10 April 2009
format.
i apologize for the format of the blog below. no matter how many times i changed it and it was correct in my draft, the published post shows up lacking spacing.
09 April 2009
tangent.
let me begin with, more or less, a warning. the following blog will probably consist of several different thoughts and ideas, rather than one flowing "thesis" or theme.
i think its appropriate at this time of year (i hate to refer to it as that, a "time of year"...though i don't really like to term it as a "holiday" either) as we think about good friday and easter and what that means for us, that we think about forgiveness. the obvious example of forgiveness being that of our forgiveness for our sins, through the death of our Savior. but this example of ultimate forgiveness (and of course sacrifice) is one that should carry over into our lives - into our relationships with others. i recently heard something that really caught my attention. one of those things that i should obviously know, but i liked the reminder. i wish i could remember where i heard it so that i could quote it more accurately, but hopefully i can get the point across. they said that Christianity is more than forgiveness. it is a desire to change. in other words, its not an acceptance of things how they are, but a desire to strive for what ought to be.
so, on another note...i want to share with you a song that i've just recently become aware of. i've heard songs before on psalm 139, but this one has especially struck something inside of me. the words are central to it, but i find myself even more drawn to the "performance" of it on the cd i have that is put out by mars hill church in michigan. its written by aaron niequist but sung by a womans beautiful voice. let me share the words:
i think its appropriate at this time of year (i hate to refer to it as that, a "time of year"...though i don't really like to term it as a "holiday" either) as we think about good friday and easter and what that means for us, that we think about forgiveness. the obvious example of forgiveness being that of our forgiveness for our sins, through the death of our Savior. but this example of ultimate forgiveness (and of course sacrifice) is one that should carry over into our lives - into our relationships with others. i recently heard something that really caught my attention. one of those things that i should obviously know, but i liked the reminder. i wish i could remember where i heard it so that i could quote it more accurately, but hopefully i can get the point across. they said that Christianity is more than forgiveness. it is a desire to change. in other words, its not an acceptance of things how they are, but a desire to strive for what ought to be.
so, on another note...i want to share with you a song that i've just recently become aware of. i've heard songs before on psalm 139, but this one has especially struck something inside of me. the words are central to it, but i find myself even more drawn to the "performance" of it on the cd i have that is put out by mars hill church in michigan. its written by aaron niequist but sung by a womans beautiful voice. let me share the words:
PSALM 139
search me, o God
and know my heart today
and test me and know all my thoughts.
show me, o God
the wickedness in me
and wash me and lead me to you.
so search me
and know me
and test me
and show me.
and wash me
and heal me
and hold me
and free me.
i need you
i need you
i love you
i need you.
search me, o God
and know my heart today
and test me and know all my thoughts.
show me, o God
the wickness is me
and wash me and lead me to you.
psalm 139 has become one of my favorite psalms, but also one of my favorite group of verses in the bible. i think we are often drawn to the comforting spirit of verses 7-10, for exampe. but do we always think about what is said at the end, verses 23-24, the verses that we see in the song above? for one, do we really want God to search us and know all our thoughts? but more than that, how many of us truly want to be tested?
so, have you heard about the concept of "empty calories"? i can remember my high school PE/health teacher talking about this idea - skittles being the example i recall. they are full of calories, but not of nutrients. (okay now i stop and wonder if my analogy is quite right here). now i am thinking about the concept of "empty words". lately i've been thinking about church and parts of worship and the like, and i've discussed litany and responsive readings with a few. let me begin by making a disclaimer - i am not against them, i have nothing against them. i think what it comes down to is something in me that is lacking. so i find that during worship services, when we do litanies and responsive readings, it can become like "empty words" for me. i become more focused on the physical reading of it, and less attentive to what is behind the words. i think this ties into what i was saying about psalm 139 - if i thought about what i was saying/reading, would i really mean them and say it as confidently?
with that being said, i listen to the song over and over again in my car (loudly mind you....so as to tune everything - and yes, sometimes that means that i make a turn or two that i didn't mean to, or miss a turn that i should have made) and let it be a prayer to the God whose hand is always there, waiting for ours to reach for Him.
(my apologies to anyone who expected pictures...and actually, this blog isn't at all what was being brainstormed in my head...but its what came out, nonetheless.)
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