The Proof of Your Love......

Still on the subject of love.....

I was driving home from town the other night, casually listening to the radio and not really paying much attention to what songs were playing....a million thought and ideas racing through my head. As we pulled into a gas station the song " Proof of Your Live" came on the radio, and for the first time that night my attention was captivated by the music, sitting there in the gas-station I listened.....I started paying careful attention to each verse, becoming more and more drawn to the truth of the lyrics.

If I sing but don't have love
I waste my breath with every song
I bring an empty voice, a hollow noise
If I speak with a silver tongue
Convince a crowd but don't have love
I leave a bitter taste with every word I say

So let my life be the proof,
The proof of Your love
Let my love look like You and what You're made of
How You lived, how You died
Love is sacrifice
So let my life be the proof,

The proof of Your love
If I give
To a needy soul but don't have love then who is poor?
It seems all the poverty is found in me
Asking God to help my life be the proof of His love, I was immediately forced to remember how simple it is to make that statement, yet how hard it can be to actually live it out. I have done and said a lot of things in my life, but, without that being backed up by true love...it means nothing! I can throw my arms up in praise when I sing, but, it means nothing if I am not doing it for the Love of our Savior! I can give all the advise in the world, but, unless it is given in love...it.means.nothing!


So let my life be the proof,
The proof of Your love

Let my love look like You and what You're made of
How You lived, how You died
Love is sacrifice
Oh, let my life be the proof,
The proof of Your love

When it's all said and done
When we sing our final song
Only love remains
Only love remains

Then, the song breaks and a dramatic voice quotes 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, The Message version. It goes like this;
"If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, 'jump,' and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love."
Such a powerful moment, and I was taken over by emotion...

Let my life be the proof,
The proof of your love
Let my love look like You and what You're made of
How You lived, how You died
Love is sacrifice
So let my life be the proof,
The proof of Your love

BY; for KING & COUNTRY

Ever since that night I haven't been able to get that song off of my mind. I go to sleep with it playing over and over in my head, and when I wake its almost the first thing that pops into my head.
With this burden of Love heavy on my heart 24/7, it the subject on witch I catch myself talking all the time. And so, one late night, as I was disusing this with a friend over facebook he stated something that owed me. He said this; 

"I live my life with an almost reckless abandon to share love with people and inspire them to love those they're surrounded by. Not in a hippy sense, but by choosing to give people love and respect, at face value without requiring prior confidence it breeds the same in return. I'm an enabler, even if people aren't aware of it. I believe, that while I'm not not perfect, my trying to be so, makes the difference. I may fall but I'll never fail. People may let me down but my only shortcoming is letting them fall that far in the first place. I'm strongly loyal, irrevocably loving, and unalterably me. I aspire nothing else but to inspire love. To inspire love is to inspire hope and belief. We have hope because we believe, we believe because we have hope. Love is central to our very existence, essential to our way of life. I live my life in a way that allows others to be all that they can be. That's just how God's created me to be and given me a genuine passion for. I just plain love people and want them to be happy and succeed regardless of any and all circumstances."

It was such a perfect way to sum up everything that I have been thinking about, and trying to express.


I see The Proof Of Your Love as a prayer....and it is a prayer that I have, and will continue to pray for my life. I pray that I will be immersed in the Fathers love and that I will exude that love to all those around me, and that I will live my life with Reckless abandon.


Blessings always <3

Just Pictures...

Blessings always <3

Daddy's hands....

I am yet a child......
Still to young to walk alone.
I need my daddy's hands to hold mine, to guide me..
And to be there if I fall.
Like a baby, everything is so new to me..
so big..
and so fascinating..
So eager to grow, and to become independent.
I long for freedom..
I see and experience all that I can from the safety of my daddy's arms..
but what is beyond this?
Trying to loosen his grip..
I squirm..
fight...
cry..
Then, I break free!
Finally, I get to see ALL that my daddy's arms kept me from..
finally I get to do what I want..
.......or so I thought.

Just a few steps on my own, and I fall on my face..
the pain and the hurt..
and just like a child I cry.
Looking up from this fallen place..
everything looks scary now!
I chock back the tears..
The shame and guilt I feel.
Now I understand..
my daddy was trying to protect me.





Still laying face down on the floor..
I wait for someone to take pity on me..
....I look around..
but no one has noticed.
I whimper..
and begin to cry.
I try to get up..
but I am too weak..
Then, as if it were my last resort..
I turn my attention back to my daddy..
but through my tears I could not see him..
has he forgotten me?
has he left me here all alone?
I am filled with anger..
And just before I let out a blood curdling scream...
......gentle hands reach down and pick me up.

You were right daddy.
I wanted to say, "I'm sorry."
burying my face deep..
grasping and holding on tight..
Don't ever let me go!
He hugs me close..
and kisses the top of my head..
"My child....I want only what is best for you"
I stiffen..
"Then why did you let me fall?
You allowed me to get hurt.".
and in a loving voice he said..
"Remember my child....you pushed me away..."
.....and I remember
that struggle..
rebellious, and unaware of my fathers desire to keep me safe..
I had pulled away from his guiding hands.
"And when I looked back and did not see you..?"
"I was not behind you child..I was by your side"
"Then why did you not catch me?"
"I give you free will.. so that you may learn from your mistakes and grow.

If I always padded your fall, you would never experience pain and suffering, and without pain and suffering, you would never gain knowledge; nor self-control; nor perseverance; nor godliness; nor brotherly kindness; nor love."


"For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 1:5-8)


Closing thought;
Trials strengthen my character and increase my faith in God. So, they are for my ultimate and eternal good!


Blessings always <3

Missing my Home...

      ...away from Home <3

I found a story, explaining, through the eyes of an American woman, what Africa is like. She put it in words that I could never have written. Here is her story, along with my pictures.

--

"There’s this space. This big spilling space that stretches and leans and reaches so that a spreading sky can cast itself huge and blue overhead. Blue calico strung tight, with the tiniest horsetail of white, so that it’s out of piercing range of sharp landmarks, so that it’s pulled high and doesn't dip and sag and steal those landmarks thunder. And when the rain comes its generous, for the show is always spectacular as it muddies the blueness and steeps it in charcoal clouds which it rips apart with jagged swords of hot light. You can see for miles in Africa, miles and miles: put your flattened palm to your brow and screw up your eyes and see the furthest away horizons, where the earth touches outspread fingers with darkening sky in a reassuring gesture as night falls, as if to say, ‘it’s okay, it’ll all be here in the morning’... Before it plunges itself into mad psychedelic dusk, a son et lumiere, a disco in the sky, the moon a high-strung orb.

And it’s the peculiar way the dust hangs, clouds of it kicked up by the hooves of cattle or the tires of boda and car, it smudge the picture to a soft-edged texture. The way it back lights late afternoon.

And it’s the broadwhitetoothed smiles in black and mocha faces, the hopeful way a woman will sit patiently roadside with three piles of six tomatoes each. Waiting for a buyer. It’s the scent of roasted corn she turns on a small fire. It’s the children that gather at her skirts and laugh and point and wave. It’s the cheerfulness with which a girl will hold a banana leaf aloft as an umbrella in torrential rain. Getting wet doesn't matter: not when she has cultivated a field of maize. It’s the determined way Africa’s little people live valiantly on in the face of adversity and corruption. The way everybody says hello. Even, and especially, when they don’t know you.

It’s sitting by a river and watching the gentle, slow-tempo movement of chocolate brown water, noticing the ants scurry and dig and home-build in the sand at your feet. Watching and thinking about everything and nothing.

And it’s the noises you don’t hear until they’re not there. The click and hiss and high-heel kicking of cicadas. The way the noonday bush broils as if a hundred tiny pressure cookers were on an invisible hob. The muezzin calling the faithful to prayer. The shrikes and doves which become white noise until you can no longer hear their squabbling and songs and mourning calls. Roosters who haven’t learned the rules: you’re not supposed to announce the dawn again at ten to three in the afternoon. Who cares? This is Africa!" 

- Unknown

--

I never stopped miss Uganda since the day I left. It has been 1 year and 5 months, and each month that goes by only adds on to my longing to be there again. But my heart is torn..... My home is here, and my family is here, but, its also there. How can one be in two places at one time? How can one's heart be split in half, one 10,000 miles away from the other. <3



Blessings always

Here I am to Worship

This is one of my absolute favorite songs, and I just wanted to share it with ya'll...  

~


Light of the World
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes
Let me see
Beauty that made
This heart adore You
Hope of a life
Spent with You

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me
King of all days
Oh so highly exalted
Glorious in Heaven above
Humbly You came
To the earth You created
All for love's sake became poor

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

I'll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross
I'll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

~



Love and blessings <3

An even deeper aspect of FAITH

Having faith in Christ is saying, "I put my life and everything about me totally in Your hands, Jesus." 
It's like flying on an airplane.  You can make plans to go, book your flight and drive to the airport.  But until you actually board the plane and are in the air, you are under your own control.  When you become airborne, then someone else has control of your life.  You are then in the hands of the pilot and the airplane itself.
   That's the way we need to be with our faith in the Father.  You simply turn your life over to Him and trust Him completely with every breath you take.
  A few helping steps:

       ~ You learn NOT to worry about the future (both near and distant).


"For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, as to what you shall eat, or what you shall drink ; nor for your body, as to what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? " Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? " And which of you by being anxious can add a single cubit to his life span? - Matthew 6:25-27
     ~ You pray about ALL the decisions you make on a daily basis.

"Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints" - Ephesians 6:18


"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." - Philippians 4:6

      ~ When challenges and obstacles come into your life, you learn to turn them over to Jesus and QUIT worrying about them.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:34      ~ And learn to obey His teachings and commands found in His Word.

It is my earnest desire to grow in grace day by day,  and in the knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.
It is my desire to love the Lord my God with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my strength, and with all my mind, and to love my neighbor as myself.
and it is my desire desire to give all diligence to add in faith.

Blessings in Christ Jesus <3

The Cry of My Heart

"You are good, You are good

When there's nothing good in me

You are love, You are love

On display for all to see

You are light, You are light

When the darkness closes in

You are hope, You are hope

You have covered all my sin

You are peace, You are peace

When my fear is crippling

You are true, You are true

Even in my wandering

You are joy, You are joy

You're the reason that I sing

You are life, You are life,

In You death has lost its sting 

Oh, I'm running to Your arms,

I'm running to Your arms

The riches of Your love

Will always be enough

Nothing compares to Your embrace

Light of the world forever reign

You are more, You are more

Than my words will ever say

You are Lord, You are Lord

All creation will proclaim

You are here, You are here

In Your presence I'm made whole

You are God, You are God

Of all else I'm letting go

Oh, I'm running to Your arms

I'm running to Your arms

The riches of Your love

Will always be enough

Nothing compares to Your embrace

Light of the world forever reign

and Oh, I'm running to Your arms

I'm running to Your arms

The riches of Your love

Will always be enough

Nothing compares to Your embrace

Light of the world forever reign

My heart will sing

no other Name

Jesus, Jesus"

- Forever reign by Hillsong 

Small acts of Grace

"Sometimes making a difference in our world calls for noble decisions and big gestures.

 Sometimes it requires significant sacrifice and changes in life direction. 

But just as often, i think, following Gods heart is simply a matter of 

noticing another persons needs and making a little effort to lift up or encourage 

that person. even the smallest of these acts of grace can make a huge difference.

 Anyone can do it---including you and me." - Alice Gray

May blessings fill your day <3

Inspired to love

“Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own home. 

Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor . . .

Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. 

Be the living expression of God's kindness; 

kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, 

kindness in your warm greeting."

- Mother Teresa

The holy-spirit has been convicting me recently about love; Phileo love, or in other words... brotherly love!

Looking into my past I am filled with guilt, and grief because of the choices that I made to judge certain people and to hate certain people.  Never did I do this to anyone's face....but in my heart, and in my mind I kindled an abhorrence for these individual people in my life. 

I let this hate grow and grow inside of me, until even hearing their names enraged me. 

NEVER in my life do I ever want to feel that again! 

I couldn't tell you why I hated these people so much, I didn't really have any good reason, only excuses. 

I knew in my heart that what I was feeling was wrong! and I knew that I wasn't reflecting the Attributes of Jesus Christ. BUT, my feelings tend to rule my life, so I continued to hold on to my anger. 

Then one day it all came together, what I knew in my head and what I felt in my heart. 

Where anger had ruled my feelings, God is now helping me replace with love. 

My first action was to repent and ask forgiveness from God, and then, to do the same to those people that I had sinned against. 

Not all of them did I expect to forgive me, not all of them did I expect to ever talk to again. 

But my heart is new and I'm full of hope, just like the new year, and the new fallen snow.

My dad quoted this verse at breakfast and it really fits my day..

"And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6)

And just a few other verses that stuck out to me..

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another" (John 13:34) 

"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ..." (1 John 4: 7-21)

"Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others." (Philippians 2:3-4)

Blessings always <3 

Low Expectations...

       that the younger generations face today

Too many teens and pre-teens in our society have low expectations. Our society today says “Shoot low so you don't get disappointed.” Low expectations are declared everywhere. Have you noticed the logo’s for our popular companies these days? For example Nike’s logo is “Just do it!!” It’s small, subtle, and sneaky little hints like these that can totally ruin our lives. Another example is Pepsi’s logo “Listen to your thirst.” It’s all about doing whatever you want, when you want, however you want and nobody expects you to do any different. Why? Why do we put up with, and listen to, these lies, these low expectations?  And why is it that teenagers aren’t supposed to be mature, be able to make decisions on their own, or to be smart?  Most parents don’t even expect their teen to make their own bed in the morning. How hard can it be? The sad thing is that we listen to this garbage!! It seems that the whole world has very low expectations. Not just for teens but the whole American culture has been sliding lower and lower over the past 40 years. There are now lower standards in almost every area of our lives than there  were in the last generation. With all these low standards, how is it possible to grow? Here is what another teen has to say on this subject…….
                   
“The teens of today are growing up to be the next generation of adults. Yes that’s right, the same teens that are out getting drunk are going to be running our country in 10-20 years. Sure you might say not all teens are like this, but even the teens that are set part from the rest are settling for just average. You see, as soon as we find ourselves doing something good, we stop.  We stop because we think that we have already gone above average why should we do anything more?  Well if we want to become the greatest person God made us to be,  then we have to throw all low expectations out the window."- Noah

  ~

The World's expectations vs God’s Expectations

Staying pure until marriage.  The world says that we own our bodies therefore, we can do whatever we want with them. But, the bible tells us that “. . . your bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God. You are not your own. . .” (1 Cor. 6: 19) It also says “But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.” ( Eph. 5:3) Of course this is pointed towards the unmarried.

Social behavior and protocol.  In today’s culture mannerisms are definitely not encouraged as much as they should be. Nor is it a practice to put others ahead of yourselves. The Bible says “ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” (Phil. 2:3-4)

Spiritual maturity.  In order for Christian maturity to develop in your life, you must make a choice to learn God's Word, allow God to renew your mind, and then be obedient to what you learn. (Romans 12:1-2 says, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."


Purity of speech. All you have to do is get online or walk out your door to notice the foul language that almost everybody uses today. Is it pure? No. Is it kind? No. Is it biblical? No. Where did it come from, and what does the bible say about it? Eph. 4: 29 says “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” 


 Personal conviction, or vision. (I couldn’t come up with any bible verses for this one but I’m sure they're in there somewhere.) Many young people especially men at ages 17-21 years of age don’t have a clue what they want to do, where they want to go, and how they want to spend there lives.  A conviction is a fixed or strong belief.  Your convictions define who you are, what you are about, and where you are going in life! And what I mean by vision is that you know what you are going to do in the future or what you want to do in the future, so that at 35 years you're not still living off your parents, sitting on your rear all day because you don’t have anything better to do.

Capability. Most youth are considered incapable just in general--not capable of having good behavior, not capable of staying pure until marriage, not capable in the financial realm…etc; But the bible says “Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.” (1 Tim 4: 12) We need to show the world that we are capable and even at a young age.

Respect for peers. This one goes right along with social behavior and protocol.  The way that friends treat friends these days is ludicrous. Overheard was a teenager saying in response to foolish, selfish, rebellious, and dangerous actions towards a friend,  "Well, teenagers are supposed to act like that." . . . . Oh no, I don't think so! I think that we all need to study Eph. 4: 32 a little more often! “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.” Did it ever occur to you to be kind to your friend’s? Phil. 2:3-4 is also a good one to remember when your with your friends! “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” 

 ~

 This is why we have to rebel!! So where and when do we start? Right here, doing our best in the areas we are in right now! If we all do our part we can change a generation.
“Its like going green, except instead of saving the environment we can save our lives.”  says another teen.

If you haven’t already I would highly recommend reading ‘Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris or visiting their Web page www.therebelution.com . These contain materials that will challenge you to give up your life, make sacrifices, and change a generation.


A little something for us all to think about.
God bless,