Look Up, Look Forward

Psalm 8:4

What is man that you are mindful of him,

 and the son of man that you care for him?

The performance is over. 

The after party a memory. 

We head home. 

There is still a wedding tomorrow. 

I walk towards the house. 

I look up. 

My first reaction is to fall to my knees. 

The sky is ablaze with twinkling starlight. 

The richness powerful. 

I can not absorb the vastness. 

The Universe. 

The galaxies. 

How marvelous. 

I say it out loud. 

What is mere man that you are mindful of him?

The heaven's declare your majesty. 

Psalm 19:1

The heavens declare the glory of God, 

and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. 

I am overcome by the beauty. 

I am grateful for a Savior that loved me enough to show me grace. 

I continue to gaze. 

It is late. 

I think of Elijah. 

I long for his presence. 

I think of his words in his Senior testimony. 

He had just talked about his earthly father's desire to go to heaven and travel through 

space and see the wonderful creation.

He then says, "And that instills in me this looking forward that I want to fight the good fight now for what lies for me ahead. I share that want, to just travel through God's beautiful creation, past this earth. 

He wanted to travel through this creation. 

And that is just what he is doing. 

In glory. 

What he must be able to see. 

Ah, the sheer wonder. 

My mind can not grasp. 

Look up.

I saw the night sky. 

Look up.

I saw his mercy. 

Philippians 3:14

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God 

has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Pressing onward. 

Looking up. 

Keeping eyes focused. 

I shift my gaze to the path toward the house. 

I am left with a peace that transcends all understanding.  

There is a kitchen to clean. 

A wedding to celebrate. 

Look up; when the way is rough. 

Look up; to see. 

Press on.

Blessings on this Lord's Day. 

May all you do today be for His glory. 

And may peace be yours. 

We Yield, He Works, We Rest

Do you stumble out of bed? 

Is there a longing to pull the sheets over your head and wish the day would go away? 

I do. 

The desire to sink into quiet, no schedules, sleep past 5:30, rise to greet me. 

I always feel the need to be moving. 

I have to be accomplishing something. 

Yet somehow I feel as if nothing is ever done. 

I am just treading water. 

I stare into the fog this morning wanting to roll over and just shut it all out. 

I don't want to feel, or work through the day. 

I have an early morning meeting, the kids school to do, laundry, book work, a never ending list. 

We need to be in town for a port-flush for Gary and then back out to get ready for a cello recital. 

There is hay down.

Everyone wants to head in a different direction. 

Once, I excelled at these varying schedules. 

They energized me. 

Now they drag me down. 

My soul longs for quiet; peace. 

I realize a little too late; I have stepped off that gentle walk with God. 

The walk that allows you to step quietly while all rages around you. 

No matter the schedule, the chaos, the laundry, the bills. 

The walk sweet and soft. 

So, I am re-grouping a little this morning. 

It's a busy weekend. 

A strategy change. 

I will step into that gentle walk with God. 

Where all can rage, but the center will be peace. 

He has ordered these days. 

They are beautiful. 

It is He, that does the work in us. 

We yield. 

He works. 

We rest. 

Philippians 1:6

being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you 

will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

The Cost Of The Cross

Snow. In April. 

Poor man's fertilizer. 

The temperature has dropped 30 degrees. 

The water has traveled outside it's boundaries. 

Warm air has given way to a bitter wind. 

Reminding us that winter has not had it's final say. 

It is Holy Week. 

For some, this means nothing.

For me. 

It is everything. 
The journey Jesus took to the cross is the defining piece of my faith. 

He came into Jerusalem Hailed as King and left Jerusalem via the cross.

He took on the dirty and broken; so that we might live. 

He died to save a wretch like me; 

when He himself was sinless. 

And as we travel to the cross this week. 

I weigh the cost. 

It cost him everything that I might have life. 

He had no regard for his own being. 

He willingly laid down his life for mine. 

It was not taken. He gave. 

I do nothing to deserve it. 

It's mine. Because He said so. 

As I watch rivers skip their banks,

 and water erode a section on a road in a matter of moments;

I am reminded that things of this earth are temporal. 

This is not our home. 

Matthew 6:19-21

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, 

where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;

 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

We're not home yet. 

This journey here is but a moment in the eyes of the Lord. 

We grieve this week for a friend. 

I am trying to sort it all out. 

We rejoice that he is home. 

He dances the streets of Gold with my son. 

He died serving. 

The cost of the cross. 

Doing what He felt God called Him to do. 

My heart knows this. 

But when that calling was for you the guilt thief struts in.

Bold and brass.

He died to help a wretch like me.

We will pay our last respects and celebrate his home going. 

Tucked right in the middle of Palm Sunday and Maundy Thursday. 

There is deep spiritual significance there. 

I will wrestle with this joy in the midst of grief. 

We are a people who grieve with hope; no matter how heavy the load becomes. 

All I know is I'm not home yet

This is not where I belong. 

Take this world and give me Jesus

This is not where I belong. 

Thy Faithfulness

I glance out the window. 

It is a pink sunrise and even after almost 8 months my heart drops.

The same color as the morning Elijah met Jesus.

The morning I still can't reconcile with. 

The morning that my life changed forever.
When time stood still. 

Yet the morning that caused  me to say;

His mercies are new every morning. 

It is what I entitled the picture. 

And they are. 

His Mercies are. . . new. . . every morning. 

Each and every one. 
Mercy that we don't deserve. Grace beyond measure.
All new. . . each morning.
Find it. Seek it.
The hope that is steadfast.
The stillness that leads me to the cross.
The quiet where I seek shelter from the storm that rages around me.
How great is His love for us.
It is vast beyond all measure.
His Faithfulness; great.

Lamentations 3:23
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

At The Sound Of His Great Name

"Every fear; has no place; at the sound of your great name

The enemy; he has to leave; at the sound of your great name"

~Natalie Grant

This journey is relentless. There is no escape. The weight of grief a daily struggle. 

I cry out. The enemy flees;at the sound of His great name. 

Our fears; have no place at the sound of His great name!

My anguish and my grief have been conquered. 

Do you know that power? 

Have you been washed in the blood? 

Can you stand on His promises?

When your world is shattered and your baby isn't ever coming home; when your mom has died of cancer and your husband now walks this uncertain journey; 

when depression creeps in; the joy thief~

Can you lift your hands high and praise the One who spoke; and order was created? 

I pray this for you.

 Because when life is tough; and the enemy crouches; there is but one place to go. 

This world is riddled with pain. 

Drug abuse is high, addictions soaring. Hurt abounds. 

But there is an enemy that will flee at the sound of "His Great Name."

Dig deep and fight off the demons that lie about your worth. 

Stand firm in the grace and mercy sent for you. 

You are loved. 

You were bought with a price. 

He meets you where you are and loves you enough to mold you into His child. 

Stand strong today on the promises given for you and me. 

The enemy flees; at the sound of His great Name. 

When you step into fear.

 Shout it. 

When you're discouraged call on His name. 

There is a battle. But we have the tools to overcome. 

We can stand strong in the face of adversity. 

All the weak; find their strength; At the sound of Your Great Name.

The Super Bowl And The Almighty. . .All In A Day

It's Sunday. 

And I know his mercies are new every morning. 

It was the immediate thought that ran through my head when 

I saw the sunrise the morning of Elijah's home-going. 

His mercy and grace have been extended greatly in the past 6 months. 

We have been carried when we can not walk. 

We have been loved and cared for by our friends and community in ways I could never have imagined. 

I am glad for this day of rest. I am weary.
The week has been long.
My emotions getting the better of me most of the time.
I can't sort out some of this journey.
It all seems so senseless.
So full of pain.
And a day of respite is much needed.
I will head to worship.
 I will seek fellowship and we will be encouraged. 
Because that is where my strength comes from.

Pslam 121:1-2
I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

Together with the maker of the universe I will rest today.
I will choose to give thanks and praise for where I am.
Won't you rest?
Take time on this Super Bowl Sunday to be quiet in the presence of the Almighty.
And then enjoy the bantering and intensity of the Superbowl.
Yes, I think God derives pleasure from us watching the Superbowl. 
I think as with anything, he is saddened by the actions which are contrary to His Word.
But He rejoices over His people.

Maybe He even chooses a team.
(Though I really only watch the National Anthem, when people could remember the words, and the halftime show; Up, Up With People was my favorite. What year was that anyway? And the Commercials; those too are my favorite. I know, it's terrible. I usually know who is playing though. . .)
God rejoices over His people; and football.
He delights in us.
He longs to be in relationship with us.
May this day be spent reconnecting with the Author of life; as well as connecting with those new friends or long time friends during the game.
And being reminded that your sins are as white as snow.
My friends, He is coming back.
And, oh, what a sweet reunion that will be.

I’ll see you in a little while
I’ll see you in a little while
It won’t be too long now
We’ll see it on the other side
The wait was only the blink of an eye
So I’m not gonna say goodbye
‘Cause I’ll see you in a little while