Journey

Before us lies a path not often traveled. As a result you won't meet many people on it. The other path has many travelers, but very few would you actually meet (their much too busy doing nothing) The path for you is hard. It's been quite long since anyone has traveled it, so it probably won't even look like a path anymore. It's a long path, through uncharted lands. Many times you'll be tempted to leave it, and you will have many opportunities to do so. But if you stay true, your reward wil be greater than you can imagine.

You must be willing to walk alone.

You will meet many people crossing this path, but few will remain.

(You must be willing to walk alone)

You may meet other dedicated to traveling this path.

(But you must be willing to walk alone)

They may even travel with you.

(But you must be willing to walk alone)

If fate decides to give you a companions then they will be sweeter than anything you've known

(But you must be willing to walk alone)

Remember to be good to those you meet, remember to stay on the path, remember to run with endurance, remember to run with joy, remember to not lose heart, remember to carry your banner with pride, and I could tell you many other things to remember. But above all, never forget that you must always be willing to walk alone.

P.S. (You will never be alone)

Psalm 118:7 (pondering)

I will praise You with a sincere heart when I learn Your righteous judgments- Psalm 118:7

This verse makes me think. Often times in my prayer I'll find myself saying things that I know to be true, or asking for things that I really want (or at least I think I do) And then I'll stop, and pray for God to help me really mean what I say, to be sincere. Even though I believe what I say as much as I know how, and still I feel as though I'm insincere. I praise God, but still I pray that I would be sincere (does this make you sincere?)

I think of great thinkers such as Aristotle (I think) C.S. Lewis, John Piper, and others who affirm the idea that everything that we do as humans is in pursuit of pleasure for ourselves, and for our happiness. Does this remain true for Christians? I think it does, at least most of the time. If so, does it interfere with true sincerity?

This verse says ""I will praise You...... when I learn your judgments" As if to say that we can't really be sincere until we "learn His righteous judgments" This must mean more than just "being saved" or having head knowledge of God, for certainly the author had these.

If indeed it's true that as of yet my praise is not truly sincere, then does this mean that God doesn't accept it? I can't fathom this to be true. If Go brings me to the point where I delight to praise Him, for whatever reason then I believe He will be glorified by it.

There does seem to be times when I'll talk to God and say words without even the desire to be sincere. These times I must fight against, But I don't think the verse refers to these times.

It may be that we cannot, due to our sinful nature praise God sincerely until we are glorified, but of all things that I don't know or am unsure of, I know this. My duty is to praise God with whatever sincerity (or lack of) He has given me. What else can I do?

What a joy to be able to praise God from a sincere heart! Apart from any selfish desire. Simply because it's right, and good.

Glory be to God.

Here:
Stand I alone,
yet not alone, but freed
to be a slave to my love
why then do I stand here alone?

Stand:
swim, and fly, and fight
fight, for you have been freed from chains
and when you fight you will fail
taken captive again to be made a slave

Fear:
I feel it now full well
For I have failed now, {rescue me}
Why did you set me free? and release my chains?
Where did you go? While I tried to swim?
Enslave me again with your love

(I have failed)

Return:
Look from where you lay
Remember what you know, now what you feel
Freed you are from love
For love is a choice
choose then your slavery

Here:
This is the moment
Not a moment, but the moment
For to fight is to fail, to swim, to sink
But to run is safety, safety enchained
To fight is freedom, freedom in death

Arise:
For through failure you have freedom
and through death you have life
Stronger chains you will be given
For fear has brought you trust
And through your trust, slavery

Run:
I will run
And I will fall
Falling makes me strong
For I was freed from prison
So that I could become enslaved

Lessons from the Rain

It was raining the other day so I decided to take a walk in the rain...I had no idea what I was getting into :) My walk went something like this.
Look out the window "oh, it's still raining, I think I'll go play in it." I stepped outside and at first it was a little uncomfortable, cold, foreign. But I continued. And the more I walked the more it rained, and the more I gave into it. Then it started raining harder and I grew more wet than dry. Up to this point I had been clinging to my being dry and fighting the thought of being wet. But then there was a point where I surrendered to it's wetness and embraced it. What followed was a culmination of freedom, awe, wonder, and pure joy. I began to run, now saturated and clean, enjoying a world just as saturated as I was. I felt clean, and free, and powerful. (not in a greedy or prideful way) but the way you feel whenever you've just overcome something powerful, either that or surrendered to something even more powerful. The rest of my time in the rain was spent in a childish irrational joy.
As all this was happening I thought of how this experience was the same as my walk with God both at conversion and my constant surrenders. I get dirty without realizing it. ( I didn't realize how dirty I was until I came in from the rain and felt clean) So God sends the Rain to clean me. At first it's uncomfortable, even painful at times, but the more it rains the more I surrender to it. Because I can't Because I can't be cleaned until it covers every part of me. Then at last I surrender to it. And when I've finally surrendered to Him I feel free, powerful, irrationally joyful! I feel as though I've finally become part of the real. These are only a few of the thoughts that came to me on my walk, it was quite a blessing :)

Love songs

had this thought recently, "what if all love songs were sung to God?" So I went and listened to some secular love songs and I was blown away. We as humans have such a desire to love, and such a capacity to love. Or at least I know I do. There is all this love pent up inside of us, love that we've been holding back either for the safety of the one receiving the love or our own.
I realized just how much people in this world want to be able to love something fully and unashamedly with all of their being, this was clearly displayed in the songs I heard.
The devastating reality however is that we all to often look in the wrong places, I look in the wrong places. God is the only one who can receive the full force of our love and not be overwhelmed. He is the only one that we can really love fully! All the love that we restrain from people for their sake or for ours can be unleashed on God! Yet so few realize this. One thing that I think really comes out in secular love songs is the desire to love something fully, and this is a powerful thing when directed in the right place.
Here are a few of the songs that I listened to, and if you choose to listen to them imagine singing them to God, or even perhaps God singing them to you.

• Secondhand serenade- "Your call"
• dashboard confessional- "Stolen"
• Boys like girls- "Thunder"
• Lonestar- "Amazed"

Music

SO! I realized something today, well perhaps it's just that I only fully realized it today. I've always wondered what causes my overwhelming attraction to music. And, I know that everyone likes music, but for me I try to have it on constantly. When I do school, when I'm cooking, when I'm doing chores, or even back-flips on the trampoline. And I often wondered why it was that I need, or rather greatly desire music (So have my parents, and it's caused some trouble) anyways, the conclusion that I came to was this. Music gives the illusion that there are people around me and with me. Now this is important because God made me to want to almost always be around people, I'm extroverted, it energizes me. But I think it's also more than that, not only does it give the illusion that there are people around me, but also WITH me. We're on the same page, doing the same thing, on the same thought, essentially one, singing together. That's one attraction I have to singing with people, at that time those singing are all coming together in one accord. I think this is the main reason I'm attracted to music, though I know that there are other reasons. OH! and I felt this song today, like you know the times when you hear a song, and your like "I was just thinking that!" and everything that they say your like "YES!" that's exactly how I feel (btw I absolutely love those moments) well that happened today, the song was "Smile" by Chris Rice. amazing song (as is "wonder") well anyway i'm done ranting...

Gods Chisel

A friend of mine found this video today, so I watched it. And I think that it's something we all need to hear, and something that kinda goes with my theme...so here it is http://www.youtube.com/user/theskitguys enjoy!