March 22, 2009

Spring is here

New life arrives

Warmth fills the earth

Hidden life revives

You touch it all

Every flower bud

Your gentle, gardener fingers

Nourish with love

This is Your element

And what my heart misses

Eden remembered

Perfection reminisces

Colors brilliant and new

Scents of sweet redemption

The breeze of grace

My guilt exemption

Bright blue skies

Your obvious smile

The sun's rays adopt me

You claim me as Your child

Draw me into bliss each day

Captivate my heart

To pursue Your beauty in all things

Enthralled

Your works are just a glimpse of all You are

praise from december

If I had to sing a song for You

One written in my heart

It would be sweet and adoring

To tell how beautiful You are

That You would leave Your throne on High

To mingle with my disdain

So I could wear Your righteousness

Instead of my bitter shame

That You would gladly cover me

As an eagle with its young

And spread Your robe around me

When the redemptive act was done

That You would watch me softly

With Your loving, holy gaze

And caress my cheek with longing

To hold me all my days

That You would waken me each morning

Delighted by each breath I breathe

Drawing splendor from my asking

That You be my everything

That You would meet me on the floor

Where I fall upon my face

To welcome me in Your presence

Where I have found the throne of grace

That You would die to provide a surplus

Of mercies daily new

And raise them with the sun

So I can be with You

For all these and more my gratitude

No language can contain

Nor could all of them combined

Muster the glory due Your Name

So I'll sing with all my passion

And I'll love with all my heart

I'll dance through every day

Until this world I may depart

And it still won't be enough

If I shout until I die

But Your love can't go unnoticed

Like sneezes always close the eye

So here is my small offering

Everything I am and own

Holding nothing back I follow

Where only You have known

warfare

my enemy is quick

he is incredibly sly

before i can tell

he replaces Truth with a lie

but my Savior is strong

and He's already won

so victory is mine

before the battle's begun

Lord, be my Shield,

my Rock, my dwelling place

be my center, be my focus

keep my gaze upon Your face

job 8:21

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!

Give Him honor, glory, praise!

But the words do not exist

Neither do sufficient days

For His works no man can ponder

And His ways no heart discern

Such goodness cannot be fathomed

And majesty no soul can learn

Glimpses only can we catch

As our eyes and hearts unfold

But the True and Just and Famous One

We are too frail to now behold

Could I but tell You how I feel

But yet my heart is bound to burst

That before my sinful days began

You came to my rescue first

And now You use me in Your plan?!

I could hardly think it true

If not for evidence abounding

That the One at work is You

So please give me better words

Give me something new to say

Until the sight of You perfects vocabulary

Jesus, I so long for that day!

gratitude

thank You for freedom

thank You for grace

thank You for glimpses

of Your glorious face

You made a way

when there was none

Your fullness came down

we beheld Your Son

He followed You true

up to the hill

and His former tomb

is empty still

all my bondage

every regret

the stain of all sin

known and secret

it's all washed away

by the blood that He poured

no spilling took place

intentionality restored

thank You for life

for beauty yet unseen

thank You for snow

though not as white as i am clean

thank You for sky

unparalleled majesty

thank You for hearing

You cannot forget me

thank You for giggles

and for laughing aloud

for strength in weakness

and humbling the proud

Your mercies astound

Your grace is infinite

Your life is my robe

You wrap me up in it

know me, my Lord

and be known by me

nothing more thrilling

You are intimacy

thank You for power

all Your sovereignty

thank You for wanting

but never needing me

thank You for words

though infinitely too few

thank You that eternity

is forever, always, only about You

be Thou my vision

right after experiencing Dialog in the Dark I sang Be Thou My Vision at a Crusade conference. i think this counts as poetry, but this is what came out of it:

Be Thou my vision

Takes on new meaning

When life is black

When light is painstakingly absent

What I see shapes who I am

My heart is formed by what passes before my eyes

Without light, my identity fades

I am unsure

I am slow

I am lost

I am ineffective

I am intimidated by touch, and yet desperate for it

This is not my inheritance

This is not what Christ died to give me

When You are my vision, my identity gleams

I am confident

I am quick and eager

I am found, strategically positioned

I am salt, yeast, contagious

I anticipate, find joy in personal encounters

Physical light is a necessity

Eyesight is a gift

But neither dissolves the constraint of darkness

Not truly

They allow me, equip me to pretend

But only Your light exposes Truth

You alone bring life and purpose

So give me Light

A heart that sees

Give me something worth looking at

Someone worthy of transforming me

Be Thou my vision

abiding = letting go

This blog of John Eldredge's was so timely tonight. 

I let my thoughts run away from the present, from God's sovereignty, far too often. They run to a world where God depends on me, people depend on me, and I depend on me. Praise the Lord! No such place exists! But this is how it goes....

Nicole has come to me with questions about developing her relationship with God, and I am overjoyed to be more involved in her life. But she has a crush on a guy who has been pursuing me for several months. When I told her tonight about an upcoming event with him, she tried to tell me it was really just a joke. Needless to say, I hardly believe her. So the thoughts start: "What if she closes me out? What if his pursuit ruins this? What if I should just tell him I'm not interested at all because she's more important?" Yes, the situation is somewhat delicate and I want to honor Nicole, but God is bigger than guys, crushes, and concerts. Abide.

Tonight I ended my term as President of AXO, and old Exec went to Benihana for dinner to celebrate. I tasted someone else's mojito--my first sip of alcohol. Then I tasted two other people's drinks. They were gross. It was three sips total. I know it wasn't sin. But afterward the thoughts start: "What if this gets misconstrued to younger girls? What if I just blew my witness with some people? What if this gives me more opportunities to witness to others?" But He's bigger than one sip, two sips, three sips, more. Abide.

Now it's December and I'm ready to know what comes next for me. "What if I really do have to get a job with a company? What if I don't apply for summer project? What if I already missed important deadlines? What if I don't even figure out where to start? How is God going to lead me?" But He's so much bigger. All my days are in His book; they've been there for a while now. Let Him do His thing. He always has. He still is. He will. Abide.