Give me your Eyes- Brandon Heath

Looked down from a broken sky
Traced out by the city lights

My world from a mile high
Best seat in the house tonight
Touched down on the cold black tile
Hold on for the sudden stop
Breath in the familiar shock
Of confusion and chaos
Are those people going somewhere?
Why have I never cared?

Step out on a busy street
See a girl and our eyes meet
Does her best to smile at me
To hide whats underneath
There’s a man just to her right
Black suit and a bright red tie
To ashamed to tell his wife
He’s out of work
He’s buying time
Are those people going somewhere?
Why have I never cared?

Chorus
Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach
Give me your heart for the once forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see

I’ve been there a million times
A couple of million eyes
Just moving past me by
I swear I never thought that I was wrong
Well I want a second glance
So give me a second chance
To see the way you see the people all alone

The safest place to be...

My city is one of the safest places I knew, four years ago. It had very very minimal crime almost nill(then again I was a child and didn't know or hear much). But as we soon discovered there were some that had taken a wicked thought or a stupid movie plot and thought it approved to rape or kidnap a child. It freaked me out to hear things like that cause I had grown up feeling so safe. I felt the safety within my being, in my own land, leave bit by bit as I heard the stories. Today, as I live somewhere else, I thought I was safe till I started hearing the news of my people being caught, beaten, and killed for being our kind. But this time, there is nothing that can take the safety from within my being. You see, I have realized and experienced that Jesus is good. No matter what happens, no matter what I am going through, Jesus is good. He has a brilliant plan for me and as long as He says I have a bright future I will choose to believe that.
I have now realised that the safest place is in His will. When you are in His will, trust me temptation is waiting on the other side but it will not overtake or over power you cause of His hand over your world( Ps 16:7-9). God has been my father and my protector for a long time, in so many extraordinary unimaginable ways.
A God who brought you out of the pit, who healed your burns and loved you so unconditionally will never leave at the last minute. He who started a good work in you, will fulfill His dream of a wonderful future for you. Maybe for some of you it is hard to imagine that He dreams of a beautiful future for you but I stand as a testimony of His love.
The safest place to be at is in His will, where His voice will lead you into the things of life and beauty. Do not be afraid or shattered by the circumstances and temptations in your face. But remember that the Joy of the Lord is your strength. Wondering where you can start? At His feet completely surrendered is the answer. Let Him lead you into the truth and what you can and should do.
I believe that God has given us a mind to understand and apply certain things. He has given us instinct which I think as Christians is driven by the Holy Spirit to act or accomplish something and He has given us a heart to love, forgive and have compassion.
The ingredients to a fruitful and meaningful life is in Him, through Him and for Him and hence making it the safest place on earth. Get it? :)

Psalm 16:7-9 (New International Version)
7    I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
      even at night my heart instructs me.
8    I have set the LORD always before me.
      Because he is at my right hand,
      I will not be shaken.
9   Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
     my body also will rest secure,

The Living Room:When your heart needs a father- Max Lucado

"Our Father who is in heaven …” With these words Jesus escorts us into the Great House of God. Shall we follow him? There is so much to see. Every room reveals his heart, every stop will soothe your soul. And no room is as essential as this one we enter first. Walk behind him as he leads us into God’s living room.

Sit in the chair that was made for you and warm your hands by the fire which never fades. Take time to look at the framed photos and find yours. Be sure to pick up the scrapbook and find the story of your life. But please, before any of that, stand at the mantle and study the painting which hangs above it.

Your Father treasures the portrait. He has hung it where all can see.

Stand before it a thousand times and each gaze is as fresh as the first. Let a million look at the canvas and each one will see himself. And each will be right.

Captured in the portrait is a tender scene of a father and a son. Behind them is a great house on a hill. Beneath their feet is a narrow path. Down from the house the father has run. Up the trail the son has trudged. The two have met, here, at the gate.

We can’t see the face of the son; it’s buried in the chest of his father. No, we can’t see his face, but we can see his tattered robe and stringy hair. We can see the mud on the back of his legs, the filth on his shoulders and the empty purse on the ground. At one time the purse was full of money. At one time the boy was full of pride. But that was a dozen taverns ago. Now both the purse and the pride are depleted. The prodigal offers no gift or explanation. All he offers is the smell of pigs and a rehearsed apology: “Father, I have sinned against God and done wrong to you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son” (Luke 15:21).

He feels unworthy of his birthright. “Demote me. Punish me. Take my name off the mailbox and my initials off the family tree. I am willing to give up my place at your table.” The boy is content to be a hired hand. There is only one problem. Though the boy is willing to stop being a son, the father is not willing to stop being a father.

Though we can’t see the boy’s face in the painting, we can’t miss the father’s. Look at the tears glistening on the leathered cheeks, the smile shining through the silver beard. One arm holds the boy up so he won’t fall, the other holds the boy close so he won’t doubt.

“Hurry!” he shouts. “Bring the best clothes and put them on him. Also, put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get our fat calf and kill it so we can have a feast and celebrate. My son was dead, but now he is alive again! He was lost but now he is found!” (Luke 15:22–24).

How these words must have stunned the young man, “My son was dead …” He thought he’d lost his place in the home. After all, didn’t he abandon his father? Didn’t he waste his inheritance? The boy assumed he had forfeited his privilege to sonship. The father, however, doesn’t give up that easily. In his mind, his son is still a son. The child may have been out of the house, but he was never out of his father’s heart. He may have left the table, but he never left the family. Don’t miss the message here. You may be willing to stop being God’s child. But God is not willing to stop being your Father.

From The Great House of God
Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 1997) Max Lucado

Jeremy Pearsons At Encounterfest 09

Message: Comfort of the Holy Spirit

I put in all the parts so you can watch the whole thing right here. It was such a beautiful message made spectacularly simple.

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Part 6:

My NYE poem--> 2010

He wrote a symphony about me

He wrote a love note everyday

When my world crashed

When all I felt was distress

There was a beam of light

That stayed on beaming into the night

Even in the morning it kept with me

In the afternoon it assured me of it staying till the end

There were a few different thoughts

That described very different things

There were voices that lied

And those that deceived

Anything my innocence would perceive

To find an answer to these feelings

But even in the morning it kept with me

In the afternoon it assured me of it staying till the end

Time has passed and so much gone from within me

But He did write a symphony about me

He still writes a love note everyday

True love stayed on like a beam of light

He stayed on beaming into the night

Now He shines through me

And so much has been given to me

To protect and love someone else like me

Till you know that He will stay 

There He will be as a beam of light

And stay beaming on into the night

Even in the morning He will keep with you

In the afternoon He will assure you of staying till the end

It just so happens He created me for you.

On Aging- Amy Grant

It occurred to me this morning
    as I washed this face of mine,
How quickly come the changes
    with a little passing time
A wrinkle here, a hair turned gray
    a not so lilting step
I see me growing older,
    but i don't quite feel it yet
At times I nearly feel my age
    at others I'm, sixteen,
So full am I of all the thoughts
    and feelings in between

Who would have thought the road of life
Would twist and turn so much?
The journey makes me strong and weak and
     tender to the touch.
And so this day I face the choice
     that I have faced each day,
Will I be open? Teachable?
Unafraid of change?
    Yes.

I will embrace this moment.
Forgive my past mistakes.
And remember that just showing up is
    sometimes all it takes.
I'll seek the kind of beauty
    that time cannot erase,
Wisdom and experience resting on my face.

Security in Familiarity...

I opened an old box of jewelry... stuff I promised myself I would never wear again!:)
But as I opened it... I smelled home.
Familiarity can do that. Your senses like smell, taste, even seeing something reminds you of a good time. Something that made you happy... like maybe your mum's hug or her smell or time with your mates or cousins. Times when you rode your tiny bicycle up and down the corridor of your apartment; Your first pet; Your first sleepover; Your first best friend; Your first barbie or your first action man (for the boys). Things that made you laugh or/and cry like your first crush, your classic April Fool's moment; tickle attacks.
And unfortunately sometimes things that hurt you once. Things that caused your heart to break; your life to feel empty; your body numb; and the sense of worthlessness and that you wouldn't bring happiness to anyone or love anyone or help anyone.
That was me a few years ago. My heart was broken. I felt so destroyed and so massively disappointed in myself. I felt I was a failure and would never accomplish anything.
As I looked into the box, I found a post-it note. It had someone's email and some random math. But on the back, in my hand writing it said, "You are Talented".
There was a period in my life when the devil knew he could say anything and I would believe it.
Those moments did hurt. But God spoke to me. In reassuring ways, He presented the truth to me. He told me who I was. And He reminded me through smell; through old post-it notes that He was still there. The One that brought life, love, security, freedom and much much more was still there and would always be there.
There is the concept that is taught of not letting familiarity cease you from worshipping. And sometimes you can get tired of that song they sing every day of the week for the next ten months in church. I find a lot of comfort in those songs that brought me to my knees in worship. Those lyrics that made me raise my hands in awe. That music that allowed my soul and my mind to join in unity with my spirit. I found my security in Him. It was the familiarity that allowed me to engage. His storm calming peace. His heart melting love. His concept of taking my burden. His words of truth that declare me righteous. His healing palm. His overflowing lap of love.
I have become familiar to that presence. To the healing presence of my Dad...
I could be, would be anyone and achieve anything there. I fit perfectly with Him.
Don't allow that familiarity to cease your worship. Instead let it flow more bountifully.

The caution sign.

"Caution: Do not cover" said my new twenty dollar fan heater. It is probably the best twenty dollars I have spent. I switched it on and got comfortable in my bed. My plan was to leave it running for ten minutes, switch it off and then go to sleep.
But the warmth was so incredible, in five minutes I probably looked like a blob in my bed. I woke up the next morning sweating. What scared me  was that my quilt had managed to get on top of the heater (I had placed it too close to my bed, so that my hand could reach it without me having to jump out of bed to turn it off). Within a second, i freaked and pulled the quilt off the heater cause I was reminded of what the caution sign had expressed.
Recently I pondered on this incident and felt God speaking to me through it....

Some of my friends prayed over me the other day and said "Sharon, God is waiting for you to jump. Don't you trust Him?" Honestly, I don't think I do. I want to, but it freaks me out. What if I get hurt again? And this time it would be God that hurt me, who would then mend my broken heart? I was tired of the excuses of life, family and friends. I didn't want to give 'all of me' to anyone cause then I was assured that I wouldn't be hurt. I would be okay. Just okay!
How annoying is that I would just be okay? What a mediocre way of living! I would never experience fully what God had planned for me. As I only gave a little part of me, I would only receive a little back.
It's like choosing a delicious slice of cheesecake at your favorite cafe. You would only get a little piece instead of a whole slice cause you chose not to pay the full price so as to receive that big delicious creamy slice of cheesecake. In all reality, you would get nothing. Feel like you're missing out? That is exactly what I had been doing to my relationships especially the one with God.
God then spoke to me and said I had placed that caution sign on myself. I didn't mind the few seconds of warmth but I was scared to go all in for God and spread the fire in me. The book of revelations was pretty clear when it said God couldn't be bothered by those that had warm faith. In other words, He said chose Me or this world. I rather you had an opinion, whether right or wrong than not have one at all. This indicated a state of confusion which is not from God and I couldn't represent Him with that character in me.

How much more can He give. He gave everything and we still ask for more?

It's time we took the caution sign off ourselves and said "Here I am, set me on fire for you and send me"

Questions I would then have to answer:

Do I let  the caution sign remain?

Do I want the whole slice of cheesecake?
Do I choose a few useless seconds of warmth in my relationship with God or go all in for Him?
Do i choose life to its max. or a mediocre "okay" life?

What do you choose?

You are by Tenth Avenue North

Lord of empty space
You breathe and then create
Before the earth was made
You are

The King of every age
Outside of time and space
The heavens speak Your name
You are

Lord of brilliant light
You separate the night
And everything inside
You are

The One who calms the seas
And every part of me
With just a word You speak
You are

I give You all of me for all You are
Here I am
Take me apart

Angels bowing down
Beneath the rushing sound
A voice that thunders out
You are

The one who holds the stars
And the beating of my heart
Exalted above all
You are

All I am I want to lay down at Your feet

"Unbreakable"- Fireflight

Where are the people that accused me?
The ones who beat me down and bruised me
They hide just out of sight
Can't face me in the light
They'll return but I'll be stronger

God, I want to dream again
Take me where I've never been
I want to go there
This time I'm not scared
Now I am unbreakable, it's unmistakable
No one can touch me
Nothing can stop me

Sometimes it's hard to just keep going
But faith is moving without knowing
Can I trust what I can't see
To reach my destiny
I want to take control but I know better

Forget the fear it's just a crutch
That tries to hold you back
And turn your dreams to dust
All you need to do is just trust