Pits and Bieces

Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.                                John 1:3-5

 I was in a truck for a minimum of 8 hours today. That is A LOT of sitting. The result: I have a mild case of the hyper. Chaos may ensue. I was also reading Calvin and Hobbes out loud for a majority of that time to the driver. That statement speaks for itself.

Disclaimer: No mustaches, poodles, or gorillas were harmed in the making of this blog post. Please forgive me for the ridiculousness of my thought train.

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Lord empty me of me, so I can instead be filled with You.

You can bake cookies, and you can cook bacon
But you can't cook cookies and you can't bake bacon.
It's just not right. So I'll write. But is it worth the fight to try and convince you it's not alright

I'm trying to stop relying on my own source of light that tends to go out at night

Pick up your cross and follow Me,
Well whatever that cross may be, I can promise it's going to be heavy.

So here's what I've learned: Vulnerability is a virtue and perfection is my enemy. I will never be good enough, and I will never be too honest with myself, or you. Because I like to lie, but I like to tell the truth.  ADOPTED

I believe that promises kept are promises wasted, and that's a promise.  ADOPTED
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Once upon a time, a well dressed french man decided to visit a local bistro for breakfast. His name was Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth, and his delicately groomed mustache extended inches past both sides of his face. It was quite the mustache marvel, to say the least.

While walking down the cold concrete sidewalk, Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth noticed a large, pale, pink and purple poodle. It was well-groomed, but looked like a mutt in comparison to Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth's miraculous mustache. He quickly moved on, for he was on a mission to find macaroon morsels somewhere soon.

After rounding the corner of Ramases and Raphael, Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth came to an abrupt stop, for a giant gorilla was standing in his path! They both stared at each other in shock and stood still in the silence.

"Excuse me, large hairy primate", piped Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth, "You are standing in my path, and I'm afraid we must part ways so that I may presume my previous plans."

The gorilla scowled at Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth. The french man cleared his throat, and secured his arms across his chest. Suddenly the gorilla stood straighter than before and smiled. "I see ya take good care of that there mustache, mister."

Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth was quite shocked! This gorilla had a southern accent as if he was from the countryside (which was a ridiculous dialect for a gorilla to have in France, to say the least)!

The proud man curled the ends of his mustache and grinned. He became so distracted by the luscious locks detailing his face, that he lost contact with reality and stood in a daze, rubbing his facial hair.

Then the gorilla grunted, shook his head, and killed Sir Fredessondino the Fourteenth.

The end.

I Want to be Your Hands and Feet

...

Until The Whole World Hears
Casting Crowns

Lord, I want to feel your heart
And see the world through your eyes
I want to be your hands and feet
I want to live a life that leads

Ready yourselves, ready yourselves
Let us shine the light of Jesus in the darkest night
Ready yourselves, ready yourselves
May the powers of darkness tremble as our praises rise

Until the whole world hears, Lord, we are calling out
Lifting up your name for all to hear the sound
Like voices in the wilderness, we're crying out
And as the day draws near
We'll sing until the whole world hears

Lord, let your sleeping giant rise
Catch the demons by surprise
Holy nation sanctified
Let this be our battle cry

Ready yourselves, ready yourselves
Let us shine the light of Jesus in the darkest night
Ready yourselves, ready yourselves
May the powers of darkness tremble as our praises rise

Until the whole world hears, Lord, we are calling out
Lifting up your name for all to hear the sound
Like voices in the wilderness, we're crying out
And as the day draws near
We'll sing until the whole world hears

We'll sing until the whole world hears
We'll sing until the whole world hears

I want to be your hands and feet
I want live a life that leads
To see you set the captive free
Until the whole world hears

And I pray that they will see
More of you and less of me
Lord, I want my life to be
The song You sing

Until the whole world hears, Lord, we are calling out
Lifting your name up for all to hear the sound
Like voices in the wilderness, we're crying out
And as the day draws near
We'll sing until the whole world hears

We'll sing until the whole world hears
We'll sing until the whole world hears
We'll sing until the whole world hears
We'll sing until the whole world hears
We'll sing until the whole world hears 

Forever is a Long Time

Consistency has never been one of my strong points. I'm not totally sure what my strong points even are, for that matter. I praise God that He is so consistent; and the revelation that His love literally endures forever is such a beautiful thing, and something that I have to re-realize every day.

My friend and I had an impromptu bible study (one of the best kind) once and kinda dove into what that really meant. I'm looking at Psalm 136 specifically, which says "His love endures forever" in every single verse for the entire chapter, which happens to be for 26 verses. That's just in one chapter in one book of the bible. This phrase is also repeated in a lot of other places.

I'd just like to point something out that my friend and I learned while going over some of these verses. The word "endure" actually means "to suffer patiently". When the reality of that truth sinks in is when the real miracles happen. That's when lives are changed; when you realize that God loves you that much, that He's patient with us despite all our crap. He literally loves us so much it hurts. If you've ever felt like you've loved someone so much it hurt, try to wrap your mind around a perfect, omniscient creator that made you with above and beyond that kind of love.

Thank God for... well, God.

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Psalm 19:14

On the Road to... God's Will: A Reflection

"On the Road to Damascus" is such a fun piece for me, for several reasons.

For one, there's some parts that are more musical I guess and lines that require singing instead of just speaking, and singing is one of my favorite ways to worship God (next to doing so through poetry). The combination of these two mediums really reminds me of how incredible God is and I absolutely love being able to praise Him in both ways at the same time.

I also love narratives. On the Road to Damascus tells a story, and there is such power in that for the listener and speaker both. Every time I read or speak this piece I can get something new out of it, and I pray that anyone else who reads or hears it has similar experiences. This particular narrative is also an open door into my own life. Although it may not be completely obvious at first, this piece delves into some of my darkest closets and shines a light on my past. But, like any good "God story", it flips those ugly things upside down into a beautiful testimony of how Jesus is still changing lives.

Something I also love, and believe is one of the most important things when it comes to sharing Christ, is the ability to relate. We all are or have been Sauls at some point in our lives. However, Jesus has the ability (AND desire) to change your name (or circumstance, or mind, or plan, or life for that matter). Thank God for that.

The idea for this poem first came up after hearing a testimony. An amazing man I've had the privilege to get to know and love told his story about how he had endured a very difficult upbringing and lifestyle and had to suffer the consequences of the choices he and the people around him made. Then, he told about how Jesus came to him "right there in the kitchen" and changed his life forever. The mentions he made in his story about ridiculing Christians and trying to convince them that their faith was ridiculous reminded me of Saul on the road to Damascus, especially the way Jesus made such a powerful appearance in such an everyday place. I'd also like to note that a majority of his story was told through a poem he wrote; the awesomeness of that is self explanatory. So this poem is dedicated to the changer of lives, Jesus Christ, and to the vessel he chose to use for a very special period in my life, my youth pastor Jarrod Scott.

When it comes to Reflections I tend to try and explain the poem itself, sometimes very tediously line by line, but I think it would be more advantageous to leave that to the Holy Spirit at this point. You and I both know He's way better at it than I am, anyway.

Child, open your eyes, we'll sing a new song.

Lift your hands to the skies; we'll sing a new song,

Sing a new song.

I think that it's about time we really open our eyes. Whether you're not a Christian, or have been for awhile. This message applies to everyone, because there is always room for growth and revelation.
For me personally, I know it's time for me to really open my eyes and stop allowing the world to distract me. In the grand scheme of things, most of what I'm worrying about is not as big of a deal as I'm making it out to be.
What's standing in the way of you and Jesus? I can guarantee He's not letting anything get in His way of you. He wants you to be close to Him. Is there something clouding your vision- relationships, money, stress, anger, unforgiveness, anxiety, worry, material things? Set them down for a minute and really breathe. Christ has a new tune He wants to teach you, and I promise it's sweeter than anything you've been singing up to this point.

Worship God with everything you have today. I'm speaking to myself here, too. I want to sing that new song. I want to breathe that new hope and comfort. With arms high and heart abandoned, let's stand in awe of our Creator, and praise Him for being willing to strike us blind when we aren't looking in the right direction.

Read "On the Road to Damascus"

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Psalm 19:14

My Heart Cries Out Even When My Mouth Refuses To.

There's no place I'd rather be than here in your love.
So set a fire down in my soul that I can't contain, that I can't control. I want more of You God.
I want more of You God.

I want to want more of You God; in every day and every moment. I pray that you continuously increase my desire for you. Forgive me my shortcomings, and lead me to bring them to the cross, always. Give me the strength to bring you what I have, though it be little, and rely on you to take it the rest of the way. Multiply my loaves. Lead me to give them up to you in the first place. Thank you for wanting to do that, thank you for being patient with me when I keep them to myself as if I expect them to magically manifest into a bounty on their own.
Just... Thank You. Praise You. I love you. Be glorified above all else. Amen.

Fin

He isn't even trying.
He isn't necessarily not trying, either. He's not living, or thriving, or compromising.
He is simply existing.
He's sitting in the back row wondering if anyone will turn around. Even if it's to reach into their bag hanging on the back of their chair, or to check the time on the clock on the back wall. He wonders if anyone will turn around, and for a split second glance his direction, make eye contact.
"God. I hope not." He begs the universe to prevent it.
And it does. No one turns around. Not even an impatient glimpse at the hour.
He slouches down in his seat, floating further and further away from the inaudible murmuring coming from the front of the room. He can't keep from leaving; he isn't even trying.


"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer." 

Psalm 19:14