how he loves...

How He Loves

David Crowder Band

He is jealous for me

Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree

Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy

When all of a sudden

I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory

And I realize just how beautiful You are

And how great Your affections are for me

And O how He loves us

Oh, O how He loves us

How He loves us all

Yeah He loves us

O how He loves us

O how He loves us

O how He loves

We are His portion and He is our prize

Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes

If grace is an ocean, we're all sinking

So Heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss

And my heart turns violently inside of my chest

I don't have time to maintain these regrets

When I think about the way

That He loves us,

Oh how He loves us,

Oh how He loves us,

Oh how He loves.

Yeah, He loves us,

Oh how He loves us,

Oh how He loves us,

Oh how He loves.

We sang this song tonight at Breakaway, the youth worship service.  I've liked this song for a long time, but in light of some stuff that has happened over the last couple of days, it really hit home with me tonight...

oh how He loves me...

...to provide peace in the midst of the storm

...to provide good, solid relationships in the rocky times in life

...to provide reassurance that things will be okay when I'm not sure how things are going to turn out

...to provide a way for my sins to be forgiven so that I can spend eternity with Him

sweet sweet moments with Jesus tonight as these words and thoughts ran through my head and heart...while I may never be able to grasp the entirety of His great love for us, I am so thankful for the glimpses He shows me each day.

set the world on fire

a couple of years ago i heard the song "set the world on fire" by britt nicole.  it beecame a theme song of sorts for me.

set the world on fire

britt nicole

I wanna set the world on fire

Until it's burning bright for you

It's everything that I desire

Can I be the one you use?

I am small but

You you are big enough

I am weak but

You you are strong enough to

Take my dreams

Come and give them wings

Lord with you

There's nothing I cannot do

Nothing I cannot do

I wanna feed the hungry children

And reach across the farthest land

And tell the broken there is healing

And mercy in the father's hands

I am small but

You you are big enough

I am weak but

You you are strong enough to

Take my dreams

Come and give them wings

Lord with you

There's nothing I cannot do

Nothing I cannot do

aren't the words perfect?  i am small but God is big enough to take my dreams and help them become reality.  today i got to live some of those dreams a little bit.  it was one of those days where at the end of the day i was like "this is exactly where i'm supposed to be and this is exactly what i'm supposed to be doing."  we had a meeting today for people in our community about how we work together to meet the needs of the families that we serve here in corsicana and navarro county.  pastors, teachers, bank reps, agency personnel, community volunteers, pastors...they were all there to talk about how we address challenges we face as a communtiy in working together.  it. was. fabulous.  i'm SO excited to see where today's conversations go and what happens in our community as a result of the work of people dedicated to making life better for families in Navarro County.  thank you Lord for placing me here for this time in my life.  He is SO good!

for the week...

hymn for the week...

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 wilt 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,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

 

praying that you will celebrate God's faithfulness during these last few days of 2010.

for the week...

song for the week...

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

I thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along the unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head:
"There is no peace on earth," I said,
"For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men."

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead, nor doth he sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,

With peace on earth, good will to men."

Till, ringing singing, on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime,

Of peace on earth, good will to men!

i've never really payed attention to the words of this song, but it was a part of the Christmas musical that has consumed my life for the last week and i really listened/read the words for the first time and loved them!

for the week...

sorry for the delay in posting (and just general lack of posting!)...it's been a busy couple of weeks!  i promise to do better!

song for the week...

O Come All Ye Faithful

O Come All Ye Faithful

Joyful and triumphant,

O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem.

Come and behold Him,

Born the King of Angels;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

O Sing, choirs of angels,

Sing in exultation,

Sing all that hear in heaven God's holy word.

Give to our Father glory in the Highest;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

All Hail! Lord, we greet Thee,

Born this happy morning,

O Jesus! for evermore be Thy name adored.

Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

this is one of my favorite Christmas songs, hands down.  i'm not exactly sure why, but i love the call that it places on the "faithful" to praise and adore the King of Kings during this wonderful time of year!  :)

quote for the week...

The place where God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet. - Frederick Buechner

this is one of my all time favorite quotes and has been so many different things to me over the last several years as i've struggled to figure out what my calling was and what exactly that looked like in the world.  this quote is from a devotional or a chapter about vocation that Buechner wrote.  i'm so grateful for the opportunity to continue to explore that call and enjoy the "deep gladness" of being in this place right now.  i hope that this week you'll have an opportunity to reflect on the Buechner's words.

for the week...

better late than never, right?

verse for the week...

"Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you."

Psalm 9:10

i read this last week and it reminded me that the Lord is faithful to those who seek Him...a promise i need to hear often these days...

song for the week...

Faithful

Steven Curtis Chapman

I am broken

I am bleeding

I am scared and I’m confused

But You are faithful

Yes you are faithful

I am weary

Unbelieving

God please help my unbelief

Cuz You are faithful

Yes you are faithful

I will proclaim it to the world

I will declare it to my heart

Sing it when the sun is shining

I will scream it in the dark

You are faithful

You are faithful

When You give and when You take away

Even then still your name remains

Faithful

You are faithful

And with everything inside of me

I am choosing to believe

You are faithful

I am waiting for the rescue

That I know is sure to come

Cuz You are faithful

Yes You are faithful

I’ve dropped anchor in Your promises

And I am holding on

Cuz You are faithful

God, You are faithful

I will proclaim it to the world

I will declare it to my heart

Sing it when the sun is shining

I will scream it in the dark

You are faithful

You are faithful

When You give and when You take away

Even then still your name remains

Faithful

You are faithful

And with everything inside of me

I am choosing to believe

You’re faithful

So faithful

When I cannot have the answers

And I’m wanting to demand

I’ll remember you are God

And everything is in Your hands

With Your hands you put the sun and moon

And stars up in the sky

For the sake of love

You hung your own Son on the cross to die

You are faithful

Yes, You are faithful

When You give; when You take away

Even then great is your faithfulness

Great is your faithfulness

And with everything inside of me

I am choosing to believe

You are faithful

When You give and when You take away

Even then still your name is

Faithful

You are faithful

And with everything inside of me

I am choosing to believe

You are faithful

this song is off of Steven Curtis Chapman's CD Beauty Will Rise.  it played on my ipod last week while i was running and the lyrics struck me once again so i wanted to share...

for the week...

i had an AWESOME weekend...i'll write more about that tomorrow...but for now...

a song for the week...

Beautiful

MercyMe

Days will come when you don't have the strength

And all you hear is you're not worth anything

Wondering if you ever could be loved

And if they truly saw your heart

They'd see too much

You're beautiful, You're beautiful

You are made for so much more than all of this

You're beautiful, You're beautiful

You are treasured, you are sacred, you are His

You're beautiful

Praying that you have the heart to fight

Cuz you are more than what is hurting you tonight

For all the lies you've held inside so long

But they are nothing in the shadow of the cross\

You're beautiful, You're beautiful

You are made for so much more than all of this

You're beautiful, You're beautiful

You are treasured, you are sacred, you are His

You're beautiful

Before you ever took a breath

Long before the world began

Of all the wonders He possessed

There was one more precious

Of all the earth and skies above

You're the one He madly loves

Enough to die!

You're beautiful, You're beautiful

In His eyes

You're beautiful!

You are made for so much more than all of this

You're beautiful!

You are treasured, you are sacred, you are His

You're beautiful!

You are made for so much more than all of this

You're beautiful!

You are treasured

You are sacred

You are His

i decided to take a detour from the Matt Maher songs this week...i heard this on the radio last night as i was driving back home and thought it would be a perfect song for this week...it's an awesome reminder that we ARE beautiful, regardless of what the world tells us, that we are treasured, sacred, and HIS!  LOVE it!

verses for the week...

And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Romans 5:2b-5

i read this last week sometime and loved the reminder that in our times of suffering and pain, the God is at work to produce perseverance, character, and hope in us.  and hope will not "put us to shame" or as it says in some translations "disappoint" us.  beautiful reminder for us this week that God is always at work to make us more like himself, we just need to be on the lookout for it!

for the week...

verses for this week...

I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

Psalm 121

this psalm is a powerful reminder that God will "watch over [my] life...both now and forevermore."  Every day I realize more and more that my help truly does come from the LORD.  He doesn't sleep, He doesn't forget to watch---He is ALWAYS there!



a song for this week...

As It Is In Heaven

Matt Maher

Our Father, who art in Heaven

Hallowed be thy name

Come and let Your glory,

Come and let Your glory fall.

Our Father, who art in Heaven

The rocks cry out Your fame

Come and let Your glory,

Come and let Your glory fall.

I will sing, sing a new song

I will sing, sing a new song

I will sing, sing a new song to the Lord

Let your kingdom come

Let your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven

Every eye proclaim

The mercy of Your name

On earth as it is in heaven.

God give us new every morning

Mercy his daily bread

In the name of Jesus

In the name of Jesus we pray

And lead us, not to temptation

But deliver us with Your hand

In the name of Jesus

In the name of Jesus we pray

Father we pray

I will sing, sing a new song

I will sing, sing a new song

I will sing, sing a new song to the Lord

Let your kingdom come

Let your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven

Every eye proclaim

The mercy of Your name

On earth as it is in heaven.

For the kingdom is yours

And the power is yours

And the glory forever Amen

Let your kingdom come

Let your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven

Every eye proclaim

The mercy of Your name

On earth as it is in heaven

I know that you've probably had your fill of Matt Maher stuff over the last two weeks, but I just love this song!  It's an excellent song to run to!  :)  hope that you have a wonderful week!  

song for the week...

Rick was jamming out to this song earlier this week and I thought it was really catchy so I looked it up...it's one of my new favorites...

Hold Us Together

Matt Maher

It don't have a job

Don't pay your bills

Won't buy you a home

In Beverly Hills

Won't fix your life

In five easy steps

Ain't the law of the land

Or the government

But it's all you need.

Love, will, hold us together

Make us a shelter

to weather the storm

And I'll, be, my brothers keeper

So the whole world will know

That we're not alone

It's waiting for you

Knockin' at your door!

Every moment of truth

When your heart hits the floor

When you're on your knees then...

Love, will, hold us together

Make us a shelter

to weather the storm

And I'll, be, my brothers keeper

So the whole world will know

That we're not alone

This is the first, day of the rest of your life

This is the first, day of the rest of your life

'Cause even in the dark you can still see the light
It's gonna be alright, s'gonna be alright

This is the first, day of the rest of your life
This is the first, day of the rest of your life

'Cause even in the dark you can still see the light

It's gonna be alright, s'gonna be alright

Love, will, hold us together

Make us a shelter

to weather the storm

And I'll, be, my brothers keeper

So the whole world will know

That we're not alone

Matt Maher does an excellent job of talking about the story behind the song here.