Once you've seen selfless compassion
There's nothing left for you to learn here.
If you've witnessed it for 10 minutes or 10 years.
It doesn't matter. Let it change you.

Go back to America.
Go back to the MOST impoverished nation in the world.
Go back and teach others about what you have learned here.
Go with God.

-excerpts from "Sessions with Nicole"
recently back from Calcutta, India.


May the Peace of Christ rest easy on your shoulders 

 


Hold on to the Memories
And Cherish the Moments as they Pass 

 


you might hate me
you might hate this town
you might hate my house
you might hate this church
you might hate this common way
you might hate surrender

But if you trust the lord
and let him lead you
You just might find that it's
Everything you've wanted
Everything you've needed
Everything you've hoped for
For no apparent reason

You just might find that
You're more happy
More secure
More at peace
More fulfilled
Than you could have ever imagined

You might find that you weren't designed to struggle like you do
You weren't made to be afraid and unsure
You were penned with a promise
Formed with a vision
Shaped with a purpose
That is far better than anything that you can comprehend
And it's all waiting for you

And if you can believe
You will see
If you can believe
you will perceive
The Lord in all His glory
Move before you

You will watch the world unfold and kneel before you
Then you will take your place
As a child of God

Be God's 

 

Me and Stephanie Drymon
Singing in church on Sunday
"All Creatures of Our God and King"

Great job Steph! 

 


You

As I start to talk to you,
I hear a quiver in your voice.
I notice that you’re trying,
To make yourself keep smiling.
I know something’s troubling you
By the way you talk to me.
I can tell there’s something wrong,
By the way you’re acting.

When I ask you what’s wrong,
You reply you don’t know.
When I ask if I can help,
You tell me to let it go.
When I ask why you’re crying,
You say I won’t understand.
When I ask what I can do,
You answer "to be you."

As I look toward your face,
I notice your red eyes.
I can tell you’re depressed,
But it will be alright.
You try to play it off
Like there is nothing bad,
But as I gaze at your beauty
I know that you are sad.

When I ask you what’s wrong,
You reply you don’t know.
When I ask if I can help,
You tell me to let it go.
When I ask why you’re crying,
You say I won’t understand.
When I ask what I can do,
You answer "to be you."

You won’t tell anyone
What happens in your life.
You try to bottle up
All your tears inside.
I noticed one day
A tear on your cheek.
I tried to talk to you,
But you wouldn’t even speak.

When I ask you what’s wrong,
You reply you don’t know.
When I ask if I can help,
You tell me to let it go.
When I ask why you’re crying,
You say I won’t understand.
When I ask what I can do,
You answer "to be you."
-BL 

  Transformer.
More than meets the eye.



Our common sense is not sanctified enough to rely on.
It is shaped too much by pop culture
Look trough your credit card bill to see where your heart lies.
What things are truly important to you.


Joshua 1:1-9 (NIV)
The LORD Commands Joshua
1 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD , the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: 2 "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them-to the Israelites. 3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. 4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates-all the Hittite country-to the Great Sea [a] on the west. 5 No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.
6 "Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." 

  broken
undone
-jb





we come to you

as you came to us so we come to you
fragile as a baby hopeful and new
but learning fast that to walk is to fall
soon we’ve done it all

we come broken and we come undone
we come trying hard to love everyone
but we come up short in all that we do
because we do
so we come to you

as you came to us so we come to you
dirty and hurting then dead in the tomb
but raised redeemed to show off the scars
‘cause you’ve brought us this far

we come broken and we come undone
we come trying hard to love everyone
but we come up short in all that we do
because we do
so we come to you

you came to show the way not around but through
so through it all we come to you


-derek webb


 

 

Forty seven
In thirty five
One hundred and thirty
To slow my ride

Regulation
Humiliation
For protection
From dislocation

Pay attention
To you're actions
You never know
The chain reactions

"He's not safe
But he is good
And he is king"

He IS Good
And He IS King
 

 

AdamsRoad
by njg

"This is my place," I thought, as I let gravity slowly pull by body into to the swaying green sea. I was the only person here and I felt incredible. There was something very different about it though; it was like no place I've ever been before. Everything from the touch of the grass to the warmth from the sun felt alien to me. It was like I was in another world, but yet I don't remember ever getting out of bed. I opened my eyes and found myself in a patch of grass in the middle of an ivory beach. I walked out a ways to get a better look at my surroundings. To my left was an ocean and to my right was an enormous hill. Beneath my feet were the softest, finest grains of sand you could possible imagine stretching endlessly in front and behind me. I felt as if I was walking on a beach made completely out of flour. I picked up a handful and let it float away on the refreshing breeze. The sun was more radiant than I had ever seen. It's warmth spread throughout my entire body filling every possible crevice. It was so perfect; yet there was something that I could not quite understand which made everything...different. I found that in my place I had more energy than ever before and I used it to my benefit. After running for hours up what I thought was nothing but a small hill I reached the top only to realize that I wasn't tired and could have ran all the way down and back up again. But then the majesty of the place hit me. I stopped. There before me was an eternity of rolling, green hills and in some of the valleys between the hills were streams of crystal clear water that flowed over all kinds of rocks creating intricate falls. It looked as if this picture belonged in a painting...but then I had never seen a painting quite like this. Astounded by the beauty I almost overlooked the path that sat out before me. It was perfectly straight and disappeared into the distance along with the rolling hills. It was very wide, enough for several people to walk down side by side. Curiosity caught a hold of me and I started down the path to see where it might take me. After a day or two of walking through the hills I reached a valley that seemed to go on forever. "This must be the end of the hills," I thought. A little ways further I noticed a man standing beside a beautiful golden gate. The gate was connected to a wall that was much taller than I was and looked impossible to climb. "What is this wall here for?" I asked the man. "It's here to separate the truth from everything else," he replied. He explained to me that I was not allowed to pass through the gate. "Once you've passed through you cannot go back," he stated "and you have already passed through." I wasn't quite sure what he meant; I don't ever remember passing through this gate before. He saw the confused look on my face and placing his hand on my shoulder he asked me "Do you not know where you are?" "No," I replied, "I don't." He walked me over to the gate and told me to look out and then I would understand. I opened the gate, which was not locked, and while peering out I understood why this place that I was in was so different. There were no shadows to be found anywhere. The path continued on the other side of the gate, but was only wide enough for one person. I couldn’t see very far down the path because it was overgrown with all types of vegetation. It was so dark compared to the other side of the gate. I made out the figure of a man standing on the path, completely still. His hand was stuck out into the thorns as if he was reaching for someone. I yelled at him to come inside the gate, but he must not have heard me. I wanted to go out and get him, and would have, but the man by the gate told me that he would come when he was ready. "Is this the only gate into this place?" I asked the man. "Yes," he replied, "This is the only one." "You would think that there would be more people trying to get in!" I exclaimed. "Well," he said, "the path is pretty overgrown and few people ever find it. Most people take the other paths away from here, they're a little easier to travel on." "But then they will never get to this place," I retorted. "They think they are coming here," the gate man said, "but they cannot see very far and although the other paths look straight, they all turn the opposite direction." And with that he took me back up the hill where I found a beautiful willow tree to sit under and stared up into the magnificent sun, happy to go blind.


 

 

If you do the wrong thing
The lights will go out
You have to battle back
To get the light to come back

How do you battle back?

Cry up
Chasten yourself
Give no place to the evil one

-JMB

 

  I'm Still Here. -jb



I’m Still Here
by Don Chaffer

I went flying in a dream last night
Whenever I was scared, I took flight
It didn’t seem brave and it didn’t seem right
but it always seemed easier than puttin up a fight

And I’m almost gone
But I’m still here

Tell me a story that’ll make me feel
Something far flung but something real
Something that’s human but not depraved
Somebody endangered, but somebody still saved

When Joshua sat them children down
He said I ain’t no Moses but I ain’t no clown
And I know how that river’s wide
But if you follow me we’ll make it to the other side

And I’m almost there
But I’m still here
 

 


One man sits on the rocky shore
While another is blown by the wind at sea
From his boat he perceives that the man on the shore is moving
While he considers himself stationary
The waves sweep him up and down
And he cries out to God, "How can this be?
The man on the shore seems stable and calm
Even though he is the one moving like a wave at sea"
As he points out his finger the rain starts to pour
And from the bottom of the wave he can't see the man on the shore
He sits in his boat as the day turns to night
He is lonely and lost, thinking "This is just part of life"
He longs for that moment of stability
At the top of the wave, when he was the most happy
Where the sun was bright and warmed up his soul
When everything seemed as though it was under control
And men in their boats come sailing by
Some relatively look as though they are stable inside
And men in their boats they will row and row
And they can't figure out which way they should go
But the man on the shore who sits peacefully still
Can discern between truth and the things that aren't real
His words are like honey; his life a beacon of light
That shines atop a hill and brings hope in the night

-njg 

 


Some guy comes along
And she falls apart
It's how she gets attacked
She’s trying to fight back

One of the many
Sent to deceive
Henchmen of evil
Misdirection conceived

They all look different
But they're all just the same
A little bit of charm
In exchange for her name

Someone authored confusion
And ordered dismay
Penned a love letter
So rest she'd delay

So turn my dear and run
Don't look back, don't look back
Rest easy in The One
Keep you eyes on the Son


 

 


Hush

When you feel like the days just drone on and on and on
and you feel like the nights are quickly gone

and on the inside your heart is gaping wide
and on the inside you feel like no one’s on your side
well, I am

When you thought you could rest, but you found out you were wrong
And there’s another need another battle
another one more thing that comes along

and on the inside
you hear the fall but you hate the falling sound
and on the inside
you can’t pick another broken piece up off the ground
well I know

CHORUS

Hush little baby don’t say a word
Daddy’s gone and bought you a great big heaven to rest in
He’s bought it with blood and put the seal in your heart
it’ll give you the hope you need to get up and start again

when all the things you thought you left behind are still hanging on
and everything you try to do right ends up all wrong

and on the inside everyone else seems basically fine
but on the inside even they won’t let go of the dead and cling to what’s alive
well I AM


Artist: Waterdeep
Song: Hush
Record: Everyone's Beautiful
Written by Lori Chaffer  

 

What do you believe
What can you perceive
Which are your opinions
Which are make-believe

I listen to your words
And trust to you belief
But then you forget
And say you regret
 

 

Child star
Turned fallen star
Expectations great
Fogiveness too late

Quick and witty
Nice and pretty
Always knew just
What to say

But when they're gone
There's a different song
One of strife's confusion

Ramifications
Of isolations
The price of cute indifference

Short term fix
To fit in the mix
You can fool them for a while

When you're gone
And they sing your song
Will they have to lie?