Love Songs

Why are there so many love songs? Because musicians and songwriters often compose about what they know. It's only natural that the things and people we know and experience the most deeply will influence the ways we express ourselves. What influences your thoughts, writings, and what you sing of the most? Are those things worth your time and brainpower?

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

Serve the Lord with gladness!
    Come into his presence with singing!

Know that the Lord, he is God!
    It is he who made us, and we are his;
    we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
    and his courts with praise!
    Give thanks to him; bless his name!

For the Lord is good;
    his steadfast love endures forever,
    and his faithfulness to all generations.

- Psalm 100

Great is Thy Faithfulness

Every time I look back at my trip to Yellowstone National Park, I get to this photograph and the hymn "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" starts to run through my head. Old Faithful is the park's most famous geyser, and it more or less lives up to it's name. It tends to go off around particular times each day and draws a notable crowd of watchers. Despite it's title, the park rangers told me that over the years it's timing has shifted and you can't quite rely on exact times for it to blow anymore. That's the world for you; reliability only goes so far. 

What is truly reliable? God. The lyrics below are deeply rooted in scripture. Take the time to ponder and appreciate the facts behind them.

“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,

Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;

Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,

Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,    your faithfulness to the clouds. - Psalm 36:5

Reaction Alert

Sometimes, though we have very good intentions and generally do trust God, we can miss things. Not only that, but we can easily allow our reactions to take us over. The story of Balaam illustrates that rather well. It begins with him proclaiming his loyalty to God:

"But Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, “Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the command of the Lord my God to do less or more." Numbers 22:18

As the narrative goes on, he encounters God's providence, but despite his trust and loyalty to Him, it doesn't strike Balaam at first that perhaps this obstacle has been sent by the Lord. All he sees is his donkey acting out- and even when the animal speaks, he is too taken by his angry reaction to stop and ask how and why his animal is speaking to him.

"When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam. And Balaam's anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a fool of me. I wish I had a sword in my hand, for then I would kill you.” And the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, on which you have ridden all your life long to this day? Is it my habit to treat you this way?” And he said, “No.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, with his drawn sword in his hand. And he bowed down and fell on his face." - Numbers 22:27-31

What can we learn here? God works in all sorts of ways. Sometimes He is working in our hearts and minds as we pray and read the Bible. Sometimes He is working through our conscience. But He also can and does work through circumstances. Look at life in this light- even the most annoying obstacles can play a part in His will.

The DOL Line

Recently I had to get my drivers' license renewed. You likely know the feeling of sitting in that sparsely decorated room full of plastic chairs, staring at the walls as the desk attendant works at the DOL's iconic rate of speed. A fifteen minute wait can quickly feel like an eternity. It's places like these where we learn about patience, and whether we have it.

It's easy to become impatient. There are only two people ahead of you- how in the world can the desk attendant process them so slowly? There are so many things you could be getting done. You go over your to-do list, tapping your foot anxiously, hoping nobody annoying or smelly walks in the door and sits near you to make the experience any more grating.

Deep breath.

Patience.

Yeah. That thing. Let's do this. 

"Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feeble-minded, support the weak, be patient toward all men." 1 Thessalonians 5:14

Separating Snowflakes

This morning, the sun came out over the snowy landscape. As it shone, the snow reflected, revealing that it wasn't merely some white mass but hundreds of trillions of individual snowflakes. It was breathtaking! I quickly grabbed my camera and began trying to shoot photos of them.

What I soon realized was this: it's hard to pick out individuals when they are all crowded together. Sure, they were still beautiful, but I wanted to separate them. I couldn't do it with my finger or a piece of paper. Even the littlest bit of heat would obliterate the tiny ice crystals. Perhaps I could blow on them? I tried. It worked, I thought. The dusting of fresh snow that covered the hood of my car was now thinly scattered. Upon further inspection, I discovered that my attempt resulted in enough damage to the flakes that they were no longer as whole and beautiful as they once were, and they quickly melted away.

It can be a little like that in the Christian life too. It's tempting to break away from our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Perhaps we feel like we could learn about God better on our own and don't need the fellowship of the local congregation. Perhaps we break away in the sense that we want to try and do something big for God, but don't want others meddling with our idea, or maybe we've been bickering with our fellow members. Whatever the instance or reason, the end remains the same: damage is done in some form, whether to us, our fellow believers, or both. It wouldn't work if our body parts tried to act as entirely separate entities, and it doesn't work in the body of Christ either.

"For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body." - 1 Corinthians 12:14-20

Thoughts From The Ditch

Not many people would be laughing at themselves in my position. Currently I am sitting in the ditch with my emergency flashers going, waiting for a tow truck to arrive and get me out of a snow bank. Not that it's hilarious that I am stuck here, but the fact of the matter is I am fine, my car is fine, and I just feel a little silly. Why? Because all winter long I've been rolling my eyes at people who can't drive in the snow. But I’ve got this, I say to myself, as I confidently maneuver my little all-wheel-drive through the streets.

This morning I was reading my Bible and noting God’s high view of humility. Heh, little did I consider just how prideful I've been about my winter driving skills and my vehicle’s abilities… Well, until now. At any rate, God is good. Really really good- I didn't hit the other car that was in the ditch, I didn't hit anything that could damage my car, and no injuries were incurred, aside to my pride (but apparently I needed that!).

What did I learn tonight? Black ice is startling and you don't know it's there until you're on top of it. I also learned that sliding into the ditch can happen to anyone, no matter how good their car is or how skilled they are at winter driving. Most importantly though, I learned that sometimes we need God to let us hit a little adversity to show us where we need to improve.

"Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." - Proverbs 16:18

New Beginnings

The new year tends to emerge with much noise and glory. People banging pots, blowing party noisemakers, lighting off fireworks, and making toasts to new beginnings and resolving to change their lives for the better. There is so much excitement and enthusiasm. We know we've made mistakes over the past year, and we're all ready to write them off and start up anew as best we are able.

Why are we so thrilled by the prospect of new beginnings? Why do we like that feel of a fresh start so well? Because it's what we are meant to have. We are meant to be transformed by a relationship with Christ and become new. 

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. - 2 Corinthians 5:17

If you're already in Christ, do you see the newness? Is there a noticeable difference between you and the rest of the world? It won't be an overnight switch, but the closer we grow in our relationships with Christ, the more like Him we will become and the less like the rest of the world we will seem. I pray for you and myself alike that the difference will be ever increasing. 

Happy New Year!