Love:)

R

Psalm 40

I waited and waited and waited for God.
At last he looked; finally he listened.   
He lifted me out of the ditch,
      pulled me from deep mud.
   He stood me up on a solid rock
      to make sure I wouldn't slip.
   He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,
      a praise-song to our God.
   More and more people are seeing this:
      they enter the mystery,
      abandoning themselves to God.

  Blessed are you who give yourselves over to God,
      turn your backs on the world's "sure thing,"
      ignore what the world worships;
   The world's a huge stockpile
      of God-wonders and God-thoughts.
   Nothing and no one
      comes close to you!
   I start talking about you, telling what I know,
      and quickly run out of words.
   Neither numbers nor words
      account for you.

  Doing something for you, bringing something to you—
      that's not what you're after.
   Being religious, acting pious—
      that's not what you're asking for.
   You've opened my ears
      so I can listen.

So I answered, "I'm coming.
      I read in your letter what you wrote about me,
   And I'm coming to the party
      you're throwing for me."
   That's when God's Word entered my life,
      became part of my very being.

I've preached you to the whole congregation,
      I've kept back nothing, God—you know that.
   I didn't keep the news of your ways
      a secret, didn't keep it to myself.
   I told it all, how dependable you are, how thorough.
      I didn't hold back pieces of love and truth
   For myself alone. I told it all,
      let the congregation know the whole story.

  Now God, don't hold out on me,
      don't hold back your passion.
   Your love and truth
      are all that keeps me together.
   When troubles ganged up on me,
      a mob of sins past counting,
   I was so swamped by guilt
      I couldn't see my way clear.
   More guilt in my heart than hair on my head,
      so heavy the guilt that my heart gave out.

 Soften up, God, and intervene;
      hurry and get me some help,
   So those who are trying to kidnap my soul
      will be embarrassed and lose face,
   So anyone who gets a kick out of making me miserable
      will be heckled and disgraced,
   So those who pray for my ruin
      will be booed and jeered without mercy.
But all who are hunting for you—
      oh, let them sing and be happy.
   Let those who know what you're all about
      tell the world you're great and not quitting.
   And me? I'm a mess. I'm nothing and have nothing:
      make something of me.
   You can do it; you've got what it takes—
      but God, don't put it off.

Yes!

Love:)

R

Great is Thy Faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

On so much pain

There is so much pain right now.
And I cannot fix it.
Which hurts.
Because I am a fixer.
And one who wants to heal.

But these are huge, gaping wounds.
And I'm coming to them with band-aids.

It begs the questions-

Where are You?
Where, Oh my God, are You in this?
What about your promises not to break us?
Why do You allow all this messy hurt?

So many questions.
The trite little answers, the pat sayings-
they aren't enough. They become more pain.

And so I come to You, my God.

And for a time You are silent,
I want to echo the psalmist, and scream.
"Why are You so far off? Why do You hide Yourself?"

But then you come.

My thoughts...
I don't know.
I am uncomfortable.
I don't know that they are theologically correct.

Maybe suffering is partially to give us a chance to be love.
Love is a sacrifice, after all.

We must act.
Come into the pain,
partake,
drink the heavy cup along with those we see.

Maybe it brings us pain.

It's okay.

We are here to serve, and to serve there must be a need.

Perhaps.....pain is what creates a need.
Maybe......Christ would never become real to some if they had not met him in those who were love to them.

And also, I am reminded of Puddleglum the Marshwiggle, and how his pain was what brought him clarity.
It saved his life.

These thoughts,
they help..

I do not know that they completely satisfy,
but it's okay.

God is good.
He has good plans.
He doesn't need to explain them to me.

But oh, how I wish He sometimes would.

Love:)

R