hearing: The Face of Love- Sanctus Real
favorite parts <3: “And you are the face that changed the whole world. No one too lost for you to love. No one too low for you to serve. So, give us the grace to change the world. No one too lost for me to love. No one too low for me to serve…”
&
“You’ve been portrayed a thousand different ways, but my heart can see you better than my eyes.”
*~~~*
WOAH! :) Happy New Year’s :)
*Point One:
So this blog started out as a conversation with myself trying to describe what has been going on with me over the past month. I tend to go through these little ups and downs with Jesus. There are times when I can feel Him with his hand closed tightly within my own; it is these times when I feel most in love. But there are also times when I feel so alone. I know Jesus is still beside me, but I withdraw myself from Him. I think this is partly because I get mad at him. The rational side of my mind turns on at this point and asks, “How can you be mad at someone who never does anything wrong? How can you not talk to someone who loves you with everything they have?” And the questions bring tears to my eyes because I know I shouldn’t feel angry or withdraw myself from the one who owns my soul.
I thought about the questions all day, and I think I have found the solution. It is found in the question, I think that sometimes I get so mad at Him because He never does anything wrong. He is absolute perfection. And I think sometimes I tend to get jealous over that fact, because obliviously I’m not perfect in anyway. No matter how hard I work I will never be able to work hard enough to be enough for Him. I was the reason He died just so I could be His equal as I enter into the gates of Heaven.
And as to the second question, well, it does sort of irk me that no matter what I do He will always take me back. Sometimes, I just want someone to yell at me and tell me that I was being stupid. But He never does. He always looks at me with those big beautiful eyes, and takes my hand with the hand that perfected every detail of nature. He never ceases to forgive, which I am grateful for because I never cease to sin. It is just that sometimes I wish He would be harsher to me and He’s not.
Anyway :) That’s just how it gets with me sometimes. It’s a little hard for me to just go all out with the trust thing, but I’m learning :)
*Point Two
My second point of this blog is a lyric to one of my favorite songs. Every time I hear the song, It Was Me, I get chills. It has one of the most beautiful lines that fits in perfectly with my past. “Who saved you when no one else could?” Awh :) So, basically, this small little line describes my entire life story :)
Once upon a time a little girl was born :) She was black and blue (where she had a few complications being born), but to him she was beautiful :) Because he already knew that she was his. He knew that she would grow up, and that she would make the choices necessary to make him a part of her.
So this child grew, not so much in grace and beauty, but in knowledge and dreams. She had a few problems on the way of growth (which caused her lots of casts and bruises), and almost lost the fight with a sinus problem, but he had other plans. This was the second time he saved her life. He gave this little girl hopes, and dreams big enough to fill seven of the largest galaxies. Her goal was to write and fill the world with beautiful words, and wonderful stories, but she turned down the wrong road.
He watched in miserable pain as she picked at the scabs on her legs. “Battle wounds,” she thought. “Proof of this pathetic life I’ve lived.” He watched through tears as she planned the evil deed out, she was only waiting for the right moment. But he couldn’t let her finish it out and give up. Hope was sent to her in the form of a small text saying I love you. The girl threw away the knife she held in her hand. And once again, he had saved her life. It was a long hard road back to him, but she unknowingly traveled it, and when the time came, she fell to her knees.
The past she knew was buried at the bottom of the deepest ocean, and her dreams mapped themselves into the night sky.
“Everything you want to change about yourself, all the parts about yourself that you want to keep secret, its your power. IT’S who you are.” -Fame-
The hardest pain for me to live with was the possibility that God would not take me back. As many times as I had fallen, I thought the feat to be impossible. If you have ever been to that place where you had (as a CHRISTIAN) ran so far away that you thought, Well HE won’t bother to pull me out of this one, then you know what I am talking about. My brain had actually just given up all hope of surviving.
So when JESUS stepped in and saved me from Satan. (WHEN HE SAVED ME FROM MYSELF…) The pain was first like a BURNING fire. I was so ashamed of what I had done and who I had become. BUT a cool new fire washed over me as Jesus brushed all of the past sin off of me. HE said, My dearest sister, you are clean, you are right back where you belong. Taylor Swift's song you belong with me is exactly what JESUS sings to us.
"I'm the one who makes you laugh when you know you're about to cry
I know your favorite songs and you tell me about your dreams
I think I know where you belong. I think I know it's with me.
Can't you see that I'm the one who understand you?
Been here all along so why can't you see?
You belong with me"
I still have a hard time sometimes. The urges and desires have never fully gone away. But like every addiction, you just have to look at it as a daily success. Satan uses this to tempt me, but this only proves that I am human.
I'm a dreamer, a hoper, and a FIRM believer in prayer.
I have hearts on my notebooks and HEALED scars on my legs.
I believe in miracles, because I AM ONE.
There is no way I should be alive today.
The odds have been stacked against me since jan.19,1992.
But GOD has a plan for me, and HE'S not finished just yet.
*Point Three :)
Happy 2010 :) Already a new year has begun and it is quite amazing. Who would have thought it would come so quickly? So, :) I’m going to make a list of ten things I want to get accomplished in this year :)
Goals:
1. Finish my story :)
2. Not text as much (yeah right)
3. Start & Finish sewing my blanket :)
4. Make a new friend.
5. Drink more water.
6. Get 10,000 songs on my iPod (I have close to 2,000 right now)
7. Keep my room somewhat on the clean side.
8. Write in my journals more J (I have like 10 blank ones now)
9. Read through my Bibles again.
10. Get a different part in the Easter play (I’ve been Mary (Lazarus’ sister) for the past 3 years)
Aha! There we have it. :) Hopefully I’ll do at least half of it :) Anyways :) lol I guess I’m going to go :) Have a happy and safe new year. Keep your eyes stuck on the One who created the heavens and the earth in a single day. :)
Shine. Bright.
Emily. Ann.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Winter Snows & Traffic Jams :)
*Written December 18th (in traffic lol)
*Listening to: One King- Point of Grace :)
Okay, so here we sit in traffic. It's honestly horrible, not to mention that, well, I am in dire need of a bathroom. But without one in any range of sight, I shall have to sit and wait until one magically appears. In the meantime... Let's have a little story ladies & gents. :) Shall we?
*~~~~*
The scars ran in elegant lines down her long legs. If one was to look from a distance, he or she might see the the lines forming intricate designs and pictures. Her best artwork was hidden in scars on her legs, but only she could see the beauty in them. Others saw them as the monsters that they were. They knew ther her addiction was slowly killing her, but they could not do anything about it. She was her own person, the title of eighteen weighing heavily upon her shoulders. She said she was completely in control, although it was a contradiction to what she knew was true. She was spiraling out of control in an alarming rate.
The deeper she cut, the better she felt, but the razor was only a mask to hide the pain she felt in her heart. She sliced bitterly at her leg in her heartache, but there was no instant relief. Her hand was unusually shaky, an the lines squiggled hopelessly as her hand trembled. Finding no comfort from the slices she made in her skin, she threw the blade across the large bathroom. She suddenly felt the cold tiles against her bare, bleeding legs as the razor clattered against the floor. She curled into herself as teardrops fell from her eyes.
She was startled by the sobs coming from right beside her. It shouldn't have surprised her, she knew who it was before she even looked up. She looked up to see him looking at her with tear filled eyes. The razor blade lay untouched on the floor but blood was flowing from identical cuts on his legs. Surely he hadn'y done this to himself. He wasn't the type she thought. But the proof was there written in blood on his legs. She gasped ashamed as she realized that when she cut, he bleed too. He was her perfect match, half of who she was. Jesus pulled her into a hug as they cried together.
"Why would you do this?" He was only whispering, but he might as well been yelling with the guilt it brought her.
"I was all alone. I had no one to help with my problems." She shrugged as she spoke.
"I wanted to help you sweetie." The girl was angered by this, and glared in his direction.
"Then why didn't you? Why wern't you there?" His eyes showed the sadness he hid from his face.
"You wouldn't let me. You ran away, you didn't want me anymore." She gasped as he continued. "Do you know how long I've stood, pacing the floor, waiting for you to come home? Waiting for the day I got to listen to your problems, to help you solve them. Waiting to get to hold you in my arms again to protect you from the world waiting to tear you apart, but you ran to them. Now look, they broke you and made you theirs." She was bawling now ashamed of her past.
"Am I fixable?" She asked in a whisper, and was surprised to hear him chuckle.
"Of course you're fixable." But his face took on a more serious look as he stared into her eyes.
"I love you Emmy." He was entirely serious, it was then that I noticed that I was the pathetic girl in the flashback.
"I love you. I'm so sorry." He only shook his head as he looked out the bathroom window at the stars.
"You're mine now you know." His lips were pulled into a smirk as the midnight stars twinkled behind him.
"Forever." I whispered.
*~~~*
AWH :) and to think, that really was me at one point in time. Thankfully Jesus stepped in and took me back. I don't deserve the kindness that he gave me, but it comes in overwhelming torrents on a daily basis. Everything about the way he loves me is beautifully perfect.
I think that this story explains the reason as to why I am so passionate about To Write Love On Her Arms. Everyone needs to know that there is always hope, and hurting oneself is never the answer.
ANYWHO :)
I got to run, my story needs to be proofread and fixed, before my buddy Courtney can read the masterpeice that has been my last three months..
MERRY MERRY CHRISTMAS :)
Shine Brightly.
Emily.Ann.
*Listening to: One King- Point of Grace :)
Okay, so here we sit in traffic. It's honestly horrible, not to mention that, well, I am in dire need of a bathroom. But without one in any range of sight, I shall have to sit and wait until one magically appears. In the meantime... Let's have a little story ladies & gents. :) Shall we?
*~~~~*
The scars ran in elegant lines down her long legs. If one was to look from a distance, he or she might see the the lines forming intricate designs and pictures. Her best artwork was hidden in scars on her legs, but only she could see the beauty in them. Others saw them as the monsters that they were. They knew ther her addiction was slowly killing her, but they could not do anything about it. She was her own person, the title of eighteen weighing heavily upon her shoulders. She said she was completely in control, although it was a contradiction to what she knew was true. She was spiraling out of control in an alarming rate.
The deeper she cut, the better she felt, but the razor was only a mask to hide the pain she felt in her heart. She sliced bitterly at her leg in her heartache, but there was no instant relief. Her hand was unusually shaky, an the lines squiggled hopelessly as her hand trembled. Finding no comfort from the slices she made in her skin, she threw the blade across the large bathroom. She suddenly felt the cold tiles against her bare, bleeding legs as the razor clattered against the floor. She curled into herself as teardrops fell from her eyes.
She was startled by the sobs coming from right beside her. It shouldn't have surprised her, she knew who it was before she even looked up. She looked up to see him looking at her with tear filled eyes. The razor blade lay untouched on the floor but blood was flowing from identical cuts on his legs. Surely he hadn'y done this to himself. He wasn't the type she thought. But the proof was there written in blood on his legs. She gasped ashamed as she realized that when she cut, he bleed too. He was her perfect match, half of who she was. Jesus pulled her into a hug as they cried together.
"Why would you do this?" He was only whispering, but he might as well been yelling with the guilt it brought her.
"I was all alone. I had no one to help with my problems." She shrugged as she spoke.
"I wanted to help you sweetie." The girl was angered by this, and glared in his direction.
"Then why didn't you? Why wern't you there?" His eyes showed the sadness he hid from his face.
"You wouldn't let me. You ran away, you didn't want me anymore." She gasped as he continued. "Do you know how long I've stood, pacing the floor, waiting for you to come home? Waiting for the day I got to listen to your problems, to help you solve them. Waiting to get to hold you in my arms again to protect you from the world waiting to tear you apart, but you ran to them. Now look, they broke you and made you theirs." She was bawling now ashamed of her past.
"Am I fixable?" She asked in a whisper, and was surprised to hear him chuckle.
"Of course you're fixable." But his face took on a more serious look as he stared into her eyes.
"I love you Emmy." He was entirely serious, it was then that I noticed that I was the pathetic girl in the flashback.
"I love you. I'm so sorry." He only shook his head as he looked out the bathroom window at the stars.
"You're mine now you know." His lips were pulled into a smirk as the midnight stars twinkled behind him.
"Forever." I whispered.
*~~~*
AWH :) and to think, that really was me at one point in time. Thankfully Jesus stepped in and took me back. I don't deserve the kindness that he gave me, but it comes in overwhelming torrents on a daily basis. Everything about the way he loves me is beautifully perfect.
I think that this story explains the reason as to why I am so passionate about To Write Love On Her Arms. Everyone needs to know that there is always hope, and hurting oneself is never the answer.
ANYWHO :)
I got to run, my story needs to be proofread and fixed, before my buddy Courtney can read the masterpeice that has been my last three months..
MERRY MERRY CHRISTMAS :)
Shine Brightly.
Emily.Ann.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Inadequate Love
Okay,
So it’s like two whole days away from semester exams. You could say that I’m beginning to get just a little stressed out. A smart person would be memorizing every formula found in their college algebra & algebra 2 books. Sadly, I’m not that person. Instead, I am spending all my time engulfed in The Mortal Instruments trilogy. Honestly I stayed up until 5 a.m. last night just reading. It has been a week and two days since I started. I am now 74 pages into book 3. They are, in my opinion, much better than twilight, but that’s just me. I’m just waiting on Jace and Clary to find out how perfect they are together and finally be together. *sighs dreamily*
ANYWAY, senior year is officially halfway over. :( This makes me sad, because it has basically flown by, and I know that next semester will be even worse. I honestly should have listened when the old people warned me of this. I never thought that they would have been right. Yet here I stand with only 5 months left of my senior year, and one month away from me becoming the mature adult that comes with the title eighteen. So, basically what I’m saying is that I am scared to death to meet the year 2010. I kind of wish that I fit in more with my senior class, but I always feel like I’m an outsider, the black sheep of the herd, because I’m not much like any of them. This could be because all my friends are juniors though.
On a brighter note, Ms. Brewster, my AP English teacher, announced that we are finished with Shakespeare. :) This means whoo for me. Although I love Shakespeare, I hate the way she teaches it. It is rather boring, but she did let us act out like every scene. It really seemed to help everyone remember it better and brought a lot of laughs. I’ll make sure to put up a video sometime.
I thought maybe in one of these that I would explain the title of the blog to myself, but honestly it began in a dream.
A beautiful girl of seventeen stood on the river bank. She peeked over the bank looking at her reflection in the smooth, clear water. I walked over to where she stood, and gasped as I saw her reflection. Down one side of her face, a scar marring her once beautiful complexion. Ashamed I looked over to the girl to offer an apology, but she didn’t seem to notice that I was even there. I peeked over the grassy edge once again, but I noticed that I had no reflection. She couldn’t see me. I was about to walk away, her tears stopped me in my tracks. I looked back to see her kneeling by the edge.
“God,” her voice was a shaking whisper, and I sat on the ground beside her.
“I know you are out there, but I’m not sure what to do. I’ve messed up so badly.” Her words became incoherent, and I watched helplessly as she broke down before me. It was then that I noticed the scars lacing her arms and legs. I saw the anger in her eyes mixed with a small flicker of hope. I looked at my feet awkwardly. When I looked up again, a man was kneeling beside her. I watched his movements curiously. He moved his hands over the girl before slowly wrapping his arms around her in a hug. After a few moments he stood up and walked away, but a duplicate of him was still hugging the girl. Amazed I stumbled over to the man.
“Sir, what did you just do?” He turned to me as I asked.
“She asked me to mend her heart, and I promised that I would never leave.”
“What do you mean she asked you to mend her heart?” I asked confused making the man smile.
“It was broken,” he exclaimed, “But now, it is new again.” I felt my face scrunch into confusion as he stood there.
“But how?”
“Surely you understand child. The same thing happened to you.”
“Who are you?” I asked. The man said nothing and I feared that I had made him angry. I watched as he slowly held out his hands. Two red scars stood out, and I gasped.
“Jesus?” I asked amazed, and he nodded in confirmation. “Where have you been?"
“Funny, child, I could ask you the same question.” He frowned as he spoke.
“You left me!” I pointed my finger at him as I shouted the accusation, but he only shook his head.
“No Emily, you left me.” I looked at him in horror as the truth dawned on me.
“Jesus… I…” He cut me off midsentence and hugged me.
“I love you too.” He said, and then everything fell into perfect sense. The undying love that the creator of the stars has for me, and the small pathetic love that I had to offer him in return. Yet it was enough for him, and he took me as I was. I could feel my heart being changed from it's cold state to on fire. It was cool and low at first, but I felt it grow to big and hot. My eyes opened wide to the heavens, as if waiting for something to happen.
"Keep your eyes right there sweetheart. I promise I'll be back soon, but in the meantime, I'll be right here." He placed his hand over my heart as a smile appeared on my face.
"I'll be waiting." I whispered.
THE BEGINNING
So, story time is over :) It was a great dream huh? A love story in the greatest sense, and I do love a good love story. I love it when the girl finally meets her perfect match. When the guy looks longingly into her eyes before he finally kisses her for the very first time. It gives me this wonderful beautiful high that I don’t want to come down from. Then I think of Jesus, and how completely inadequate my love is for him, even though he has my entire heart. Even if I live for ten million billion years, completely and totally IN LOVE with Him, I still will not have loved Him even .000000000000000000001 of what he loves me with every second of everyday. I am wrong for Him in every sense of the word, but he still loves me. This isn’t like some Bella hearts Edward love, this is way more intense and totally real, which explains the sudden increase in my heartbeat. If I could choose how to spend the rest of my time on earth, I would spend every second alone with a pen and a paper falling in love with Jesus. Like Matthew West’s song more says, He loves us more than the stars :) ******
Shine Bright.
Emily Ann.
So it’s like two whole days away from semester exams. You could say that I’m beginning to get just a little stressed out. A smart person would be memorizing every formula found in their college algebra & algebra 2 books. Sadly, I’m not that person. Instead, I am spending all my time engulfed in The Mortal Instruments trilogy. Honestly I stayed up until 5 a.m. last night just reading. It has been a week and two days since I started. I am now 74 pages into book 3. They are, in my opinion, much better than twilight, but that’s just me. I’m just waiting on Jace and Clary to find out how perfect they are together and finally be together. *sighs dreamily*
ANYWAY, senior year is officially halfway over. :( This makes me sad, because it has basically flown by, and I know that next semester will be even worse. I honestly should have listened when the old people warned me of this. I never thought that they would have been right. Yet here I stand with only 5 months left of my senior year, and one month away from me becoming the mature adult that comes with the title eighteen. So, basically what I’m saying is that I am scared to death to meet the year 2010. I kind of wish that I fit in more with my senior class, but I always feel like I’m an outsider, the black sheep of the herd, because I’m not much like any of them. This could be because all my friends are juniors though.
On a brighter note, Ms. Brewster, my AP English teacher, announced that we are finished with Shakespeare. :) This means whoo for me. Although I love Shakespeare, I hate the way she teaches it. It is rather boring, but she did let us act out like every scene. It really seemed to help everyone remember it better and brought a lot of laughs. I’ll make sure to put up a video sometime.
I thought maybe in one of these that I would explain the title of the blog to myself, but honestly it began in a dream.
A beautiful girl of seventeen stood on the river bank. She peeked over the bank looking at her reflection in the smooth, clear water. I walked over to where she stood, and gasped as I saw her reflection. Down one side of her face, a scar marring her once beautiful complexion. Ashamed I looked over to the girl to offer an apology, but she didn’t seem to notice that I was even there. I peeked over the grassy edge once again, but I noticed that I had no reflection. She couldn’t see me. I was about to walk away, her tears stopped me in my tracks. I looked back to see her kneeling by the edge.
“God,” her voice was a shaking whisper, and I sat on the ground beside her.
“I know you are out there, but I’m not sure what to do. I’ve messed up so badly.” Her words became incoherent, and I watched helplessly as she broke down before me. It was then that I noticed the scars lacing her arms and legs. I saw the anger in her eyes mixed with a small flicker of hope. I looked at my feet awkwardly. When I looked up again, a man was kneeling beside her. I watched his movements curiously. He moved his hands over the girl before slowly wrapping his arms around her in a hug. After a few moments he stood up and walked away, but a duplicate of him was still hugging the girl. Amazed I stumbled over to the man.
“Sir, what did you just do?” He turned to me as I asked.
“She asked me to mend her heart, and I promised that I would never leave.”
“What do you mean she asked you to mend her heart?” I asked confused making the man smile.
“It was broken,” he exclaimed, “But now, it is new again.” I felt my face scrunch into confusion as he stood there.
“But how?”
“Surely you understand child. The same thing happened to you.”
“Who are you?” I asked. The man said nothing and I feared that I had made him angry. I watched as he slowly held out his hands. Two red scars stood out, and I gasped.
“Jesus?” I asked amazed, and he nodded in confirmation. “Where have you been?"
“Funny, child, I could ask you the same question.” He frowned as he spoke.
“You left me!” I pointed my finger at him as I shouted the accusation, but he only shook his head.
“No Emily, you left me.” I looked at him in horror as the truth dawned on me.
“Jesus… I…” He cut me off midsentence and hugged me.
“I love you too.” He said, and then everything fell into perfect sense. The undying love that the creator of the stars has for me, and the small pathetic love that I had to offer him in return. Yet it was enough for him, and he took me as I was. I could feel my heart being changed from it's cold state to on fire. It was cool and low at first, but I felt it grow to big and hot. My eyes opened wide to the heavens, as if waiting for something to happen.
"Keep your eyes right there sweetheart. I promise I'll be back soon, but in the meantime, I'll be right here." He placed his hand over my heart as a smile appeared on my face.
"I'll be waiting." I whispered.
THE BEGINNING
So, story time is over :) It was a great dream huh? A love story in the greatest sense, and I do love a good love story. I love it when the girl finally meets her perfect match. When the guy looks longingly into her eyes before he finally kisses her for the very first time. It gives me this wonderful beautiful high that I don’t want to come down from. Then I think of Jesus, and how completely inadequate my love is for him, even though he has my entire heart. Even if I live for ten million billion years, completely and totally IN LOVE with Him, I still will not have loved Him even .000000000000000000001 of what he loves me with every second of everyday. I am wrong for Him in every sense of the word, but he still loves me. This isn’t like some Bella hearts Edward love, this is way more intense and totally real, which explains the sudden increase in my heartbeat. If I could choose how to spend the rest of my time on earth, I would spend every second alone with a pen and a paper falling in love with Jesus. Like Matthew West’s song more says, He loves us more than the stars :) ******
Shine Bright.
Emily Ann.
Defining Worship
The beat of the drums vibrate through our bodies. The music fills our ears, and the words speak directly to our hearts. The floor groans as the crowd jumps and dances. Hands are raised high in the air reaching for our King.
We Are Entering Pure Praise.
Our gathering is small despite the large number of fliers passed out. Only one or two friends stick out among a sea of blue Live Free shirts. But none of that matters. Not now.
Our only objective is drawing nearer to our one true love, Jesus. We all understand that something big is going to happen. We can feel it deep inside. And we begin to open our hearts with prayer. Before long, it is our turn to sing.
I stand in front of the small crowd, but all I can see is Jesus. My strength, my love, my reason for singing. This is all for Him.
The band begins. :] The music fills the room. It is evident that the Master Creator is here. And then it happens. God moves the room. Row by row, pew by pew. Tears fell, praises are shouted.
I then understood God’s purpose for our gathering. We are broken. We need His love to restore our souls. We are chained down by our addictions. We need to be set free.
You Are Witnessing True Love & Total Adoration.
Enter into the HEART OF WORSHIP. All are welcome here.
I came for fellowship, and we joined together.
I came to be closer to Jesus, and he held my hand.
I came to experience.
I came to feel Jesus move the room.
I came to sing.
I came to dance.
I came to run.
I came to jump.
I came to WORSHIP.
I will not judge, because I know worship is unique.
I came to better connect with my true love. :]
I came for me.
I came for you.
I came to experience PURE WORSHIP.
I came pour my heart out to God.
I came to define worship :]
Webster’s Dictionary defines worship as:
Intense love or admiration.
But worship goes so much beyond that. Worship for me is like a complete surrender to the God I serve. It’s just me and Jesus alone together in complete and total bliss. I can be the only person in a crowded room. It becomes that serious for me. It is one of the most intimate parts of my relationship with the Father, the Master Designer, the Ultimate Author, and whatever happens during this love fest with Jesus just happens.
For me, worship is like having an out of body experience. It's like leaving your sin-filled body behind for a chance to worship with Jesus in the spirit. And it is well worth it, even if it is only for these moments. When I worship, I never want to leave. I never want to stop, because its kind of like a high that I receive just for singing with Jesus.
I will never be too ashamed to sing, to raise my hands, or jump. Because you had better believe that if God tells me to jump. You won’t catch me saying how high. You will just see my feet in the air. Plus, won’t we all be singing, dancing, praising, running, jumping, and shouting with all that is in our being, because when you are with God, nothing else matters. Because you were made to love and be loved by the most amazing being in existence. Our group just wants a head start on eternal praise.
We Have Reached PURE WORSHIP.
We Are Entering Pure Praise.
Our gathering is small despite the large number of fliers passed out. Only one or two friends stick out among a sea of blue Live Free shirts. But none of that matters. Not now.
Our only objective is drawing nearer to our one true love, Jesus. We all understand that something big is going to happen. We can feel it deep inside. And we begin to open our hearts with prayer. Before long, it is our turn to sing.
I stand in front of the small crowd, but all I can see is Jesus. My strength, my love, my reason for singing. This is all for Him.
The band begins. :] The music fills the room. It is evident that the Master Creator is here. And then it happens. God moves the room. Row by row, pew by pew. Tears fell, praises are shouted.
I then understood God’s purpose for our gathering. We are broken. We need His love to restore our souls. We are chained down by our addictions. We need to be set free.
We Are Learning Sweet Surrender.
Jesus touches the entire place. He writes love on our hearts. He tells us that we are his. Addictions and prisons are being called out. We claim our prison in our own minds. Sex, drugs, alcohol, self-harm, pain, are some of these addictions that we face.
We Are Breaking Free!
We praise. We sing. We worship. We look crazy as we spin around the room, but none of that matters anymore. We are in a new state of being. Not in heaven, but not quite on earth either. We are caught somewhere in the middle. What you are witnessing is only the outcome of our most intimate part of our relationship with our God.
We praise. We sing. We worship. We look crazy as we spin around the room, but none of that matters anymore. We are in a new state of being. Not in heaven, but not quite on earth either. We are caught somewhere in the middle. What you are witnessing is only the outcome of our most intimate part of our relationship with our God.
You Are Witnessing True Love & Total Adoration.
Enter into the HEART OF WORSHIP. All are welcome here.
I came for fellowship, and we joined together.
I came to be closer to Jesus, and he held my hand.
I came to experience.
I came to feel Jesus move the room.
I came to sing.
I came to dance.
I came to run.
I came to jump.
I came to WORSHIP.
I will not judge, because I know worship is unique.
I came to better connect with my true love. :]
I came for me.
I came for you.
I came to experience PURE WORSHIP.
I came pour my heart out to God.
I came to define worship :]
Webster’s Dictionary defines worship as:
Intense love or admiration.
But worship goes so much beyond that. Worship for me is like a complete surrender to the God I serve. It’s just me and Jesus alone together in complete and total bliss. I can be the only person in a crowded room. It becomes that serious for me. It is one of the most intimate parts of my relationship with the Father, the Master Designer, the Ultimate Author, and whatever happens during this love fest with Jesus just happens.
For me, worship is like having an out of body experience. It's like leaving your sin-filled body behind for a chance to worship with Jesus in the spirit. And it is well worth it, even if it is only for these moments. When I worship, I never want to leave. I never want to stop, because its kind of like a high that I receive just for singing with Jesus.
I will never be too ashamed to sing, to raise my hands, or jump. Because you had better believe that if God tells me to jump. You won’t catch me saying how high. You will just see my feet in the air. Plus, won’t we all be singing, dancing, praising, running, jumping, and shouting with all that is in our being, because when you are with God, nothing else matters. Because you were made to love and be loved by the most amazing being in existence. Our group just wants a head start on eternal praise.
We Have Reached PURE WORSHIP.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
sandcastles, ocean waves, & rainy days
I absolutely loathe going to the beach. Its
hot and the sand gets everywhere. Despite of my hatred
of the beach, I love watching the little kids lug all of their
little toys out searching for the perfect spot for the sand-
castle of all sandcastles. They start out with a smooth, flat
foundation, and slowly build the walls and finally after
spending more time than they have ever spent on
anything in their life, their castle is done. Mom comes
running with the camera, and just before they can snap
the picture, a wave comes and washes the whole thing
away. The disappointment is clear on the child's face, but
it is just one of the hard facts of life; you cannot build your
sandcastle too close to the crashing waves.
Let's look at this in another way. You are the
sandcastle. The world is your wave, but it is also your
foundation. You are trying to be a good person, but the
wave comes in and throws you down. The world has the
best advantage, because when the wave comes, your
foundation also gives way. No matter how hard you try
to stand firm, the world keeps knocking you off your feet.
NOW picture this. You ask JESUS CHRIST into your life, and HE becomes your foundation. Suddenly, you have some stability in your life. JESUS moves you to HIS rock solid foundation away from the ocean's harmful waves.
So now you begin to live entirely for GOD :), and as you glorify the ULTIMATE CREATOR, you build your sandcastle higher and higher. The goal height?
Straight to the heavens. You work hard, and your castle reaches up to the sky. It is a beauty. Many people are inspired to follow your example.
A new problem now arises. YOU get selfish. You want to live your life for yourself, and your eyes are taken off of GOD. Your blueprints get lost in the clouds, and then the rain comes. You don't notice the rain destroying your sandcastle until it's much too late. Your castle has already been washed away. So there you stand with nothing left to show for your CHRISTIAN walk, BUT HERE'S the GREAT THING. YOUR FOUNDATION is still there.
So here you stand with JESUS between you and the angry world waiting to tear you apart, and here's the really cool part. JESUS stops the rain and clears the sky. Your blueprints and goals are once again visible, and HE shows you how to watch the sky. He tells you to always watch the sky no matter what, to NEVER take your eyes off of the CREATOR, and HE shows
you exactly how to hold the umbrella when the rain comes. JESUS shows you how to protect your castle when the storms roll in, and how to stay safe until the sun comes back out.
JESUS is the one guy who promises NEVER TO LEAVE. HE said HE will stay with us always, and HE means it. HE is our only bridge to heaven, and our best shield from the cold world. ONE day here soon, we'll all be standing in heaven, with castles made from something a lot more glorious than sand. But until that day, don't take your eyes off the CREATOR, and remember to always trust in JESUS.
Shine Bright,
Emily.Ann. :)
hot and the sand gets everywhere. Despite of my hatred
of the beach, I love watching the little kids lug all of their
little toys out searching for the perfect spot for the sand-
castle of all sandcastles. They start out with a smooth, flat
foundation, and slowly build the walls and finally after
spending more time than they have ever spent on
anything in their life, their castle is done. Mom comes
running with the camera, and just before they can snap
the picture, a wave comes and washes the whole thing
away. The disappointment is clear on the child's face, but
it is just one of the hard facts of life; you cannot build your
sandcastle too close to the crashing waves.
Let's look at this in another way. You are the
sandcastle. The world is your wave, but it is also your
foundation. You are trying to be a good person, but the
wave comes in and throws you down. The world has the
best advantage, because when the wave comes, your
foundation also gives way. No matter how hard you try
to stand firm, the world keeps knocking you off your feet.
NOW picture this. You ask JESUS CHRIST into your life, and HE becomes your foundation. Suddenly, you have some stability in your life. JESUS moves you to HIS rock solid foundation away from the ocean's harmful waves.
So now you begin to live entirely for GOD :), and as you glorify the ULTIMATE CREATOR, you build your sandcastle higher and higher. The goal height?
Straight to the heavens. You work hard, and your castle reaches up to the sky. It is a beauty. Many people are inspired to follow your example.
A new problem now arises. YOU get selfish. You want to live your life for yourself, and your eyes are taken off of GOD. Your blueprints get lost in the clouds, and then the rain comes. You don't notice the rain destroying your sandcastle until it's much too late. Your castle has already been washed away. So there you stand with nothing left to show for your CHRISTIAN walk, BUT HERE'S the GREAT THING. YOUR FOUNDATION is still there.
So here you stand with JESUS between you and the angry world waiting to tear you apart, and here's the really cool part. JESUS stops the rain and clears the sky. Your blueprints and goals are once again visible, and HE shows you how to watch the sky. He tells you to always watch the sky no matter what, to NEVER take your eyes off of the CREATOR, and HE shows
you exactly how to hold the umbrella when the rain comes. JESUS shows you how to protect your castle when the storms roll in, and how to stay safe until the sun comes back out.
JESUS is the one guy who promises NEVER TO LEAVE. HE said HE will stay with us always, and HE means it. HE is our only bridge to heaven, and our best shield from the cold world. ONE day here soon, we'll all be standing in heaven, with castles made from something a lot more glorious than sand. But until that day, don't take your eyes off the CREATOR, and remember to always trust in JESUS.
Shine Bright,
Emily.Ann. :)
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