Give Me Your Eyes: Part 3

Do you ever have that moment when God reminds you that you’re not perfect? :)
So fun, huh?
In a post from last week I wrote about our night of productivity where we choreographed a dance, mapped out a drama, taught it all and filmed it in just a few hours - to the song Give Me Your Eyes for another church.
So great…so last night sarah and I went to St. Joseph’s church in Lino Lakes. to teach this dance. All you people reading this who know sarah and I are probably thinking – oh, I didn’t know sarah and jillian danced!
That’s because we don’t. haha…
But our trusty choreographers/amazing dance teachers were otherwise engaged for the evening…so it was up to us. and we were nervous. its one thing to stumble through a dance with our own kids who at least know we’re good at other things…:) but a whole other thing to do it in front of ppl we have never met. We’ll just call it humbling. ;)
BUT…God’s got it. no worry necessary. :)
We got there, the building is gorgeous, 2 of the leaders were there – and they were SO great to work with! They have really amazing hearts for ministry and for the youth and the community and just figuring out how to reach out using the arts. so cool to see and so in line with where our hearts are.
And after a few technical difficulties (not anyone’s fault…it was a ghost…so its fine)…we got things up and running and some of the girls showed up to learn the dance and through what is truly a testimony of God’s abilities to use just about anyone for anything (referring to the dance teachers for the evening…haha) – they learned it! they were so great and so patient…and they made it look so pretty :)
So it was a really good night.
Such a blessing to get to work with other churches and other ppl working in ministry.
We’ll be working out a video with lyrics and pictures this week, and gathering a mix of our team and more youth from St. Joe’s for another practice next week!
So fun :)
some encouragement – let God use you…even when it is not in your comfort zone even a little bit…because He wants His will to be done. He’s not going to let it fail. So just trust that if He’s calling you to it and its not something you think you can do – its cuz He wants ppl to see Him…not you. you just need to watch Him work…and make sure you pay attention – that’s the God of the universe inside of you working. You wont want to miss it.
So keep us in your prayers as we finish up details and pray that the right ppl step up to be a part of this and that it all comes together in a way that will preach the message of God’s love for His ppl!

And if you’re free – come check it out on January 12th :)

-ALIVE

how many kings?

i just wanted to share a song that i am really loving this Christmas. its by Downhere, called How Many Kings. Every year it seems like God teaches me something new about His character through Christmas. and this year He seems to be wanting me to see the humility in the Christmas story.

there is something so incredibly, almost painful its so intense, pure about seeing the king of kings step down from His throne, and then seeing Him lying in a manger...as a baby. vulnerable and small. with the animals.

how do you give up every single ounce of pride? how do you know you are God and not demand respect and recognition? how do you live so devoted- to people who may or may not love you back...?

its incredible.

so this song just basically says whats in my head...and just the sheer awesomeness of his humility and how powerful it really is.

and to know that He didnt need to do it...He wanted to. because He loves us so much...

-ALIVE

GIve Me Your Eyes: Part 2

all right...just wanted take a moment to say PRAISE THE LORD!!! haha...for real. last night. 4 hrs. we went from having a vague outline for a dance/drama to the song Give Me Your Eyes by brandon heath - to having a choreographed dance/drama learned by 6 ppl and recorded on video.

team??? team.

we asked God to inspire us and to show us what it would need to look like because we have never seen the stage or the building and we have never met the ppl we will be working with - so its hard to nail down details...so we left it up to God to lead us. :)

and He did!

so special shout out to HIM! thanks for all your help :) and thank you also to our amazing A's ;) and the team who came and worked so hard to learn the dance fast. it was so great.

im posting a little clip of the video (filmed on my laptop...so not the highest quality - but it works...:) ) so you can see what we worked on!

cool, huh?

love when God takes over. love that He lets us experience His creativity. so exciting.

we will continue to be praying through this as we meet the other team, teach this, and then perform it at St. Joseph's. :) we'll continue to perfect this and play with it and see where He takes it!

so keep us in your prayers as we go forward - that this drama/dance will carry a message to ppl who really need to hear it, and that God will use it in BIG ways! :)

this is from Pastor Steven Furtick's blog...

Im praying that God would give all of our churches a seemingly impossible, logic defying, God glorifying harvest this week. We have the greatest news in the world and it simply must be told-Its time. Hold nothing back. Pray every second you can. Have faith that He is going to move in ways you cant even imagine. Be ready for when He does. Be bold. Be clear. Watch God move. Then celebrate like you never have before

love that...such a cool prayer made in faith. and something i want to live out - constantly trusting God for really huge things.

i'm also posting this video...its of the "not-so-choreographed" moments of our dance lesson. :) always interesting...haha

Merry Christmas friends!!! :)

-ALIVE

Give Me Your Eyes

Hi friends :)
Just wanted to post a quick update…
this was supposed to be our week off…surprise! …its not now. Haha at least not for some of us. Its ok though – we are working on a project for another church that is coming up in January and we are just thanking God that He has given us such an awesome team that is willing to step in when we need them…even when we surprise them with a last minute project.
So tonight…the goal –
to fill in details to dance/drama to “Give Me Your Eyes” by Brandon Heath.
Teach it to a few of the team members.
FILM the dance/drama so we have a teaching tool for next week.
Team.
Believing that God can pull it off. :)
Praying for some BIG divine inspiration for the A’s (aka Ashley and Austin…aka our choreographers…haha)
This is a really exciting opportunity to help another church and be able to work with another part of the body and just get to see another church work and let God use our creativity! So next Tuesday we will meet this other group and have our first practice!
So fun.
So keep us in your prayers tonight as we squeeze in one last thing before the holiday weekend begins!!! :)

and a quote that i am loving based on the verse from james (1:2-4)
Count it a joy, dear one, when life gets hard.God is doing something huge! He is also proving that you are not a fake. Be brave mighty warrior, Your God is with you! When waves are crashing, stand to your feet, throw your head back and feel the wind of the Spirit!
God is painting a masterpiece with multi-colored trials. Go forth and display Divine special effects to the great Glory of God!

- Beth Moore

-ALIVE

is it worth it?

ok, here is a question that God keeps bringing up and then provided a visual for- last wednesday at youth group... they showed a video clip from the Passion of the Christ....(i cant remember what song it was to), but it was a look at Jesus in the garden, and then arrested, and whipped and then put on the cross. TOUGH stuff. (that movie never gets easier to watch.) but what God has been revealing to me is this...(im going to walk you through my thought process the best i can...;) ) the Bible says that the "wages of sin is death"... so the first time we sinned, that should have been it for us. but it wasnt. but God is just - He cant change that, it is a foundation of His very being...so somebody had to die in order for justice to be fulfilled...and since we havent hung on a cross, Jesus' death must have taken care of it for us. (not what i am trying to get to - but take a second and just thank Him that you didnt have to go through what He did!!!) some might say that seems a bit extreme - death on a cross? well here's the thing...we were warned. right? He said - "follow my commandments" why? because "the wages of sin is death". and yet... we choose to sin. once? twice? or over and over... why dont we think about that phrase "the wages of sin is death"? is it because it doesnt apply to us anymore? (at least not immediately...) but what God is telling me is not to minimize what that means...because minimizing the price of sin minimizes what Jesus did for us. and here's another thought.... every time we sin, every time we are about to do something we KNOW is not what God wants - what if we stopped to think..."is this worth dying for?" this movie, this moment of anger, this gossip...is it worth dying for? intense, huh? thats what i thought when i first thought it. and when i watched that video, it hit me on a whole new level of intensity. is this moment of pleasure, this fleeting moment of what I want WORTH the price? and if we decide that it is...heres the next question -

is it still worth it if you knew that not you, but JESUS, would be paying that price for you?

my intent is not to condemn...not at all. thats not my job and God knows i am in no place to look down on anyone - i have sinned and still sin, but i am learning to discipline myself. to put God first in EVERY situation... why? because i have yet to come up with a single thing where the answer is yes when the question is "is this worth Jesus dying for?" i know we hear this so much - but dont just glance over it...He loved/loves us SO much that He paid that price. even though we choose ourselves over Him so many times... so i guess what God is wanting to instill in me, in us - is that He saw our hearts, saw that we would mess up - and He offered us a second chance. (well, He has offered 3rd, 4th, and 5th chances...) but the point is He didnt just wash His hands of us. and we need to realize how huge that is. we need to stop minimizing what we are doing when we sin. the price of our disobedience is death...but due to no credit to ourselves - that price was paid. so lets grab a hold of that freedom and STOP looking back. lets just be glad we are free and find out what was so important that He died so He could show it to us...

-ALIVE

Bus Driver

ok...i am posting this video from our christmas party. this is one of many times we have played many times. its an improv game where basically there is a bus driver (hence the name of the game) and he sits on the stage. then someone walks up on to the stage and acts a certain way (crying, dancing, talking with an accent, etc...there really is no end to the possibilities...haha) and when that person gets on the bus acting like they are - the bus driver has to adopt the same character.

and you just keep adding ppl. so the next person would get on the bus acting a different way and then everyone has to switch characters to match.

and so on, so on.

all in all - its pretty entertaining. and its just fun to see what they come up with :) plus its good practice being in front of ppl, thinking on your feet, and working together.

we also used it in Mexico at the childrens home - a great game to play when there's a language barrier! :)

so here is just a glimpse...enjoy!

-ALIVE

2nd Annual Christmas Party!

ok...so we had our christmas party tonight! :) we missed the people that couldnt make it - but it was still so fun! basically we played some games, ate some snacks, read a little from Forgotten God, and just enjoyed each other's company...we'll call this the calm before the storm...;) its been a little bit of a chill time for the team, and now we are taking two weeks off...but we have quite a few projects popping up here for the next few weeks/months! super exciting stuff - but it'll be a lot of work. This is all God's though, so even when it seems overwhelming, thats when He shows us what He can do...love when that happens. :)

below are some pictures from the party...

most ppl are familiar with the "dice game"...where everyone brings a white elephant gift, and then everyone rolls dice to try to get doubles, and if you get doubles - you pick a gift. well, who needs those little tiny dice when you can have giant dice made of boxes and sarah drawing snowman for the dots??? :)

food table...:) classy newspaper tablecloth and festive lights at the end :) haha...soooo festive...


jordan showing off her sweet gift :) her stuffed frog that gives her hugs and her "kids travel book"...(which she laughed at but really secretly loves...)

and sarah sporting her new fairy wings!!! :)
just a little glimpse into the life of an ALIVE member :) pretty exciting, right? we spent some time talking about how Jesus came to earth, left his throne to come into humility. He came and sacrificed His comfort so that we could be able to have more than we would ever even know to ask for...

in Forgotten God it talks about how Jesus didnt die and rise again to sit and wait for us to tell Him what to do. he didnt die to follow us around...

so we need to stop thinking that way. stop just adding Him into our plans or going to Him when we want something. we asked the team - why? why is it such a big deal if we just go to God when we want something? what does it hurt?

because it affects more than just us. God is not a stone or a statue that we think about or pray to every once and awhile...He is living, breathing, and feeling - and He loves us. He loves us a lot. so what we do - AFFECTS Him. its not about us.

so this Christmas...take some time, get to know God more - His heart. see where He is calling you, what He wants you to be doing. and just follow Him...:)

God has been teaching me A LOT lately - so be expecting a few more posts to come! :)

-ALIVE

Light Arting!

so we decided to play with something we have named "Light Arting". i'm pretty sure its a technical term...;) but we basically found a room, turned on some music, gave everyone glow sticks and lights, turned off all the lights...and well - you can see what came of it :) im only putting up a few of the pics, there are many many more really cool ones......

when i look at some of these i just really love to think of the light as what the Holy Spirit looks like when He's moving. as we celebrate or as we pray for Him to rain down or as we pray for His fire to ignite - i just feel like these lights give this visual to it. obviously the Spirit is so much bigger and greater than glowsticks in a dark room...but its just a glimpse...

this first one is one of my favorites, its one of a few we took of ashley doing some dancing with the lights...love it.
this orange one was made while sarah did a "celebration" dance :)

this one is one of our attempts at creating fire...love this one.

:) this one just makes me laugh everytime...we spelled a few different words - but this was a challenging one...

-ALIVE

my life to declare your...?

happy monday :)
i know i have been blogging a lot more than normal lately...haha but i'm posting again because i had a revelation yesterday that i want to share...

so at church we sang the song - The Stand, by Hillsong.
love that song. and i have heard it and sung it about a million times. but yesterday the line "my life to declare Your promise" stood out to me. basically as we sing that we are asking that our lives be a clear picture of God's promise. that when people look at our lives - they can't deny that God keeps His promises.
and i thought about that...
and i realized that God wanted me to be more specific in my prayer. He wants the prayer for my life to be - my life to declare Your faithfulness.
now - it kind of sounds like the same thing...but God has given us LOTS of promises throughout His word...promises to never leave our side, promises to love us, promises to provide all of our needs, and so many more.
now He is more than able to and He WILL fulfill all of His promises to us...
but i felt like God wanted to create a picture of His faithfulness that would stand out in my life, more than the other promises.
its a little (ok, a lot) scary to think about - asking God to really use my life so that throughout it all - His faithfulness will be seen.......but how can i say no to something like that? :)
to God's plan? we never know what we are missing out on by holding back...
today - take a few minutes and ask Him what He wants to use your life for. what He wants your life to declare to the whole world - for Him.
so that when people look at your life they KNOW that God is a provider, is loving, is a comforter, is joy, is...... - i dont know. only God knows.
but i have been reading stories about these people whose lives scream the characteristics of God. Esther - God's faithfulness. Ruth - God's grace and love. Paul - God's power. Esther that i blogged about a few days ago - God's provision, in helping her be prepared for what He was calling her to. amazing stuff, guys!

so i want my life to SCREAM "God IS faithful!"
He has already begun to show this in my life and is in the process of revealing it more. i pray that He continues to do so - so that my whole life declares that, and no one can deny that He is faithful, He will come through, He will speak and His words will not return empty. He is sovereign and He knows every detail.
amazing.

so-
fill in the blank...

My life to declare Your ...........
now start praying this over your life...knowing that if its of Him - He will keep His promises. And be ready to surrender yourself and let Him work in you so that He can accomplish all His purposes through you.
we have an invitaion to be a part of all He is doing - lets not minimize it or ignore it! its just too good to pass up...:)

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 2 Peter 1:3-4

-ALIVE

team arting

for the last two weeks, for part of our ALIVE meetings, we have been working on a little team arting project. i wrote more about it in an earlier post - but we set down one piece of cardboard and all the supplies and told them to all work together on it.

Abbie gave us a verse for inspiration, so we used that to start.

the verse is 2 corinthians 3:15-18.

Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplatethe Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

its still a work in progress, but its getting there :) and its fun to work on it together and also to see people who normally dont "art" play with it and have fun with it. :)

we definitely have a creative group...so fun.

i'll add more pictures as we finish more! :)

-ALIVE

Morph Painting

In one of my last posts i wrote about our "Morph" painting/drawing that we did at Edinbrook Church during the worship time. these are pictures of the painted versions. :) from broken to healed...a picture of God's grace. and how he takes us from broken to whole. love it. we are so blessed to be able to work with people who love using their gifts for God's glory :)

-ALIVE

are you ready?

So I just recently read this story about a woman names Esther Ahn Kim. She is a Korean who was imprisoned for 6 years for not bowing down to the shrines that were everywhere. And before she went to prison – she knew there was a good chance that she would be going, so she prepared. She ate decaying food because she knew that’s what she would be served in prison. She memorized a ton of scripture because she knew she wouldn’t have her Bible once she was there. And eventually – she was taken to prison. And she was able to eat the food. She was able to survive on less food – and bless the other, actual criminals imprisoned with her by sharing food with them, loving them, sharing scripture with them.
Think about that for a second. she had the discipline to not only stand up for her morals – but to spend real time preparing for what was coming…because she knew it would be crucial.
Now the point of the story is not that you should all go out and eat decaying food for Jesus. Don’t do that. you’ll prb get sick. The point is that she was prepared for what God was calling her to when the time came.
So today I challenge you to think about 2 things. and really take some time to think about the answers….

1) what is God calling you to? If you don’t know…what is God calling you to do RIGHT NOW, however small is seems?

2) are you preparing for it? or, are you allowing yourelf to be prepared?

If God is calling you to do something (and He is) – it is for a purpose. Its not just because He’s bored and wants to see what you’ll do. So be READY – because when the time comes, and you have to step up and take a leap of faith, you will want to be as prepared as you possibly can be.
And the ONLY WAY you will know what to do or how to get there – is if you ASK GOD what it is. Ask Him and don’t stop asking until you hear an answer.
Right before Jesus went to the cross…He went off to pray. He asked His disciples to wait for Him. (Read Matthew 26: 36-46) And He comes back to them a couple times – and finds them sleeping. The question He asks as they wake up is “couldn’t you stay awake for even an hour?”
And obviously it’s a different situation today than it was then – but in all the discipline God has been teaching me, I feel like He’s asking me the same question. He sees where Hes trying to take me, where He wants me to get to – and as I struggle with doing what i know He is asking of me and I lose focus, He asks – “cant you stay with me, just stay awake for this time?"

He has promised those who follow Him that it will not be hard forever. But while we are here, we are to surrender all of us, be living sacrifices for Him. And when the time comes, no matter how hard the journey looks from here, are we going to be ready?

-ALIVE

An Artist's Creed

1 Corinthians 12:4-6
There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

So between reading Forgotten God, Wednesday night youth group, and my own time with God – i think its safe to say that God is teaching me about His Spirit and the spiritual gifts He has given us as His children. Gifts that are meant to be used to bring us closer to Him, but also to bring others closer to Him. Gifts that God has given us as a way to relate to Him in an incredibly unique way that is JUST for you and Him. How beautiful is that??? Personally – God has given me art. By a lot of people’s standards – I am not the greatest artist, but when I draw or paint or create – I feel God in this intensely personal way…and it. is. incredible.
For some people – art is just frustrating or boring Haha…and that’s ok. but He has given you SOMETHING…something that when you do it, when you use it for His glory – you come alive. in a way that can only be kind of understood if you have experienced it.
So find out what it is. Find it and use it. as much as you can. Meet with God using your gift, bless other people by using it…if you have absolutely no idea how to go about doing this – ASK HIM. Sit down and talk to Him. He’ll tell you – because He wants to meet with you. He doesn’t give kind of okay, mediocre gifts. So if He has gone to the trouble to make this thing a part of your design from before you were even born – you can bet that its worth finding out about. it may take some faith – to really be open to what it is He wants to give you…but trust that it is so worth it.
And when we FINALLY grab a hold of it and embrace it – we finally find our part in this crazy amazing plan that God has orchestrated, our part in His Kingdom’s cause. WOW. Love. That. !!!
Do you realize how HUGE THIS ALL IS???
Please don’t read all this and just read it like it’s a textbook. Let it soak in. let it become REAL to you…so that you are literally unable to sit still because you are so filled with this passion to find out what God is calling you to.

I was reading a blog the other day and came across this – its called An Artist’s Creed, and I love it. say this and pray through it any time you are ready to use your gifts. That even in the seemingly “small” things – God will do huge things.

I believe my talents are a gift from God, and I am to use them to fulfill His purposes in my life and in his world. I humbly acknowledge and accept my gifts as I ask to receive God's vision for how I am to use them. I ask the Holy Spirit to free me from self-doubt and self-absorption. I pray this work will bring me into closer alignment with God's plan for me as I seek to bring my gifts and talents into His light and to become the whole and complete person He intends me to be.
Amen.

An Artist's Creed - janice elsheimer, from the book “The Creative Call”

Be filled anew with the Spirit, friends!
Please don’t miss what God is trying to tell you today!

-ALIVE

Forgotten God

so i have been reading the book "Forgotten God" by Francis Chan. its all about the Holy Spirit...and i. am. loving. it.

haha but really...its so great and it just gets me so excited about all that He is and all He wants to do. love it. something from the book that i just read was about Acts - at the Pentecost, after Jesus leaves and sends the Holy Spirit to the people...

we see the same men who followed Jesus for 3 years, then watched Him ascend into heaven - not knowing what to do next. just waiting for what comes next - per Jesus' instructions to them. and then, all of a sudden, the Spirit comes and fills them - and they start speaking in tongues and speaking with boldness and the people watching, are amazed...

but what is so crazy about this moment is that no one looks at these men that they have seen and heard before, now speaking with boldness and passion, these incredible words- in languages they havent known before and thinking "wow - Peter sure learned that fast! he's so great!" no - instead we think - "wow, God did that??? thats incredible! how amazing is the Holy Spirit!?!"

it was such a clear Holy Spirit moment. the only thing a person could think was, how awesome is God???

have you ever had a moment where the Holy Spirit moved in you and everyone watching was moved by it? not by you - but by God moving in you? or have you ever seen God moving in someone else? in the Bible it says that 3000 people were added to the church that DAY. who can deny the Holy Spirit while standing in His very presence???

in the book Francis gives this challenge -

‎"Lets pray that God would empower us so radically that we would get no glory. That people would see our works and glorify God"

that is a powerful request...how amazing would it be to have God be able to move through you in such a way that people watching you cant even see you...all they can see is God, and the only response they can have is to glorify Him. amazing, right?
i know i sometimes underestimate what the Spirit can do...i know i do.
i also know that i need to break this idea - the idea that i understand everything about Him and know what needs to happen better than He does. He is so much bigger than you or i will ever begin to comprehend and He is just waiting to move in big, crazy ways...so lets be a PART of that! Lets pray that we can be so open to whatever it is He is doing so that we can be so changed that people will look at our works and see God and be left in AWE of Him...

the last few weeks...

hi friends...i just realized its been over 2 weeks since i have updated this thing and really - its because a lot has been going on and God has been teaching me so much and the irony of it all sometimes is that the times when you really want to remember all your learning and write it all down, are the times when you are too busy to...hmmm

anyways...

quick update on the team - last thursday we did some team arting (pictures? not yet...i'll take some this week...we're still working on it). it was fun, and its turning out really cool. basically we gave everyone art supplies and set out one piece of cardboard and chose a verse for inspiration and started creating...:) i'll let you know how it all turns out. haha

and this past sunday morning me and 4 others set up canvases onstage during the worship at our church and painted during one service, drew during the other. this past week concluded a series called "MORPH" at Edinbrook - based off of a book written by Pastor Ivan Veldhuizen. all about letting God transform us - from the inside out. really morph us into who He designed us to be.

so we set up canvases and on the first one - drew a broken heart. on the second - the heart being put back together. on the third - drew that same heart being cleaned off. and on the fourth - the heart, pure and clean. after it was broken and re-formed God's way, with His hands, in His time. beautiful.

and its just a cool picture of how God wants to work in us! if we just let Him break us, and take out the stuff thats hurting us - He can then put us back together - the RIGHT way, and clean us off, refine us until we are pure, and perfect, and healed and everything He is calling us to be. we dont do it ourselves, and it wont happen until we really allow Him to get in and do what He needs to do.

i love SO much working with people who are not only willing to, but also EXCITED about letting God use their gifts. love it. such a blessing.

The Bride: Video

http://www.edinbrookchurch.org/MEDIA/WEBVIDEOS.HTM

ok - the link above is a link to a video posted on Edinbrook Church's website.

if you read the posts a few weeks ago about "The Bride" - the video is from the performance of it at Edinbrook during the first service.

so if you didnt get a chance to see it - go watch it! :)

and let God speak to you through it!

thanks for all your prayers! it went great!

still standing!

Hello friends!

i am just in love with this song called "still standing" by Israel Houghton. i posted the link below - and i definitely recommend going to it and just listening. so great. The video is a performance of the song - but at the end he takes a second to explain it and he just makes me smile. :)

part of what he says...

"this is not like - im still standing but i barely made it and had to crawl into the building, but a 'hes taken his best shot, life has poured all it could on me, but i got a bounce-back in my spirit and im STILL standing'. you can't keep a blessed person down!"

i think i am loving it so much because it totally speaks to me in my life right now! we go through all these challenges and hard times and we get frustrated and worn out and tired - but when we actually stop to really look at ourselves, after going through all these things that try us and test us, we realize that not only are we still standing...but God has brought us out stronger than we entered in! how amazing is that??? the world so many times focuses on just getting through, just surviving - but friends, stop for a second or for a lot of seconds and SEE...really take NOTICE of what God is doing in you and how He is growing you. pay attention to what He is doing - because (and i just heard this...im trying to remember where...) "God doesnt just show off. If He's doing something - there's a reason for it." its a beautiful thing...

and these are some of my favorite lyrics...but the whole thing is so good. so listen and enjoy friends! and i just bet you that you will dance...even just a little. :)

If not for Your goodness
If not for Your grace
I don't know where I would be today
If not for Your kindness
I never could say
I'm still standing

If not for Your mercy
If not for Your love
I most likely would have given up
If not for your favor
I never could say
I'm still standing
But by the grace of God

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoX4fbStuZc

a sad mermaid, ernie, and some paint...just a normal thursday night

oh thursday nights...they are no longer boring. haha we met up with the team last night and got to say a quick hi to our friend erika - who is in costa rica right now - on skype.
then we ventured down to the dungeon.
and after a very accurate, if not entirely flattering :), description of sarah and i's leadership qualities for the new attendees...(the problem with working with actors, is that they do a REALLY good job of imitating you.......) haha
we broke out the art supplies and paper and had them get comfortable.
we played some music and read some verses and had them do a little reflective arting in a couple different steps...

1) draw a picture of yourself...of how you see yourself
2) write words describing how you see God or who He is to you
3) take some time to think/pray about what God wants from you, where He wants you to go from where you are...then draw it/write about it
4) think/pray about what is holding you back from being where God wants you to be. what do you need to change or give up?
5) write a prayer, asking God to help you get from where you are - to where He wants you.

i didnt take pictures - i will...but they did a really great job with it! we were really impressed, and it was really cool to see what God was showing them and laying on their hearts and then to see how it came out on paper.
so cool, and just loving God's creativity so much :) it was a cool thing – I encourage you to take a half hour sometime this weekend and put your favorite worship music on, get some paint or markers and just go through these steps and see what comes out. :)

then we played one of our favorite improv games...with words on the smallest pieces of paper ever...;)
and we laughed...a lot. its a great game we learned from comedy sportz - where you write random words down and give each person some of them, and give 2 or 3 ppl a scene. Anything – for example… "you are two strangers sitting in a waiting room, both applying for the same job” so then they have to act that out, and as they go, they have to pick up the words and somehow make them work – no matter how random it is.
And usually – it ends up being pretty amazing. Haha
And we ended it with a group scene…acting out our version of American Idol. It was so great.
We heard songs about a sad mermaid…about a boy who changed his name to his dead cats name in memory of him…about cheese…and so much more. Loved it.

So much fun.
We have some more projects coming up that we will be working on and lots of ideas that are wanting some attention. :)

but for now - below is a video of one of the times we played this improv game. :)

i'll set up the scene for you -

3 guys apply to be on a reality tv show to find the love of their lives, but are dropped off in the middle of the jungle with no one around and no idea what to do next...
So we’ll keep you updated as we go!

The Bride part 2

So this past Wednesday night and Sunday morning – The Bride drama was performed.
And after weeks of getting ppl in the roles, getting scripts down (even to the last second), figuring out what will go where, etc…….they did it! and it was SO great. God had me praying over it A LOT. But He was so in charge of it all and it was a really powerful message – both times.
Different groups did each one – for the most part – but they all did amazing. God totally spoke through it. it was an interesting one – just because it’s a lot of stuff that doesn’t get talked about so much in church. And taking the ppl that make you feel MOST uncomfortable and placing them right in front of you, in your comfort zone, pleading with you to pay attention to them – asking you why you don’t see them.
Its tough stuff. But SUCH an important one!
If we as the church is sleeping, if we just focus on ourselves and stay in our buildings and just talk to each other – who is being the hands and feet of Jesus in the world? Its great that we are so comfortable – but just because we are saved and going to heaven, doesn’t mean that we are finished. There are a lot of ppl that haven’t heard, that don’t know, that don’t have ppl to love on them and tell them that every thing they do MATTERS – and the world will not be the one to tell them, It wont. because the world doesn’t care. Its our job. Because we are free, because we have been forgiven, because we are loved unconditionally and we have the promise of eternity – it is our job, our call to be His instrument and let Him use us. to let the Holy Spirit that He sent us do His thing through us and reach out to the ppl around us.
And we did the drama, quick adding a verse to the end – from Matthew 25, and quick added it again on Sunday morning…only to sit in the sermon on Sunday and at the end find out that PI ALSO had the same verse for his message. Crazy, huh? This was totally Gods thing and it was really really great to see Him work in it. love it.
So thank you so much to the TEAM for getting up so early and giving up your time and for letting God use you!!! hugely appreciated.
One more quick thing – this was my friends status on facebook this morning and I love it…its from Romans.

‎"we're all instruments of a valiant song, it's our decision to remain silent or awake the dormant."

Don’t be silent…lets stay awake church. Because we never know if we will run out of time.

Victory!

I am loving victory right now. In the past – self discipline just seemed overwhelming. I let myself say no to time with God so many times in favor of a tv show or a movie that I kind of wanted to watch…I let myself spend money on so many things that I bought – so many times – for the sole reason that the idea was in my head and I just let it sit there and grow there until I just had to have it and I didn’t even remember why, or if that reason even still existed. I let myself convince me SO many times to work so hard to avoid a situation because possibly, maybe, potentially it might be kind of or a lot awkward or uncomfortable. All these things – even when I KNEW it wasn’t what God wanted me to do.
But after all these years of giving in and giving in and losing and failing…God has somehow empowered me to finally silence the voice that says “just do it…you’ll change eventually, you don’t have to right now”(satan) so that I can FINALLY hear the voice saying “you don’t have to. WHY are you doing it? where is this fear-this weakness-coming from? And why are you listening to it???”(God)
And now that I can hear that voice…its like huh…why am i?
And all this time I thought – if I could just have self-discipline…I wouldn’t feel guilty anymore.
But here’s the revelation I didn’t see coming…
After about 3 months of being in process of intensely learning self-discipline, not only do I not feel GUILTY anymore…but I feel FREE. Victorious. Strong. At peace… Do you get the idea? :)
But really, guys – turns out that once you stop giving into satan – you are free! This seems so obvious, and I have heard this so many times, but I guess I always just focused on the “not feeling guilty” part. I had no idea what the “freedom” would be like! Literally like a thousand pounds is lifted off your back, every time you claim victory over satan. Like the weight of the guilt we have been carrying around is finally being removed.
Amazing stuff! And I have no idea how it took me so long to really start fighting.
But it’s a battle…
Satan will never stop trying to whisper, sometimes scream, the lies into your life…and they are SO tempting to listen to…because it seems so much easier.
But he is just trying his best to cover up the truth and love and LIFE that God is constantly speaking into you. so silence the lies! Remind satan that he already lost and while he can make it hard for you to hear your Father’s voice – he can never silence it. Be free.

Galatians 5:1 – For FREEDOM Christ has set us free, so stand FIRM, therefore, and do NOT submit again to a yoke of slavery!

Matthew 16:23 - Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.

Lets be free, friends! And decide to listen to God’s voice and follow it…no matter where it leads. :)

maintaining or growing?

ok, so i just want to share something that God taught me today with you all quick....

so the last few weeks of my life have been kind of crazy and so when i have been to the gym - its been a run in, do my run, quick do a few machines and then leave and off to whereever i need to be...and it still was good, it still felt good to run and just know that i'm doing it - but i feel like its just been quick and surface level...like its keeping me feeling good, but not actually growing me or challenging me. and today i had free time - so i got a chance to spend like 2 hrs there...now as of 2 months ago - i hadnt stepped foot into a gym for like 3 yrs. not joking. but 2 months ago, God called me to learn discipline...and going to the gym was a part of that. so today i took my time there. and it felt so good.

it was like every muscle had a chance to be pulled and stretched and challenged and i just had the opportunity to really beat my muscles up.

why am i sharing this, you're prb asking? haha

because in the middle of this - i started thinking about how we can do the bare minimum...we can do "just enough" in life, in our walk with God and we will survive, we'll maintain a relationship. we can do good things for God - we can be good ppl. we can.

but we can also allow God to go deep. we can let Him pull us and stretch us and really challenge us - allow Him to be thorough in His refining of us - and we can go from maintaining to growing.

because unless we tear some stuff up and go deep and really take the time to get to every single part - its just gonna stay maintained. and we will never be anything more than good.

so what i realized today is that i NEED to let God go deep. i have a new desperation for it. why? because i desperately need to live a life filled with God - and he is SO much more than good.

right now at Edinbrook we are going through some material PI wrote - called Morph. and its is walking us through our faith, looking at our hearts part by part, piece by piece to see if we are in line with God's heart. God is calling us to crazy faith - living for Him and loving His children. being completely submitted to Him and His calling on our lives.

and in order for Him to be able to really use us and for His Holy Spirit to be able to really move through us - we need to give Him free reign in every single part of our lives. every single part. and how will He be able to really be able to heal us and work in every single part - if we are just doing enough to "keep Him happy". what would happen if we take time to listen, and study and pray and let Him move in every part and one by one stretch it and pull at it and break it down so that it can GROW into so much more than we could ever do on our own.

i just wanted to share that with you today, if you are not an Edinbrook attender or are and just havent been there recently - i would HIGHLY recommend you listen to the sermon from 10/10. its called Crazy Faith, and its on the website...i missed it and am listening to it right now and it is amazing. and i am just filled with a whole new desire to allow Him to transform me into who He wants me to be so that i can live a life like jesus did. so i can do greater things than Jesus did - just like the Bible promises. i cant miss it because i havent taken the time to really let God go deep in my life and be as thorough in refining me and growing me as He wants to be.

wow...

crazy stuff. i have no idea where God is leading me or what He is doing but i am just seeing a lot of pieces fall into place. and i dont know what the end picture looks like...but its coming together in an interesting way.

lets ask Him for crazy faith, friends. lets stop living for good enough and find out what God wants to do!!!

The Bride

Hi friends! so i just realized that its been like 2 weeks since i have written anything on here...life is just way too crazy right now...haha
so a lot has been going on - in normal life and ALIVE life - so quick update on ALIVE life to get you up to speed........
two thursdays ago sarah and i got part of the team together to work on a new drama. its not one that we came up with, but one that i learned while with YWAM. we are tweaking it a little bit - but that's where the general idea came from. its kind of intense so we have been kind of pushing it back for awhile, waiting for God to bring it back up for the exact right time.
and well - here we are.
and God could not make it ANY clearer that the time is right. well He could - and He is more than welcome to just keep confirming...;)
but its a drama that paints a picture of "the world" outside the walls of the church - Christ's bride. and causes us, as Christians, (hopefully) to look at what we are doing as the bride and to look at the people we normally wouldnt take the time to love.

so - we got the group together and gave them their characters and gave them time to sit down with some paper and start to get in the head of their characters. we are having them all write their own part and then we'll come together and go through them, edit as needed.
they did an incredible job after just a half hour or so of working on it - so i am just really excited to see what God does with it from here. we havent talked about it with them since then - last thursday we took a break to attend a dinner that the senior group at our church threw for the sr. high youth group (so cute and so great...such a blessing)
so tomorrow we meet back up.

but i will recommend that you take a second and go to Pastor Ivan's blog...if you go to Edinbrook Church's website - theres a link. but there is a day that he blogged - AFTER we decided to work on this, for the youth group, i think the post is called Crazy Faith...not totally sure...but sarah sent me the link on it and i read it and literally - it was like we had sat down with him the day before and shared this drama with him and the message behind it and where our hearts are- but we didnt! i just LOVE God's timing...God is just laying this all out perfectly! and its such an encouragement. so after talking with him and the Creative Team this week - we are also performing this drama for sunday morning church...with a revised team and characters - but i am SO excited to see what God is going to do!!!!!!
we will ask for huge prayer - because it is intense, and it could be controversial, and it will speak to ppl...
its tough to be asked to really look at yourself and be prepared to see things that you dont want to acknowledge...
but its so so so necessary. God wants us to live...truly live - ALL His children, and if that means that we, as the church, need to take the time to get our hearts in line with His - and then follow Him out into the world to reach out to His lost sheep - then who are we to say no? who are we to give God boundaries as to what we will and will not do for Him?

People need love. they NEED it - whether they are sold out for Christ, completely lost, or stuck in the middle...we all need it. and God's love is the ONLY one that will satisfy...so people need to know. they just do. and how are they going to know about it if we dont tell them? the world is CERTAINLY not going to go out of its way to point you to God...satan wouldnt let that happen...

so pray for us as we prepare this drama - for both times and pray that hearts will be open to receive the message that is given. pray that people will be moved and will really be willing to listen to what God is trying to tell them.

thanks friends! hope you are having a beautiful week and i'll write more on all this soon!!!

more exciting stuff coming! :)

just know the fight's on...

For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

2 corinthians 2:11-14

the things God speaks don't make sense to our flesh. the world, our human minds CANNOT comprehend God's ways.

so by all means, friends - lets pray together that we may receive and be filled with the Spirit that will help us to understand what it is God has placed before us. Lets not miss it just because we are trying to look at it through our own understanding.

a line from a song i was listening to tonight that really hit me is almost a challenge to satan - it says:

"just know the fight's on, and its a life-long. One day they'll write it on my tombstone - yeah, man - that one never quit it."

love it. you are welcome to try to hold me back satan - just know that i never intend to stop fighting. and i will NOT quit. so lets go...

thats power, baby! embrace it and run with it. LIVE with it...

and start to discern and see all that God is doing all around you, what only the Holy Spirit can even begin to comprehend...He has given us an open door into His heart...what are we waiting for?

TRUST

When I am afraid, I will have confidence in and put my trust and reliance in You. By the help of God I will praise His word; on God I lean, rely, and confidently put my trust; I will not fear. What can the flesh do to me? Psalm 56:3-4

all we have to do is say no to satan, to the flesh. that's it. cant think about it, cant debate with it, cant even consider it. because in a matter of seconds what seems so obviously and clearly wrong will become justified and make perfect sense.

God has overcome and He has given us a way out. so take it.

if God is sharing something with you, if God is calling you to something that seems impossible to believe - believe it. and dont for a second let satan tell you otherwise. as soon as the doubts come - stop them.

and just trust that God is so incredibly in love with you and He has an incredible plan that we just cant understand. and even when its hard and it seems crazy - trust Him. just do. dont question it, dont rationalize it. just trust.

something i just really recently learned - is that taking the step, looking the seemingly impossible right in the face and saying "i trust that God knows and i trust that what He says is true." - is like stomping on satan, getting him out of your way so that God can just pour down and fill all the places that before were filled with doubts and worry and anxiety. which enables you to feel so sure of the seemingly impossible - for the sole reason that God said so.

not easy...but keep fighting. its so worth it.

have a blessed day!

Dear Fear...Pt.2

so last night we performed the Fear drama we have been working on, and the team did a great job. and Joe did an awesome job of explaining it afterwards. so good. God does amazing things...:) so thank you to the team for so much hard work and for letting God use you!

one thing i was thinking about...i know i have been writing on here about fear having the gun pointed at our faces, just keeping us from moving or stepping forward and living out the life God calls us to...and how fear only has power over us if we give it that power.

and think about this for a second...so say someone is standing in front of you - someone real intimidating...like you know they want nothing good for your life. and they have a gun..pointed at you. what is your heart doing at this point? what is running through your head? i have never actually experienced this but i have felt fear...so that is what i picture - x like a thousand. haha but i imagine i would be freaking out a little bit...?
anyways...thinking about that moment. and then imagine that that person goes to pull the trigger to that gun. (freaking out more...) but then nothing happens. and instead of just being relieved and running the opposite direction...you reach into your pocket and take out some bullets and hand them over.
he then proceeds to load the gun and point it back at your face.

that sounds so crazy!
but its what we do!!! fear has no power. God conquered it. He took it away. He said i wont kill it for good just yet, but i will hold it back. its up to you to run as fast as you possibly can to get out of his reach...

so why do we still fear? why do we hold back? because we GIVE fear what it needs to kill us. We just hand it over and wait patiently while it prepares to take us down!
Jesus DIED so we could be free of that! and its just hitting me anew how much we need to make that worth it. yes, we get tired. yes, its hard. yes, its even scary or painful or crazy...

but its not like Jesus sat in a pile of pillows to save our lives, either. He suffered. He asked for another way - but there wasnt one. so He accepted that cup from His father and He went to the cross. and i have known this, obviously - but while im learning self-discipline and faithfulness...im realizing that me giving into "what i want", the things that keep me from saying yes to GOD...is so much bigger than me just not doing what i should.
so much else is at stake.
my prayer now for my life and for you who are reading this is that we will realize that what we do either moves us toward God or toward Satan. Jesus died so we could have that moment to get away...i pray that we can make what Jesus went through worth it and not just stand there, hand over the bullets and wait for the attack. FIGHT BACK.

ask God how to get rid of the bullets youre hanging onto so that you CANT give fear that power again, even in our weakest moments.
but stop giving in to the one that lives to hurt you, and start putting ALL your energy into running towards the one who died to save you.

theres a line in a song im listening to now. not sure who its by but im going to write the line here...

“Write it on my tombstone – yeah, man
“that one never quit it”.
And since I don’t lack anything at all- everything I do,
I be givin it my all –
so when I say im on fire for you,
I mean it, my love – im blazin hot for you!”

love it. in James 1 - God says that we need to have our faith tested so that we can be refined and get to a point where we "are not lacking in anything". amazing. and if we are not lacking in anything...then we have more for God to use in us to further His kingdom.
and if we never quit...if we never give up on Him - there is no telling what He will do.

so fight. stand for what you know. and do NOT let fear hold you back from what God is calling you to.

Dear Fear...

hello! i havent written anything on here for awhile! but its not because we havent been busy...haha

last thursday we had a planning session - after we found out that we had to have a drama ready for the 22nd - on fear - for the See You At the Pole Rally that will be held at Edinbrook on wednesday.

so we spent some time on that,got a plan down...and then changed it all.

not a surprise...

and along with the standard changed plans at the last second, comes God with a new, different, and way better idea that we had originally come up with.

so this past thursday we had our first practice on this new idea and got a lot of it figured out, but this morning...at 7am...the first few got to church to finish up the choreography to the dance part - thank you SO much to ashley and austin, they and their gifts are SUCH a huge blessing to this team...

and by the grace of God it was all choreographed in about a half hour! and i think its one of my favorite dances so far. crazy stuff.

and after another 4 hrs, a few minor injuries, some caribou coffee, a few wakeup calls and a lot of work...we finished it all and it is looking really cool (if i do say so myself...;) )
its a picture of how we go about our daily life, seeing the opportunities all around us to share Gods love...but fear holds us back. not because it is bigger or stronger than God - but because we allow it to cover us and overwhelm us and keep us from reaching out.
its a human video with some dance to the song "Dear X" by Disciple.
the lyric i love is the chorus when they say...
"You can fire, but you got no bullets. I was yours, I'm not yours anymore, cuz you dont own me"
and in this case, with this drama - applying that line to fear.
we can so easily convince ourselves that that voice, that that fear that makes us hesitate, that makes us doubt what we thought we knew we had to do -
while it seems so huge and so strong...God is bigger. we dont have to give in to that fear. it cant control us. the only hold it has over us is what we give it permission to hold over us.
one of my favorite verses is John 16:33..."i tell you this because in this world you will have trouble. but take heart...i have overcome the world"
amen! the God we have given our lives over to has overcome it all! nothing can touch us, nothing is more important that that. so we just need to look that fear in the eye - because even though it seems like its got a pistol pointed at our faces ready to take us down - its not loaded.
fear has no power unless you let it. but if God is in control - we'll have to strength to stand there and tell that fear that it can point that gun all it wants...but it wont stop us.
i had so much fun this morning working with everyone, and although it was early - it just is such a cool message, and definitely one i still need to learn.
so if you can, stop by on wed and check it out! it'll be in the middle of some pretty epic worship music, so how can you miss that??? ;)
pray that it goes well and that the message comes across CLEARLY and that people are impacted to get rid of the FEAR in their lives and just live lives for God of utter abandon.
love it.

some more arting from the team...facepaint style.

ok, as promised - here are some shots from our makeup night...

haha...so fun to see what people come up with.

love it.

after starting the night going through part of Psalm 81 (see the post below)...we went a little more in depth into that passage...i just love it so so much. :) so after that and some prayer time, we headed down to the dungeion and basically just gave them the tools and let them go.

and this is just some of what they came up with...

so enjoy!

some of the girls...so cute :)

austin's work...love it! and yes - those are her real eyelashes. ;)

this is my work. :) not sure what it is...but she looks pretty epic...

and joe...we ended up liking the eyebrows by the end of the evening...i mean - they do look nice.

chelsea wanted to turn me into envy green...selling herbal essence shampoo. :) not sure who she is haha - but the makeup looks pretty sweet.

and here is rachel sporting the "fireworks at night". thanks to joe for the name.

and here is one of the artists at work. he's got his glasses on and everything. after everyone was all painted and make-up'd...what else would we do but play with henna a little bit? :)

hope you enjoyed the pictures :) and if you ever need your makeup done for a special event - a wedding or something fancy...definitely let us know. ;)

have a happy, blessed, and relaxing long labor day weekend friends!

when indignant leads to fervent...

i am just taking a second to post a quote from a sermon i was listening to from the pastor of Hillsong Church in Australia. if you get a chance - go to itunes, its free to download and listen to. the one this is from is "When Ordinary People Pray...Part 2" loved it.
i hope you are blessed by it too! :)


"when did you last get indignant about the devil trying to steal your joy? about the plight of people who are suffering? when did you last get indignant about the devil trying to rob you of the purpose God has for your life? when people get indignant they pray fervently-passionately...God answers the fervent, real, authentic, desperate prayers of the righteous...who are the righteous? you are. you are made righteous by Christ - therefore your prayers are valuable, your prayers are answered, your prayers are effective and powerful. you have been given the gift, the miracle of righteousness - anyone who comes before Him humbly, opening their lives to Christ...they are made righteous which means our prayers are no longer based on us - but His will and His ability. so pray. and expect big things. "


amen, huh???
have a happy and beautifully blessed friday!
and make sure to come back later on tonight...we had a working meeting on monday, haha, so for last night's meeting - after a time of devos and diving into more psalms - we had a play time with some stage makeup...which can only mean that somehow we went really late, i have henna on my arm covered by a sweater that keeps pulling at it haha, drinking some pretty great office coffee cuz i forgot mine at home, and some pretty epic pics are to come.

:)

ask and you shall receive...:)

Good morning friends!
I am just going to post some quick pictures…
Yesterday I wrote about how we were believing that God could finish a backdrop in one night…well He did it!
Thank you to the team for the evening, the color “dinosaur” by custom paint by sam, paper mache-ing, splattered paint and God for providing all the materials and ideas!!!…we finished it and it looks pretty epic (aka amazing) if I do say so myself…;)
mark will be talking about how to live a life here on earth that is glorifying to God...until we get to eternity we need to understand how to live for Him and not give up or give in! so at the risk of sounding like Miley Cyrus haha...just climb over all the rocks in your life and keep fighting toward the cross, toward God and all He is calling us to...

below you can take a lil peek into the process and the finished product and if you want to come see the real thing, come to the new SWAP on Wednesday nights starting sept 8th!

God is so good! LOVE arting with Him…
And so so blessed by SUCH gifted artists in my life :)
So thanks again, guys! you are incredible!






Finished (just needs to be hung…prayin on that too…;) )

psalm 81...

Tonight…a backdrop will be created.
We have some people coming to work on and finish it! :) might be a little over-ambitious…but this is a crazy week so theres not a ton of time, and God can do whatever He wants. So today I am declaring and believing that God has the ability to finish it fast, to bring the body together on this using each of our uniquely God given gifts to their full advantage and to take our breath away with His awe-inspiring creativity.
(I decided I want to start to write more like Asaph…:) just loving words right now)

So keep us in your prayers tonight and be ready to see and be amazed by what God can do with some space, paper, paint, a few of His willing children, and a few hours. :)

Im excited…
:)

I have been reading through psalms some more…and reading in psalm 81 this part stuck with me…
this is more from Asaph…im telling you – these images are powerful! get ready to be inspired…If Asaph was alive today – I would totally go to his concerts…definitely an incredible artist.
But pay attention to the emotion behind these words – pay attention to what God must be feeling as the words come out…they are SOOOO much more than just words…
He says,
"I removed the burden from their shoulders; their hands were set free from the basket.
In your distress you called and I rescued you, I answered you out of a thundercloud; I tested you at the waters of Meribah.
"Hear, O my people, and I will warn you—
if you would but listen to me, O Israel!
I am the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt.
Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.
"But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me.
So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices.
"If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways,
how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes!

He wants to help so badly…He wants to subdue our enemies and lift the burden and He’s so ready…and the line where He says “hear o my people!” He is just wanting us to hear Him…He says “I rescued you, I heard you cry, I wiped your tears and saw that you were weighted down so I took your burden and I just want to keep you safe…I just want to be so close to you…and share that incredible relief you should be feeling…why wont you listen? Why do you walk away?”
It like makes me want to cry! Gods heart is so beautiful…who loves that deeply??? That unconditionally???
And my other favorite part is when he says “open your mouth wide and I will fill it”.
All we have to do is open our mouth wide and He will fill…(notice the word) FILL it with His love, His blessings, His security, etc etc etc. and He doesn’t just say – hey, let me pour some of this in…
No…He prepares you – open your mouth WIDE cuz your gonna want all you can possibly get of what is about to come…

So I know I have rambled ON AND ON…so I will just leave us with this…
Lets open our mouths WIDE ppl…He has blessings He is ready to pour out and He will give us as much as we are expecting of Him…
So I will encourage us – lets EXPECT big things of Him...and never be satisfied with just enough.

the art of the psalms

So we took a week off from ALIVE last week because a very good friend of sarah and I - got MARRIED last Friday :) and so the rehearsal fell on Thursday.
But we were back last night! and it was so fun – but we missed sarah who was at home, taking care of her baby.
We spent some time reading through a couple passages from Psalms…if you want to read what we read through I’ll list them for you…
Psalm 77:1-4,14-20
Psalm 74:4-8,10-11
Psalm 80:4-5
Psalm 50:1-5,12-15,22-23
First pray that God will help you see these passages as you go. Then read through them…and as you do – pay attention to what images come to mind. Pay attention to what you think of, what you are reminded of. Don’t just read – but picture what you are reading as you go.
and if you feel led - pick up a pen and paper and write or draw or sing or whatever He is leading you to do!

Lately I have been learning to pay attention to what goes on in my head when I read God’s word. And not just what I am learning, but learning to see what pictures and images form. To see what God is showing me.
These passages are all FILLED with imagery. Just really really cool word pictures (fyi NIV has the best version for the words with these, I think) and I have been looking at “why use those particular words?”
Why not just come straight out and say what he means? And I think its because this psalmist (these are all from Asaph) is an artist. God uses his words to create these pictures so we can SEE what he is talking about and not just learn the words.
I have been realizing that if we never look…if we never pay attention – we wont see or hear what He is trying to show us. we wont – and how can we miss it??? The God of the whole universe is trying to speak to us and show us part of His creativity…lets soak it up for all its worth! :)

I personally have a tendency to analyze and figure out and try to sort out every detail when im creating art…but God is just telling me to stop. Just stop, close my eyes, take a deep breath, and just watch.
He will take care of it…He’ll create through us – we just have to take the time to see what He is trying to show us.

How cool is it that God gives the creative mind this inspiration??? These amazing pictures…the words alone just conjure up these amazing images. “the waters writhe and convulge”… “I hold out my wearying hand…you hold my eyelids open when I cannot”… “the perfection of beauty”.
Beautiful stuff.

After we spent some time with that last night, we got in groups and did more of the same – one group working on coming up with a new drama we could use – and they came up with a really really cool idea. We are going to work on it and see what God does, but im really excited about it – so stay tuned!
And the other group worked on coming up with a backdrop for the new sr. high area.
Mark Thurston is going to be talking about the cross…and what it means to live for Him…until we get to eternity.

Really excited about that too!
So we’ll keep you updated on what is coming – and keep us in your prayers!
That God will keep inspiring, keep pouring out His creativity and that we can remain submitted to Him.

So lets all take time to just sit, close our eyes, and see what He wants to show us…:)
Happy Friday everyone!