Monday morning I was reading in Psalms and I came across some verses that seemed very familiar to me. It was Psalm 62:1-2-"My soul waits in silence for God only; From Him is my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken." I realized why it was familiar-it was part of a song I had sung both in chapel and at church this past year. It has been stuck in my head ever since then, not that I am complaining. Sometimes it's the most annoying thing in the world to have a song stuck in your head (i.e. 1,2,3,4 by Plain White T's. that was BAD) for several days. But this time, I got lucky. I'll post the words so you can see why I like them:
My Soul Finds Rest Psalm 62
by Aaron Keyes and Stuart Townend
My soul finds rest in God alone,
My Rock and my salvation,
A fortress strong against my foes,
And I will not be shaken.
Though lips may bless and hearts may curse,
And lies like arrows pierce me,
I’ll fix my heart on righteousness,
I’ll look to Him who hears me.
O praise Him, hallelujah,
My Delight and my Reward;
Everlasting, never failing,
My Redeemer, my God.
Find rest, my soul, in God alone
Amid the world’s temptations;
When evil seeks to take a hold
I’ll cling to my salvation.
Though riches come and riches go,
Don’t set your heart upon them;
The fields of hope in which I sow
Are harvested in heaven.
O praise Him, hallelujah,
My Delight and my Reward;
Everlasting, never failing,
My Redeemer, my God.
I’ll set my gaze on God alone,
And trust in Him completely;
With every day pour out my soul,
And He will prove His mercy.
Though life is but a fleeting breath,
A sigh too brief to measure,
My King has crushed the curse of death
And I am His forever.
O praise Him, hallelujah,
My Delight and my Reward;
Everlasting, never failing,
My Redeemer, my God.
O praise Him, O praise Him, hallelujah, hallelujah,
O praise Him, O praise Him, hallelujah, hallelujah,
O praise Him, O praise Him, hallelujah! hallelujah!
O praise Him, hallelujah,
My Delight and my Reward;
Everlasting, never failing,
My Redeemer, my God.
This is a great song! Each verse is rich and such an encouragement. In some songs we sing it seems like some of the words are just fillers, and then some lines are meaningful. But this is one of those songs where that is not the case-each line is so full! I love songs like that!!
An update on my summer: it's been going well! I have seen my best friend Sam, spent some time with Laura (including two trips to the lake!), saw Lindsay and Zach, and done some other fun things :). Most of my days I am home alone since my dad is at work and Kathy and Riley are still in school. I am becoming restless and bored with the few things that I have to do. It's not fun sometimes. A lot of my friends are still in school, but finishing up this week. Then it will be better! I leave for Santa Clarita with Lindsay around June 1 and fly out to Maine on June 4. Then it will be a week of lots&lots of family, including seeing my newest cousin Griffin (sp?), and then Holly GRADUATES! Crazy.
Well I hope this song is an encouragement to you like it is to me! Have a great day :)
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Fear
Galatians 1:10-"For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ." (NASB)
I constantly find myself in need of this verse. So many times, just in 2010, I have been shown my fear of man. It has become evident especially in the last couple months of the semester. I have seen over and over again how much I care about what people think. In some ways, I really do not care. But there are some things that I constantly struggle with when it comes to fear of man. I shared with my small group (which consisted of my RA Lynsi, friend Kayla, and myself) how God has really been working in that area of my life. My friend Christian and I are praying about what God would have us do, and it looks like we will become more than "just friends" soon. This has opened my eyes to a whole new area of my life where I see a fear of man. Who am I trying to please? My friends, his friends, people we do not even know? What would the point of that be? If we try to please people, we will fail, because not everyone will be pleased by the same things. When we try to please God, no one else, or their opinion, matters.
Steve Lawson, when he came as a chapel speaker to my school, summed it up better than I ever could have. He said, "If you please Christ, it doesn't matter who you displease. If you displease Christ, it doesn't matter who you please."
Monday, May 10, 2010
School's OVER
I can finally say that my first year of college is complete! And what a year it has been! I don't want to spend all night talking about every single thing that happened this past year. There has just been too much! If you ever want to know, ask me about it in person. This year has been full of difficult things and many challenges where I had the choice to either do things my way or do things God's way. I made many right decisions and many mistakes. Thankfully God is still using me, no matter how many times I mess up!
When I left for school, I was ready for change. I was still trying to mend my broken heart, nervous about meeting a person that I would be living in a small room with for a whole school year, anxious about making friends, sad to leave my friends and family at home, eager to see what college would be like and really excited to see how God would work in my life. My heart healed itself once I found that God was all-sufficient and that I did not need someone (who had really just gotten in the way of my relationship with God-for that I blame myself, not him) else to make me happy. I LOVED my roommate and we are planning on rooming together next year. I made TONS of friends who love God and encourage me to walk close with Him. I did miss home alot, but often I was too busy to think about it. College was amazing-classes were awesome, chapel-the music and the messages-were amazing, and dorm life is always fun (except when you can't find anywhere to be alone). God worked in my life in so many, many ways. I learned from classes, chapel, my church, my college group, small group, my RA, my friends, my devotions...I could go on and on. Basically, I have learned alot and I have seen God refining me and making me more like Him. I learned that more important than Christ-likeness is my love for Him. Out of the overflow of my love for Him will come obedience and imitation. I learned that even something as good as my own sancification can become an idol if it takes away from my first love.
When I came home after the end of the school year, I came home a completely different person. I came back loving God more than ever before, loving people more than ever, with a desire to love and serve my family, missing my new family that I found through my friends and in my dorm, and ready to see what God would do in my life this summer. I am eager to see what He wants to do in regards to a special friend of mine :)...more about that to come. My heart is overflowing with thankfulness to God. Pslam 40:2-"He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps." God took me out of that pit the psalmist was talking about and put me in a safe place. In Him alone I am secure. I have learned that over and over again (often the hard way) this year. I have learned that though I may fail a thousand times, He is patient and will never give up on me. He is working in my heart big time.
Going to The Master's College is a huge priveledge. I loved everything about it! I loved the chapels, the values and beliefs held there, the professors, the classes, the dorms, the staff...everything! Honestly, I am so blessed to be able to go there. It's funny how God can bring so many completely different people from all over the world together and make it so that each person there is encouraged by and an encouragement to others around them. He is sovereign over every person that attends each school. It's interesting to see that even the people He decided to place on my wing made a huge impact on me. To sum it all up...I am so grateful to God for providing the way for me to go to Master's. My time spent there was so worth any stress or sacrifice it took to get me there or allow me to stay there.
Well, I am done for tonight but I know that there is tons more for me to say. I may write out more in my blog, but I may not. But I love talking about what God's been doing in my life, so if you want to know more, just ask me! Good night
When I left for school, I was ready for change. I was still trying to mend my broken heart, nervous about meeting a person that I would be living in a small room with for a whole school year, anxious about making friends, sad to leave my friends and family at home, eager to see what college would be like and really excited to see how God would work in my life. My heart healed itself once I found that God was all-sufficient and that I did not need someone (who had really just gotten in the way of my relationship with God-for that I blame myself, not him) else to make me happy. I LOVED my roommate and we are planning on rooming together next year. I made TONS of friends who love God and encourage me to walk close with Him. I did miss home alot, but often I was too busy to think about it. College was amazing-classes were awesome, chapel-the music and the messages-were amazing, and dorm life is always fun (except when you can't find anywhere to be alone). God worked in my life in so many, many ways. I learned from classes, chapel, my church, my college group, small group, my RA, my friends, my devotions...I could go on and on. Basically, I have learned alot and I have seen God refining me and making me more like Him. I learned that more important than Christ-likeness is my love for Him. Out of the overflow of my love for Him will come obedience and imitation. I learned that even something as good as my own sancification can become an idol if it takes away from my first love.
When I came home after the end of the school year, I came home a completely different person. I came back loving God more than ever before, loving people more than ever, with a desire to love and serve my family, missing my new family that I found through my friends and in my dorm, and ready to see what God would do in my life this summer. I am eager to see what He wants to do in regards to a special friend of mine :)...more about that to come. My heart is overflowing with thankfulness to God. Pslam 40:2-"He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps." God took me out of that pit the psalmist was talking about and put me in a safe place. In Him alone I am secure. I have learned that over and over again (often the hard way) this year. I have learned that though I may fail a thousand times, He is patient and will never give up on me. He is working in my heart big time.
Going to The Master's College is a huge priveledge. I loved everything about it! I loved the chapels, the values and beliefs held there, the professors, the classes, the dorms, the staff...everything! Honestly, I am so blessed to be able to go there. It's funny how God can bring so many completely different people from all over the world together and make it so that each person there is encouraged by and an encouragement to others around them. He is sovereign over every person that attends each school. It's interesting to see that even the people He decided to place on my wing made a huge impact on me. To sum it all up...I am so grateful to God for providing the way for me to go to Master's. My time spent there was so worth any stress or sacrifice it took to get me there or allow me to stay there.
Well, I am done for tonight but I know that there is tons more for me to say. I may write out more in my blog, but I may not. But I love talking about what God's been doing in my life, so if you want to know more, just ask me! Good night
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