It Is Well With My Soul

I have never experianced a wedding so worshipful in spirit or so centered on the beauty of Christ as I had the opportunity to tonight. I went to Nathan Hendricks and Lindsay Walters wedding in Norton, Ks and it was one of the most beautiful and powerful weddings a person could experiance. Half way through the ceremony those in attendance sang in worship the songs of Come Thou Fount, In Christ Alone, and It is Well With my Soul (acapella). The worship leader explained that when Lindsey was choosing songs she wanted to end with It is well with my Soul because she knew that in their marriage there would be times of joy, times of struggle, and times of suffering but they always want their marriage to have the attitude of praising the Lord in all circumstances and saying IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL. As I sang the words my heart broke. God has blessed us with all we need. It took a wedding to help me see that sorrow and joy alike were all meant to inspire deep worship of gratitude to our powerful God! Let us sing forth the power of these words that whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to Say IT IS WELL, IT IS WELL, WITH MY SOUL!



When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot,
Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Simply Nothing

So hard to fathom the pain in Your eyes
As You're watching Your children, doing what You despise
In pursuit of our own
We just go round and round
Another nail to our cause
We continue to pound

What are you, man, if you do not learn love
What are you, man, if you do not learn love

So hard to fathom, oh, the feelings inside
As You're watching Your people choosing to die
You called out a warning
To all that would hear
Saying come to Me, come to Me
And I will draw near

What are you, man, if you do not learn love
What are you, man, if you do not learn love

Learn love
I must
Learn love
Learn love
Learn love
Learn love
Learn love

What are you, man, if you do not learn love
What are you, man, if you do not... learn love

by Shawn Mcdonald

Beauty of the Unknown

Hello friends! I hope you're having a wonderful Sunday praising the Lord! This afternoon I was sitting at my desk playing guitar and suddenly my heart was filled with hope at the knowledge that the Lord will lead me through the unknown. Although I haven't written a song for quite some time, I felt that I needed to write down these words and sing them back to the Lord. I just thought I would share this song with you in hopes that it might be an encouragement to you as well. There is something absolutely beautiful about the unknown of our lives. God knows where our lives will lead and it is an overwhelming joy to know he will always be working for our good and His Glory! May we run with courage as we see his Glory being revealed day by day throughout the earth!

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Beauty of the Unknown


I see mountains in the distance, skies of greatest brilliance, fields of deepest green
Yet what’s before me is unseen
And I see hope beyond all measure, God become my dearest treasure, captivating this empty heart, Christ broke my chains and set me free.

Chorus:
I am entering the unknown, walking with the Lord, through a place that’s not my home.
I am running for his Glory, letting my life reveal HIS story, seeking to give him all my praise, for from the depths this heart he raised. I am seeing the beauty of… my life’s unknown.

He has planned an everlasting story, into my life his love he’s pouring, as I seek to find my way, through these trials and these days, yet I will sing upon his goodness, letting his holiness consume us, for he has died to set me free and his little child I’ll always be.

Chorus

For in my weakness I am strong, Jesus said the journey may be long, still he will be here right beside me always there to help and guide me, so I’ll never stop this race as I seek to see his face, Father let me run the narrow path and never once let me look back.

Chorus:
I am entering the unknown, walking with the Lord, through a place that’s not my home.
I am running for his Glory, letting my life reveal HIS story, seeking to give him all my praise, for from the depths this heart he raised. I am seeing the beauty of… my life’s unknown.

- by Jason Handke (July 2007)

Love

What is this emotion that grips our hearts and seizes our souls? What is this melody that replays over and over in the core of who we are? It is an endless, wild, untamed mystery that captivates the heart and mystifies the mind. Where is it found? Or where is it won? Is it a choice or a divine intervention of destined communion? Can love ever fail? Can it be denied when it burns so powerfully within? If we were able, we would move mountains to find it, swim oceans to reach it, and fight valiantly to attain it. Love. It is a divine mystery hidden from our eyes yet revealed to our souls. It is a force so powerful that armies can not conquer it, kings can not destroy it, and poets cannot describe it. It is unfathomable, undeniable, unmovable, immeasurable, unending. It maintains hope when hope is lost. Love never fails.

Love is a choice. It cannot be bought, or persuaded, it must be freely given. Love is not earned or deserved, love is not merited; love is a gift of grace passed to those who seldom understand why. Love is a beautiful, priceless treasure that can only be found when one chooses to reveal its location. Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not arrogant or rude, it does not insist on its own way. It is not irritable or resentful, it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love never ends. Love covers over a multitude of sins; it forgives all, hopes all, and supercedes all.

This is the love I seek; this is the love I wait for. This is the love that I will treasure until the day of my death when that one beautiful, radiant flower chooses to give it to me freely with grace just as the Lord in Heaven has chosen to give his love to me through the sacrifice of my Lord Jesus. For this I wait, for this I hope, for this I pray. Love; may it find its way to my doorstep as I keep a light on waiting for its arrival.

The Name of Jesus

At the name of Jesus every knee will bow
And every tongue confess Him the King of Glory now
It’s the Father’s pleasure that we should call Him Lord
Who from the beginning was the mighty Word

We Sing Glory to the Lord on high
Glory to the Son who came to earth to die
Glory to the Spirit who lifts the name on high:
The Name of Jesus, The Name of Jesus

At His voice creation sprang at once to sight
All the angel faces and all the host of light
Thrones and dominations, stars upon their way
All the heavenly order, in their great array

They sing Glory to the Lord on high
Glory to the Son who came to earth to die
Glory to the Spirit who lifts the name on high:
The Name of Jesus, The Name of Jesus

In Your hearts enthrone Him; there let Him subdue
All that is not holy, all that is not true
Crown Him as Your Captain, in temptation’s hour
Let His will enthrall You, in its light and power.

We sing Glory to the Lord on high
Glory to the Son who came to earth to die
Glory to the Spirit who lifts the name on high:
The Name of Jesus, The Name of Jesus


"The Name of Jesus" by Aaron Shust 2007

Future Glory

"And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him. " Colossians 2:13- 15 (He/ Him referring to Jesus Christ)

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. - Romans 8:18-25

"And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped. - Revelation 5:9-14

The Display of the Glory of the Grace of God in the Achievements of Christ by His Suffering

1. Christ absorbed the wrath of God on our behalf—and he did it by suffering.
- Galatians 3:13
2. Christ bore our sins and purchased our forgiveness—and he did it by suffering.
- 1 Peter 2:24, Isaiah 53:5,
3. Christ provided a perfect righteousness for us that becomes ours in him—and he did it by suffering. - Philippians 2:7-8,
4. Christ defeated death—and he did it by suffering death.
- Hebrews 2:14-15
5. He disarmed Satan—and he did it by suffering.
- Colossians 2:14-15
6. Christ purchased perfect final healing for all his people—and he did it by suffering.
- Isaiah 53:4
7. Christ will bring us finally to God—and he will do it by his suffering.
- 1 Peter 3:18

"Therefore we can conclude that the centerpiece of worship in heaven for all eternity will be the display of the glory of the grace of God in the slaughtered Lamb. Angels and all the redeemed will sing of the suffering of the Lamb forever and ever. The suffering of the Son of God will never be forgotten. The greatest suffering that ever was will be at the center of our worship and our wonder forever and ever." - John Piper

We Give You Glory!

We Have Raised A Thousand Voices
Just To Lift Your Holy Name
And We Will Raise Thousands More
To Sing Of Your Beauty In This Place
Well None Can Even Fathom
No Not One Define Your Worth
As We Marvel In Your Presence
To The Ends Of The Earth.

We Give You Glory,
Lifting Up Our Hands And Singing Holy,
You Alone Are Worthy
We Just Want To Touch Your Heart, Lord, Touch Your Heart
Glory, Lifting Up Our Voice And Singing Holy,
You Alone Are Worthy
We Just Want To Touch Your Heart, Lord, Touch Your Heart

As We Fall Down Before You
With Our Willing Hearts We Seek
In The Greatness Of Your Glory
It's So Hard To Even Speak
There Is Nothing We Can Offer
No Nothing Can Repay
So We Give You All Our Praises
And Lift Our Voice To Sing

We Give You Glory,
Lifting Up Our Hands And Singing Holy,
You Alone Are Worthy
We Just Want To Touch Your Heart, Lord, Touch Your Heart
Glory, Lifting Up Our Voice And Singing Holy,
You Alone Are Worthy
We Just Want To Touch Your Heart, Lord, Touch Your Heart

Our Hope Is Drenched In You
Our Faith Has Been Renewed
We Trust In Your Every Word
Nothing Else Can Even Measure Up To You.

We Give You Glory,
Lifting Up Our Hands And Singing Holy,
You Alone Are Worthy
We Just Want To Touch Your Heart, Lord, Touch Your Heart
Glory, Lifting Up Our Voice And Singing Holy,
You Alone Are Worthy
We Just Want To Touch Your Heart, Lord, Touch Your Heart


- by Jeremy Camp "We Give You Glory"

Pray

Dear friends, if you are reading this would you please pray for me? My heart is aching right now. I wish I could describe to you how, but those of you that know me well enough already know why. This time in my life is the hardest thing the Lord has ever allowed me to endure. I am overwhelmed by the trials and hardships it contains. Sustain me Lord, for this shattered heart is asking, seeking, and waiting for your blessing and your revealed will for my life. I am but dust before you Father. Yet this dust will ascribe the greatness of your name! Hear my weeping Abba, for I am nothing without you.

Broken

I love it when a song can take all your emotions and put them into words. I listened to this song by Lifehouse off their new cd "Who We Are" today and it described my heart right now perfectly. I also really am enjoying the song " Whatever it takes" off the same cd.
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The broken clock is a comfort, it helps me sleep tonight
Maybe it can stop tomorrow from stealing all my time
I am here still waiting though I still have my doubts
I am damaged at best, like you've already figured out

I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing
With a broken heart that's still beating
In the pain there is healing
In your name I find meaning
So I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on
I'm barely holdin' on to you

The broken locks were a warning you got inside my head
I tried my best to be guarded, I'm an open book instead
I still see your reflection inside of my eyes
That are looking for a purpose, they're still looking for life

I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing
with a broken heart that's still beating
In the pain is there healing
In your name I find meaning
So I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on
I'm barely holdin' on to you

I'm hangin' on another day
Just to see what you will throw my way
And I'm hangin' on to the words you say
You said that I will be ok

The broken lights on the freeway left me here alone
I may have lost my way now, haven't forgotten my way home

I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing
with a broken heart that's still beating
In the pain there is healing
In your name I find meaning
So I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on
I'm barely holdin' on to you

-"Broken" by Lifehouse 2007