Song by Casting Crowns

"Praise You In This Storm"

(Words by Mark Hall / Music by Mark Hall and Bernie Herms)

I was sure by now

God, You would have reached down

And wiped our tears away

Stepped in and saved the day

But once again, I say "Amen", and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls

I barely hear Your whisper through the rain

"I'm with you"

And as Your mercy falls

I raise my hands and praise the God who gives

And takes away

And I'll praise You in this storm

And I will lift my hands

For You are who You are

No matter where I am

And every tear I've cried

You hold in Your hand

You never left my side

And though my heart is torn

I will praise You in this storm

I remember when

I stumbled in the wind

You heard my cry to you

And you raised me up again

My strength is almost gone

How can I carry on

If I can't find You

But as the thunder rolls

I barely hear You whisper through the rain

"I'm with you"

And as Your mercy falls

I raise my hands and praise the God who gives

And takes away

I lift my eyes unto the hills

Where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord

The Maker of Heaven and Earth

When this song came on the radio yesterday, the words struck me as being both real and faithful, and since it was exactly what I needed to hear, it brought cleansing tears. We all have stormy times, some more severe than others, and remembering to trust God through and despite it all is important. This song encourages that. He is with us, our provider in times of trouble. Storms always pass. Sunshine is coming, bringing with it the most incredible rainbow!

Manna from Heaven

Jesus feeds us heavenly food. Spiritual sustenance is given through the physical.

What a treasure to discover I was called to a deeper closeness with Christ through the Eucharist, a hidden secret previously unknown, like gold shining in a dark corner of a cave. I desperately desired this communion with Him, to share the experience of ancient Christians and all who followed through the centuries. In the same way that one can be married without its consummation, one can follow Christ without the Eucharist. But there is more. Much more. Christ awaits in the deep, rich, real experience of the Eucharist which draws us close to Him.

When I first became Catholic, I sought Christ in the Eucharist daily. He met me there, filling me with palpable peace as I had never known.

Heavenly Bread

Heavenly bread, heavenly wine
Through the grain and cup,
We partake of the Divine
This is my Body, this is my Blood
Poured out for you, a new covenant

Blessings to the One who feeds His church this way
Blessings to the One whom we sup with today

Heavenly bread, heavenly wine
Through the grain and cup,
We partake of the Divine
This is my Body, this is my Blood
Poured out for you, a new covenant

Through Christ's sacrifice and the grace that He gives,
We reap eternal life through this food that makes us live

Heavenly bread, heavenly wine
Through the grain and cup,
We partake of the Divine
This is my Body, this is my Blood
Poured out for you, a new covenant

(Copyright Esther Oertel 2004)

Greater Love Has No Man

This is the love of my life, my true Valentine. There is no one who loves me more fully, completely or passionately.

Here's what He did as recorded in ancient scripture:

"Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:6-11)

He gave up who He was to commune with man. (Still completely and fully God, he took on the nature of man when He "made himself nothing...") The Divine, a fully dimensional being living outside time and space, limited Himself via time, space, flesh, blood and three dimensions, all for the sake of revealing love to us. Love being the motivator, and knowing we could not reverse the process to go to Him, He came to us. Nothing but love would give up so much... "even death on a cross!"

A human infant is utterly helpless, with its survival depending upon the good will of those around them. Jesus came into the world, making Himself helpless. He experienced formation in the womb, birth, growth, learning, pain. All for us.

We must see everything in our lives with the backdrop of the incarnation, the cross and the resurrection.

The incarnation changed the world. We were important enough to God for the Divine to become human. And we are still. We are the apple of His eye (Deuteronomy 32 and Zechariah 2); His thoughts toward us are more plentiful than all the grains of sand (Psalm 139).

The cross revealed great love. "Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13) Whatever happens, however painful, we must see it in the light of the cross and know that "greater love has no man" for us. St. Catherine of Siena said, "Everything comes from love; all is ordained for the salvation of man. God does nothing without this goal in mind." Sometimes God's "severe mercy" (CS Lewis) is what preserves us in love. We place ourselves in His hands and even "what Satan intends for evil" (Genesis 40) becomes the course of His love for us.

And finally, resurrection. Resurrection is the conversion of heart after the struggle. Resurrection is transformation. Resurrection is the promise, the hope, the rainbow in the clouds after the flood. Resurrection is real, both now in our earthly lives and forever in eternity. Christ equals the resurrection. He bought it for us, He lives it in us, He gives it to us.

Truly there is no love greater than this.

On My List

I really want to go here before I die.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jellyfish_Lake

Moments with God

While in high school, we lived in a coastal community. Our home was literally across the street from the ocean, and redwood forest surrounded it on three sides. Each day after school, I'd spend time on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific that stretched for untold miles before me. That ocean, and time alone there with God, was peace for me in an otherwise tumultous existence. Basking in the presence of God in those moments (or hours) allowed me to walk in calmness through whatever else surrounded me.

That was a long time ago in a different world. But nature still speaks to me. We live inside a kaleidoscope of sensual imagery that stimulates us toward God. What we see is physical (mountains made of rough, hard rock, blades of grass that are soft or prickly depending on the season, clouds misty and damp on our skin were we to fly through them), but the physical draws us to the spiritual, causing us to embrace (or question) the "beyond," the "more than what we see." Or at least it should. God has instilled a longing for Him in our souls, and His reflection in nature stimulates that longing like hunger pangs. "The heavens speak of the glory of God, the firmament shows His handiwork." (Psalm 19)

This evening my son's meeting ran long, so I had unexpected time to spend in a beautiful setting. The air was that perfect balance between warm and cool, meadows and mountains were drawing in their colors for the night, and clouds were wearing their dusk-time formal wear (tonight's color was orange). I hung out the vehicle's window, dog-like, craning to see the beauty. All this was set to the backdrop of Christian music on the radio. "You speak with thunder and lightning, Your voice shakes the mountains, the foundations of the earth... speak to me, speak to me..."

That was an unexpected stolen moment in an otherwise busy world, and what better way to spend it than to have the Word of God spoken in three dimensions all around me?

Soar!

Soar!

Take flight, my soul!
Free from the bonds
That have held you fast

Never again let anything damage you
Rest in the reality of who you are,
A child of God, and it is God
Who has always called and beckoned you

You remember Him from your childhood
When He first called your name

From the time you were a thought in God's mind,
He knew who you were, who you would be,
And how you would get there
Live this now without any apologies
You only need please Him...

Dance in the meadow of God's love
Where it is always springtime,
Where birds always sing,
And where your favorite flowers abide.

You are always loved by Him
Always cradled in His arms
Always gently encouraged to be your best for Him

Abide only in Him
For this is true freedom

Soar!

Lapse in Judgment

In my need to reach out for advice amidst some recent turmoil in my life, I made an error in judgment and someone who's completely innocent of the situation may have read the words I wrote. They were not words that disparaged, nonetheless my confusion in a difficult situation came through. And there's no way I can directly repair the damage...

...except pray.

And pray I will. I will pray that my lack of discernment will not make this person question their faith in any way. And that God will use it for good. He's good at that.

In the book of Genesis, Joseph, Jacob's son, encountered many trials. He stood strong through them, always trusting God, and some of them were amazingly difficult. At one point he had the presence of mind to say, "You planned to harm me. But God planned it for good. He planned to do what is now being done. He wanted to save many lives." Genesis 50:20

How absolutely counter-intuitive those words are! What temerity to say and believe them! But how true. God is in the redemption business. There is nothing we have done, are doing or will do that cannot be redeemed in some way, however small, when given to Him in faith. He redeems souls, He gives eternal life; how much more can he redeem the other issues of our lives? "All things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purposes." Romans 8:28

Maybe this will be used for good in this person's life. I pray it will be so. Until then, Lord, I will pray, trust that you will redeem it, and learn to do better next time!