Monthly Archives: December 2015

Indescribable Love

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“God loves you just the way you are, but He refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be just like Jesus.” Max Lucado

God doesn’t love the best version of you. He doesn’t love the you that you ‘present’ to others or to Him. He loves you just the way you are.

There’s no, “Let me get myself together, out of this mess, over this bump in the road, or through this problem first. Then He’ll love me. Then I’ll be worth loving.” There’s the you that’s in the here and now, warts and all, plagued with problems, swimming in sin, and marked by mistakes. That’s the you He loves. That’s the you He sent His Son to die for.

Allow me to state the obvious. He doesn’t love all the choices you make. He doesn’t love the sin that you decide to partake in, but He certainly loves you. He loves the you that you are and the you that He sees that you can be. He loves you in the midst of poor decisions when we seemingly shake our figurative finger in His face and say, “I know, God. I know You created me, love me, have a plan for my life, and give me ways out of these tempting and sinful situations in order for me to stay in Your will and be blessed, but I have decided to reject the right decision in this situation. I have decided that my way is better. I’ll take it from here. Well, mostly, I’ll take it from here, until I run into trouble. Then I’ll call on You again, and You’ll be there…because that’s who You are. Amazing. Persistent. Loving. Merciful. Forgiving.” It’s a bit pathetic. We say things similar to this and He loves us through it. He’s that Father watching for the prodigal son…the One that watches for him and runs toward him. You and I are that son that has a Heavenly Father that sprints toward us waiting for us to invite Him to walk alongside us every step of the way. That, my friends, is love defined.

We can make a meager attempt to describe the extent to which He loves us, but it won’t suffice. His love is truly indescribable. His faithfulness reaches the skies, His ways are above our ways, and His love surpasses our knowledge. We really need to comprehend that we will never comprehend how much God loves us!

His love for you includes the love He has for the you that He has made it possible for you to be! He doesn’t create you with a plan for your life and then leave you high and dry while you search for His will. He shines the light in front of you in order for you to see the next step; the step that will keep you on or get you back onto His path.

He has a plan for us to use His gifts that He so generously gives to us in order to love others and show others the way to Him. It’s the least we can do for a Father that loves us so.

You are loved just the way that you are by a God that refuses to leave you that way. May this be the year that you feel that love in a tangible way. May this be the year you share that genuine love with all you encounter. And may 2016 be the year that your actions, words, and choices are truly motivated, moved and molded by that indescribable love.

What Will You Do With The Gift?

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I would like for you to imagine telling someone there is a gift waiting for them with their name on it. Imagine telling them this particular gift will renew their perspective, remind them of their priorities, and reveal their purpose. Now, imagine if that person said, “Wow, that gift sounds awesome! How wonderful to have access to that!”…and then they proceed to ignore it? They decide to leave it unopened. Would you be outraged? Shocked? Puzzled, at the very least?

If that gift was offered to you, would you ignore it and allow it to remain wrapped? No way!

But we all do it! We leave one of our most beautiful treasures unopened. Friends, we’ve been given a gift beyond words: a love letter from the Originator of Love. A Holy Book filled with love, lessons, and life. Literally!

The Bible reminds us who we are, whose we are, and how we can live in a way that communicates God’s life-saving message to others. While reading His Word, we are given the gift of being in His presence and hearing His voice speaking directly to us.

When it comes to the gift of His Word, why do we sometimes pretend it’s not there? Why do we dismiss it as an unimportant aspect of our Christian walk?

Sometimes the thought is, “The Bible is hard to understand.” Yes, some parts ARE difficult to grasp. Remember, we serve a God whose ways are above our ways! That doesn’t mean we should avoid His Word. Instead, that can be one of the reasons we strive to read His Word more often – to get to know Him better.

I have heard people say the Old Testament is boring or that it does not relate to today’s world. However, as I’ve begun to see the historical relevance, the way in which the Old Testament and New Testament completely intertwine, and the character of God revealed through the ‘pre-Jesus’ time of the world, I have come to love that part of Scripture!

I would be lying if I said that the quality and quantity of my Bible-reading time is what it should be. But let me say that the times in my life when I have taken the time to delve into the Bible and take His Words to heart, I have been able to hear Him speaking to me much more clearly.

While regularly reading our Bible will not mean that our life will become peaceful and free from hardship, our ability to deal with those messy life circumstances will improve immensely.

Our focus will no longer be the problem. It will instead be the One who is bigger than the problem. We will become less concerned about what the world thinks of us, and instead be more enthralled by what God thinks of us. He delights in us and rejoices over us. We will discover a generous amount of beautiful truths such as those when we open our Bible.

When my husband and I give our children a gift, their thankful reactions and smiles bring us happiness. Imagine the happiness we bring our Heavenly Father when we unwrap His Inspired Word – the happiness we bring Him when we see, experience, and thank Him for such an indescribable gift. May today be the day we open His gift and marvel in it!

He Sings Over You

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This isn’t technically a blog post…it is a recent song that I wrote that I want to share with you!

This photo was taken at my senior recital in 1993 at Northern State University. I still remember how loved and valued I felt when my SAI sisters and SAI advisor/voice teacher followed our organization’s tradition by surrounding me and ‘singing over me.’ It was a beautiful song sung by beautiful voices that left me with a beautiful memory.

Zephaniah 3:17 is a verse that has always intrigued me…it says, “The Lord your God is in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” The entire verse is an incredible picture of who God is, but the part that I can’t get over is that He sings over us. It’s so intimate; so meaningful. Our God loves us and values us in a beautiful way. That’s what this song in the attached video (including my daughter singing with me -yay!!) is about.

YouTube link: https://youtu.be/rrC5nYEArEA

Lyrics:  Singing Over You

Feeling alone again in a crowd; sick and tired of being left out. When tears start falling, I pray you’ll hear Him calling. May you believe His Word to be true: that your God is singing over you.

I see you questioning again, “When will this feeling ever end?” His arms are open. Bring to Him a heart that’s broken. May you believe His Word to be true: that your God is singing over you.

Your Heavenly Father takes delight in who you are. He draws you closer, and He heals your wounds and scars. Give Him praise. He is the God who saves, and He renews your strength. May today be the day that you hear His glorious song.

May His perfect love overwhelm you. May you believe me when I tell you: Your God loves just the way you are, and He sees who you can be. His love transforms us amazingly.

Your Heavenly Father takes delight in who you are. He draws you closer, and He heals your wounds and scars. Give Him praise. He is the God who saves, and He renews your strength. May today be the day that you hear His glorious song.

Over you – His glorious song.  Over you – His glorious song.