You are my Phenomenon. . .

Below are the lyrics to a song by Rita Springer. . .Phenomenon


I am not here just to see a phenomenon
I am not here for experiential bliss
I simply come to the feet of the God
I serve,The one that I love

I am not here for the sake of the people's praise
I have not come to see the thunder and rain
I simply come into courts of the King above
The one that I Praise

I want to find the way to his chambers
I want to be in the presence of the Lord
I am in need of his mercy and favor
Forever more

I am not here for the sake of a miracle
I am not here just to see the dead raised
Yes I believe in power supernatural
But that's not way I'm saved

I've had enough of this life of a Pharisee
I want to know this Jesus who's been loving me
I'm running into the temple just to see
The one that I love

I want to find the way to his chambers
I want to be in the presence of the Lord
I am in need of his mercy and favor
Forever more

I give my heart to the one they call Jesus
Seeking out first the very kingdom of God
You are the way and the truth I believe it
You are my phenomenon

You can move mountains whenever You want to
You can speak to the sea whenever it pleases You

Forgive me oh Lord if I've been a market place
Turn me upside down so I will seek Your face
And if Your presence comes into this place
So will the thunder and rain

Been reading of David. . .

What an awesome read. . .David was such a man of passion and love. But so human. . .

What must it have been like to dance with all your might down the main street to the Glory of God?

To know you were annointed King long before it was time?

To paitiently wait and honor the current king even in his failures?

To be so intertwined with the royal family knowing God was not pleased with the current state of things. . . yet vowing to this closest of friends to always honor the family?

To have so much but want more and have the power to take it?

To feel the sting of pain as Nathan proclaims your deepest secret to you. . .given by the One you were worshipping days before?

To live out your days loving the God Who carried you through the family curse. . .

God may we only even glimps a love for you that David had. A confidence in Your ability bring about what You will and to accept the punishment for what we have done. . .not blaming anyone but ourselves. But letting You set it right.

May we learn to dance in the street - not worrying what others may think, even family, and enjoy worshipping You as David did.

Give me a heart like that. . .

Time for a "soapbox" question. . .

I have been pondering a question deep in my heart and have vocalized it to one other. It disturbs me, yet, I have not found the answer. . .Here is my quandry. . ."Has the church become a hospital that does not welcome but only the select sick?". . . I know of several couples that are living together. They started attending church and wanted to join and were told "no". There is a friend that is gay. . .would I feel comfortable bringing him to my "Hospital"? no. . .I do not understand how we can effectively minister to those we meet that are not of the "acceptable" realm of sickness. . .Why is it that Jesus went into and traveled around with all manner of sinners, loving them and showing them mercy, meeting them where they were? Yet we cloister ourselves off and do not allow them to come along with us and let God do the healing. Isn't He the Physician? Instead, we basically say, go clean yourself up and then you can come and be a part of us." What is up with that?

It kind of reminds me of a nurse in the midst of a war zone, shewing the obviously sick away and only letting those who she thinks have minor injuries into see the Physician. Selective healing?? Is there a workable solution? Is the American Church too far gone to bring around?

hmmmmm. . . .any input?

September 11th

Six years have passed and still the sadness remains. Watching the memorial this morning reminded me of that Tuesday morning. . .the horror and devastation hit everyone. Tears still sting my eyes just watching the pain on the faces of the people gathered in New York today. I remember thinking we will never be the same after this. . .

Now six years later the world is back to normal for the most part, except for those families and friends of loved ones lost, still frozen in time. . .

I pray today they can begin to heal. . .my heart hurts for them. I also pray they feel God's comforting arms around them. Death is never easy, especially when combined with such horrific circumstances.

Abigail - a woman of faith

Reading along in I Samuel this morning I am reminded of a Godly woman named Abigail. One of my favorite Women of the Bible actually. She had a tough situation in her life and faced it head on with grace & dignity.

Married to a loser, she proceeded with her lot in life and made the best of it. Confronted with a bad situation, knowing David and his men would come back and kill her husband (which most women would have welcomed). She took it upon herself to take a peace offering to David and his men. Instead of saying, it was all my husband's fault, she took the blame and begged his forgiveness. She was a strong woman full of faith and very knowledgable in what was going on in her day. How many women would have cowered in fear of her husband's reprisal for what she had done?

I wonder if maybe Nabal's heart attack (or stroke) was brought on by the rage he felt for what she had done behind his back.

I know many women that have similar lots in life, two in particular I was reminded of this morning. That have that same grace and love of God, to accept who it is they married and live their lives according to the Proverbs 31 woman, instead of being an "Oprah 101" woman.

One is my Mother-in-law and the other is my best friend from High School. They both show the grace and love of God to their families daily. No they are not perfect, but, they don't whine about the decisions made in their lives, they just stand up and live for God and show their husband's what a Godly woman is like.

I look up to both of these women in ways they will never know. I pray that God will bring about the transformation in their families that He has done for my husband.

The Wonder of God's Timing. . .

It has always amazed me at how God's timing can be so unexpected to us. I love the quote I have heard many times:

"Has it ever occurred to you that nothing ever occurs to God?" by Mark Lowry

We have just received news that we are going to be grandparents for the 3rd time! Of course we are ecstatic at the news! They however were not quite expecting this news. Happy now, but not what they had planned. . .God's plan sometimes changes ours. . .I believe this baby will be a huge blessing in their lives.

God is never to fast or too slow. If we could only grasp that sometimes we would be alot more calm about what is ahead.

God

There are instances in my life that point to God's grace & faithfulness, others His mercy, and still others His unfailing love. . .

I have been walking around in a fog the last couple of years. Wanting to draw back to God and yet not being able to find my way. . .Blank. . .that was how I felt. . .if you have ever been in a dense fog you know that it is blank. . .nothing to see, feel or touch. A wall of white, where there once was color, vibrance and beauty.

This past summer we experienced so much of God and watched Him do amazing things in the lives of the young people working with us. This summer, and even now, is a monumental moment in my life. I am watching my husband being transformed into such a man of the WORD. His excitement is contagious.

After overcoming the guilt for lack of my own time in the WORD. . .God has challenged me to come along side my husband and join in to what was bubbling up in his heart and soul. God is preparing us for our next journey. When and where that is taking place, we do not know. But we trust and listen each day. Wanting to make sure we do not run ahead or fall behind. Ready to do whatever He asks. . .scary and exciting!

Our Young Adult Group is going through "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper. What an excellent study and we are only in chapter 3. . .

A quote that stuck out this week:

"Oh, that God would help me waken in you a single passion for a single great reality that would unleash you, and set you free from small dreams, and send you, for the glory of Christ, into all spheres of secular life and to all the peoples of the earth" by John Piper

Small dreams. . .isn't that what we have been taught all our lives?

To only dream small attainable dreams?

Why can't we 'Dream Big in God' and watch what He does?

When did we start settling for "church" life instead of
experiencing all God has set before us?

There is more out there. . .we just have to throw off those shackles that we have attached to our hearts, let go and experience what God can do when we fully surrender to HIM! When we stop listening to "you can't do that" and start listening to what God says we CAN do through HIM!

Read Psalm 138 - awesome!