Megan's prayer: Jars of Clay's "Can't Erase It"

But you changed your mind, you let everyone down

This time, last year, I was in the middle of making what is so far the biggest decision of my life. Stay at Dayton, or come home to St. Louis? If I came home, I'd be letting my roommates down, but if I stayed at Dayton, I'd be letting myself down - either way, someone lost.

For months, I didn't know what to do. If I put my roommate's happiness before mine, I wouldn't be happy, but at least they would be happy. And really, what was two more years of college at a school I didn't care for?

If I put my happiness first, wouldn't that be considered selfish? Isn't that saying my individual happiness is more important than a group of people's happiness? I really didn't know the answer to all of these questions.

In the end, I listened to God and followed my heart, and ended up in St. Louis. Turns out all of my friends agreed with God. With God, it wasn't such a hard decision afterall.

Chris' prayer: Jars of Clay's "Can't Erase It"

'Cause love is the best thing for you now
But you changed your mind

It is really hard to love sometimes.

I was talking with a friend of mine last night who is having a hard time letting go of some wrongs someone did to him a year or more ago. He holds those wrong so close to him because they cost him a great deal and have made life a lot harder at times. A lot of hurt and pain in that relationship. And it is really hard to love in a relationship like that.

But those relationships are exactly where we are called to love all that much more. It's hard, but we must challenge ourselves to forgive those who have done us wrong and work toward loving those people. Each of us is in need of extravagant forgiveness, and so we must forgive extravagantly. Each of us is in need of unrestrained love, and so we must love without restraints.

Even when it's really hard.


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Katie's prayer: Jars of Clay's "Can't Erase It"

Can't erase it? Wait, I thought that's what confession was for. You go to confession your board gets wiped clean. So sins can be erased, but that's the exact opposite of what the song states!

But then I saw the whole quote - YOU can't erase it. That one little word "you" makes all the difference. I personally cannot erase my sin, only God can. And for that, I need confession. That's one statement that's taken me a long time to realize.- I need confession. I haven't always been a big fan of confession. (But let's face it, who is?) I haven't been in quite a while. Maybe God's trying to send me a message via today's song.

Catie's prayer: Jars of Clay's "Can't Erase It"

I think that it is really funny that this is such an up beat song for a topic such as sin. But this song is so true. There are so many times that I can just hit the rewind button and get a redo. I know that God forgives us our sins, but so many times it is harder for me to forgive myself for what I have done. I want to "Wish sometimes for any other you" and actually get it. However, I simply have to know that if God can look past my sin and that with his help I can do that and push myself to be the person that he created me to be.

Jen's prayer: Jars of Clay's "Can't Erase It"

I've always liked Jars of Clay. However, there are times I just don't get the point of the song. This is one of those times. So I could be totally off track, but here's what I'm getting out of it...

I read it first in 1 Peter 4:7 "Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins." But since then I've heard it over and over again in the Gospels as I've been reading the New Testament...loving one other covers your sins. This is the way to move on past your sins. The song starts about a person that should "Love everybody now, because love is the best thing for you now." I think those lyrics are referring to those Bible verses. However, the person changes his mind about loving and lets everybody down. Because it's easier that way.

Even though is sucks letting people down, I know that is easier for me to do sometimes rather than stand for what I believe in or love on others.

So the chorus goes...

You know it's so wrong
Can't embrace it
Wish sometimes for any other you
But you can't erase it
And you won't escape it

Sometimes I wish for nothing more than to be some other version of me. Sometimes I hate who I am, but I can't help it. That's how I've felt in the past, but by the end of the song it says...

How long will you face it
Till the weight comes crashing down on you
'Cause you can't erase it, and you won't escape it

Eventually everything in my life started to crumble when I ignored the fact that I wasn't doing what Christ wanted of me. Thankfully, at the point when I can't take the weight anymore, I give it up to God. That's when Jesus comes in and wipes off the dirt in my life and says, "It's okay. Let's start over."

So I feel like this is Jars of Clay saying sometimes you have this pride and you don't want to admit this lifestyle is wrong. But you have to, because it's "so wrong."