(Below is a song written today for a beloved friend, entitled, "I See Christ.")
I see love
Reflected in your eyes
I have called you friend
But you have been
So much more
You have been His outstretched arms
You have been His broken heart
You've been His hands washing my feet
You've been His voice whispering so sweet
I've seen His love shine in your eyes
And when I look at you
I don't see a man
I see Christ
I see grace
Reflected in your life
A comrade brave and true
Just look at you
Strong warrior
You have been His outstretched arms
You have been His broken heart
You've been His hands washing my feet
You've been His voice whispering so sweet
I've seen His love shine through your life
And when I look at you
I don't see a man
I see Christ
Every time you've wiped my tears
Every time you've calmed my fears
Every time I've heard you say,
"I love you and you know I'll pray,"
You help me fight for one more day
You have been His outstretched arms
You have been His broken heart
You've been His hands washing my feet
You've been His voice whispering so sweet
And I know you'd lay down your life
So when I look at you
I don't see a man
I see Christ
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Learning to Be a Living Sacrifice
Empty hands held high
Such small sacrifice
If not joined with my life
I sing in vain tonight
May the words I say
And the things I do
Make my lifesong sing
Bring a smile to you
Let my lifesong sing to You
Let my lifesong sing to You
I want to sign Your name
To the end of this day
Knowing that my heart was true
Let my lifesong sing to You
Hallelujah, hallelujah
Let my lifesong sing to you
("Lifesong," by Casting Crowns)
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life--your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life--and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings out the best of you, develops well formed maturity in you."
-Romans 12:1-2, MSG
I've been back at Mid-Atlantic Christian University for the first two weeks of the fall semester, and it feels good to be back! It feels like being home. It's been a crazy two weeks--an intensive course in linguistics, the first week of regular classes, church, volunteering with the church's youth group as a youth leader and member of the worship band--I feel like I've hardly had time to sit down, except in class! I know the craziness will die down in another week or so as I get back into the swing of things and settle into a regular routine, but with 21 credit hours in addition to everything I want to be a part of outside of classes, I know I will keep very busy!
More than being crazy, though, these two weeks have been packed with spiritual warfare. Satan attacked me with deep, painful loneliness the very first week. It seemed strange to me, to be so excited to meet the incoming freshmen, and so overjoyed to see the friends--no, family--I had been separated from all summer, and yet feel so terribly alone. Nevertheless, loneliness was Satan's weapon of choice, and he used it to his full advantage. It did not, however, have the effect he was hoping for. I was discouraged and downcast--yes, there were many tears--but rather than turning me from God, it drove me to Him.
My prayer life has been revived in these first two weeks of school; I am filled with an almost giddy sort of happiness as I type those words. I have known since I became a Christian five years ago that prayer was the lifeblood of my relationship with my Father God, and when I was a new Christian, I prayed all the time. I carried my prayer journal everywhere, just in case I had a few moments where I could sit and talk with God. About two years into my walk, though, prayer became very difficult. It became more of a task than a talk; my prayers became fewer and farther between as time went on, interspersed with brief periods of revival that never seemed to last. I knew the power of prayer and understood it, believed in it, and preached it. Prayer affected great change in my life and in the lives of those around me. I knew the difference between prayer that was alive and prayer that was just going through the motions. It's been a very long time since my consistent prayers were more than going through the motions. Because of the faith-increasing trials of this summer, I have put my heart back into my prayer life.
"Desire gives fervor to prayer. The soul cannot be listless when some great desire fixes and inflames it. Strong desires make strong prayers. The neglect of prayer is the fearful token of dead spiritual desires."
-E. M. Bounds
The one thing I desire
Is just to know You more
To live a life that moves and breathes
And loves to bring You joy
So fill me with a fire
That burns away my doubts and all my fears
Into a place where You are all I hear
It's the one thing I desire
To do what You require
Is the one thing I desire
("I Desire," by Natalie Grant)
My great desire--not just while I am here at school, but always--is to know and love God increasingly, and to love Him and live Him into other people's lives as much as I possibly can, to the best of my ability. That may sound pretentious, but I do not claim to desire this at all times. Sometimes my desires are totally selfish. But in my best moments, when I am surrendering to God, this is ALL I want.
Often, and especially in the past two weeks, this desire leads me to do things that are beyond the scope of my abilities, like taking so many classes or doing lead vocals and playing guitar for the youth worship band, when I only just learned to play and can only play a handful of songs! But an excerpt from my prayer journal yesterday morning illustrates my thoughts on that matter:
"I feel as though I am in a little over my head, here. But that's okay, because it means that I have to depend on You to get me through."
I don't have a whole lot to offer; but I can offer all of what I do have. I may not be the smartest, but I can devote all my mental faculties to learning the material for these courses at school. I may not be the most organized, but I can discipline myself to being orderly, getting things done on time, and being where I'm supposed to be when I'm supposed to be there. I may not know everything there is to know about Scripture, nor do I always apply it, but I can share and teach what I do know, and I can study daily to learn and apply even more. I may not be the best musician, but I can make a concerted effort to push myself and learn to play, and if what little ability I have gained thus far is useful to God, then who am I to argue? I wonder if the widow doubted herself before she gave her mite?
Little is much when God's in it
And no one can fathom the plans He holds
Little is much when God's in it
He changes the world with the seeds we sow
Little is much
("Little Is Much," by Downhere)
If God's purpose this summer was to increase my faith, and show me that nothing is impossible for Him, then I would have to conclude from my observations thus far that this semester His purpose is going to be teaching me to live out that faith--not just in the obvious ways, such as my missionary training here at school, my church involvement, and my personal devotional life, but also in the inconspicuous ways that no one would notice... in the ways that I myself might not even notice!
I may never know the impact I have on others; the little things I say and do may go no farther than myself, or they may create a ripple effect, with consequences that reach far beyond myself, my circle of friends, my school, or my community. Keeping this uncertainty in mind, I realize that I always need to be mindful of my words and actions. Every act is an act of worship; but not every act honors God. Some of my actions demonstrate my worship of self, or my worship of others, or my worship of security. It is difficult to wrap my brain around the concept of offering even the smallest details of my life to God as an offering, but it is not a hard concept to wrap my heart around. God cares about small details; He even knows the number of hairs on my head. Why shouldn't He care about the minute details that make up my person and character?
Change my heart, O God
Make it ever true
Change my heart, O God
May I be like You
You are the Potter
I am the clay
Mold me and make me
This is what I pray
("Change My Heart, O God," by Eddie Espinosa)
I look forward to seeing what God has in store for me as He builds my identity and integrity this semester in a way that pleases Him.
Such small sacrifice
If not joined with my life
I sing in vain tonight
Lord, I give my life
A living sacrifice
To reach a world in need
To be Your hands and feet
May the words I say
And the things I do
Make my lifesong sing
Bring a smile to you
Let my lifesong sing to You
Let my lifesong sing to You
I want to sign Your name
To the end of this day
Knowing that my heart was true
Let my lifesong sing to You
Hallelujah, hallelujah
Let my lifesong sing to you
("Lifesong," by Casting Crowns)
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life--your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life--and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings out the best of you, develops well formed maturity in you."
-Romans 12:1-2, MSG
I've been back at Mid-Atlantic Christian University for the first two weeks of the fall semester, and it feels good to be back! It feels like being home. It's been a crazy two weeks--an intensive course in linguistics, the first week of regular classes, church, volunteering with the church's youth group as a youth leader and member of the worship band--I feel like I've hardly had time to sit down, except in class! I know the craziness will die down in another week or so as I get back into the swing of things and settle into a regular routine, but with 21 credit hours in addition to everything I want to be a part of outside of classes, I know I will keep very busy!
More than being crazy, though, these two weeks have been packed with spiritual warfare. Satan attacked me with deep, painful loneliness the very first week. It seemed strange to me, to be so excited to meet the incoming freshmen, and so overjoyed to see the friends--no, family--I had been separated from all summer, and yet feel so terribly alone. Nevertheless, loneliness was Satan's weapon of choice, and he used it to his full advantage. It did not, however, have the effect he was hoping for. I was discouraged and downcast--yes, there were many tears--but rather than turning me from God, it drove me to Him.
My prayer life has been revived in these first two weeks of school; I am filled with an almost giddy sort of happiness as I type those words. I have known since I became a Christian five years ago that prayer was the lifeblood of my relationship with my Father God, and when I was a new Christian, I prayed all the time. I carried my prayer journal everywhere, just in case I had a few moments where I could sit and talk with God. About two years into my walk, though, prayer became very difficult. It became more of a task than a talk; my prayers became fewer and farther between as time went on, interspersed with brief periods of revival that never seemed to last. I knew the power of prayer and understood it, believed in it, and preached it. Prayer affected great change in my life and in the lives of those around me. I knew the difference between prayer that was alive and prayer that was just going through the motions. It's been a very long time since my consistent prayers were more than going through the motions. Because of the faith-increasing trials of this summer, I have put my heart back into my prayer life.
"Desire gives fervor to prayer. The soul cannot be listless when some great desire fixes and inflames it. Strong desires make strong prayers. The neglect of prayer is the fearful token of dead spiritual desires."
-E. M. Bounds
The one thing I desire
Is just to know You more
To live a life that moves and breathes
And loves to bring You joy
So fill me with a fire
That burns away my doubts and all my fears
Into a place where You are all I hear
It's the one thing I desire
To do what You require
Is the one thing I desire
("I Desire," by Natalie Grant)
My great desire--not just while I am here at school, but always--is to know and love God increasingly, and to love Him and live Him into other people's lives as much as I possibly can, to the best of my ability. That may sound pretentious, but I do not claim to desire this at all times. Sometimes my desires are totally selfish. But in my best moments, when I am surrendering to God, this is ALL I want.
Often, and especially in the past two weeks, this desire leads me to do things that are beyond the scope of my abilities, like taking so many classes or doing lead vocals and playing guitar for the youth worship band, when I only just learned to play and can only play a handful of songs! But an excerpt from my prayer journal yesterday morning illustrates my thoughts on that matter:
"I feel as though I am in a little over my head, here. But that's okay, because it means that I have to depend on You to get me through."
I don't have a whole lot to offer; but I can offer all of what I do have. I may not be the smartest, but I can devote all my mental faculties to learning the material for these courses at school. I may not be the most organized, but I can discipline myself to being orderly, getting things done on time, and being where I'm supposed to be when I'm supposed to be there. I may not know everything there is to know about Scripture, nor do I always apply it, but I can share and teach what I do know, and I can study daily to learn and apply even more. I may not be the best musician, but I can make a concerted effort to push myself and learn to play, and if what little ability I have gained thus far is useful to God, then who am I to argue? I wonder if the widow doubted herself before she gave her mite?
Little is much when God's in it
And no one can fathom the plans He holds
Little is much when God's in it
He changes the world with the seeds we sow
Little is much
("Little Is Much," by Downhere)
If God's purpose this summer was to increase my faith, and show me that nothing is impossible for Him, then I would have to conclude from my observations thus far that this semester His purpose is going to be teaching me to live out that faith--not just in the obvious ways, such as my missionary training here at school, my church involvement, and my personal devotional life, but also in the inconspicuous ways that no one would notice... in the ways that I myself might not even notice!
I may never know the impact I have on others; the little things I say and do may go no farther than myself, or they may create a ripple effect, with consequences that reach far beyond myself, my circle of friends, my school, or my community. Keeping this uncertainty in mind, I realize that I always need to be mindful of my words and actions. Every act is an act of worship; but not every act honors God. Some of my actions demonstrate my worship of self, or my worship of others, or my worship of security. It is difficult to wrap my brain around the concept of offering even the smallest details of my life to God as an offering, but it is not a hard concept to wrap my heart around. God cares about small details; He even knows the number of hairs on my head. Why shouldn't He care about the minute details that make up my person and character?
Change my heart, O God
Make it ever true
Change my heart, O God
May I be like You
You are the Potter
I am the clay
Mold me and make me
This is what I pray
("Change My Heart, O God," by Eddie Espinosa)
I look forward to seeing what God has in store for me as He builds my identity and integrity this semester in a way that pleases Him.
Friday, August 20, 2010
On the Road to Beautiful
Life ain't always beautiful
Sometimes it's just plain hard
Life can knock you down
It can break your heart
Life ain't always beautiful
You think you're on your way
But it's just a dead end road
At the end of the day
But the struggles make you stronger
And the changes make you wise
And happiness has it's own way
Of taking it's sweet time
No, life ain't always beautiful
Tears will fall sometimes
Life ain't always beautiful
But it's a beautiful ride
Life ain't always beautiful
Some days I miss your smile
I get tired of walking
All these lonely miles
And I wish for just one minute
I could see your pretty face
Guess I can dream
But life don't work that way
But the struggles make me stronger
And the changes make me wise
And happiness has it's own way
Of taking it's sweet time
No, life ain't always beautiful
But I know I'll be fine
Hey life ain't always beautiful
But it's a beautiful ride
What a beautiful ride
("Life Ain't Always Beautiful," by Gary Allan)
I crumble at Your kiss and grace
I'm a weakling in the dust
Teach me how to cling to You
With all my life and all my love
Father, come to me, hold me up
'Cause I can barely stand
My strength is gone and my breath is short
I can't reach out my hand
But my heart is set on a pilgrimage to heaven's own bright King
So in faltering and victory, I will always sing
And on the road to beautiful
My seasons always change
But my life is spent on loving You
To know You in Your power and pain
You're my portion in this life
You're my strength now in my fight
And to You I pledge my heart
In the pain and in the dark
I'll love You
I'll love You
("On the Road to Beautiful," by Charlie Hall)
At the beginning of the summer, my fiance and I entered a season of silence, during which time we had no contact with one another, choosing instead to focus on our individual relationships with our Father God, earnestly seeking His will and asking Him to search us and know our hearts, test us and know our anxious thoughts, see if there was any offensive way in us, and lead us in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:23-24, NIV) This time of silence and separation proved fruitful; God grew us both in faith and confirmed our callings to serve on the mission field. This time apart and alone with God exposed faults, fears, and failings within each of us. God asked difficult things of both of us this summer, and did great works in and through our lives.
When our season of silence ended, we enjoyed sharing our experiences and praising God together for the lessons learned over the summer. There was cause for much rejoicing! However, there was also cause to mourn; much prayer went into our decision to break our engagement and return to our single lives. Decisions like this one are not easy, but they are good; they are painful, but they are necessary; they are difficult, but they are faithful. We have chosen to obey God by continuing to serve one another as a brother and sister in Christ and as fast friends in true fellowship, spurring each other on to love and good deeds.
I have shed many tears in the week since making this decision; though I trust in the plans God has for me and know in my heart that His way is best, I am not immune to heartache.
"We're not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be."
-C. S. Lewis
I do not regret this decision, nor do I resent God for asking us to make it. Even in my times of deep sorrow, I have hope and peace; I have the assurance of God's faithfulness and the promise that He will never leave nor forsake me. Nothing can snatch me out of His hand. I also have within my heart the burning passion of my call to take the gospel to the Jewish people; God is sharpening my focus and urging me to be purposeful. Yesterday, during a tearful time of prayer and study, God lifted up my head and filled me with courage using the words of the Apostle Paul:
"This what I do: I don't look back, I lengthen my stride, and I run straight toward the goal to win the prize that God's heavenly call offers in Christ Jesus."
-Philippians 3:13-14, NLT
"I don't place any value on my own life. I want to finish the race I'm running. I want to carry out the mission I received from the Lord Jesus--the mission of testifying to the Good News of God's kindness."
-Acts 20:24, GWT
The night my fiance and I made the decision to break our engagement, he told me that I have beautiful feet, and that I should run and not look back; that is exactly what I intend to do. Though there will certainly be days spent walking in the valleys, I know that I will never walk alone.
"The feeling remains that God is on the journey too."
-St. Teresa of Avila
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