A Snapshot from Life

07/25/2012

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♫As Long as You Are Glorified♫

Well... so ends another week... and without going into detail, it hasn't ended well. God seems to be ripping things out right from under my feet. Which is making it a lot harder to fight for joy. But when I woke up this morning, my dad was practicing for leading worship tomorrow morning, and the song he was playing when I woke was As Long as You Are Glorified by Sovereign Grace Music. The very thing I needed to wake up too.

Shall I take from Your hand Your blessings
Yet not welcome any pain
Shall I thank You for days of sunshine
Yet grumble in days of rain
Shall I love You in times of plenty
Then leave You in days of drought
Shall I trust when I reap a harvest
But when winter winds blow, then doubt

Oh let Your will be done in me
In Your love I will abide
Oh I long for nothing else as long
As You are glorified

Are You good only when I prosper
And true only when I’m filled
Are You King only when I’m carefree
And God only when I’m well
You are good when I’m poor and needy
You are true when I’m parched and dry
You still reign in the deepest valley
You’re still God in the darkest night

So quiet my restless heart
Quiet my restless heart
Quiet my restless heart in You

He is good when I'm poor and needy, and when I'm carefree. He's also good when I prosper, and when I'm parched and dry. Why would I doubt that? He has always remained faithful! And He always will. Why is it so hard to see that at times? 

But God didn't stop there with speaking truth to me. After listening to my dad sing, I started to read Psalm 115. "Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!" (115:1) I was then reminded of C.J.'s message at NEXT... "It's not about you, stupid." This life isn't about me! And I am gonna go through trials, but in the end, all that really matters, is that He is glorified. 

If you think of me, pray that I will continue to fight for joy through all this, and that I will continue to seek God, and not fall in dispare. He's got a plan for all this! "Oh let Your will be done in me! In your love I will abide. Oh I long for nothing else, as long as You are glorified!" 

A Snapshot from Life

07/18/2012

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A Snapshot from Life

07/16/2012

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♫Mercies Anew♫

Last weekend wasn't easy... what could have gone wrong, did go wrong you could say. And when times aren't easy, I don't sleep. Oh joy! Saturday night I was lying in my bed at 3:00am praying, and God really meet me as I laid there in silence. And then I heard a voice that was clear as day... "My mercies are new every morning." I know He is always here with us... but there seems to be times when you can really feel His presences. This was one of those moments. Every worry I had that night was gone. I was overwhelmed with His grace. What a feeling! And rather than focusing on the many situations that were floating in my head... I repeated over and over again Lamentations 3:22-23; "The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

I think I fell asleep in the middle of the verse, but when I woke up the next morning for church, I can't put what I felt into words, but I felt anew. Refreshed. Ready to take on what ever came my way!

Worship at church was AMAZING that morning. But it was all God! There was nothing special about the songs... or the music... I could just feel His presences. At one point, the band started to play Mercies Anew, and I knew right away what song it was and that I was going to loose it. Which I did. I closed my eyes and stood there listening to the words, and it was as if God was saying them to me right there. How comforting that was!

Every morning that breaks
There are mercies anew
Every breath that I take
Is your faithfulness proved
And at the end of each day
When my labors are through
I will sing of Your mercies anew

When I’ve fallen and strayed
There were mercies anew
For you sought me in love
And my heart you pursued
In the face of my sin
Lord, You never withdrew
So I sing of Your mercies anew

And Your mercies, they will never end
For ten thousand years they’ll remain
And when this world’s beauty has passed away
Your mercies will be unchanged

And when the storms swirl and rage
There are mercies anew
In affliction and pain
You will carry me through
And at the end of my days
When Your throne fills my view
I will sing of Your mercies anew
I will sing of Your mercies anew

I love that! "And when the storms swirl and rage, there are mercies anew. In affliction and pain, You will carry me through." Whatever we are going through, He will carry us through! He will never withdraw. There's no if and buts... not matter what, He will always remain faithful. I love what Tim Tebow says in his book Through My Eyes, "Through God's past faithfulness - that no matter what is on our plates, He will never leave us, and will help us handle whatever it is."And He won't! He's not going to send us down a road, and leave us to fend for ourselves. He will be there with us every step of the way! 

And what a way to start a new week. Things kept coming up... but I took on the challenge. I saw it as God teaching me to fight for joy through hard times. And when I needed a reminder, I just looked at these lyrics on my phone, and said it as a prayer. And how encouraging that was! I know I say this at the end of each post... but isn't He good? :) Thanks for reading! 

A Snapshot from Life

07/09/2012

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♫I Was There♫

This is a little different than my normal songs that I post about, but its a song that really means a lot to me at the moment. It's by my favorite artist since 2005, Josh Turner, from his CD he released last month, Punching Bag. I've actually listened to his CD since I bought it, over and over, and over again. But it wasn't till I was driving back from DC last Monday by myself, that the meaning of this song really hit me.

God was really meeting me as I was driving in the silence of my car, and after a while, I decided to put on some Josh Turner on shuffle. Little did I know, this song came on after I picked Everything Is Fine (which was the first song of my 62 songs). It something I have always been taught, ever since I can remember; He has always been, is, and always will be. He "is the same yesterday and today and forever." (Hebrews 13:8) Though I must say, it never hit me like it did in my Ford Focus on I-95. He truly is everywhere, with everyone. And He is most certainly here with me! And He is always there for me! I love what Josh says in the course, "I'm always around, I was then and I am now, and I'll be here when tomorrow comes. When a road comes to an end, I'm where you start again. I'm never farther than a word away." How comforting that was to me! Whatever God brings me through, whether it's a trail or an amazing season in life, He's always there. He was there when they landed on the moon... He has been with every president... ever king... at ever war... and He is most certainly there with you! He was there with me through basketball... He was there with me when I moved to Florida... He was there when I moved back to VA... and He is here with me now. He is always there! How great He is!  

I was there that night in Bethlehem

And when Neil and the boys came to the moon

In that tin can

At Gettysburg, Omaha Beach, and Vietnam

I heard every soldier's cry and every mama's prayer

I was there

I was there when you took your first breath

And when you lit that stolen Lucky Strike

And liked to choked to death

When you were waist deep in Carter's Creek

And Preacher John

Dunked you down in the water and raised you up for air

I was there

C:I'm always around

I was then and I am now

And I'll be here when tomorrow comes

When a road comes to an end

I'm where you start again

I'm never farther than a word away

You've always got a friend

When your grandma passed

I was in that house

And when your grandpa ran down the streets o' gold

To show her around

I was there

I was there last night on Highway 9

When you answered the phone

And ran right through that stop sign

I was in the cab of that big rig, in that trucker's ear

Made him swerve to the right and miss you by a hair

I was there

If you're feelin' alone, look up, I'm the One who answers prayers

And I'm always there

A Snapshot from Life

07/05/2012

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A Snapshot from Life

06/28/2012

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A Snapshot from Life

06/26/2012

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