Song of the Week #74

Song of the Week #73

What Does Love Look Like?

There were 2 baby birds, Bart and Bob, in a nest perched high above the ground. The Mama Bird loved her 2 babies very much. Every day she would fly out from the nest and search for worms to bring back. Without fail, she would come back with one worm for each of her babies. “Here’s your worm for the day,” she’d say. “I love you both very much.” And the babies were happy.

This continued for years as the babies got bigger and stronger and turned into high-energy youths. They would play all day long around the large nest their mama had built for them. Then, everyday, Mama Bird would come home with a worm for each of them. “Did you both have a good day?” she’d ask. “Yes, Mama. We both love you very much,” they’d reply. Then they would each eat their worm the Mama Bird brought for them. And the babies were happy.

The babies kept growing and started spending less of their time playing and more watching the other birds fly. “I would like to fly like Mama does,” they would say to each other. “But I don’t know how, and it looks scary.”

So one day when Mama Bird came home with their worms, they asked, “Mama, can we fly like you and the other birds do?” “Well, of course!” replied Mama Bird, “you both just have to try.” “But we’re scared of gravity. Won’t it make us fall?” they asked. Mama Bird chuckled a little bit. “Gravity isn’t bad; it’s keeping you from floating out of this nest right now,” she said with a smile on her face. Mama Bird was wise.

Time passed and Mama Bird kept bringing home worms everyday to her 2 babies that she loved very much. They kept getting bigger and stronger and now spent all of their day watching other birds fly—it looked like so much fun! One beautiful spring day Mama Bird came home to see one of her babies on the edge of the nest. Mama Bird asked, “What are you doing, Bart?” “I think I want to fly today,” he replied. “That’s wonderful! I love you so much!” Mama Bird exclaimed.

So Mama Bird took Bart out to fly. She held onto him until they were both high in the air and then she let him go. Bart flapped his wings as hard as he could, but kept falling. He flapped them harder and harder as the specks on the ground came into clearer view. Finally, right as he was closing in on the forest floor he started to rise back up. He was flying! Mama Bird was so happy for Bart. They flew around rest of the day looking for worms together.

That night they both flew back to the nest where Bob was waiting on them. “I flew today!” screamed Bart. “Really? Weren’t you scared?” replied Bob. “At first it was really scary, but I just kept flapping my wings until I started to fly. And then, I went with Mama and got my own worm today!” Bart was obviously proud of himself. Mama Bird told Bob, “We can take you out to fly tomorrow if you want.” Bob looked down and said, “I don’t know…I’m still kind of scared.” Mama Bird said, “That’s ok. I still love you very much.” So they all ate their worms and were happy.

The next day came and Bart went out to fly first thing in the morning. Mama Bird asked Bob, “Are you ready to fly today?” “I’m still kind of scared,” he replied. “Maybe tomorrow.” “That’s ok,” Mama Bird replied, “I love you so much. I’ll bring you a worm when I come back tonight.” So Bob didn’t try to fly that day.

The next day was much the same: Bart flew all day long, Bob was still scared to fly, and Mama Bird brought a worm home for both her and Bob. The next day was the same, too. In fact, the days rolled into months, and the months rolled into years. Bart never came around much anymore because he started his own nest and would go out to find worms for his 2 babies he loved very much. Mama Bird was getting older and sometimes it would take her longer to gather food, but she would always bring Bob back a worm at the end of the day.

One special day, Bart came over on his way home to his own nest to visit Bob. “Bob”, he said, “you’ve really got to try flying. It’s so much fun! And not only that, I get to find worms for me and my 2 babies that I love so much.” Bob replied, “It still seems kind of scary. Besides, Mama brings me a worm every night.” Bart nodded and said, “Yeah, she loves us both very much. But, it’s weird…I don’t know how to describe it, but for some reason I really enjoy hunting for worms to give to my babies. I really liked it when we were growing up and Mama brought us worms every day; now I guess I know how she feels.” Bob looked at him puzzled, “I don’t know what you mean. I get to sit in the nest and watch everybody else fly everyday—that’s pretty fun. You have to spend your whole day looking for food and I don’t, but we both end up with a worm every day. Sounds like I’m getting the better deal.” After they talked a bit more, Bart said his farewell and flew back to his own nest with worms for him and his 2 babies.

Time kept passing and most days were the same. Mama Bird would spend all day looking for worms and then bring one back for Bob. At night, they would talk a little and then go to sleep.

One winter day Mama Bird got up to go spend her day looking for worms for herself and Bob. Before she left, she said to Bart, as she always did, “I love you so much.” Bob replied, “I love you, too.” The day passed and night came, but Mama Bird didn’t come back. Bob knew what had happened—Mama Bird had gotten old and wouldn’t be coming back this time. He was very sad at this thought and went to sleep with a heavy heart.

In the morning, Bob was still sad. He was also hungry. He hadn’t thought about it until just now, but then it hit him, “Who is going to bring me a worm today?” He panicked. He roamed around the nest while his mind raced. He racked his brain for ways to get some other bird’s attention so that they would bring him a worm—he knew he had to eat! He tried everything he knew how to do to get the attention of the other birds that were flying by with worms in the mouths, but nothing worked. The hunger pains coupled with sadness started to get to him. After another cold and sleepless night, he finally realized the only thing to do was to get out of the nest.

Early the next morning, Bob got himself ready to fly. He was scared but remembered Mama Bird telling him that she loved him very much. He remembered what she said about gravity. He thought of how Bart said it was fun to get worms for himself and his 2 babies now. As he gathered all of his courage, he stepped to the edge of the nest with his heart pounding and his mind full of all of these things. With his eyes wide open and his wings spread as wide as they could go, he took one last look at his nest and stepped over the edge.

Song of the Week #72

Song of the Week #71

I've posted this same song on here before, but this is the original artist...different take:

Song of the Week #70

Song of the Week #69

Song of the Week #68

Song of the Week #67

Eyes on the Prize

Our model is Jesus. So to be like Him in all things, in all actions, in all attitudes is what we as believers in Christ should be shooting for. Let me direct your attention to the 11^th chapter of the book of John; there is a very subtle, but profound, display of how we can pattern ourselves after Jesus.

To quickly sum up the setting of this passage, two women send a message to Jesus that their brother, Lazarus, is sick…presumably to hasten Jesus to come to where Lazarus is so that Jesus would heal him. Jesus has a close relationship with both the women and with Lazarus, but their location is a day’s journey away from where Jesus and his disciples currently are. This is Jesus’ reaction to that news in the 6^th verse of chapter 11: “Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.”

If you read the rest of the chapter, you see that Lazarus has been in the tomb for four days by the time Jesus arrives. The two sisters meet Jesus on his way into town and tell him how if only He had been there while Lazarus was sick that he would not have died. Jesus is deeply moved by their grief (and probably their faith as well), and proceeds to raise Lazarus from the dead.

Today, I don’t want to talk about the miracle. I want to focus on how Jesus reacted when he was confronted with the bad news messenger.

Again, verse 6 says, ”Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.” Although Jesus had a close relationship with Lazarus and his two sisters, he did not move at their request. I love how my NIV Study Bible puts it in the notes at the bottom of the page when commenting on this verse: “Jesus moved as the Father directed, not as people wished.”

I want to be like that! I want to move as the Father directs me; not necessarily how people direct me. I don’t wanna let every gripe, moan, complaint, or criticism direct and alter my path when I’m doing stuff for the Lord. Even in some situations that appear dire, if I know I’m acting upon the directing of the Lord, then men shouldn’t sway me.

You know by now that I’m all about having godly people in your life that you can trust for advice, having accountability present in your life, and having all of these types of things that are healthy…but I’m looking at what Jesus did here as a model for our behavior. Jesus ended up going to pray for Lazarus, but He did it in a way that didn’t compromise his mission. Sometimes the thing you have your eyes fixed on shouldn’t be put on the back burner when some other need arises. There is always gonna be something that could be done, something that needs attention, something that could pull your focus. You’ve gotta use wisdom, as Jesus did, and determine what is more important.

Lord, grant me the ability to know when to say ‘no’ or ‘maybe later’ when things come up. But also let me not neglect people, or their needs; let me prefer others to myself while walking in the wisdom that comes from You. In Jesus Christ’s Holy Name, Amen.

Song of the Week #66

BE AWESOME!!!

You are made in the image of the Lord Most High. That means you aren’t second-rate or meant to be put on a shelf. On the contrary, you are to be a light on a hill, you are to be loved and appreciated, you are to be a leader of men. Furthermore, you shouldn’t shroud yourself in false humility. You shouldn’t shield the glow of the giftings and abilities God has given you. If you’ve got Michael Jackson moves quit doing the cha-cha slide. It ain’t making any of us people that can’t dance feel any better that you are doing the freaking cha-cha slide with us anyways. I want to watch you do your thing! I want to see you in your element. Then, instead of showing me how to do some line dance a little better, you can show me how to start moonwalking.

Be awesome like God made you to be awesome! You owe it to Him and to yourself. AMEN!!!!!

Song of the Week #65

A nice remake of a great song:

Song of the Week #64

Huge, epic song. Go hear it live sometime!

A Poverty Theology Parable by Mark Driscoll

I've had numerous thoughts rolling around about posts...then they never get done because of the vast amount of real life things that have taken precedence. So since it looks like I may skip another week before finishing up something original, here's something pretty good for you: (original post can be found here)

A loving and generous Father once bought his son a shiny new bicycle. With a broad smile, the Father surprised the son and rolled it out and handed it to him.

Strangely, rather than looking happy, the son looked anxious. Rather than riding the bike, he stepped away from it in fear.

The Father asked the child what was wrong. The son replied, “Father, I cannot ride the bike. All around the world there are missionaries who do not have a bike. I would like to give them my bike so that they can ride it to unreached peoples and preach the gospel. The Father replied, “If you simply ask me, I am glad to also give you a second bike to give to a missionary.”

Yet, rather than simply riding the bike, the son continued to argue with his Father, saying, “I would much prefer an older bicycle. This one is shiny and new. It makes me look proud if I ride it.” The Father explained, “If I want you to ride the bike I gave you, and you are more concerned about what others think of you as you ride it than my joy in seeing you enjoy my gift to you, then you may look humble to them, but I know there is pride in your heart because you are living for their approval instead of my joy.”

Unrelenting, the son said, “But some people will talk about my bicycle out of judgment, envy, or jealousy because it is so nice. Some might even stumble and covet my bicycle. I do not want them to sin, and so I would rather not have a new bike so as to be considerate of them.” The Father replied, “If others respond to my grace to you in this way, the problem is not the bicycle but their hearts. I will deal with their hearts should they prove sinful—something you assume will happen but do not know. I will love and serve them by working to change their heart if they respond sinfully. But for you, my request is that you simply ride the bicycle I gave you. You are thinking about it too much and enjoying it too little.”

The Father walked away for a few hours, kindly asking the son to consider his request. Upon returning, the son had yet another line of reasoning. “Father, I will not ride the bike because I am fearful. I fear that it is so nice and I would enjoy it so much that it would become an idol to me. So, to avoid idolatry I will abstain from riding the bicycle.” The Father replied, “You could also ride your bike as an act of worship to me, enjoying the gift I gave you to your joy and my glory. Once again, the problem is not the bicycle.”

The son replied, “But Father, you are better than any bicycle. You are enough. I do not need a bicycle. I have you. You, Father, are enough.”

Grieved in his heart, the Father said, “I know I am enough. But I am a generous Father. I like to give gifts to my children. I like to see them blessed, happy, and free. I just wanted to watch you ride the bike. And I wanted to go for a ride with you. Then, we could have had fun, spend time together, make memories, and laugh.”

Tragically, the son never did ride the bicycle. Instead, he gave it away. He did not cause anyone to stumble, or treat his bike as an idol. And he did not obey his Father and worship him by simply being a kid and enjoying the gift his Father gave him because he was too busy being a theologian with a head full of fears rather than a heart full of fun.

Song of the Week #63

This is what good bands do when things come up: Flyleaf plays after lightning strikes.

Song of the Week #62

Song of the Week #61

Song of the Week #60

Song of the Week #59

Song of the Week #58

A Prophet Without Honor

Do you know who is sitting next to you? That’s a child of God with a unique manifestation of His character. That’s a vessel containing the power of the Holy Spirit if they choose to walk in it. That person sitting next to you could be the key to your breakthrough.

Have you neglected to notice who they are in Christ because you see them every day? Do you fail to acknowledge their anointing because you’ve seen them at their worst, or seen them grow up, or seen them fall a few times? Just because you know them as your friend, your mother, your son, or your colleague doesn’t negate the fact that they could be a live power line.

These people we know intimately are no different than the people we sometimes put on pedestals. We tend to clamor for these “big” people to speak to us or pray for us, but we look right past the people we see every day. These “big” people are really not that much different than you and I—they contain the same God that lives on the inside of every single person that is born again. And I don’t know if you’ve ever thought about it, but these faith giants probably deal with the some of the same shortcomings, stumbling blocks, and perception problems that you and your friends and families face. After all, these giants of the faith are somebody’s friend, somebody’s mother, somebody’s son.

It is much easier for us to honor the people we view from afar because we probably don’t know their every weakness or know who they were before they became the person we see now. We can honor them (or their ministry) much easier because we usually only see the good stuff and hear about their best moments. But I submit to you that the very people that you do life with can hold the miracle in your life that you are looking for if you will choose to start honoring them for who they are in the Lord. And that means you honor them fully…let me explain what I mean:

Let’s say I get to see one of my uncles a few times a year at family gatherings. I’ve known him my entire life. He has watched football with me, taken me to amusement parks, and bought me gifts at Christmas. I know him pretty well and have been around long enough (and heard enough stories from the family) to know his interests, how he used to be, and what he is like now. Now let’s say this uncle is a preacher. He travels around and preaches the Gospel. He is a great family man and loves his wife. I have the opportunity to approach this man in a several different ways. I can honor him as 1) the guy who grew up with my mother and tormented her; 2) my uncle that I’ve always known; 3) a man who probably doesn’t care all that much for money; 4) a provider for his family who is faithful to his wife, 5) a man of God who has led countless people to the Lord; etc, etc, etc. The way in which I choose to honor him is equivalent to how much I can get from him.

Notice that in Matthew 10:41, Jesus says, “Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward.” Thus, by merely honoring a person according to their place in the Kingdom you can get everything that they have. In the case of my uncle, I can choose to honor as little or as much as I like, but whatever level I honor him that is how much I can receive. If I only look at him as ‘the guy who buys me presents at Christmas’ or ‘the funny uncle who makes fart jokes’ then I am missing something. If I don’t stop at the familiarity of knowing him and instead choose to honor him as a man of God who has spent his life to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ then I can receive so much more from him. The amount of respect and honor I give him is directly tied to how much I can receive from him.

It’s so much harder for us to see people that we know intimately as people who could be special…as people who could have a very unique place in the Kingdom. What if I said my uncle was Billy Graham? Would that change how you think I should view him? Guess what—Billy Graham IS somebody’s uncle. Somebody has the opportunity to only see him as their parent’s brother…only as a guy they see mostly at holidays. They get to choose if they will honor him as somebody they’ve always know intimately and heard crazy stories about his past, or honor him as being an evangelist to the nations.

You have the opportunity to look at the people around you differently than you have always done. These people aren’t only your friends and family; they are children of the Most High God. Choose to honor them fully and watch more life flow into your relationships.

Song of the Week #57

Song of the Week #56

Song of the Week #55

Double shot of John Mark for ya this week. Tis the good stuff!!

Song of the Week #54

This 'Song of the Week' is better than any of the others. This is the song that your Creator sings over you. This is what your Daddy God sings to you.

Zephaniah 3:17 says, "The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing" (NIV). He rejoices over you with singing! His eyes look upon you as a father looks at his newborn child—eyes of adoration, of love, of joy, and of great contentment. The joy He feels over you and towards you bubbles over in song FOR YOU. You make the Creator of Heaven and Earth joyful!!

What does your song sound like? What does He sing over you? Mine has a beautiful melody with gorgeous harmonies all over it. Every instrument falling into place around that central theme and complimenting it. That central theme, the melody, is the centerpiece—the part that is always the focus. All of the other stuff around it are byproducts and bonuses; they really can't exist in beauty apart from the melody...as it should be.

My life's song is sung by my Creator and the Lover of My Soul. Hallelujah!!! AMEN!!!!!

Think It Not Strange

“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.” --1^st Peter 4:12-13 (NIV)

As you follow the call of the Lord on your life, you will face opposition. The enemy of your soul hates nothing more than for you to burn so bright that others catch fire, too. He will try every trick he knows to discourage you, deceive you, and bump you off the path that is producing fruit for the Kingdom. You should expect this.

This opposition is not reason to run and hide. On the contrary, when you face opposition that flies in the face of what you know the Lord has told you, then it should be encouragement! You are doing something that is rocking the spiritual places enough that the enemy is taking note of you.

Don’t think it strange that attacks come harder and heavier as you push more into your calling. When you were sitting on the sidelines, content being saved and not really doing anything, you probably didn’t face as many spiritual battles because Satan wasn’t scared of you—you posed no real threat to him. Your complacency in Christ didn’t bother him…although he had lost the battle for your soul, he didn’t figure he’d lose many more people because of you. But as you become more consumed by the things God has called you to, then you should fully expect the devil to try to disrupt things.

The avenues in which he’ll come at you are endless. From external things (relationships deteriorating, having a perceived lack of resources, too many demands on your time) to internal things (exhaustion, loneliness, doubt), the enemy will attack you in your places of vulnerability. He is good at this. He’s been doing this to people for thousands of years. Expect it.

My word to you today is this: persevere. Keep pushing towards the Lord. It is well worth the fight to stay true to the call God has placed on your life. The very fact that the enemy is attacking you is an indication that you are doing the right thing. Take the attacks as signs that you are on the right path to destroying the kingdom of darkness!

There is nothing better you can do than walking out what the Lord has called you to; don't let the enemy scare you away from it or take it from you. Joy, peace, blessing, and abundance are yours through Jesus Christ Our Lord! Amen!!!