Pastor Bobby and his crew have decided to go through the Book of proverbs... very cool. I've been a slacker at going to the site the past few weeks. These high school kids that post sometimes put me to shame, they have such wonderful thoughts and analysis. I'm not involved with the group on a ministry level, though maybe someday soon. I have some obstacles I need to work through before this will occur.
I think it's funny (in a weird way!) my thoughts were about Solomon last night and I stumbled across what they are doing on Godsong Music this morning. I had absolutely no idea. I have hardly talked to anyone in that group lately (LoL, I don't mean to make it sound like they're exclusive and I'm not allowed to, I've just had many other things to do), so I had to laugh out loud when I went to the site. For today, I especially like Proverbs 2:10-11: 10 "For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. 11 Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you."
Though the whole chapter is talking about wisdom and wanting to attain wisdom, I especially like verse 11 in this because it sort of (in a long round about way) goes along with Proverbs 4:23… guarding your heart will definitely bring understanding... and peace (I will have to post some thoughts on peace soon, it's something that has been sitting in my brain for a while). Understanding is crucial in any relationship… whether it’s a family relation, friendship, dating, marriage or even yourself!!
I have learned this truth on the fly lately in meeting people from all walks of life... whether I've met them on the internet or at a new singles group I am going to (at least, temporarily!) on Thurs nights. I don't know how long I will be going to this group, if even just for the summer, but it gives me much more insight to how people think and how important it is to understand that not everyone is like me and will never ever be like me, no matter what. Well, unless I have a twin that was separated from me at birth! ha ha
The funny thing is my horoscope goes along with this: I hate horoscopes, but it just flashed on my computer. My horoscope today is: Knowing how to go with the flow is an underrated skill. Work on perfecting it today! You don't 'do' surprises. You plan surprises -- for other people -- but in your own life, everything's planned and accounted for. Aw, come on! What fun is that? Let yourself be surprised and you'll like what you see.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Meaningless !
The past two days I have found myself completely caught up in the Lakers saga. If you don't know what I'm talking about, go to www.am570radio.com or www.kb24.com or ESPN or any of the sports websites. On the way home from work tonight, I had to turn the radio off and get re-focused. This is so not me to be obsessing over silly things like Kobe Bryant and the feud the Lakers organization is. I'm not a star gazer of any sort anymore, never mind that fact that I never cared for Kobe,though my opinion is rapidly changing of him for the better. So, I was thrown off by this attraction to what is going on. There is a lot of hurt in Kobe. I am not sure I really care who is to blame in this story, whether the Buss family literally lied to Kobe just to get him to re-sign or if Kobe is just frustrated right now.
But what I do see is without Christ, life and everything in it is meaningless. I realize that this is not the most thought-provoking post I have done, but thought it might be nice to post Essclesiastes chapter 1... because Kobe is probably as rich as you can get in the world of sports short of being an owner or part owner of a team, and I think he is just beginning to see that this is all meaningless. At least, I kind of gathered that from the two interviews he has done in the past two days.
Ecclesiastes 1
1 The words of the Teacher, [a] son of David, king in Jerusalem:
2 "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."
3 What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?
4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course.
7 All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again.
8 All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing.
9 What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say, "Look! This is something new"? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.
11 There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow.
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
13 I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men!
14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
15 What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted.
16 I thought to myself, "Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge."
17 Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.
18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.
But what I do see is without Christ, life and everything in it is meaningless. I realize that this is not the most thought-provoking post I have done, but thought it might be nice to post Essclesiastes chapter 1... because Kobe is probably as rich as you can get in the world of sports short of being an owner or part owner of a team, and I think he is just beginning to see that this is all meaningless. At least, I kind of gathered that from the two interviews he has done in the past two days.
Ecclesiastes 1
1 The words of the Teacher, [a] son of David, king in Jerusalem:
2 "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."
3 What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?
4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course.
7 All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again.
8 All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing.
9 What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say, "Look! This is something new"? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.
11 There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow.
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
13 I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men!
14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
15 What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted.
16 I thought to myself, "Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge."
17 Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.
18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.
Keep Moving Forward
This was originally posted on my Xanga site on April 23, 2007:
I'm not a quitter, but I just had to quit my job after 5 1/2 years. Way too much stress for me to deal with to stay there any longer. Talk about instant relief when I decided that last week. I went into work today and handed the lady in HR my badge and my doctor notes showing I was really off for medical reasons last week (doc was worried and insisted I took time off). She looked at me like "What is going on." I only said, "You were a witness to the conversation between [no names mentioned] and me and she said for me to think about what I need to do and I've decided what I need to do."
I went to Arizona with my parents and while we were there, mom and I went to see "Meet the Robinsons" - the newest Disney cartoon. I got a little annoyed, probably because I was waiting for the line that I had heard from it which was "Keep Moving Forward" from my dad who had seen it with my sister and her kids. I felt ridiculous at age 30 walking into a cartoon movie with my mother who is 62, but it was worth seeing it just for the line and ultimately the theme of the entire movie. Bottom line of the movie is whatever Louis did, failed. A guy from the future appeared and throughout the movie kept saying to Louis "As my dad, Cornelius Robinson says, 'Keep Moving Forward' because you will never learn from your successes, only your failures." There was a twist to it, but I can't share what it is -- you will just have to see it. It is definitely worth sitting through it to see the ending.
A friend, Kami, sent me an email today and told me that the low feelings are conquered by sharing what God is doing in my life.... and just like a sermon I heard on Psalm 13 by Pastor Pete, she's right....
The theme of the movie sat very well with me -- keep moving forward. I can't help but think of Paul in Philippians 3.... verses 12-14 say "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Funny thing is that it isn't even 4 hours since I turned my stuff into my former job and I'm not even looking back. And I won't. I won't shed another tear, even though deep down at times I feel like I have wasted the past 10 months of my life.... I should have quit 10 months ago rather than transferred departments. But no more tears. Really. I have no reason to because I know God has a better job for me. Something that is far beyond anything I can comprehend. Yeah, just like Cornelius Robinson says, "Keep Moving Forward".
I talked to another friend yesterday and she was saying how in the past few months I have made a lot of huge decisions and she has seen a transformation -- before, she said that I would burst into tears and feel totally hopeless and feel that nothing is going to improve the situation at hand. But now, I make decisions and I'm confident in the decisions and how proud she is of me for changing and being so confident. We both started crying. Geez Sara, my eyes are welling up with tears still Thanks a lot. ha ha But you know ? It's true.
And the horrible depression I have dealt with? I think of Paul. He says in 2 Corinthians 12 ==> "...there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." That is an amazing truth to ponder.
I'm not a quitter, but I just had to quit my job after 5 1/2 years. Way too much stress for me to deal with to stay there any longer. Talk about instant relief when I decided that last week. I went into work today and handed the lady in HR my badge and my doctor notes showing I was really off for medical reasons last week (doc was worried and insisted I took time off). She looked at me like "What is going on." I only said, "You were a witness to the conversation between [no names mentioned] and me and she said for me to think about what I need to do and I've decided what I need to do."
I went to Arizona with my parents and while we were there, mom and I went to see "Meet the Robinsons" - the newest Disney cartoon. I got a little annoyed, probably because I was waiting for the line that I had heard from it which was "Keep Moving Forward" from my dad who had seen it with my sister and her kids. I felt ridiculous at age 30 walking into a cartoon movie with my mother who is 62, but it was worth seeing it just for the line and ultimately the theme of the entire movie. Bottom line of the movie is whatever Louis did, failed. A guy from the future appeared and throughout the movie kept saying to Louis "As my dad, Cornelius Robinson says, 'Keep Moving Forward' because you will never learn from your successes, only your failures." There was a twist to it, but I can't share what it is -- you will just have to see it. It is definitely worth sitting through it to see the ending.
A friend, Kami, sent me an email today and told me that the low feelings are conquered by sharing what God is doing in my life.... and just like a sermon I heard on Psalm 13 by Pastor Pete, she's right....
The theme of the movie sat very well with me -- keep moving forward. I can't help but think of Paul in Philippians 3.... verses 12-14 say "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Funny thing is that it isn't even 4 hours since I turned my stuff into my former job and I'm not even looking back. And I won't. I won't shed another tear, even though deep down at times I feel like I have wasted the past 10 months of my life.... I should have quit 10 months ago rather than transferred departments. But no more tears. Really. I have no reason to because I know God has a better job for me. Something that is far beyond anything I can comprehend. Yeah, just like Cornelius Robinson says, "Keep Moving Forward".
I talked to another friend yesterday and she was saying how in the past few months I have made a lot of huge decisions and she has seen a transformation -- before, she said that I would burst into tears and feel totally hopeless and feel that nothing is going to improve the situation at hand. But now, I make decisions and I'm confident in the decisions and how proud she is of me for changing and being so confident. We both started crying. Geez Sara, my eyes are welling up with tears still Thanks a lot. ha ha But you know ? It's true.
And the horrible depression I have dealt with? I think of Paul. He says in 2 Corinthians 12 ==> "...there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." That is an amazing truth to ponder.
Trials.. of many kinds
This was originally posted on my Xanga site on April 10, 2007 :)
This morning I was reminded of a verse I used to keep in the front of my mind the majority of the time (thanks Dale ... and Shawna ... for keeping my mind focused on the right things). But, it has quickly become something in the back of my mind for some reason.
James 1:2-4 says "2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
I am going through some trials right now... none I can mention on here because this world is so small I don't want anyone to hear that these are regarding. I mean, other than the obvious physical trials of a major surgery. BUT knowing these tests I'm going through are actually strengthening me, encourages me and actually makes me happy I am going through these trials. In the midst of my trials, I'm finding ways to encourage other people and look beyond myself right now, which is something I am definitely not used to. I would have never sent someone an email AND called them letting them know I'm praying for them and that I know what they are going through... even if I really did and wasn't simply piling on the Christian-ese "I'll pray for ya man". But, two weeks ago I did exactly that.... a teen at church had her gall bladder removed and I had a sense of urgency to email and call her parents to let them know they can call me if they didn't want to call the doctor or whatever. I had the privilege of meeting her parents AND her on Good Friday after the second service. It was really cool. I guess this leads me to the other thought I had for a few days...
On Easter, my mom sat next to this lady who I've seen but haven't ever really talked to. As they were leaving, the lady went to my mom and said, "I want to make sure you know that we ALL adore your daughter here." That knocked the wind out of me. I didn't get how someone I haven't ever really talked to could say that, but as mom pointed out -- I obviously am carrying myself quite a bit differently than before and people are noticing. Perhaps not the people I REALLY want to say stuff are saying it (ie., single Christian males), but it was liberating to hear. Maybe they are noticing, feel the same way but aren't saying anything to anyone... hmm. Now there's a concept I hadn't ever thought about... but I won't dwell on it.
This morning I was reminded of a verse I used to keep in the front of my mind the majority of the time (thanks Dale ... and Shawna ... for keeping my mind focused on the right things). But, it has quickly become something in the back of my mind for some reason.
James 1:2-4 says "2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
I am going through some trials right now... none I can mention on here because this world is so small I don't want anyone to hear that these are regarding. I mean, other than the obvious physical trials of a major surgery. BUT knowing these tests I'm going through are actually strengthening me, encourages me and actually makes me happy I am going through these trials. In the midst of my trials, I'm finding ways to encourage other people and look beyond myself right now, which is something I am definitely not used to. I would have never sent someone an email AND called them letting them know I'm praying for them and that I know what they are going through... even if I really did and wasn't simply piling on the Christian-ese "I'll pray for ya man". But, two weeks ago I did exactly that.... a teen at church had her gall bladder removed and I had a sense of urgency to email and call her parents to let them know they can call me if they didn't want to call the doctor or whatever. I had the privilege of meeting her parents AND her on Good Friday after the second service. It was really cool. I guess this leads me to the other thought I had for a few days...
On Easter, my mom sat next to this lady who I've seen but haven't ever really talked to. As they were leaving, the lady went to my mom and said, "I want to make sure you know that we ALL adore your daughter here." That knocked the wind out of me. I didn't get how someone I haven't ever really talked to could say that, but as mom pointed out -- I obviously am carrying myself quite a bit differently than before and people are noticing. Perhaps not the people I REALLY want to say stuff are saying it (ie., single Christian males), but it was liberating to hear. Maybe they are noticing, feel the same way but aren't saying anything to anyone... hmm. Now there's a concept I hadn't ever thought about... but I won't dwell on it.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Links
I probably don't need to explain, but thought I would explain why I put some links up that I did.
Compass : That's obvious -- it's where I go to church
Daks' website : My buddy from the Philippines -- anyone have any idea how to get him over here to the US ?? If you go here and click on photos and click on whoweareinstead, he's in the red cap. I keep telling him he needs to smile more.
Dale's blog : Pastor Dale from Compass
Jars of Clay : Uhm, enough said ?
Matt's blog : Matt is one of the high school kids that posts on Godsong for the Psalm of the Day. I am impressed with his growth and walk with Christ so I have to give him a shout out
Godsong Music : This is the one Pastor Bobby has up
Phil Mickelson: I don't like golf, but I'll watch it any time Phil is playing !
AM 570 Radio: The radio station I listen to a lot. Mostly I am addicted to The Loose Cannons midday show... they are a wonderful mix of personalities... Steve Hartman is the Laker realist and a walking encyclopedia when it comes to sports. Mychal Thompson, former Laker. Vic "the Brick" Jacobs... insane, but awesome. "Live in the Moment" is his favorite saying.
The NBA... it's self explanatory. But, the teams listed? It's all about the BACK of the shirt rather than the FRONT. In other words, I like a few players from each team... Utah, it's Derek Fisher; Spurs, it's Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobli, Tony Parker, Robert Horry; the Suns, it's Steve Nash, Leandro Barbosa, Amare S, Raja Bell. I do like a few players from the Lakers (Luke Walton & Jordan Farmar) and Clippers (Corey Magette, Elton Brand, Shawn Livingston), but it's not worth it to post the links on my site.
National Basketball Association
Phoenix Suns Website
Spurs Website
Utah Jazz Website
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Guilty !
In my last post, I mentioned that the high school pastor has a website. On the website, he has a feature for the high school kids called Psalm of the Day... where each day of the year is associated with a Psalm in order of how it is in the Bible. The website also has blogs from him and his friend Brad... and a bunch of other things. The site is www.godsongmusic.com. Anyway, this post is from March 18 and inspired by this particular Psalm, Psalm 77. I put my original post in italics to have this blog make a little more sense.
The first is a simple, I am just sinful and fall short of God. Since I read it after church today, it brought me back to the sermon in the first 1/3 of the service where Pastor Mike was talking about Peter when he was first began to follow Christ in the gospel of Luke. Christ told Peter to throw the nets on the right side of the boat and the nets broke because there were so many fish after an entire night of no fish. Peter said, "Get away from me, I am a sinful man". That's what I posted on the site, which was the first thing that came to mind. Or at least that the verses reminded me of how sinful I am, I didn't say anything about Peter. I was too tired to post anything else that would make any sort of sense.
But, in a much more meaningful way... Psalm 77:3-4 also talks about the weight guilt has. "3 I remembered you, O God, and I groaned; I mused, and my spirit grew faint. 4 You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak." This pattern is also definitely seen in Psalm 32, one that I always have to turn to when I consider why I am so restless and anxious and can't sleep. Unfortunately this week I didn't realize how much guilt I was living with until this morning... again, in church... but the last third of the sermon. Pastor Mike was talking about guilt. And talking about how Peter was going back to fishing and back to his old life when Jesus appeared on the Sea of Gallillee. The whole exchange of Jesus talking to Peter about feeding his sheep and not giving up on the mission He gave Peter and the other disciples. I can't explain why it struck me in a way it never has before... sure, I've heard POWERFUL sermons on this exact set of scripture, but it was a sharp pang of guilt this morning. Of the many points Pastor Mike had, the one that hit me the hardest was that the only thing guilt should bring a person to do is confess their sin... he referred to Psalm 103:12 and Isaiah 1:18 and said that once we confess the sin, we need to let the guilt go.
Letting the guilt go is crucial for being/remaining close to God. It can become a barrier. And if you didn't think those consequences were bad enough, the physical consequences make your dealings with life and with people much worse. I only speak from experience on that. :)
The first is a simple, I am just sinful and fall short of God. Since I read it after church today, it brought me back to the sermon in the first 1/3 of the service where Pastor Mike was talking about Peter when he was first began to follow Christ in the gospel of Luke. Christ told Peter to throw the nets on the right side of the boat and the nets broke because there were so many fish after an entire night of no fish. Peter said, "Get away from me, I am a sinful man". That's what I posted on the site, which was the first thing that came to mind. Or at least that the verses reminded me of how sinful I am, I didn't say anything about Peter. I was too tired to post anything else that would make any sort of sense.
But, in a much more meaningful way... Psalm 77:3-4 also talks about the weight guilt has. "3 I remembered you, O God, and I groaned; I mused, and my spirit grew faint. 4 You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak." This pattern is also definitely seen in Psalm 32, one that I always have to turn to when I consider why I am so restless and anxious and can't sleep. Unfortunately this week I didn't realize how much guilt I was living with until this morning... again, in church... but the last third of the sermon. Pastor Mike was talking about guilt. And talking about how Peter was going back to fishing and back to his old life when Jesus appeared on the Sea of Gallillee. The whole exchange of Jesus talking to Peter about feeding his sheep and not giving up on the mission He gave Peter and the other disciples. I can't explain why it struck me in a way it never has before... sure, I've heard POWERFUL sermons on this exact set of scripture, but it was a sharp pang of guilt this morning. Of the many points Pastor Mike had, the one that hit me the hardest was that the only thing guilt should bring a person to do is confess their sin... he referred to Psalm 103:12 and Isaiah 1:18 and said that once we confess the sin, we need to let the guilt go.
Letting the guilt go is crucial for being/remaining close to God. It can become a barrier. And if you didn't think those consequences were bad enough, the physical consequences make your dealings with life and with people much worse. I only speak from experience on that. :)
Insights
I wanted to post some stuff from my Xanga site... it was originally from from March 11, but I changed some words to make ti make sense to someone reading this now. :) On that day, I had just had my gall bladder removed 5 days previously and was having a hard day in the recovery. I just didn't bounce back mentally as quickly as I had hoped I would. It probably took 2 1/2 weeks for that to happen.
I realized my mental outlook wasn't as high as it should have been be and it hit me when I went to this website put out by the high school pastor at Compass... Bobby Blakey. He was posting on Psalm 68 and highlighted verse 6 ==> "God sets the lonely in families, he leads forth the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land." Yes, I have foot in mouth disease... saying things that I shouldn't say and then regretting it. I do admit I am lonely, but that is slowly changing. I didn't bother to add that part in on my post. I also didn't bother to post that I do have a lot of friends, but they're all older.. and married. I don't care really about the married part, but I do care somewhat about the age part. One other thing I realized is that I'm slightly envious of close friendships because I currently don't have one. I know it takes time, but it doesn't help the envy. Perhaps envy is my "beloved" sin. I was just listening to that sermon from ages ago the other day -- great sermon -- it was a guest speaker (Jack Hughes) from a looong time ago at PCC. I think it was in 2004 or something. I doubt you could find it still on the Focal Point website, but let me know if you want to get a listen to it and I'll let you borrow the CD.
There is a problem also that I see. I still see myself as 228 pounds, not like I am. Yes, I have lost 68 pounds since January 2006. And it is only because of the strength God has given me and a lot of faith in Him that this has happened. But, there is still a major disconnect. I tried on some pants that are SIZE 12 ! I could not believe they fit. I just rolled my eyes at my mother when she handed them to me, but the pants are actually big. Jeans are a whole different issue... but I'm learning not to care about the size. It takes time, I hear, to change my thinking, but it trips me up sometimes.
I have been listening to Good Monsters (Jars of Clay) a lot. And the words to some of the songs have been echoing in my head. I just LOVE the lyrics on this album... 5 years ago I would have laughed in the face of the person who told me that I would use a Jars of Clay album to cheer me up as I did on March 11. But, here I am... I was listening to it nonstop. The words to this song help cheer me up and realize that God is the only way I will change my thinking about myself. It is not something I can do on my own power no matter how hard I try. So thanks Dan, Matt, Charlie and Steve for a WONDERFUL CD to make me think and challenge my walk with Christ.
TAKE ME HIGHER
It took a lot to turn away * Blood and water from one side * It took your eyes to stare me down* It took the truth to set me free, to set me free * Looking for place to hide * Waiting for the wind to rise * My soul is waiting * Looking for a place to hide * I need a little peace tonight
Take me higher than the sun * You are the only one * Take me higher than the sun
Around the ceiling of the heart * Is where we feel the things that send us away * To where the blind can see the stars * So do you see the stars, do you see the stars? * Looking for a place to hide * I need a little peace tonight
Take me higher than the sun * You are the only one * Take me higher than the sun
Words and music by Dan Haseltine, Charlie Lowell, Stephen Mason, Matt Odmark© 2006 Bridge Building Music, Inc.Pogostick Music / BMI / All rights administered byBrentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc.All rights reserved. Used by permission.
I realized my mental outlook wasn't as high as it should have been be and it hit me when I went to this website put out by the high school pastor at Compass... Bobby Blakey. He was posting on Psalm 68 and highlighted verse 6 ==> "God sets the lonely in families, he leads forth the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land." Yes, I have foot in mouth disease... saying things that I shouldn't say and then regretting it. I do admit I am lonely, but that is slowly changing. I didn't bother to add that part in on my post. I also didn't bother to post that I do have a lot of friends, but they're all older.. and married. I don't care really about the married part, but I do care somewhat about the age part. One other thing I realized is that I'm slightly envious of close friendships because I currently don't have one. I know it takes time, but it doesn't help the envy. Perhaps envy is my "beloved" sin. I was just listening to that sermon from ages ago the other day -- great sermon -- it was a guest speaker (Jack Hughes) from a looong time ago at PCC. I think it was in 2004 or something. I doubt you could find it still on the Focal Point website, but let me know if you want to get a listen to it and I'll let you borrow the CD.
There is a problem also that I see. I still see myself as 228 pounds, not like I am. Yes, I have lost 68 pounds since January 2006. And it is only because of the strength God has given me and a lot of faith in Him that this has happened. But, there is still a major disconnect. I tried on some pants that are SIZE 12 ! I could not believe they fit. I just rolled my eyes at my mother when she handed them to me, but the pants are actually big. Jeans are a whole different issue... but I'm learning not to care about the size. It takes time, I hear, to change my thinking, but it trips me up sometimes.
I have been listening to Good Monsters (Jars of Clay) a lot. And the words to some of the songs have been echoing in my head. I just LOVE the lyrics on this album... 5 years ago I would have laughed in the face of the person who told me that I would use a Jars of Clay album to cheer me up as I did on March 11. But, here I am... I was listening to it nonstop. The words to this song help cheer me up and realize that God is the only way I will change my thinking about myself. It is not something I can do on my own power no matter how hard I try. So thanks Dan, Matt, Charlie and Steve for a WONDERFUL CD to make me think and challenge my walk with Christ.
TAKE ME HIGHER
It took a lot to turn away * Blood and water from one side * It took your eyes to stare me down* It took the truth to set me free, to set me free * Looking for place to hide * Waiting for the wind to rise * My soul is waiting * Looking for a place to hide * I need a little peace tonight
Take me higher than the sun * You are the only one * Take me higher than the sun
Around the ceiling of the heart * Is where we feel the things that send us away * To where the blind can see the stars * So do you see the stars, do you see the stars? * Looking for a place to hide * I need a little peace tonight
Take me higher than the sun * You are the only one * Take me higher than the sun
Words and music by Dan Haseltine, Charlie Lowell, Stephen Mason, Matt Odmark© 2006 Bridge Building Music, Inc.Pogostick Music / BMI / All rights administered byBrentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc.All rights reserved. Used by permission.
How my site was named
Just thought I would mention how I came up with the name from this site.
Two verses inspired the name:
Isaiah 40:28-31
28 Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. 29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Matthew 11:28-30
28"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Two verses inspired the name:
Isaiah 40:28-31
28 Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. 29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
and
Matthew 11:28-30
28"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
I'm up and running !
I have another blog on Xanga, but I decided I would separate my health and general blog comments from my blogs on what I'm learning with the Bible and stuff God is doing ! So, though I signed up in February, I decided to finally transfer stuff over.
For my first blog, thought I would post something silly... did you know there is a website that has your birth verse ? It's www.mybirthverse.com. I wonder how they come up with the verses.... it just seems strange that mine is Luke 9:22 (NIV) ==> And he said, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” Like, why isn't mine... I don't know Matthew 9:22 or 1 Corinthians 9:22 ? (Those ARE real verses, by the way)
For my first blog, thought I would post something silly... did you know there is a website that has your birth verse ? It's www.mybirthverse.com. I wonder how they come up with the verses.... it just seems strange that mine is Luke 9:22 (NIV) ==> And he said, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” Like, why isn't mine... I don't know Matthew 9:22 or 1 Corinthians 9:22 ? (Those ARE real verses, by the way)
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