Songs that speak

Some songs I need to post because they keep coming up and they speak to me.

Aware - Salvador

Even in the little things
That never seem too big to me
And the things that I thought
Didn’t matter much at all

As simple as my daily bread
To the strength I need to get out of bed
When I fly, when I’m about to Fall

It’s you in me
That I fail to see

Make me aware, make me see
Everything I am is not all about me
Take my world, turn it around
So that the obvious can finally be found

Make me aware, make me aware

When my life is hanging from a thread
And I think about the things you said
In this moment seems so far away

Help me see the guarantees
That first brought me to believe
So I can make it through another day

Oh, it’s you in me
That helps me to breathe

Make me aware, make me see

Everything I am is not all about me
Take my world, turn it around
So that the obvious can finally be found

Make me aware
I have been missing so much
Not recognizing your touch
All acknowledging you’re the reason I’m even here

I have been missing so much
Not recognizing your touch

Make me aware, make me aware

Help me see, Everything I am is not all about me
Take my world, turn it around
So that the obvious can finally be found
Make me aware, make me aware


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 top
Hold on for the sudden stop
Breath in the familiar shock
Of confusion and chaos
All those people going somewhere,
Why have I never cared?

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
Ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see
Yeah
Yeah
yeah
yeah

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

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
Ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see
Yeah
Yeah
yeah
yeah

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 along

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
Ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see
Yeah
Yeah
yeah
yeah


By Your Side - Tenth Avenue North

Why are you striving these days
Why are you trying to earn grace
Why are you crying
Let me lift up your face
Just don't turn away

Why are you looking for love
Why are you still searching as if I'm not enough
To where will you go child
Tell me where will you run
To where will you run

And I'll be by your side
Wherever you fall
In the dead of night
Whenever you call
And please don't fight
These hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Look at these hands and my side
They swallowed the grave on that night
When I drank the world's sin
So I could carry you in
And give you life
I want to give you life

And I'll be by your side
Wherever you fall
In the dead of night
Whenever you call
And please don't fight
These hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Cause I, I love you
I want you to know
That I, I love you
I'll never let you go

And I'll be by your side
Wherever you fall
In the dead of night
Whenever you call
And please don't fight
These hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

His plan is us!

I love this quote by Steven Curtis Chapman:

God has a plan to deal with the injustice of the world – His plan is us! His plan is his people. His plan is those of us who will recognize and realize that we’ve been called to be a part of what God is doing about injustice in the world. And I’m so grateful I get to be a little part of that.

I read that back when I was in college, about 5 years ago. It spoke to me then, and it still speaks to me now. When people ask me how God can let bad things happen to good people, I wonder why we forget that this is a broken world? Things are not perfect here. They are never going to be. God tells us in the Bible that we will always have the poor with us (John 12:8). But he also tells us that having faith means nothing if we do not work to reflect His love in this broken world (James 2:26). One time I was complaining about how I had been praying for patience, but God didn't seem to be answering my prayers. The person I had been complaining to said, "When you pray for patience, God is not just going to give it to you. He is going to give you opportunities to practice patience." To be honest, that had never occurred to me. But that insight totally reshaped the way I think about prayer and how God answers. In the same way - because God gives us free will and because we live in a fallen world - God is not just going to fix every problem like magic. But he does call us, his people, to do something to make a difference. We get to be part of what God is doing in this world. What a privilege to get to be His hands and feet!

I love this song because it reminds me that just because I live in a safe place and don't have to worry every day about war or starvation or persecution does not give me the right to not care that other people face these obstacles on a daily basis. In fact, the blessings I have been given mean that I have an even greater responsibility to be the voice for those who cannot speak for themselves. God does not bless us for our own sake, but so that we can be a blessing to others. To whom much is given, much is required (Luke 12:48). We need to be His hands and feet working in this broken world to help heal hurts and be Christ's love to those in need.


Solution - Hillsong United

It is not a human right
To stare not fight
While broken nations dream
Open up our eyes, so blind
That we might find
The Mercy for the need

Singing, Hey now
Fill our hearts with your compassion
Hey now
As we hold to our confession
Yeah

It is not too far a cry
Too much to try
To help the least of these
Politics will not decide
If we should rise
And be your hands and feet

Singing, Hey now
Fill our hearts with your compassion
Hey Now
As we hold to our confession

Woah-oh-oh,
God be their solution
Woah-oh-oh
We will be Your hands and be Your feet.
Yeah, yeah

Higher than a circumstance
Your promise stands
Your love for all to see
Higher than our protest lines and dollar signs
Your love is all we need

Singing, Hey now
Fill our hearts with your compassion
Hey Now
As we hold to our confession

Woah-oh-oh,
God be their solution
Woah-oh-oh
We will be Your hands and be Your feet.
Oh, oh

Only You can mend the broken heart
And cause the blind to see
Erase complete the sinner's past
And set the captives free
Only You can take the widow's cry
And cause her heart to sing
Be a Father to the fatherless
Our Savior and our King
We will be Your hands, we will be Your feet
We will run this race for the least of these
On the darkest place, we will be Your light
We will be Your light

We will be Your hands , we will be Your feet
We will run this race for the least of these
In the darkest place, we will be your light
We will be your light
We'll sing

Woah-oh-oh,
God be their solution
Woah-oh-oh
We will be Your hands and be Your feet.

Woah-oh-oh,
God be their solution
Woah-oh-oh
We will be Your hands and be Your feet.
Yeah, yeah

We will run we will run
We will run with the solution
We will run we will run
We will run with the solution

We will be Your hands we will be Your feet
We will run this race for the least of these
In the darkest place we will be Your light
We will be Your light
We sing

Laodicean

Laodicean. That was the winning word at this year's spelling bee. And it reminded me of something Jessica gave me awhile back, and is related to a series Gaffney preached at the Inn when I was in college that was particularly poignant for me at the time. Now, I find this to be particularly relevant to my current work at World Vision and past work with ROM. I don't want to be lukewarm. Thanks, Jess, for these words.


May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.

What do I know of this love?

Before God gave me this job, I had prayed for a challenge, for discipline, for work I could feel passionate about because it made a difference in the world. Be careful what you pray for. For several weeks at the beginning I felt so inadequate to the task. There is so much information to know, and I needed to overcome my fears of calling strangers (something I've always hated doing), and of asking people for money (the main thing that keeps me from wanting to be a "missionary"). I had also never experienced a "corporate" work environment. Growing up watching my mom's work life at SAFECO Insurance, I vowed I would never work a corporate job or anywhere that had cubicles. Especially after the past few years of making all my own decisions, not answering to anyone or having any supervision, these aspects of this job have most definitely been difficult to adjust to. Wondering why I was put in this job, I finally started to realize that God had answered prayers I prayed - even unspoken ones. I had asked for these things. God had taken care of one of my worries about getting a job and staying in the US. Complacency. When I am in another country, everything is a challenge - even the simplest tasks are difficult when you don't speak the language. I have no choice but to rely on God to provide for me. But here at home I am in my comfort zone, and I feel like I can do everything on my own and it is easy for me to forget to talk to Him. Not with this job. God had put me in here to get me out of my complacent comfort zone. I found myself turning off the radio every morning driving to work, praying with all my heart that God would get me through the day. And because I was praying for that, I started praying about lots of other stuff, too. I found my faith increasing more each day as I became more and more dependent on Him. Because I had no choice. God moves in mysterious ways, but He definitely knows what He is doing. With this one job, he answered my prayers for provision, for challenge, for discipline, for purpose, and for increased faith. And he helped me overcome some of my biggest fears. WOW. It makes me realize how small my faith really is. Why would I expect anything less from the One who made me and knows every hair on my head? It makes me long to know Him more and more each day. What freedom we have in dependence. Seemingly an oxymoron, but God is not confined by our limited perceptions. And he definitely has a sense of humor. As my friends point out, it is ironic that I spend my days talking on the phone - because I don't even answer or return their calls half the time. "God, really? You want me to talk to strangers on the phone all day, and to ask them for money!?" I can see Him sitting up in Heaven smiling down on me and saying, "Daughter, just trust me. I made you and I love you. I am always faithful to you. You know that. Why would this time be any different? I know what I am doing." I have seen my God's faithfulness time and time again through various circumstances in my life. Why would this time be any different? Why do I always forget his faithfulness and expect Him to prove Himself to me again? This week, we finished our training and I took my first inbound calls. I was terrified of them. I knew I was being irrational, but I was so worried. I have never prayed harder! And God came through - just as He promised me He would. They were just fine. In fact, I suddenly realized that after all my anxiety - I actually enjoyed the calls! I didn't expect that! God, You are good. I will never understand the breadth and depth and heighth and width of Your love, but I know You are good and I know, without doubt, that you love me. You always provide and your timing is always perfect.

This song has caught my attention recently because I know that God's love is so much bigger than I can ever comprehend. Though I can see glimpses of how God is working in my life, I have no idea about the big picture of what he is really doing. But these tiny insights are enough to know that He is all I will ever need. Amen.

What Do I Know of Holy - Addison Road

I made You promises a thousand times
I try to hear from Heaven
But I talk the whole time
I think I made You too small
I never feared You at all, no
If You touched my face would I know You?
Looked into my eyes, could I behold You?

What do I know of You
Who spoke me into motion?
Where have I even stood
But the shore along Your ocean?
Are You fire? Are You fury?
Are You sacred? Are You beautiful?
So, what do I know? What do I know of Holy?

I guess I thought that I had figured You out
I knew all the stories and I learned to talk about
How You were mighty to save
But those were only empty words on a page
Then I caught a glimpse of who You might be
The slightest hint of You brought me down to my knees

What do I know of You
Who spoke me into motion?
Where have I even stood
But the shore along Your ocean?
Are You fire? Are You fury?
Are You sacred? Are You beautiful?
So, what do I know? What do I know of Holy?

What do I know of Holy?
What do I know of wounds that will heal my shame?
And a God who gave life its name?
What do I know of Holy?
Of the One who the angels praise?
All creation knows Your name
On earth and heaven above
What do I know of this love?

So, what do I know of You
Who spoke me into motion?
Where have I even stood
But the shore along Your ocean?
Are You fire? Are You fury?
Are You sacred? Are You beautiful?
Lord, what do I know? What do I know of Holy?

What do I know of Holy?
What do I know of Holy?

If You Want Peace, Work For Justice

I have been wondering why God put me at World Vision - because it clearly has nothing to do with my passion for the Balkans or reconciliation/peacebuilding. I prayed about this last weekend. This week, I started noticing this bumper sticker that reads, "If you want peace, work for justice." Three times this week, I have followed cars emblazoned with it. At chapel on Wednesday, Rich said something about World Vision's work to end poverty being a way to work for justice in the world. As previously mentioned, I don't believe in coincidence. Clearly, God is at work here.

I'm not my own, I've been carried by You all my life

My favorite song right now. When I start feeling overwhelmed at work or by life in general, when the world has broken me down, God's love sets me free. I can cast my burdens on Him and rest in His arms. Amen.

Hope Now - Addison Road

If everything comes down to love
Then just what am I afraid of?
When I call out Your name
Something inside awakes in my soul
How quickly I forget I'm Yours

I'm not my own
I've been carried by You
All my life

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down
Your love sets me free

When my life is like a storm
Rising waters all I want is the shore
You say I'll be ok and
Make it through the rain
You are my shelter from the storm

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down
Your love sets me free

I am not my own
I've been carried by you all my life

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down
Your love sets me free

You've become my hearts desire
I will sing Your praises higher
Cause Your love sets me free
Your love sets me free
Your love sets me free

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end...

Why am I here in Seattle? What is God's purpose for me here? Why am I not going to the Balkans again this summer? Why? I don't know why, and I think that's the way it's supposed to be. Over and over I have struggled with wanting to know what the future holds. And over and over again, God reminds me that I don't need to know that, as long as I trust that he knows. If I knew I might be too afraid to step out, or I would get ahead of myself trying to get to the end of the road and miss out on key knowledge or experience I needed for the journey. Have faith like a child, He reminds me. Trust Me. Has anyone ever added a day to her life by worrying? Everything works for good for those who love Me. I don't know exactly where I am going, or how He will get me there. But I know that this is a new chapter of the story of my life. I believe I will get to go back to the Balkans someday, but not for now. For now, I am going to be content to be here, and be the best World Vision phone rep that I can be. I'm sort of sad to leave an old beginning behind, but who knows where this new beginning will lead me? It might be even better!


There is hope for me yet
Because God won't forget
All the plans He's made for me
I'll have to wait and see
He's not finished with me yet

Still wondering why I'm here
Still wrestling with my fear
But, oh, he's up to something
And the farther on I go
I've seen enough to know
That I'm not here for nothing
He's up to something

(Wait and See - Brandon Heath)