I often wake up with a song in my head and then sing it all day long. Sometimes I can only remember a line or two of the song which drives me crazy, leads me to search it out, so I can listen to and then sing the whole song. Yesterday the only words I could think of were hm hm hm.... "Giver of grace"... I sang it over and over trying to remember the rest of the melody so that maybe I could come up with more of the lyrics so that I could in fact find the song when I searched for it.
Little by little it came to me. This is hard work I will have you know. (chuckle)
"Lamb of God,
Giver of grace.
You're worthy of our highest praise..."
And there it was... the words that would give me the title...
"We have come to seek your face."
Today while I was watching this video and looking at pictures of Jesus (not really, but all we have because of artists and their imaginations), I was struck by the thought, what will it be like when I truly see His face. This thought and imagination brought me to my knees in tears of worship and the realization that I truly long for that. I don't just say so because as a Christian it is expected of me to say and think such things. It is true. Come, Lord Jesus, come.
I then went to my quiet time. I am still in Luke. Short rabbit trail here for a second. It is definitely going to take me longer than 6 months to read through the New Testament twice. Although I am on my second time around, I came to a mental wall. I was not retaining what I was reading. I was just reading, so I took a break from my self imposed regimen to read some other devotion books, on line devotions and listen to some recorded sermons. This will partly explain why I have not blogged in quite a while. Also, I just didn't feel led to do so... didn't have much to say...
Then last night I couldn't sleep. I laid (I know that is not the correct grammar -- whatever) there thinking about the book of Luke and how I couldn't wait to get back to it. After more than an hour of tossing and turning and thinking, I decided to get up and read Luke for goodness sakes! That is the last thought I remember having before my alarm went off this morning.
So right after listening to the song, I read Luke 7 about the woman who washed the feet of Jesus with her tears and her hair -- I could totally relate to her. To have the pleasure of washing the feet of my Redeemer. That gives me a very unworthy feeling. Needless to say, that story came alive to me. (Yes, it annoys me too, when people say "needless to say". If you don't need to say it, why are you saying it? That and "it is what it is". Of course it is. If it wasn't what it is what would it be? ...and it would still be whatever it is...)
In Luke 8 I read the parable of the sower. I call it the parable of the good ground, because it always convicts me and prompts me to pray that I will always be the "good ground". (always. I know I will not always be anything. Always. Always. Always. But I do desire to always be...)
Next thought...
The majority of the posting going on on Facebook this week is about the government and Obama care. I don't post about political things, because I will admit to you that I am not well informed. I am intentionally uninformed, because the more I know the more discouraged I feel. The more I know the more I look at situations and the less I look to God. The little that I do know makes me angry, fearful, discouraged... and who gets the glory in that. So, today I read a few, ignored a few, never even thought about posting anything...
Years ago, I don't know who said it to me first or where I heard it first, but I heard this quote, "Have you prayed about it as much as you have talked about it?" As I read some of the statuses and blogs I began to pray about the things that made me fearful... the freedoms I feel I am losing, the financial strain this will all cause on our own family and many others, the future of our country for our kids, grandkids and future generations. I am hoping that while other Christians are posting they are also praying.
I am thankful for that quote. It comes to my mind often. It stops me from ranting many times, and it calms my spirit.
"Have you prayed about it as much as you have talked about it?"
