Easter

It has been a good day of thinking about the cross. My husband and I were listening to the Sovereign Grace Pandora channel today, and noticing how many songs we really love seem appropriate for Easter. That, I suppose, is because Easter celebrates one of the central elements of Christianity.

Among a few we really like:
"To the Cross," Paul Baloche
"Wonderful Maker," Chris Tomlin
"Hosanna," Brooke Fraser
"Before the Throne of God Above," Keith and Kristyn Getty
"Glorious Day," Casting Crowns and others

Cross-centered music for a cross-centered life.

This afternoon I was getting frustrated with my kids, as we are all stuck inside due to the rain, and we don't want to get out and impose on any businesses to be open on this day. Sometimes my homely life just plods along, and I confess there are choices I could make to make it more glorious. I could slip into despair by how quickly I fall back into old habits, my selfish, easily-angered, self comes out. I need to hear the gospel at home, not just at church, because I can look pretty good at church. It's at home that I cannot hide from myself, and such moments help me appreciate the profound love of God to save me, knowing my weakness, my failures.

Choir sang this this morning. It was new to me. I like it.



He is risen!

Love is Still a Worthy Cause

It is Good Friday. We had tuna casserole for dinner. Some denominations participate in a tradition to fast from red meat on Fridays during Lent, so I think there will be a lot of other people having fish tonight, as well. I do believe in the benefit of nutritional fasting, but I have been thinking about fasting in another way for the past week or so. I've been studying Isaiah 58, in which God describes a fast that would truly please him.

"Is this not the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard." (vv. 6-8)

I have thought a lot about the oppressed, yoked, hungry, and poor. I believe the greatest and most concerning needs are spiritual. I actually think that the passage in Isaiah was speaking of a physical reality that translates into a spiritual reality this side of the cross. Nevertheless, being with God means making certain choices and honoring certain attributes of God that make a physical, tangible difference in this world. I have studied nineteenth century Christian abolitionists - particularly of the female, American, literary stripe - and admired them greatly for their conviction and commitment to putting an end to one form of human misery because they believed in the value of life.

Sara Groves' album Tell Me What You Know was an encouragement to just jump in. Sara is an artist partner with involved in International Justice Mission's efforts to put an end to human trafficking - modern-day slavery. I heard "Love is Still a Worthy Cause" as a word to those who come lately to such work.

Have you listed all the times you've tried
Do you call on all your alibis
When somebody asks the question why are you hiding

did you feel the pull, did you hear the call
did you take a chance and lose it all
do you fear there's no collateral left for trying

(I know this is rhetorical, but I have to answer. Yes.)

Friend, I know your heart is raw
But love is still a worthy cause
Picking up and pressing on
Oh, love is still a worthy cause
Like the touch that starts the thaw
Oh, love is still a worthy cause
or the word that breaks the pause


Love. It does require that I give of my time and resources that I would otherwise spend on myself. And Isaiah 58 says that when I spend, the Lord will satisfy (v. 11); when I fast from my own pleasure, He will provide the feast (v. 14).

I honestly do not have much to fast from these days. About the only thing I can think to give up is TV time, which is a few hour per week. But that is time to write this blog, and work on a few songs. That is something. I am hopeful that thinking of my life as a fast, in this sense, will direct my steps in more purposeful, intentional, resolute ways. I have noticed my pace quicken and my face brighten since I have begun to evaluate my life in these fat-free terms. In this sense, I have already begun to feast.

Song for Stefan

This past week, my little one turned one year old.

He is doing well, and lately has become a bit more snuggly, which I love, although he mostly addles up to me for a quick squeeze and then wiggles away.

Life definitely gets easier when a child turns one. I remember this same phenomenon with my daughter, Kyrstin, who is just 16 months older than Stefan. It was like magic. Today we all played out in the yard, crawling, toddling, laying down, blowing bubbles. Perhaps that is bliss.

Now that the kids are just a little older, my mind has a bit of breathing room, and I am looking beyond the moment or the hour. For instance, yesterday I actually planned not only what we would have for dinner each day, I also planned what we would have for lunch. This is easier now in part because Stefan can eat most of the same foods the rest of us eat. There was a time when I was making two or three different meals per meal - one for the baby, one for the toddler, one for me. I don't mean to complain, but just to show how there for awhile, life was a blessed mess.

Now that I see more personality in Stefan and more character in Kyrstin, I am naturally thinking more about how they'll grow up and the kind of world they will encounter. Honestly, sometimes I get so broken- and down-hearted. I love our little bubble world, but I know it will soon break. I have to pause as I write when I think of how the world can break their hearts, because I can hardly bear the thought. I cannot control it all. When I think about the future, there is only one place I can put my hope, and it is a great hope.

Sara Groves' song "Song for My Sons" puts it well:

I can't say your life will always go like it should
But I can say that God is always good.

Well, time is short, and child #1 is climbing on me as I write these few lines. The cartoon episode only bought me enough time to write this much.

Speaking of buying, I plan to write tomorrow about spending and satisfaction, and more on Sara Groves' Tell Me What You Know album.

Born to Worship

I just downloaded the Hidden in My Heart scripture lullabies album, which sounds pretty good, although I've not listened in full. A cursory Internet search revealed there are a lot of options for parents who want music they can enjoy with their kids. If music can get to the heart of an adult, help us memorize, meditate, reflect, and praise the Lord, why not make that avenue available for children, as well?

I like the Praise Baby stuff because the songs are chosen and produced well. Also, the songs are those of my generation, and I enjoy sharing those with my kids, especially remembering where I was and what God was teaching me when I first heard that song. Case in point: "Amazing Love." I was at a Passion Conference, learning what it meant to praise the Lord, to have a passion for Him that fueled my life, rather than a passion for activity. I was singing that song with thousands of other college kids, part of the 26:8 generation. I want my kids to be part of that - a generation that seeks His face, because He is worth it, and they will find all they need in Him.

At the same time, they are their own generation, and need their own songs. For now, they can borrow ours, and we can write them new ones.

It strikes me that the songs my kids will love and claim as their own will likely have some kind of viral presence before they are sung at a big conference, or published. The networks of communication will be different. And/or, maybe they will be multilingual/multiethnic. At the same time, as much as music has changed over the past several hundred years, I still claim hymns as my own as well. I love the Passion Hymns: Ancient and Modern album; it's a perfect expression of the connection. I hope my kids sing the old hymns - the good ones (not all) - and learn some of their own.

I shared a hymn with our songwriters' group that I thought was perhaps suited for a children's hymn, because it has a tone of gentle trust and surrender that is childlike and sweet. It is my first foray into children's music. Perhaps I'll return to this territory more as my kids get a little older.

Hymn

Let my life tell a fragrant story to the hearers I walk among
Of the knowledge of the holy; all my resource and wisdom.
Though I cannot convey by the senses all the truth you have revealed
Let my life testify like incense of a treasure within concealed.

Let my words be seasoned with blessings, giving grace to all who hear.
Gentleness in my tone be confessing the sweet truth that You are near.
Let my work be as unto You, Lord: faithful, cheerful, complete, and fair,
So that in whatever I do, your sweet aroma spreads everywhere.

Let the Holy Spirit earnest be the confidence of my hope
The result of redemptive purpose be diffused so that all may know
There is peace that surpasses conception. There is freedom; a soul finds space.
Let my life be a living expression of this story in every place.

Let the ones who beset me with trouble, and the ones who use me ill
See, however they strike me to stumble, God’s right hand upholds me still.
As you modeled supreme absolution, taking sin unto yourself,
Let me trust you for resolution – You are ending all things well.

In Betweens

I don't mind flying but I become a crazy person in airports. It's the waiting, and especially the delays. My son and I made it home from our holiday trip just fine, and now it is January 5, Wednesday. It is not the holidays anymore. The plans I thought I had in place to give me a fresh start when I got home have not settled the way I expected them to. Will this delay drive me crazy, too? It almost did. I confess to 36-or-so hours of denying God's grace to me. He was gentle and comforting, but I was kind of throwing a fit. I begged him to speak to me, and He got me listening to "Petition" from the McCracken album. It brought comfort.

Father what e'er of earthly bliss
Thy sovereign will denies
Accepted at Thy throne of grace
Let this petition rise.

Let the sweet hope that Thou art mine
My life and death attend
Thy presence through my journey shine
And crown my journey's end.

Give me calm, a thankful heart
From every murmur free.
The blessing of Thy grace impart
And make me live to Thee.

Christmas Update

this is the Christ, our God and Lord
who in all need shall aid afford
he will himself our savior be
and from our sins will set us free - "This is the Christ"

As I prepared our Christmas newsletter this year I realized that putting it online was going to give us more flexibility. I hope you enjoy this format! The quotes are from Sandra McCracken’s album In Feast or Fallow, and they provide a soundtrack, if you will, for the year. First, here is the latest on each of us.

Scott - took a new position with the Department of Corrections in March. He has the same title, but different responsibilities at a different facility. His position is part of a grant-funded program, a program which he has worked diligently to implement. He continues to work one weekend a month as a therapist for a children's crisis center. At church he plays bass in the praise team and also helps out in an intellectually challenging discipleship program.

Kim - I stay at home with Kyrstin and Stefan. I am officially in the dissertation stage of my Ph.D. in English, and have a part-time job as an editor which I complete from home. A highlight of my year this year was getting a smartphone. It kind of changes everything!

Kyrstin - She continues to be our sunshine. She began taking only one nap in February, and shortly thereafter contracted RSV which led to pneumonia, but made a full recovery. Our little trooper! In March she started walking, and then adjusted easily to having a brother in April. Kyrstin’s favorite activities include playing in the back yard, reading books, cuddling and wrestling with her parents, dancing, and watching Blue’s Clues. Her favorite things seem to be dogs, cars, and balls. She also likes talking on the phone – and just about anything can be a phone. Whether she is being naughty or nice, she is almost always smiling and irresistibly cute. When we named her Kyrstin Melody we hoped that she would become a singer or musician of some kind. Starting this summer, we began to hear her sing in her high chair, at the piano, and while walking around. Also, we have enjoyed her language development this year. She “talks” all the time and can communicate many things to us. Next stop, potty training!

Most of the rest of this update is about Stefan.

I was made in a hidden place;
There from your love I could not escape if I tried.
In wonder and in a trembling state we wait to meet this child.
I cannot see with human eyes the secret plans you have devised
My heart is full as I contemplate the frailty and the fullness
Oh, I marvel at your goodness to me. - "Hidden Place"

The early part of this year was an in-between season for us. We'd come from a season that was academically busy for me, which meant we all were working hard to raise Kyrstin and keep the house in order, and Scott was getting for a job transition. During this time of waiting, God used scripture to assure us that he saw Stefan and had already planned all of his days (Psalm 139:13-16). We settled on his middle name - Matthew - moments after his birth on April 14. It is Scott's middle name, and means "gift from God." We enjoyed visits from family after the birth.

In the harvest feast or the fallow ground,
My certain hope is in Jesus found.
My lot, my cup, my portion sure
Whatever comes, we shall endure. - "In Feast or Fallow"

On August 18th, over an elegant meal, we celebrated ten years of marriage by discussing highs and lows. God had definitely been with us in the land of our sojourning.

Then, on September 5th, Stefan was hospitalized for three days after having a series of seizures. The weeks and months after that were the hardest of our lives, individually and as a family. For three weeks we were in and out of medical offices, watching Stefan suffer multiple seizures per day, until the proper medication took effect and the seizures stopped. Stefan's neurologist believes that there is a minor dysplasia in the right hemisphere of Stefan's brain which was bound to lead to seizures at some point. The words of Psalm 139 came back to us, and we knew God was with us and for Stefan.

God touched us with human hands during that time, as well. Friends and family volunteered to watch and play with Kyrstin, do housework, and make meals. This was vital when Stefan needed our focused attention. We will never forget that kindness or underestimate what a benefit it provides others. In late September, a friend told us about this album. We listened to this track as a family, and then Scott, Kyrstin and I danced to it, and we endured.

Father for Thy promised blessing still we plead before Thy throne
For the times of sweet refreshing, which can come from Thee alone.
Blessed earnests Thou hast given, but in these we would not rest
Blessings still with Thee are hidden; pour them forth, and make us blessed. - "Give Reviving"

Stefan's personality came back to him, bit by bit. He once again became a smiley boy who likes to "talk." The seizures have stayed away, and our visits to the neurologist have become less frequent because less necessary. Mid-November was a turning poin, and we were ready to have fun again. We hit the road to enjoy a mini-vacation and kick off the holiday season. We have had all kinds of holiday fun, and celebrated Kyrstin's second birthday. It has been a season of refreshing, for sure. Stefan has established a daytime eat/wake/nap routine. It's as though he had to learn to nap again, which gives us hope that he'll learn to sleep through the night again, and we'll be completely refreshed.

Fill your cup at the mouth of the spring,
New wonders we will sing,
As the Spirit blows the embers of our hearts. - "New Wonders"

We don’t know what will be next for us or for you, but we pray that the New Year finds us experiencing God’s mercies anew, singing a new song.

With love,
Scott, Kim, Kyrstin and Stefan

A World Vision

No song today, just thoughts...

Was leafing through this month's World Vision magazine, which featured a story on cihldren's artwork and its ability to restore imagination and provide a means of hope. I believe that is wondrously true - being able to imagine beauty is freeing.

You know what, I can't help bringing up a song here - two songs:

1) Sara Groves' "Why It Matters," which is about human-created beauty, "and its protest of the darkness and this chaos all around," and

2) A song I'm working on: here are some lyrics (a work in progress)

There is a story told throughout the world
There is a purpose; there is growth and design
There is a harmony and poetry of motion
When a flower drinks the rain and hails the sky...

He wouldn't waste beauty
If ashes were enough for us
To know Him completely
And believe in His love...

That's all for the songs. It's all connected. I was reading Psalm 8 in The Message this morning, and my imagination was captured by God's artistry.

Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you;
Toddlers shout the songs
That drown out enemy talk,
and silence atheist babble.

I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous,
your handmade sky-jewelry,
Moon and stars mounted in their settings.
Then I look at my micro-self and wonder,
Why do you bother with us?
Why take a second look our way?

Yet we've so narrowly missed being gods,
bright with Eden's dawn light.
You put us in charge of your handcrafted world,
repeated to us your Genesis-charge,
Made us lods of sheep and cattle,
even animals out in the wild,
Birds flying and fish swimming,
whales singing in the ocean deeps.

God, brilliant Lord,
your name echoes around the world.

I love the old English inflections Peterson adds to the poetry here - the compound nouns like "dawn light" and "Genesis-charge." Ancient-sounding, but beautiful.

I just got excited. And it's good. I know that today will be a day of taking a kid to the doctor and taking care of the other who is sick. There was lots of not-beautiful yesterday. I need the Lord to capture my imagination with His beauty this way in the morning so I will not miss it or forget it.

I hear a little one waking up at the other end of the house now. One more thought. I read this morning that an English synonym for the greek word "pistis," which is translated "faithfulness" in Galatians 5:22, is "reality." As I was thinking about moving from my morning reverie to the dailiness of life, I thought, "what is really my reality?" The word is often used to mean "dinginess." Is it possible that reality is actually much better than that?

When I'm With You

I was recently introduced to JJ Heller's Painted Red album, which led me to quickly snatch up When I'm With You, released earlier this month. The title track is a love song, but not the kind I'm used to. I immediately thought, as I listened to it, "This is how I feel about my kids." And indeed, it is a love song from JJ and her husband to their daughter, Lucy. JJ sings about how when she sees her baby smile, her heart aches, "so full it is about to break"; meanwhile, when she sees her baby cry, "it resonates... in a place I didn't know was there." My favorite lyric is the bridge:

Beautiful baby, you're sweeter than strawberry pie
Just like the morning, your smile brings the sunshine.

My baby boy's smile has meant more to me over the past few weeks than ever. About seven weeks ago, he began to have seizures. It took three weeks, four different types of medication, one hospital stay, four or five trips to the E.R., and several to the neurologist to get them under control. Once the seizures stopped and a certain drug wore off, his personality started to come through again, and it warmed our hearts.

We still don't know the cause of his seizures. We know a few more things about his brain now, but they don't really explain what started the trouble. There are more specialists to see and tests to run both where we live and out of town, if necessary. There are still neurological issues to address even though the seizures have stopped; some funny behaviors that weren't there before the seizures. Providing updates on Stefan's condition has proven a challenge. In the midst of his neurological difficulties Stefan has also experienced a great deal of teething pain, a huge growth spurt, and a case of pertussis. Such things make it difficult to put my finger on what he's going through. There have been a lot of night wakings, meaning I'm not sleeping much, and my energy has gone into other things. I got a good night's rest last night and it makes a big difference. I have appreciated all of the inquiries, well-wishes, and prayers. When you love someone so much and are concerned for them, it makes a big impact when other people care, too.

I especially have been touched by my Trinity Baptist Church family. They came to the ER when the crisis first set in, visited us in the hospital, organized and brought meals, all without us asking. The first 24 hours that Stefan was in the hospital, my husband was out of town. Magically, the church organized childcare for my toddler when I had to be away and couldn't really organize it myself. This is a church that not only strives to be faithful in doctrine, but has shown love in practical, tangible ways to our family. We are so blessed to be part of it. I very much think that any sort of present peace we exhibit in this situation comes from the sense of having a "safety net" - that the Lord will not simply let us fall. This sense has derived, in part, from the very focused acts of kindness and selflessness of our church friends. I would especially like to mention Ryan and Kara Polk here, who seemed from the beginning to take our situation to heart, even though it really is not their burden to bear, and they have many of their own.

We don't know what the long-term results will be yet and I'm not sure if/when we will. We were living minute-to-minute a few weeks ago; now we are living day-to-day. I want what is best for Stefan - for him to realize all of his God-given potential, and live life to the fullest. I love him. That is the song my heart is singing right now.

Every day the sky is a deeper shade of blue,
When I'm with you.

Seasons Change

We had an earthquake this morning. In Oklahoma! Everything was still, then the house shook for few seconds, then was gone. My house doesn't seem to have any damage; the only thing I can tell was affected at all is a metal plaque hung in my baby's room that is now slightly askew.

Not coincidentally, I'm sure, I was listening to selections from Crystal Lewis's Beauty for Ashes album, and started paying attention when "Seasons Change" came on. Not a lot of lyrics to this one, and the title is the thesis. But here are verse one and the chorus:

Are you going through a dry spell
Yes I've been there before
Where the trees are slowly withering
Where their roots cry out for more
Where the desert floor is dry and cracked
No clouds hand in the sky
No winter rain or spring it seems
No change in sight

(Chorus)
But seasons change
And then they pass
No way to know how long they'll last
I'd love to know the reason why
But God knows
Seasons change

Our family has been throug a very rough season the past five weeks or so. I am wondering if it will be just like that earthquake. Coming out of nowhere, shaking things up, and then over just as suddenly as it began. In the middle of it it doesn't seem like just a blip. It is completely consuming and the terror is undeniable. One's senses come into sharp focus, and all whole world seems intensified, with every word and event taking on significance. Perhaps during such times are very teachable.

The challenges of the past five weeks have coincided with a literal changing of seasons. It is Fall in Oklahoma, and while this has been an inexplicably jarring season, I have taken great comfort in the beauty of the blue sky, the marigold, crimson, and pumpkin colors of Fall, and the cool breezes. They are gifts from a good God, and I can thoroughly enjoy them, and Him, during this season.

I don't know how long this will last - I think the song is right that there's just no way to know. I know for sure that even if it is over tomorrow it will be just as unforgettable as today's earthquake.

A Good Story

Our family has been going through a very rough time lately due to a major health issue our baby suffers from. This morning I felt the Lord draw me to Laury Story's album for encouragement. The song that ministered to me most was, "Bless the Lord." Here's the video.



There's also a song on there called "Something Beautiful," or something like that. It just asks the Lord to make something beautiful out of her life. That ministered to me, as well. It gave me language for this time when I just don't know what to say. I want these events to turn into a good story - to know/see that it's leading out of this trouble into something refined. One way the album as a whole ministered to me was just to cast troubles in the perspective of an omnipotent - "Immortal, Invisible" God who is there. I needed to hear that.

On another note, the Lord has instructed my heart to be still during this crisis. Here is a playlist of "Be Still" songs, in case anyone needs such a thing in the future:

Be Still, My Soul, Be Still - Kari Jobe
Be Still, My Soul - Amy Grant (hymn)
Still, My Soul Be Still - Keith and Kristyn Getty
Be Still and Know - Steven Curtis Chapman
Be Still - Seeds Family Worship

Selah. :)

Seeds (again?)

I can't remember if I've written about Seeds Family Worship before, but I think I have.

In any case, their music bears repeat mention.

This morning I was doing a devotional about how my thoughts are like a "soundtrack" constantly playing in my mind, and, consequentially, the importance of my thoughts being focused on God's thoughts.

The devotional didn't specify actual music, but obviously music forms real soundtracks. I know that songs are quite often an effective way for me to have a soundtrack of God's thoughts in my mind.

All morning I've had the SFW Seeds of Praise album playing. Myself and my children have been hearing verses from the Psalms, Isaiah, Zephaniah, and Proverbs. Good stuff to meditate on.

I unreservedly and wholeheartedly would recommend the SWF series!

Broken

Driving around town today, I heard this Lifehouse song.

It's thematically similar to "Hanging By a Moment," in that it talks about holding on to God for dear life.

Unlike HBAM, "Broken" talks about hanging on to a last shred of faith, through pain, through brokenness. It's ambiguous whether the pain is circumstantial, such as a death in the family, or internal/spiritual, such as a prodigal period. Though those two conditions are not morally equivalent, they both result in the experience of affliction. In the case of sin, it is a built-in way that God corrects His people (Psalm 119:71). Sometimes difficult circumstances can lead to a period of self-alienation from God, so the affliction is caused by both internal and exteral factors. It is sometimes hard to say where it started. It is something beween the individual and God, and sometimes pastoral care is helpful to sort it out. As the songs says, "In the pain, there is healing." I think that is true of pain caused by sin or pain caused just caused by life. In either case, brokenness follows, and intimacy with God is possible again (Psalm 51:17, Psa 43:18). The song does a good job creating imagery that evokes the miserable, and yet ultimately hopeful, position of a person who finds himself far from God for whatever reason.

The song uses the word "broken" in each stanza to introduce a different idea. Broken clocks suggest the singer's suspense as he waits - for something. In verse two, broken locks convey the futility of trying to shut God out. One of my favorite lines is, "I tried my best to be guarded, but I'm an open book instead." When I try to shut out God - or even other people - I often just wear my hurt on my sleeve. Sometimes I just can't hide. And that is good, because ultimately I need those relationships. The last verse is about driving - literally (around L.A., where the guys live, perhaps) and metaphorically:

Broken lights on the freeway
Left me here alone
I may have lost my way now
I haven't forgotten my way home.

That simple but apt figure of speech really caught my attention as I was driving around today. Overall, the song gripped me because of its poetry and its resemblance to real human experience. I really appreciate that in a pop song. I started imagining ways this song could be used in church other than as a song to hear in a car, though that is very valuable. Maybe someone else will have an idea.

Way to go again, Lifehouse. :)

A World Away

My husband and I celebrated our ten-year wedding anniversary yesterday. For our wedding, we gave away compilation CD's that we compiled with jackets Scott designed.

The first few tracks were about going the distance together, trusting the providence of a gracious and faithful God. Included in this group were Andrew Peterson's "All the Way Home," and Big Tent Revival's "Two Sets of Joneses." The CD also included some of our favorite Passion praise tunes, like Agnus Dei, and "You are My King," some goofy stuff like "A Wonderful Guy" from the South Pacific soundtrack, and a few relatively unknown tracks like "Yo Tengo," by Silage ("Yo tengo un amiga whose jazz is superstereophonic..."). The last track is Third Day's "To Be With You," which is about how much God's love surpasses the most passionate promises one human can make to another. We felt at the time that that was a good way to frame our wedding. I think we're still in agreement on that ten years later. :)

Two days ago, I took some time to sit and think through the marriage, and yesterday I looked at this CD. The first track is Avalon's "A World Away," from the album *A Maze of Grace*. I still like that whole album. It's peppy, catchy, and yet still truthful. "A World Away" is even more appropo for our marriage now than it was when we first picked it. Here are the lyrics: Avalon - A World Away lyrics | LyricsMode.com

In the scheme of things, ten years isn't that long, but in the human scale, it is, and especially for our culture, we can say that we've come a long way, baby. The CD is a nice link to the past but I am glad that the songs are also a link to the future. It was fun to recognize that though a lot of things have changed, we're still doing music together, and God is still faithful.

Kindness

My son is three months old today. We are all sleeping through the night, and slowly overcoming our physical weariness. My daughter is over nineteen months, and she loves her little brother very much. She literally smothers him with affection. At times I have to chide her to be gentle with her little brother. I have, ironically, caught myself yelling, "Be gentle!" from across the room.

I have also found myself really struggling with judging myself as a mother. At times I have been low - very low. Feeling like a failure. A horror. There is so much to do - so much to teach her.

When our daughter was very little, I chose life verses with her about intimacy with God. It is important to me that she learn she can be close to the Lord. I know that when I spend time with my daughter, I am teaching her to form intimate emotional bonds with others. I believe this translates into deeper intimacy with the Lord, as well.

Intimacy with Hiim is all that keeps me going. I heard Charlie Hall's song "Kindness" today and it helped me understand even better how no opinion, no judgement, and no blessing, is anything compared to the Lord's. When I am off course, if I am close to Him, He corrects me, sometimes with His kindness. In fact, sometimes the only way I know to trust that what I really need correction is the degree of kindness with which that message is communicated.

I believe the most important thing I can teach my daughter and son is how to have an intimate bond with another human being. I know there is much else to teach. But I want them to learn how to be led by love. There are so many who would lead them with harshness, with chains, and with shame.

When my daughter smothers my son with love, I have to be firm with her when I teach her to be gentle. It is just the nature of parenting. I know the Lord does the same with me.

BTW, Charlie's song was on the "Road to One Day" album, which a few friends and I listened to on said road ten years ago. What a road it has been since then.

Hide Away in the Love of Jesus

My son is not quite sleeping through the night yet. I am weary. In the morning I have to decide whether I will have a quiet time, including prayer and Bible study, or go back to sleep. I've found that half an hour of prayer and Bible study is worth much more than half an hour of sleep.

The past two mornings he has slept a six-hour stretch, and woken up completely ready to go, so my day has begun at 5. The Lord knew what I needed, though, because I got a good nap both days after I had my quiet time. I was so thankful.

I heard the song "Hide Away" this morning, which has the title lyrics of the Sovereign Grace album Come Weary Saints. I certainly can relate to being a weary saint, in every sense the song talks about.

Verse 1 is about actually being worn out and needing the Lord's refreshing. Never in my life before having two kids under two have I so needed, and found, the Lord's strength renewing me, keeping me going, even joyful. I seek His rest often, too. I've got to know my life has a purpose and that I'm fulfilling it. I have felt so ashamed of my own sin that I felt I couldn't keep walking the Christian walk. He has straightened me up. I have felt there was no happiness left for me, and He has brought the joy back.

Something I'm going to ponder is whether or not our culture allows people to really be weary anymore. Maybe it lets you be weary, but never hide away. I know sometimes it is up to me to say, no, I just can't do one more thing. I believe the time will come soon when I'll have to start being very careful so that I really don't overdo it and get really exhausted, or crowd quiet time with Jesus out of my life. This song helps remind me, when I tap into my true weariness, where I need to go.

More Power To Ya'

Everything eighties is new again. A bunch of the old hair bands are on reunion tours.

This post comes in response to the news of the CCM version, a Classic Petra tour , beginning this October in the states.

My husband, who will be celebrating his first Father's Day as a father of two on Sunday, likes to make fun of Petra. He didn't get into Christian music until he was in high school, and then only into alternative stuff. He loves eighties music, so I can't quite figure out why the equation doesn't add up for him.

Regardless, when we were both in college and he was going away on a summer mission trip, I made him a mix tape - that's right, I couldn't make a CD back then - and I included the song "More Power To Ya'", which I have always considered a very encouraging song.

The lyrics are a takeoff on Isaiah 40:29-31, "He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 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." Come to think of it, it's probably something he needs to hear again as a father of two. Someone needs to cover this song, stat! I nominate Jars of Clay.

You say you've been feeling weaker
Weaker by the day
You say you can't make the joy of your salvation stay.
But good things come to those that wait
Not to those who hesitate
So hurry up and wait upon the Lord.

More power to ya'
When you're standing on His word
When you're trusting with your whole heart in the message you have heard
More power to ya'
When we're all in one accord
They that wait upon the Lord, they shall renew
They shall renew their strength.

Just thinking about this songs makes me feel all warm inside. It's beautiful, and I love it when a rock band does a beautiful ballad. I heard it as a child, which brings back fond memories. I hope that my kids still like some of the music that I like now, and that as a family we can have that connection someday. I bet they'll still like "classic" Switchfoot, TobyMac, and StellarKart.

I really hope I can go to a Petra show. I wasn't a superfan or anything, but so many of their songs still speak to me. I often think of earlier songs like "Computer Brains," "Speak to the Sky," "Clean," and "Not of this World." When I was a teenager our youth group sung a bunch of youth choir arrangements from the Beyond Belief album, so the title track, "Love," and "Prayer" are all in my mental repertoire. I bought the Wake Up Call album, in high school - on tape, I think - and could still sing along with it. Their music is enjoyable and reminds me of truth again and again.

I can't think of a better way to conclude than to say, Petra, More Power to Ya'!

Come, Thou Fount

Sunday was Mother's Day; my first as the mother of two. I feel overwhelmingly blessed to have my husband and kids. I am the lucky one. Thank you, Jesus.

There are so many ways I feel blessed. And yet... there are often times when I feel dissatisfied. I know I shouldn't. This isn't exclusive to my past two years of motherhood. At each point in my life I have struggled. I ought to struggle less now than I did, and perhaps I do. I know better than to think about what I don't have than all that I've been given. Yet, my heart is prone to wander, and inevitably I'll see, read, hear, or even just think something that makes me feel like I ought to have something more.

You know, I'm not saying there's not a really important place for a sort of divine discontentment that seeks more and more of God. I don't mean to contradict any notions of Augustine about how we thirst for God the more that we know Him. So don't get me wrong.

I'm talking about the kind of satisfaction that revels in all that God has done for me. That He exists, is good, has saved me, and as though it weren't enough, chooses to bless me on top of that sometimes. Why? Do I have to answer that question? Can't I just enjoy?

The theological point I keep coming back to is Piper's Christian Hedonism. I'm not sure I'll ever get over it, or want to. I'm not even sure I ever really do it. But I keep thinking, "God is most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in Him." So I want to fight anything that makes me dissatisfied with God alone.

When songs are sung about being satisfied in God, I want them to be true of my heart, but sometimes they are not. For instance, the song "More Than Enough" is in point of fact, true. "All of You is more than enough for all of me, for every thirst and every need." I can sing it, and it is true. Sometimes I even feel it. I'd like to feel it more.

That's why "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" is still such a relevant hymn to me. It's a song asking God to make me want to sing about how good He is to me. I need that for my spiritual protection and fruitfulness. I also need to make the confession that my heart is prone to wander, prone to leave the God I love.

Come, thou fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace
Streams of mercy never ceasing
Calls for songs of loudest praise
Teach me some melodious sonnet
Sung by flaming tongues above
Praise the mount, I'm fixed upon it
Mount of God's redeeming love.

I know His unending mercy calls for praise. It is a goal of mine that my heart would be in tune. So come Lord, help me. And while I'm waiting, I will sing this song.

This Peace

My son was born 18 hours ago. He sleeps in the hospital bassinet a few feet away as I steal these moments to write a note, flagging to the world a momentous day in the life of our family. There is so much I'd like to say, and more that I'd like to journal. For now, there just isn't time. Maybe someday there will be time.

I can't remember whether it was Wordsworth or Coleridge who said that poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful emotions recollected in tranquility. If that is true, it helps explain how Sara Groves' song "This Peace" makes sense as a song about feeling grateful and serene about everything that has come to pass and yet not really having the time to write a song about it. Right now this song is running through my head, an expression of what the poet in me is feeling, and a promise of good things to come.

It's a whisper in my ear, it's a shiver up my spine.
It's the gratitude I feel for all that's arrived.
It's the mystery appeal that's been gratned me tonight;
This peace.

No time to paint a picture,
No time to write it down,
Just time enough to breathe it in, and linger.

Welcome, baby boy. I adore you. You can have my time. Here is a picture for the world.

See, what a morning

Though my post is a day late, this song does not come up short.

Best sung by a choir, "See, What a Morning" is a "resurrection hymn" by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend, who are rapidly becoming my favorite writers these days.

It is actually kind of a dreary morning today where I live, but it was beautiful on Easter Sunday, which was yesterday. Yet, the weather is not the point. Easter Sunday as a day on the calendar, in my opinion, is not even the point! Nor is the main issue whether you have bunnies and eggs (we do).

My point is that this song makes the point about the everyday glory that has been the reason for everyday hope ever since the event: "He lives! Christ is risen from the dead!" I suppose I came to believe in the power of the resurrection before I came to actively believe in the resurrection itself. I was challenged at just the right time, a few years ago, and didn't lose hope, but rather pondered how I had always believed it unquestioningly, and whether or not I still could. The world says that a resurrection from the dead is impossible, but there are those in the world who deny God even exists. The world is often wrong, and can be wrong about the most important things.

More or less, I realized I had to actively believe in the resurrection if my faith was going to mean anything at all. I think I already knew enough about the working of God's power to realize that not even death was strong enough to hold out against it. There had been deaths of other kinds that I'd witnessed - the death of joy, of love, of hope - and I'd seen God bring those back to life. In my little heart, that was enough for faith. The world was wrong.

I have not talked much about the song yet. One thing I love about the way this writing team works is that they weave together more than once concept in a stanza or a line. The words are so alive. I little bit of poetic explication is necessary to lead up to a great example.

Verse 1 is about the actual morning, the emptiness of the grave, the completion of God's salvation plan (or maybe it's the furtherance? I won't dither). The second verse is about Mary weeping at the grave, hearing the Lord's voice speak to her, the voice, the writers point out, that will continue to speak until He returns. Isn't God like that - speaking personally and unexpectedly to us when we weep, feeling alone? Verse 3 is about the majesty of Christ, the functioning of the Trinity, and our union with God through Christ. Here's the whole (short) verse:

One with the Father, Ancient of Days,
Through the Spirit who clothes faith with certainty.
Honor and blessing, glory and praise
To the King crowned with pow'r and authority!
And we are raised with Him,
Death is dead, love has won, Christ has conquered;
And we shall reign with Him,
For He lives: Christ is risen from the dead!

Well, out of all that, my favorite line is, "the Spirit who clothes faith with certainty." I just rest in that - my faith is held, covered, by the Holy Spirit, who is at work within me. That's how I can believe in the resurrection, and in the working of His power in the world today. Life is not over when it seems over - we are raised with him. The future is not dull - we shall reign with Him. This is a privilege God has reserved for His children that I don't fully understand, but I know the Bible talks about it and that it must be true. Just haven't looked into it much. I should.

Thanks to the choir and director who led us in this song yesterday. It was truly a glorious morning.


From the album In Christ Alone.

Hanging By a Moment

The words "desperate for" came to mind, and I thought about Lifehouse as I was driving my van toward a routine Dr. appt. I am overwhelmed lately with spiritual stimuli - both blessing and trial - and the Lord has admonished me that if I do not stand firm in my faith, I will not stand at all. A friend today gave me the simple reminder that I needed to remain in His word and in prayer. I feel like I have to be steadfast in all of this. "There's nothing else to lose, nothing else to find." I'm hanging by a moment, and I should be letting go of what holds me back. Letting my soul stand before the Lord, hanging on every moment with Him. Good song, LH.

Forgetting all I'm lacking
Completely incomplete
I'll take your invitation
You take all of me now...

I'm falling even more in love with you
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you
I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
And I don't know what I'm diving into
Just hanging by a moment here with you

There's nothing else to lose
There's nothing else to find
There's nothing in the world
That can change my mind
There is nothing else
There is nothing else
There is nothing else

Desperate for changing
Starving for truth
I'm closer to where I started
Chasing after you....


From the album No Name Face.

So Long, Self

Hello! Sunny day here where I am, after days and days of grey and snow! Soon we are going to have snow again; meantime, spirits are lifted and all feels blessed.

I've been doing some reading for a workshop I'm leading on the role of music in worship. Reading broadly has brought me face to face with the truth that my life is meant to be about worship, and worship is not about me. It's almost comical how often I have to be reminded. I am so grateful for a God who doesn't let me forget, because the less I see of me, the more I see of Him! Hallelujah!

Helping me stay light-hearted on this step in the journey is Mercy Me with their song "So Long, Self" from the 2006 album Coming Up To Breathe. It's written like a breakup song, only it emphasizes that they can't still be friends.

So long, self
Well, it's been fun, but I have found somebody else
So long, self
There's just no room for two
So you are gonna have to move
So long, self
Don't take this wrong but you are wrong for me, farewell
Oh well, goodbye, don't cry
So long, self

How I wish I were really that free and easy! My "self" is like the crazy girlfriend that keeps calling. And I am like the crazy woman that keeps answering the crazy ex-boyfriend's calls and texts, like I need the attention or something. Oh - to be rid of it! I'm hopeful that if I keep singing this song to myself I'll experience death to self as a greater reality.

So long! :)

Jesus, Messiah

Christmas, the celebration of the incarnation of God in man. Unexpectedly, the Christmas occasion sermon at my church this ytear was taken from Philippians 2, rather than one of the gospel accounts of Christ's birth. It brought a fresh understanding to me of what God With Us really means. Our pastor reminded us that the most proper attitude at Christmastime is humility, considering the degradation to which Christ submitted Himself, and the glory that God gave him, as the God-man, as a result of His obedience.

I looked on my notes tonight in a quiet moment and was reminded of Chris Tomlin's "Jesus Messiah." He came as a man so that He could carry a cross and become sin, Who knew no sin, that we might become His righteousness. Love so amazing!

Jesus Messiah
Name above all names
Blessed Redeemer, Immanuel.
He's the rescue for sinners
The ransom from heaven
Jesus Messiah
Lord of all.

I am all about Christmas -- all of it. Give me the chestnuts roasting on an open fire where I can dream of a winter wonderland. The sweets, the lights, the gifts - it's all magical to me. At the heart of it, I believe, is a sense of comfort and joy, that He has come to be with us.

All our hope is in You
All glory to You, God
The light of the World.

Amen, and Merry Christmas.

O God, Our Help in Ages Past

I feel ambivalent about my birthday this year in a lot of ways. One the one hand, I like parties, cake, and I admit, presents. On the other hand, I am getting older. I have to maturely accept that my birthday will not be as cool for me as it was when I was a kid. It's nice to have a reason to celebrate, but I kind of want to deny I'm getting older. So I kind of want it to be a big deal, and I kind of feel like it shouldn't be. I think we are going out to dinner with some friends tonight, and my husband is getting me a cake.

I think I'm seeing a pattern now over the years that things even out; one realizes that a lot of stuff that seemed important in the teen years, or even in college, really weren't. You knew they weren't then, too, but it just really seemed like it. Now I feel old and wise enough to be the hoary advisor who tells teenage girls what's up and how to stay steady.

I started to thank the Lord this morning for what He's done this past year. There has been so much grace when I have failed. Strength when I was weak. Patience when I was stubborn. Delight when I sought it. I thanked Him for a wonderful church, a beautiful daughter, a caring husband. And as I started to think of life carrying on for another ten years, I thought of this hymn.

O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast
And our eternal home.

I looked up the seventeenth-century lyrics and it turns out they suited my musings quite well. You see, Isaac Watts writes about the passage of time, and how it takes all of our lives, and at the same time, how God is in control of all of that time, and of all of our lives. It talks about creation and eternity. The new, and the continuous. That's the kind of contrast life holds for me right now.

I've been studying 2 Peter, which talks about our hope in Christ's second coming. You know, I am not sure I think enough about what happens after this life, or how I'd really like it to end. The saints to whom Peter was writing seemed concerned that those who died before Christ's return wouldn't get to see the event. He assured them that they would rise first, and then the living would meet them in the air. How thougthful, really, of the living, and of Peter to allay their concerns.

Such framing events provide a narrative to life, and I know I need a story to live in. Christ will return one day. I don't think much about it, but I believe it. And looking back on life, I see how He has been my help, and I can trust Him to be my home now in the future.

That kind of truth is better than a birthday party. Gives me steady hope. But give me a birthday party, too, and if it's not too much trouble, a short-lived, cake-induced sugar rush. Oh, and that other song I love to hear - "Happy Birthday to You."

"O God, Our Help in Ages Past," Lyrics by Isaac Watts, music by William Croft. More lyrics can be read, and the tune heard, at http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/g/ogohiap.htm

Revelation Songs

Tomorrow marks the date when, nine years ago, my husband and I embarked on life together as a couple. It so happens that I was going to write about Third Day's song "Revelation," which is a plea for a specific, timely direction from the Lord. There are times when you just need that. There have been times in our marriage when we've said, in effect,

Tell me should I stay here
Or do I need to move
Give me a revelation
I've nothing without You.

The last line of the chorus is always true - I've nothing without Him. In good times and bad, sickness and health, in plenty and in lean times, I have Him, my husband has Him, we have Him. This is both humbling and reassuring. A bedrock on which to establish a marriage, a family, a life.

The title of Third Day's song combined with the wedding theme reminded me of "Revelation Song," originally recorded by Kari Jobe and now also by Phillips, Craigs, and Dean. This is an awesome song. It's in some kind of odd key - maybe minor? I tried playing it and can't quite figure it out. The effect is ethereal, and evokes the throne room, where four living creatures surround the throne, eternally singing,

Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come,

We have a glimpse of this heavenly scene in Revelation 4, while here on earth -

With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And I will adore You…!

Marriage is a glimpse of heaven, as well, meant to symbolize Christ and His bride. When they are united, Revelation 19 says that a great multitude say, "Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready."

Oh babe, I don't really know that I was ready. You know that now. But we both know that our purpose here is to get ready for heaven, when things will be revealed "which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Cor 2:9). It will be true then, as it is true now, that "God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever," but for now I see only dimly.

Here is to more of the journey, of seeking, remembering, believing, and worshipping.

Worthy is the
Lamb who was slain
Holy, holy is He.

KMM

"Revelation" by Third Day, title track of the new album.

"Revelation Song" by Gateway Worship recorded by Kari Jobe on her self-titled album and Phillips, Craig and Dean on the album Fearless.

Step by Step

Ah, naptime. I call it "mommy time." A few hours when things are quiet and I can work on projects, or think.

Time has been telescoping in my mind lately. Every little moment seems huge, and yet I can all too easily look ahead twenty years and realize the world is going to be a much different place then.

My little one turns eight months old today. I've said it before, but people who say time just flies by when you have a baby are speaking from outside the event. Inside the phenomenon, time passes very slowly. There are diapers, feedings, endless nights when you hold her because she doesn't feel well enough to sleep peacefully. There are milestones, moments, pictures, visits from grandparents. There is fear, failure, victory and reward.

All the while, you are loving a little person - a baby, in other words. It has just become clear to my heart that this little person will grow up. In twenty years, I will not be able to just hold her, as much as I might want to, and that thought makes me sad. If I could indulge a single moment longer here, it also makes me sad to think that she won't remember how good we had it when we could just lay on the floor and play together. I have to take pictures to prove it to her. :)

So time passes slowly, still, and yet I can see past the horizon to know that these days are coming to an end very soon. There will be birthday parties, scraped knees, teeth, and - gasp - school! Walking through the school supply aisle today at the supermarket I was thankful we don't have to deal with that just yet.

There will soon be that first step. I admit that I am ambivalent about her walking, per se, because I know once she is mobile I will be worn out chasing her around. Of course I will be proud, though. I imagine that my husband I will both be there and I will let go of her hands as she toddles over to him. I hope it happens that way. :)

My daughter's Praise Baby video features the song "Step by Step," originally written and recorded by Rich Mullins. The video portion features babies taking some of their first steps, which is especially cute over the words, "learn to walk in Your ways." God is in it all, I've concluded. Cradle to grave.

Being mentally transported into the world of my daughter's future also means considering the years of my own life. That makes me think of other lyrics from the song, and I don't think these words are in the Praise Baby version:
Sometimes I think of Abraham
How one star he saw had been lit for me
He was a stranger in this land
And I am that no less than he
A star in the Abraham's array - one that waited to be born for thousands of years, one of many. My life is put in perspective with these few lines. In the grand scheme, I am blessed through Abraham, blessed to be a child of the faith. In seeing my daughter's future I get the sense that my life is part of history. I do not understand all of my past and don't know what will happen in my temporal future, but I know one thing remains constant - He is my God, and by His grace I will ever praise Him.

Feeling inspired

Silent for a season. I've been finishing a semester of school, packing, moving, and traveling. And in the middle of it, I've felt kind of uninspired.

But, the other night I saw a sneak preview for Julie and Julia, a movie based on Julia Child's life story and the experience of a woman who blogged her way through Julia's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I really enjoyed the movie. It wasn't Shakespeare, and far from scripture, but it did have its transcendent moments, I think, and what especially what worked for me was how she stuck with her blog out of the desire to finish something. The movie made blogging - and cooking - look fun, and it made me want to get back into the former.

I'm including some of my cooking in this first post-hiatus post. I'm relying on Super Foods for Babies and Children by Annabel Karmel for ideas and recipes. It's not French cooking, but it does involve sauteeing onions and making delicious food. I just added the frozen peas to "Chicken, Sweet Potato, and Pea Puree," in which I substituted regular potatoes. It smells wonderful. In a few minutes I will puree it and then freeze in ice cube trays what I don't serve my daughter for lunch. I have been successful making other purees and recipes from this book.

It's just what a cookbook should be - full of pictures, clear on directions, and enthusiastic about the food. It is also didactic; it tells you how to do what it's telling you to do. One learns how to cook. That is just what Julie wanted to get out of Julia's book. Ah, there's something hospitable, neighborly, and genuinely lovely about a good cook book.

Well, I'm hoping to get back to writing about songs soon but for now, Bon Appetit!

We're the issue

I've been reading a lot of feminist writing lately for school, in part because there is not much from any other perspective dealing with problems women face today. I'd like to offer another perspective, though: problems women face today, including chauvinism, are real, but their solutions are spiritual, not political. I hear a lot of talk about power relations. Isn't it obvious that the question of who has the power is just another way of asking who is abusing it? Much of the discourse I've read merely pits interest groups against one another. The conflict is real, but additional skirmishes of the same kind will not end it. Fighting will just lead to more fighting, more wounds, more animosity.

The real problem is a fundamental moral flaw in men and women. Among Switchfoot songs that have been relevant to me today is "Ammunition," which describes the strife aptly: "We've been blowing up, we're the issue. It's our condition. we've been blowing up; we're the issue. A detonation ... we are the fuse and the ammunition." The problems that exist among humans exist because of human nature. We start them - we're the fuse - and we make them worse when we add the ballistic forces of hatred, denunciation, and derision. As the song says, "We've got ourselves to blame. Look what a bomb we've made of love."

When women fight for rights while men continue to accuse them of the sameo old things; when men find that no woman is able to live up to every ideal, isn't it time to ask if the problem is perhaps both created and sustained by human nature itself?

If so, the question becomes not whether women and men can strike a power balance but whether or not human nature itself is redeemable. How do you make ammunition safe from its own volatile nature? Furthermore, how can this be done without taking away all of its spark? I don't believe we were meant to be either combustible or cold as gunmetal.

In the gospel according to Switchfoot there is another song, "Redemption Side." Four in the morning, the speaker is lonely and alienated, but says,

I've got my hands
At redemption's side
Whose scars are bigger than
These doubts of mine
I'll fit all of these monstrosities inside
and I'll come alive

That's what I want, and that's what I think we need - a savior big enough to handle all of our monstrosities - the messes we've made - and bring us into a real life that isn't about bruising each other for our own selfish gain but living for something bigger - something holy - an eternal flame that consumes what part of our ambitions make us impure and refines us to live for the glory of One who created us in His image, male and female.

Blessed Be Your Name

I started reading the book of Job the other day because, like him, I feel caught in the middle of circumstances I don't understand. I wondered what I would take away from this book which is at times very dark. I have found one bright spot that dispels this darkness. Chapter 1 verse 21 says, "And he said, 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord."

I've been returning to that verse over the past few days as I have had occasion to bless the Lord on my behalf, and that of others. God gave a son to some friends this morning; blessed be His name! His name is also to be blessed though He took away a child growing in another mother's womb. The Lord took away a friend's job, but even the friend would declare "blessed be the name of the Lord."

The friend who experienced a miscarriage told me she has been meditating on Job's words in 2:10, "Shall we indeed accept good from God and not adversity?" This has kept things in perspective for her. On my own small, private, scale, it keeps things in perspective for me, too. My daughter sleeps through the night at two months old - blessed be the name of the Lord! It is difficult to get her to nap and she yells in my ear when I try to burp her. Blessed be His name.

I have had the Matt Redman song in my head for the past few days. It is such a catchy tune that it's easy to forget the dark circumstances that were the context of those words.
Remembering Job's sufferings when I hear this song reminds me that I may not understand my circumstances, good or bad, but that God is still in control, has a purpose for my suffering, and plans to prosper me, as He did for Job.

On a very practical level, this helps me accept the ups and downs of my day. When my daughter rests or entertains herself in the bouncy seat, I can bless the Lord. When she cries for a solid hour, and I don't understand why, though I've tried, blessed be His name. The Redman song reminds me how to respond, to: every blessing He pours out I'll turn back to praise, and when the darkness closes in, still I will say, 'Blessed be the name of the Lord.'

If this is a dream...

I've been thinking about a Charlie Hall song that is really a scripture song, entitled "You Have Done Great Things." Its Psalm 126 set to music, which makes memorization a cinch.

The Psalm is about how God had set His people free before, and now His people want Him to do it again.

When they were set free the first time, they felt as though they were in a dream state (v. 1). It must have seemed too good to be true. Like the Cardinals getting into the Superbowl after a history of bad seasons.

Charlie Hall takes the statement "we are glad" and turns it into "we are filled with joy." I like the simplicity of the Psalmic language. It doesn't need to be overblown; if you've been in captivity for awhile, just to be glad is enough.

For me, the "great things" the Lord has done have been little breakthroughs my seven-week-old daughter has made, like learning to smile. It sets my heart free to sing for joy. The bridge of the song, which is the end of the Psalm, tells why:

Those who sow in tears shall reap with joy
And return with shouts and songs
Carrying the fruit of God.

The season of sowing is different for everyone. I for one have sown in tears the past few weeks, as all new mothers do, and the harvest I reap is when my daughter reaches a new milestone. My heart is singing this song - "You have done
great things." If this is a dream, don't wake me!

Walk With Me

I put this song on a CD I made for my daughter. Her name means "annointed," and the verses I chose to bless her with with were Psalm 23:5-6, on which this song is based. Little did I know how much this song, and she, would be a source of overflowing blessing to me.

Here's how it works. I have more to do when taking care of my newborn daughter than I thought I could possibly handle. Minute by minute, my husband and I are providing 100% of care for her. We don't sleep or get out as much as we used to. Somehow it all works out; we get to the end of the day. And there is joy along the way, and sometimes, even some peace.

Like yesterday, when I got out to Wal-mart for the first time in a month. I got the whole trip, start to finish, done in an hour. That never happens. But it happened in part because WM was fairly empty. It was like the Lord was leading me beside quiet waters. And as I shopped, I was thanking the Lord that I could get out of the house and attend to the needs of my family. And suddenly I realized He was restoring my soul.

I started wondering if this song were written by someone in my exact situation; watered-down, or decaffeinated coffee, is about the only kind I can drink in any satisfying quantity. My husband and I must speak in hushed voices. Sometimes we feel empty and sometimes we feel strong. But I think that it's just a good song that speaks a universal lesson about trusting, and God providing, that peace like the Good Shepherd can.

Welcome to Our World

It's a bit late, but here is a post about a Christmas song.

"Welcome to Our World" wasn't originally on a Christmas album, but it is Chris Rice's best contribution to the Christmas repertoire. I remember making up a creative dramatic movement to this song that involved sign language and acting and having a group perform it at a Christmas party for our campus ministry. The words are sheer poetry and the melody is a lilting, yet plaintive lullabye.

As usualy, Rice has his doctrine right and at the ready so ably that one hardly notices it: he speaks of the baby who's "been promised/ we've been waiting," as though he were one of the Jews who knew a Messiah was prophesied. He writes of the incarnation in both physical and spiritual terms: "fragile fingers sent to heal us/ tender brow prepared for thorns/ tiny heart whose blood will save us." To this tiny infant, he sings a prayer for salvation: "wrap our injured flesh around you/ breathe our air and walk our sod/ rob our sin and make us holy/ perfect son of God." There has only ever been one baby on whom such hopes could be hung. It is a wonder, still, to think that the Savior was once a baby. To me it shows that God must love babies.

I suppose it is because I have my own tiny baby now that the reality of the incarnation seems more wondrous to me this year. A baby changes one's perspective on life; mine has done more than that and simply rocked my world. It was a world that needed rocking, though, and I'm so glad she's here. So baby, welcome to our world. I pray you grow up loving your Savior who came as a baby for you, loving His Word, and all the bright and beautiful things He made, especially music and poetry.

This blog began a few years ago as a response to Handel's Messiah during a Christmas visit to my grandparents' home. At the time I felt like I needed to start writing/doing something new. Now that another joyful Christmas has rolled around, I sense that this blog will take a new turn and be more personal responses to songs. We'll see.

Happy New Year to anyone who reads this -

Kim



I suppose that it is

Christmas to Remember

I woke up this morning with Amy Grant's "Christmas to Remember" song in my head. It's all about the comfort and joy of the Christmas season, like twinkling lights, the smell of evergreens, Nat King Cole, fireplaces, snow and time with loved ones. That is all good stuff, and you know what? I'm glad someone wrote a song about it. Because we need people to remind us how to be happy, and we need to teach our children how to enjoy things. So what if this song is not about the deeper meaning of Christmas. All of the good stuff emanates from that and allows us to enjoy "the hopefulness this season brings." I for one am thankful for it!



Amy Grant Lyrics
A Christmas to Remember Lyrics

Be My Escape

Up early this morning because it's Election Day and wanted to vote early, I have a little time to write.

I've been thinking about this Relient K song a lot lately, and just wanted to comment on the sheer cleverness of these lyrics:

And I’ve been housing all this doubt and insecurity
And I’ve been locked inside that house
All the while You hold the key
And I’ve been dying to get out
And that might be the death of me

There's a literary term for what the writers are doing with their words here, but basically it's a play on words, and it makes a point. He was "housing" all that doubt within himself, but by doing so, the doubt was "housing" him, and he was imprisoned by it.

There's a similar play on the dying/death term, which is equivocal; "it might be the death of me" could either indicate the fear of whatever lies beyond the familiar fears (better the devil you know), or it could indicate that some kind of metaphysical death must take place for him to escape the fears. Maybe both! I'm leaning toward the second because of the line, "I know to live you must give your life away."

Anyways, cool song.

"Be My Escape" is on Relient K's 2004 Capitol Records release, Mmmhmm.

You are God Alone

This song recorded by Phillips, Craig and Dean preaches the gospel to me, focusing on God's sovereignty. Some people argue that if anyone has power over you you are not free, and probably oppressed. That is true in the human realm where there are various little-k kings vying for power at the expense of others. On the other hand, beyond the theatre of human egos, there is God Himself, who does not need to compete with other kings; He is supreme. That's what this song recognizes, and what I have to recognize before I have much to be glad about.

On the other hand, I wish this song went a step further. It discusses God's might and immutability, and the futility of trying to be against Him. If you already know God's character - how He loves His creation, and provided the substitionary death of His son for the sins of His creatures, then you can be glad that He is on His throne. That the song is written in the context of such a worldview is probably true, but taken on its own, it tells me I should revere and awe, but not necessarily love God.


You are not a god created by human hands
You are not a god dependent on any mortal man
You are not a god in need of anything we can give
By Your plan, that's just the way it is

You are God alone
From before time began
You were on Your throne
Your are God alone
And right now
In the good times and bad
You are on Your throne
You are God alone

You're the only God whose power none can contend
Youre the only God whose name and praise will never end
You're the only God
Who's worthy of everything we can give
You are God that's just the way it is

Unchangeable
Unshakable
Unstoppable
That's what You are

There are a couple of nice YouTube videos to this song, here's one.

How Then Shall We Sing?

I think that in heaven we'll hear many different types of songs with instrumental, acappella, and angel voices. We may even hear voices we're not used to hearing when "all the earth" sings His praises. I try to imagine flowers, bears, rocks and trees joining in our melodic worship and it is beyond my understanding but not beyond belief.

I think this because I believe Ephesians 5:19 teaches that on earth we should hear a variety of different types of songs, too. Paul instructs the Ephesian Christians to be "speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord." I think the three types of music listed there represent a variety of acceptable forms of musical worship.

Other writers have discussed what a good "Christian song" is to be. Most are good enough to say it isn't just a matter of a preference for a certain style. We have songs of such different styles, though, that sometimes they don't seem to mix in a single worship service. I'd like to suggest that the wisdom of Ecclesiastes 3:1-10 applies to worship services as well: there is a time and place for every event under heaven. Sometimes it is time for a somber tune, such as "Oh, the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus." Sometimes it is time for a contemporary tune that reflects pure wonder, such as "How Great is Our God" by Chris Tomlin. Sometimes it's time for an outright celebration, like "He Has Made Me Glad" (note that the happy song is actually based on a Psalm). Worship leaders need to be sensitive to the proper time for each type of song, not just the right occasion, but also the right moment inside a worship service, and provide appropriate transitions between them. Good transitions help the congregation understand the purpose behind each song.

Part of what we're concerned about in a church service is time - we have only, say 30 minutes to sing all of the songs we want, so we have to choose our songs and occasions carefully. Perhaps in heaven we will have much more freedom. There is a time and place for everything under heaven, but at some point in heavenly life there will be no more time. We'll be able to sing as many songs as we want, at the same time, for as long as we want, and I don't think we'll ever run out of new things to sing about or new ways to sing, listen, or play together, and that is something I really look forward to.

God Bless America

In the spirit of Independence Day, I decided to post about patriotic songs.

We sang "God Bless America" at church on Sunday, and I could hardly do it because I was so choked up. America is the land that I love, and I do pray that God would "stand beside her and guide her through the night" she is currently facing. I often wonder if there is hope. Even if there isn't, I still love America.

We recently took a drip up north to the Midwest and got to experience "America the Beautiful" again. The Chinese word for America means "beautiful land," and I think it's entirely appropriate. The mountains, the prairies, the oceans - it's all so beautiful and worth preserving. The verses of the hymn progress from America's physical beauty to the character of its founders and defenders. Each verse ends with a prayer or a hope.

Last thoughts are from the third verse, about fighting for what is good:

O beautiful for heroes proved
In liberating strife
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life!
America, America! May God thy gold refine!
Till all success be nobleness
And every gain divine.



Words by Katherine Lee Bates, music by Samuel A. Ward

Be Still

I am so impressed by new ideas, or new words for old ideas, that sometimes I'm a little prejudiced against good songs that sound like something I've heard before. Sometimes those seemingly mundane songs bear a powerful witness that turns out to be exactly what I needed to hear, and I am grateful that I can change my mind.

Such is the case with Storyside B:'s "Be Still." It bears witness to the simple, but profound truth that God is, and that sometimes He speaks when we listen. I'm grateful for the reminder, since I've recently been led to reflect that the Christian life is a lot about listening.

Here are the lyrics, and below, a theoretical point to ponder.


StorySide:B Lyrics
Be Still Lyrics

The editors of The Beauty of God: Theology and the Arts(2007, Intervarsity) summarize an included essay by Bruce Benson in the following way. "God's call in creation precedes beauty, which therefore takes the character of response. As our response manifests divine beauty, it forwards the divine call to others, who then respond and call. And so forth. As a result, we cannot shrink art down to creativity or making, but must also see ... [as in jazz music] what characterizes art in general: repetition, not just innovation" (Treir, Husbands and Lundin 12). I may not grasp this fully, but one thing I think the authors mean is that there is artistic value in repeating what we've heard or seen before. It is a reference; a call for response. While there may be nothing new under the sun, there is always a new possible response - from a new person, in a new day - and I think sometimes a song calls for that in a way that is spiritually valuable.

Those are my thoughts. :)

Day By Day (the Hymn)

This is what you might call a devotional hymn, in that it is not exult in the majesty of God or weighty doctrine. Yet it carries a message that Christians need to hear in order to live in awe of the majesty of God and to apply doctrine to their lives.

Day by day, and with each passing moment
Strength I find to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father's wise bestowment
I've no cause for worry or for fear...

The protection of His child and treasure
Is a charge that on Himself He laid;
"As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,"
This the pledge to me He made...

Help me then in every tribulation
So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith's sweet consolation
Offered me within Thy holy Word...

I must admit: trust is the biggest battle I face in the Christian life. It all comes down to whether I believe the promises, or don't. The day-by-day steps of trust make a big difference to my overall spiritual trajectory. If I'm not believing that God is good, or, more specifically, that He is good to me, that doubt, especially if unperceived, can allow in a lot of other things like worry and strife, and those things ensnare me into sin.

I'm thankful for songs like this one that remind me of simple but profound truths. Not all truth is simple, and not all is profound; there are hymns that treat weighty matters like justification and sanctification which are both complex and profound. My point here is that if I don't have the simple things straight, I'll never be able to bear those weightier realities that provide a more substantive joy.

I was praying about what song to blog about this week and a friend mentioned this one. I've become familiar with it over the past year and now embrace it as part of my spiritual heritage and musical repertoire.

"Day By Day," Words by Caroline V. Sandell-Berg, Music by Oscar Ahnfelt. The lyrics printed here are half of each verse; for the full lyrics and melody, check it out on CyberHymnal.

O Great God

Was thinking about this song this morning, looked up the lyrics and found someone else blogging about this song, too. That's awesome; God works all things together for good, even national distribution of music.

We've been singing "O Great God" at church and it's gotten into my heart. Timmy's got the full lyrics at the link above; one verse in particular I wanted to note.

I was blinded by my sin
Had no ears to hear Your voice
Did not know Your love within
Had no taste for heaven’s joys
Then Your Spirit gave me life
Opened up Your Word to me
Through the gospel of Your Son
Gave me endless hope and peace

I was struck by how each of the first four lines mentions a different sense that was numbed or deadened before His Spirit gave the singer life. It is a confession that we are senseless until the Lord quickens us. I appreciate the artistry that conveyed this truth.

Programmed to Receive

"You can check out anytime you want, but you can never leave."

I thought of this line from the Eagles' "Hotel California" in a discussion about church membership. It can be very hard to leave a church by un-joining, but a lot of people check out.

I think "Hotel California" is a nightmare version of a shallow, perverse, sensate culture. There is plenty of room, and you can live it up, but still, when you're in the middle of it, you think, "This could be heaven, or this could be hell." Nothing's quite straight: minds are "Tiffany-twisted," and materialism gives you the "Mercedes bends." No one quite knows what they're doing there, "some dance to remember, others dance to forget."

I think some people join churches this mindset - not quite sure what they're there for, except they think perhaps its a "lovely place." And maybe it is, but maybe that's all it is. The worst thing is, that the church may not quite know what it is there for, except that it is "programmed to receive."

I think "HC" is also about drug addiction, and I'm not meaning to say that churches or membership just feed addictions. I would say, though, that in the world we are all "just prisoners here of our own device." We may look pretty but need a radical salvation. Try as we may, we "just can't kill the beast" - the sin nature within or the Enemy who works against our souls. What does overcome the world is faith; that is what churches should be about, and that's what its members should have.

God of our Yesterdays

I am so glad He is sovereign over my yesterdays. My God is the God of my yesterdays - all the way He has led me to follow Him, all of the mistakes I've made, all the triumphant moments - and He is the God of my tomorrows.

This Matt Redman song declares that we praise the God of our yesterdays, our todays, and our tomorrows.

This is particularly poignant to me as I meditate on the words of Psalm 124.

"Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,"
Let Israel now say,
"Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,
When men rose up against us..."

If not for the Lord; I can't even imagine. I see His Providential intervention even in the hidden stories of my yesterdays that I'm glad didn't end up in the yearbook or in the gossip circles. And I'm glad I can praise Him for the deliverance He provided through His strength alone.



"God of our Yesterdays," by Matt Redman, is on the Passion God of this City album (2208).