So the Holy Spirit pressed upon me last night to write the idea for this post down before I forgot it. I seriously couldn't go to sleep until I jotted some general notes in my moleskine, and then I was out like a light. Also, this is only the first draft of this. There are so many areas in which I want to unpack within the relationship of God and Language. I am doing some research and prayer about this, so please give me some feedback if you have any suggestions or other sources I can go and read about the linguistic aspects of God our Father. Here Goes.....
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. -John 1:1-4
I can't count how many times that the Holy Spirit has spoken directly into my life, and my response is basically, "Oh, wow isn't that NEATO!" and leave it at that. I continually don't really recognize the reality that God the Creator and King of the universe just spoke to me. These things should be given much more attention that 'neato'.
God speaks! I LOVE this. God gave us the Bible which 2 Timothy 3:16 tells us is 'God-breathed'. His word is truth. In Genesis 1, God speaks THE ENTIRE WORLD into existence. God is alive and very active. In the next chapter of Genesis, we get a glimpse of a 'hands-on' God that forms everything. Our God is obnoxiously personal.
In the Old Testament, God the Father speaks to the prophet all the time. Then He sends God the Son (Jesus) down to earth , and Jesus spoke truth to a generation of people who eventually murder him. Following the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ, He sends our church fathers God the Holy Spirit that also dwells in all of those who profess faith in Him today. The Holy Spirit continually speaks into our lives through convictions, consciouses, visions, and a myriad of other miraculous ways. Our incomprehensibly complex Triune God in every one of his natures and persons speaks to us and pursues us often.
I used to be really confused by the phrase, "freed us for joyful obedience" Obedience was opposite of joyfulness in my experience, being obedient at school or obedient to my parents, or boss or choir director. It ALWAYS sucked because it involved me doing things that I didn't want to do and not doing the things I wanted to do. However, recently this concept of 'joyful obedience' makes some much sense to me in light of meditating and praying about the sovereignty of God and his loving pursuit of me that culminated with the Cross of Jesus Christ. Romans 2:4 implies that God's kindness (which is best seen through the sacrifice of his Son) was meant to lead to repentance. I now find that the Holy Spirit has given me an earnest desire to obey and glorify God because he gave so much for me and to me. I am a blood-bought, adopted son of the Most High King.
My prayer is that you would not ignore the Holy Spirit when He moves or speaks into your life. Trust in Him.
-Amen-
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Sunday, August 14, 2011
a peace that passes all understanding
When we've been there ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise
then when we've first begun.
So I've sung this verse of Amazing Grace countless numbers of times. It's one of the many songs that you've sung so much, that you mentally check out after the first few words and go into autopilot praise drone mode. We sang that tonight at church.
The past week here in Seattle there has been a ton of heavy things go down. A young woman who is a new believer had her child die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. A woman in my community group has been trying to conceive with her husband for 7 years now... she announced on tuesday at group that they were 12 weeks pregnant, and we found out yesterday that she miscarried. Another woman in my community group's brother ran away from the treatment program he was in and has been missing for more than 2 weeks now. I was driving through downtown Seattle tonight seeing people fighting in the middle of an intersection outside of a club. Back home in Memphis, there was a school administrator found murdered in a classroom this week. It seems like everywhere I turn there is darkness. Sin, tragedy, and pain are all very potent realities in this world.
Revelation 21:4 talks about the new creation that is to come. It says, "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."
Tonight at church I served on the production team. Cam (the worship director at Mars Hill Church Downtown) was not feeling well, his throat hurt and he seemed kind of physically drained during practice. Other than that, there seem to be a weird tension before the service started. Everyone was hurting or knew someone that is hurting in one way or another.
GOD showed up. Once the service started I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. Even standing in the back of the room, the congregation sounded amazing. Feeling everyone pouring their whole hearts into worshipping Jesus Christ is so immensely powerful that I couldn't help but smile and dance while running the powerpoint for the songs. One of the last songs we sang was Come thou fount of every blessing, and we ended it with the first and last verse of Amazing Grace. The last verse was acapella. The Holy Spirit breathed new life into those words for me.
In Heaven, we won't ever run out of days to worship God. We will be with him forever. We can't even imagine forever. Continual community in constant, fervent, genuine worship and praise of God the Almighty Creator King of the Universe. That is what is waiting for us who believe that Jesus Christ championed Satan, sin, and death on our behalf. What greater prize exists? What greater price has been paid? no. more. suffering. of any sort. There won't even be sunburns! (Rev. 21:23)
Only through the cross of Jesus Christ do we find access to, and delight in the peace that passes all understanding.
amen.
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise
then when we've first begun.
So I've sung this verse of Amazing Grace countless numbers of times. It's one of the many songs that you've sung so much, that you mentally check out after the first few words and go into autopilot praise drone mode. We sang that tonight at church.
The past week here in Seattle there has been a ton of heavy things go down. A young woman who is a new believer had her child die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. A woman in my community group has been trying to conceive with her husband for 7 years now... she announced on tuesday at group that they were 12 weeks pregnant, and we found out yesterday that she miscarried. Another woman in my community group's brother ran away from the treatment program he was in and has been missing for more than 2 weeks now. I was driving through downtown Seattle tonight seeing people fighting in the middle of an intersection outside of a club. Back home in Memphis, there was a school administrator found murdered in a classroom this week. It seems like everywhere I turn there is darkness. Sin, tragedy, and pain are all very potent realities in this world.
Revelation 21:4 talks about the new creation that is to come. It says, "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."
Tonight at church I served on the production team. Cam (the worship director at Mars Hill Church Downtown) was not feeling well, his throat hurt and he seemed kind of physically drained during practice. Other than that, there seem to be a weird tension before the service started. Everyone was hurting or knew someone that is hurting in one way or another.
GOD showed up. Once the service started I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. Even standing in the back of the room, the congregation sounded amazing. Feeling everyone pouring their whole hearts into worshipping Jesus Christ is so immensely powerful that I couldn't help but smile and dance while running the powerpoint for the songs. One of the last songs we sang was Come thou fount of every blessing, and we ended it with the first and last verse of Amazing Grace. The last verse was acapella. The Holy Spirit breathed new life into those words for me.
In Heaven, we won't ever run out of days to worship God. We will be with him forever. We can't even imagine forever. Continual community in constant, fervent, genuine worship and praise of God the Almighty Creator King of the Universe. That is what is waiting for us who believe that Jesus Christ championed Satan, sin, and death on our behalf. What greater prize exists? What greater price has been paid? no. more. suffering. of any sort. There won't even be sunburns! (Rev. 21:23)
Only through the cross of Jesus Christ do we find access to, and delight in the peace that passes all understanding.
amen.
Monday, August 8, 2011
stay tuned.
there are a couple of posts still brewing in my brain and heart.
some highlights:
-goodbye wisdom teeth
-leading worship with Ghostship
-losing my bartending shifts (for a while)
excited to share what God is doing with me. thanks!
some highlights:
-goodbye wisdom teeth
-leading worship with Ghostship
-losing my bartending shifts (for a while)
excited to share what God is doing with me. thanks!
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