True Worship

True Worship…

As I sat listening to the sermon yesterday I learned a few things… I learned that true worship can and should happen anywhere and everywhere! True worship is bowing down before Him in amazement and so in awe of His presence that we fall prostrate before Him. It is an attitude of the heart. True worship is relational not religious. It IS the true surrender of the heart of the created to the heart of the creator. Worship is loving Him out loud. As I sat listening I also reflected on last week. Here are my thoughts… Worship for me last week was hard and at times grueling and occurred in some surprising and not so surprising places. I experienced worship at the cemetery grieving, in a fender bender on I-35 in 5 o'clock traffic and at the Steven Curtis Chapman concert. All these worship times were amazing in their own way…

As I sat at the cemetery, I sat in the somewhat fresh dirt, placed flowers on Rachel's grave and cried, the pain is still so deep. How long is this thing called healing going to take and will we ever be healed? He revealed to me through a fellow blogger that yes we will be healed, but there will be always be a scar. And the scar will be a reminder of not only the past pain but also the work of Him, the Great Healer. If we continue to worship Him in our grief, He will continue to apply His healing balm from His loving hand which will heal us perfectly in His time. (thank you K. Hasenbalg for those words of encouragement.) Yes I worshipped at the cemetery, thank you Jesus for meeting me there.

As I was driving to work on Tues, I got caught up in rush hour traffic, are you surprised? I sort of got lost in my thoughts and rolled into an old truck, a small one thank goodness. We pulled over to the access road and he immediately pointed out to me ever so kindly that his truck was old and already beat up. There was no way to tell what damage my car had done and my license plate only has a small dent. He didn't want to do anything about it. He was so kind… I immediately began to cry and he became worried that I was hurt, I assured him that I was not… I was just an emotional mess. I shared with him that we had experienced a death in our family, our daughter in fact. He asked if it alright to pray with me. Of course! This guy knows how to love out loud! We sat in my car in rush hour traffic and worshipped as he prayed the sweetest prayer. I am still in awe and amazement of His goodness even in rush hour traffic!

At the beginning of the Steven Curtis Chapman concert he sat behind a keyboard saying, "I'm not really a piano player, I just wanted something to kind of hide behind, I am terrified." This was his first concert without the band since the accident. Then he sang "Blessed Be Your Name," the first song that came to his mind that tragic night. He then shared Jeremiah 29:11, For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." One of the same verses that came to my mind as I saw Rachel in the ER that tragic night.

It was as if he was sitting there visiting with a group of dear friends. He even had a way of making you feel like he was just sitting down to play you a song and tell you a story...just the two of you. He shared stories about Maria, his memories of her, how God melted their hearts together at their first meeting, how she came to know Jesus....it was an amazing time. He even apologized for going on and on, but said he had had somewhat of a sad day and just wanted to remember. Steven - you know we would have listened to you talk for the rest of the night if you had wanted to.

He shared a message of hope and faith. He poured out his heart even in his fear and pain. It was intimate and special. He shared that more important than the questions is the confidence that they have in Him. He was so vulnerable and honest. He was real. He was transparent. It was him, and us and the Lord. It was impactful to see this broken, hurting man so fully, completely trusting in His God. He said "I know God more than I ever have before and yet I know less than before." I completely agree. I will never forget some of the things Steven shared. I will never forget his voice as he literally cried out to Jesus through some songs. I will never forget the Cinderella moment as everyone stood and raised their hands to show their love to Steven, his tears, his hope, his laughter and above all his desire to share the gospel and glorify God.

I was honored to hear his new verse for "Yours"

"I've walked through the valley of the shadow of death,
so deep and dark that I could barely breathe
I've had to let go of more than I could bear
And questioned everything that I believe
But still even here
in this great darkness
A comfort and hope come breaking through
As I can say in life or death
God we belong to you"

And even though he never sang "Speechless," I left speechless and changed.

Psalm 138: 1-2 & 7-8
I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart;
before the "gods" I will sing your praise.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
and will praise your name
for your love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word.
Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes,
with your right hand you save me.
The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;
your love, O LORD, endures forever-
do not abandon the works of your hands.

HE will fulfill His purpose…

Last week was hard and at times the surfing was difficult… but I experienced some true worship! Thank you Jesus!!!

Becoming as polished stones...

It is late, I am up reading. This is what I gleaned from my quiet time with Him…

He made me into a polished arrow. Isaiah 49:2

People come from all over the country travel to Pebble Beach, California just to collect the pebbles on this famous beach. They are beautiful. Why you ask? They are tossed, rolled, rubbed together, and ground against the sharp edges of the cliff. This process of grinding continues relentlessly. And what is the result? Beautiful, sought out pebbles. A little farther up the beach is a quiet and lonely beach. It is protected from the face of the ocean, sheltered from the storm, from the waves. This beach too is covered with pebbles not sought by travelers. Why you ask? These pebbles have escaped all the turmoil and grinding of the waves. The quietness and peace have left them as they have always been. Rough, unpolished and devoid of beauty~ for the polish is the result of the storm. It reminds me once again of the lyrics Praise You in the Storm by Casting Crowns. There are times in life when we feel like we are being tossed, rolled, rubbed together and ground against ths sharp edges of this world. Much like the stones on the quiet beach we can isolate ourselves and remain sheltered from the storm or the tossing waves. Is that His desire for my life? No. Do I wish that I could escape this gried and turmoil in my life? Do I wish that this season of my life would be over and the pain would go away? Sure, who wouldn't. But not if it means remaining rough, unpolished and devoid of beauty. I want His beauty.

In this season of life I am living as a pebble on Pebble Beach. Am I being tossed about in the storm, YES! Am I trusting Him to shape me into a beautiful polished pebble? YES! And I am praising Him for it? YES! Difficult, YES! Is He with me? YES!

In the Midst of the Wilderness

In the midst of the wilderness...

In my God appointed quiet time this early (4am, I have been up since 2am) morning I read an account of the Deeper Still conference and I was touched... I say God appointed because this week I have been up at 2 or 3 am almost every night. I have felt Him gently wake me and say "come." The harder I fought to go back to sleep the more difficult it became, He kept gently saying "come" let's sit a spell. So here I sit for the 3rd early morning in a row... There are no distractions and He knows all too well how easily I become distracted these days. I have had some sweet times with Him this week. Praise Him...

from Deeper Still:

Priscilla Shirer speaks about seeing God in the midst of the wilderness using Exodus 19:9. She said that when God wants to lead you into a divine invitation, He'll often lead us into the wilderness. It is in the wilderness where intimacy is ignited.
She talked about how it was God's choice to lead the children of Israel through the wilderness. There was an easier way, but He took them a different path to allow them to see His provision. Mount Sinai was the furthest possible place away from external blessing, but it was at this place that they received the biggest internal blessing. Sometimes it takes hard times and difficult circumstances to make us really see who God is and His power.
Priscilla used an example that has stuck with me. She compared having God's spirit poured out on you to being caught in a rainstorm. It can be uncomfortable, inconvenient, and make us want to run back to where we came from. Sometimes the hand of God doesn't look the way we expect it to.
I have spent much of the last couple of months feeling like I'm in the wilderness, often wandering aimlessly and wondering if God has a plan or a purpose. It has been hard and at times I have felt like I can't take anymore, but God has been faithful to sustain me. And, honestly, I have grown more in my faith than at any other period of my life. It's made me seek Him more because I've realized I'm not in control and I don't have the answers.
As Priscilla said, it's being able to say God I trust you. I'm not going to fight this season of life, but settle in and trust you.
There are three things we need to do to prepare to see God.
1. He calls us to remember what He has already done for us. Where you were and what He has delivered you from. We will be thankful when we remember where we've been.
Honestly, my list is too long. She also made a reference to digging through the garbage and, have mercy, I was a professional garbage digger for many a year.
2. Recognize your spiritual identity. God is the only one who can label us. He gives us our identity. Knowing who you are is dependent on really knowing who He is.
3. New levels of surrender. Holiness is important to God. Find an area you don't want to surrender and SURRENDER IT.
As Priscilla said, the Holy Spirit empowers you to submit to surrender.
Girl, I need some empowering.
When the children of Israel reached this point, God descended on Mount Sinai in the form of a mighty cloud filled with thunder and lightning. Ultimately, they let their fear hold them back and they kept their distance from the mountain. They were afraid to get the word of God for themselves.
So, Priscilla's question was "What is holding you back?"
It challenged me to take a hard look at the things I let hold me back. Things like fear and uncertainty. But I'm working on the surrender because I don't want to miss out on what God has by holding on to what I think I need or want.
I want Him to pour out His spirit on me. Even if it's uncomfortable at times. Even if there are days I can't see through the storm.
I want Him.
Is anything holding you back?

June 28

June 28th

two months... it seems like forever....

...she had the prettiest green eyes and sweet smile. And the sweetest way of saying, love you momma. When she knew her daddy was teasing her she would say "daaad..." Again in a such sweet voice, it always made us laugh

A dream...

Leaving this one unedited as I typed it into my Blackberry as soon as I woke up from my dream.

I had a dream… 105 pm

I had to get up to writ this dow so I would not forget…

Rachel had been in the hospital for three dyas… we wer telling eh rgoodbye onle last time…. The nurse (karne chcker from walmart) felt her move her hand and herd her moan she was waking up… we were all with her. She was beautiful and whole, like nothing had ever happened tp her, she was alert and telling us all how much she loved us… she told us that she thought she had died. People there, the walls, denny pop, pastor, neale, glynis chris daddy, carrie, boo, steve, cathy etc...



I think it is her way of telling me from heaven she is ok!!!! She loves us!!!



Thank you god for this most beautiful dream!!!! I saw her beautiful face and she talked to me!!!! She told me she loved met! Thank you jesus!!!

Proverbs 31

Proverbs 31 Devotional

June 5, 2008

Deep Grief

by Lysa TerKeurst

“You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.”

Psalm 30:11 (NIV)

Devotion:

Sometimes when we lose things it causes a temporary panic that rises and falls in a mini-tidal wave fashion. Like earlier this year when I lost my camera with all our ski vacation pictures on it. The panic escalated, crested with some hand wringing and mind racing, and then slowly ebbed away.

But sometimes a loss cuts into your heart so viciously that it forever redefines who you are and how you think. It’s what I call “deep grief.” The kind that strains against everything you've ever believed. So much so you wonder how the promises that seemed so real on those thin Bible pages yesterday, could possibly stand up under the weight of enormous sadness today.

I once stood at the side of a casket too small to accept. Pink roses draped everywhere. And I watched my mom as she lay across the casket, refusing to let go. How could she let go? Part of her heart laid within, so quiet and so still.

I stood paralyzed. Just days ago we were doing everyday things and assuming that all of our lives stretched before us in spans of many, many years. And then suddenly it all stopped. In the flurry of funeral plans and memorial services we all operated on automatic. People were everywhere. Soft chatter filled in the gaps that our stunned silence could not. And enough food was brought in to feed the whole neighborhood.

But eventually people went back to their own lives. The soft chatter dissipated. The food stopped coming. And we were forced to carry on. Only we had deep grief wrapped about us that made our throats feel strangled and our feet stuck in mud.

I remember I tried to go to McDonalds to order a happy meal. But I couldn't. I sat in the drive-through with the speaker spouting words at me I couldn't process. She kept asking if she could take my order.

Yeah, I had an order. Take away my bloodshot eyes. Take away my desire to hurt the doctors that couldn't save my sister. Take away my anger toward God. And then take away my guilt for being the one that lived. I'll take all that with no onions and extra ketchup, please.

I drove away sobbing. How dare they offer happy meals. No one should be happy today. Or tomorrow. Or next year.

This is the reality of deep grief. Even when you love God and believe in His promises. Even when you know without a doubt that you will see your loved one again. Even when you know hope is still there.

It takes time.

It takes wading through an ocean of tears.

It takes finding a possession of your loved one that you thought was lost, and realizing God did that just to comfort you. It takes discovering one day that the sun still shines. It takes being caught off-guard when you catch yourself smiling… only to realize it's okay.

It takes prayer. It takes making the decision to stop asking for answers and start asking for perspective. It takes telling people to please not avoid saying her name - you want to hear it, over and over again.

Then one day you take off the blanket of deep grief. You fold it neatly and tuck it away. You no longer hate it or resist it. For underneath it, wondrous things have happened. Things that could have only come about when Divine hope intersected with a broken world.

And finally you can see years stretching before you once again. You look up, blow a kiss, wipe a tear and find it's still possible to dance.

In light of their own recent loss, may we all keep the family of Steven Curtis and Marybeth Chapman in our prayers for all the time it will take them to shed their deep grief and discover their dance again.



Dear Lord, Thank you for assuring us that your principles and promises hold true even when life seems to betray us. We praise You that Your love reaches to any depth we find ourselves in. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.



Related Resources:

Visit Lysa TerKeurst’s blog today to read about how to help a friend that is grieving.


Application Steps:

Is there someone in your life who is grieving right now? Visit my blog today for suggestions on how to help. Commit to reaching out to them this week.



Reflections:

Death is a reality of life. So, how can you live more intentionally each day with those you love?



Power Verse:

2 Corinthians 1:2-4, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” (NIV)

Full Circle

Let me go back to 2002... a dear friend of mine was critically ill, in fact she almost went home to be with the Lord. I gave her a card of encouragement. Now fast forward almost 6 years... she is going though these cards, a huge pile I might add. She pulls out 2 and comes across mine. This dear friend signs it with all her love and gives it back to me. Amazing how God brings things full circle. What a treasure!!!

I am not very eloquent at the moment, the card says it all.

You


Cynthia

are going through trials and difficulties, not because God has abandoned you, but because He has chosen you and called you to know His heart ~~ Roy Lessin

There is a purpose in what you are walking through, and God would never allow it if He could not keep you close to His heart and use it for good in the plan He has for your life.

When we face hard times, we never face them alone. The truth is that God never separates Himself from His children in any trial they face. He loves you too much to ever let you go.
~~ Roy Lessin

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28 NIV