Megan's prayer: Falling Up's "Ambience"

About three months ago, I wrote about the joy that I find in going to bed early, wrapping myself with blankets, and just being in God's presence. What I never shared was what happened after I posted my blog that night. I snuggled into bed, very close to falling asleep, when I was overwhelmed with the feeling that God loved me. It was so calming, so peaceful. I think about that night often.

Today's song reminded me:

Listen deep, you'll hear the sound
Whispering, it's all around

Chris' prayer: Falling Up's "Ambience"

Listen deep, You'll hear that sound
Whispering, it's all around

I just started reading Michael Yaconelli's Dangerous Wonder in hopes of using it in a small group this summer. In the first chapter, Yaconelli talks about the voice of God speaking to us, but not in loud, thunderous tones as we read about in the Bible, but rather in whispers. God is always speaking to us, Yaconelli continues, but at some point, our lives get too filled with *stuff* to hear the whispers. Too much homework to do, too many meetings to go to, too many commitments to fulfill.

This line from Ambience reminded me of that for obvious reasons. His voice is everywhere. It's all around. I just have to take the time, and retrain my ears, to listen.


YouTube | iTunes | Lyrics

Katie's prayer: Falling Up's "Ambience"

Last year was a very trying time in my faith. I felt alone often, in both my life and my spiritual life. I think the problem stemmed from how my roommate and others on my floor treated me. For reasons unknown, they delighted in talking about me behind my back, ignoring me when I was around, messing with my stuff and so on. I prayed for the year to end and end quickly. I prayed that they would change, they would realize how horrible they were being, and they would stop. My big summer project was learning to forgive those girls for everything they had done to me. The main reason behind my urgency in forgiving them was because I believed one of them, my roommate, would die from brain cancer over the summer.

Away from these girls, it was easier to get back into my faith life, and with that extra boost of faith, I was able to forgive them. The hurt they caused returned when I got back to school and found out my roommate was a pathological liar. Among many other lies, the biggest - she never had brain cancer. It has been very hard for me to move on past this. The anger and resentment I felt towards them, particularly my roommate, resurfaced. In my mind, I took back my forgiveness. And in all honesty, I still hold on to some of that. But I feel, as I have for a while that I "MUST move on."

It's finally time to completely forgive them for everything, all the hurt and loneliness they made me to feel and for all the lies that were told. Holding onto a grudge is only going to hurt me and definitely not what God wants for me.

Jen's prayer: Falling Up's "Ambience"

The first thing I noticed about this song was the title: Ambience. First of all, I spell it ambiance and got confused by its spelling, so I had to look up the definition to see if there's a difference. There isn't. The definition caught my eye, though: "ambience is a particular environment or surrounding influence." In college I had a surrounding influence that was not positive and it dragged me down. I allowed the surrounding people to influence me and make me believe I would be happier if I was more like the world. I have never abandoned my faith as much as I did my senior year of college. I found that the more I withdrew from God, the worse things got for me. It was a learning experience and I've grown from it, but this song reminds me of what it was like then. Especially this part:

So I stand, all alone
With no chance, on my own
Will I just sustain, moving on in vain?
Cause this glow, you and I
Have come to know, is a lie
And we must move on

Being raised a Christian and then falling away from Christ is one of the scariest things I've experienced. I was alone with "no chance on my own." The question was, was I going to be too vain and prideful to admit to Jesus that I messed up and needed Him? I'm a very prideful person and hate to admit mistakes and somehow admitting to Jesus that I had severely screwed up and could not do things alone was one of the most difficult things ever. However, just like this song says, "we must move on." I had to move on, out of that ambience at school and back into Jesus' arms. I am so thankful for Jesus' intricate love that accepted me again and loves me even more than I can imagine.

Catie's prayer: Falling Up's "Ambience"

This love is so intricate I feel it taking

God's love. It's something I write about on here a lot I think. But if we all realized how much God loved each of us, the world would be such a different place. The intricate, gentle, powerful love our Lord has for each of us is so incredibly wonderful. To have someone know our inmost being and still love us all the more. It's beautiful. The love of God will take us to new heights, things we couldn't even dream of, if we let it.

Catie's prayer: Cheer Up Charlie's "Only One"

Cause you live in repetition

I live in repetition it feels like. While my days are very different, they are very much routine at the same time. I know there is more to life than this. God doesn't want us to be in a routine, he wants us to go out of our way, out of our comfort zones, out of ourselves to live for him. But repetition can be comfortable, we like our comfort zones, we like the familiar. However, we can't reach for more, if we continue to settle.

Chris' prayer: Cheer Up Charlie's "Only One"

I love the intro to this song. It seemingly has nothing at all to do with the song, just a kid strumming a guitar and making up words as he goes. Even the melody stands in stark contrast to the sound which directly follows it. But it reminds me so much of my own life and how I often live my life.

Many times, I feel like such a child in my faith. Like I should be more mature, or more responsible, like I should have mastered some of the same old sins I struggle with. I keep forgetting how to get past them, much the way the child in the song forgets the words to the song he has just come up with.

This song is not much of a happy one at all, reminding me again and again of my failures. And, despite its seeming innocence, the introduction, in its own way, does the same thing.


iTunes | Lyrics

Katie's prayer: Cheer Up Charlie's "Only One"

And when the day is done, there is only one there is only one

There is so much going on in my life right now, so many things demanding my attention. School, friends, lifeteen, FOCUS, the ever approaching graduation, people constantly questioning me about my plans for next year, the stress that comes with all of this, I could go on and on for days. It's so easy for me to get caught up in these various things and how I want them to turn out. Not that trying to figure out my life and what I want for my life is wrong. Where it becomes wrong is where I'm so caught up in what I want, that I don't stop and consider what God wants for me.

At the end of the day I need to remind myself, there is only one thing that matters in this life - God. If I put my trust in HIM, everything else will fall into place. I won't have to worry about next year, graduation, anything, God will provide, it's way past time for me to fully realize how true this is.

Megan's prayer: Cheer Up Charlie's "Only One"

Before the song even starts, before the singers from Cheer Up Charlie even sing their first lines, there is a child singing “listen to God, listen to God everyday.” I absolutely fell in love with this part of the song. It is so simple, so pure and innocent.

I’ve been around little kids quite often this semester since a lot of my classes require classroom experience. Even though I am supposed to be the one teaching them, I have learned a lot from them this semester. The most recently was when I was working with a boy in 3rd grade. We had just finished reading a story about a skunk. At the end, I asked him what he learned from the story. He told me that “I learned that animals and people are beautiful no matter what they smell like or look like. What matters is how they treat other people.” I was floored. From a simple story about a skunk, he was able to gain so much insight into what is important in life.

Maybe I should start thinking more like a child. Maybe this simple and innocent view is the key to happiness. Instead of over analyzing things or making life more difficult that it should be, I should focus on the simple things in life.

Jen's prayer: Cheer Up Charlie's "Only One"

You do it again, You do it again
Save face, butcher grace but your fine with it...

Your fine with it living in your blatant deceit
You’ve taken grace and bleed it dry with every lie you breathe
And so you breathe and so you breathe and so you bleed
How are you fine with the lie you are leading
Its only time, this isn’t right
To act like grace can be changed to fit your lie, to fit your lie

I think one of the hardest things for Christians is knowing the power of grace and abusing it. We think that knowing that Jesus will forgive us for anything is an excuse for us to go out and sin... "we take grace and bleed it dry with every lie" because in the end we can ask for forgiveness and start over again. After all, grace is about receiving forgiveness when we don't deserve it.

I feel like this song is talking about those who abuse grace and I know this is something I'm guilty of doing. I'll tell myself it's no big deal if I cave in just this once because God's got my back and will forgive me when I feel guilty later on and ask Him to forgive me. It took many years for me to realize I have to change my ways and truly feel convicted of that sin in order to be redeemed of my ways. Jesus knows when I'm truly wanting forgiveness from a sin. His grace is an amazing gift and definitely not something I should take lightly.

Megan's prayer: Michelle Tumes "For the Glory of Your Name"

Although I have been told the story of the Passion many times before, this year feels like the first year that I actually heard what was being said. At last week's lifenight, we talked about suffering, and heard a detailed description of the suffering Christ went through. At tonight's service, the thing that stuck with me the most from the Passion story was Jesus being pierced in the side which caused water and blood to flow from his body. I had heard these words before, but they had never really made an impact until tonight.

For the blood You shed was perfect

I feel that this is almost a bitter sweet line. While I understand the tradgedy that comes with the Passion, I was also reminded that this act is what God wanted. This death is a symbol of just how deep Jesus' love is, that he would suffer for me. His death and resurrection marks the beginning of a new life for everyone.

Chris' prayer: Michelle Tumes' "For the Glory of Your Name"

Where we wounded One so holy
Yet these wounds are life to us

I love the contradiction in these two lines. For it is through our sinfulness that we are able to experience the redemptive power of God's Love. It is through those wounds that we inflict on Jesus that we are able to be washed clean by His blood.

I'll leave it at that. A simple thought as my last post before celebrating His resurrection. The ultimate triumph of Love. Peace be with all of you.


YouTube | iTunes | Lyrics

Catie's prayer: Michelle Tumes' "For the Glory of Your Name"

Hanging there upon a cross
Where we wounded One so holy

Today is Good Friday, the day we as Catholics celebrate what Christ did for us on the cross. The perfect act of love, to lay down one's life for a friend. He did not have to die for us, he could have left us to die and we wouldn't have the same hope for salvation. Yet he didn't do that. He loved us so much as to endure the most painful death known to man. That is a great love. To die to one's self so that others may live. There are many things we can do throughout our day to die to self. It is only when we seize those opportunities that we can become one with the risen Christ.

Megan's prayer: Andy Cloninger's "Walk On"

I enjoy being in control of my life. Giving up this control, trusting someone with my life, and becoming vulnerable is very hard for me.

I admire the trust the Jesus had in his father. Although the path that God laid out for him was a hard path to follow, Jesus walked on.

I hope to give up that control in my life, to trust God completely with where he leads me - knowing that his plans for my life are much better than anything I could come up with.

Chris' prayer: Andy Cloninger's "Walk On"

Lord, you were worn out and
Lord, you felt like this before

Strangely enough, even though I have absolutely no idea what it means, it is somehow easier for me to think of Jesus Christ as fully God. I often forget that He was fully man as well, and experienced the same emotions that I feel today. He, too, was worn out after a long day. He, too, experienced sadness, fear, pain, as well as joy, hope, strength. He, too, wasn't sure about what He was being called to do. No matter what I'm feeling, I need to remember that my God has, too, felt these same emotions. He knows what I'm going through.

I'm not alone, no, I'm not alone
I have a God who's felt this way before

iTunes

Catie's prayer: Andy Cloninger's "Walk on"

Still you walked on

I think for me sometimes this is the hardest part. While most of time I am relatively driven, there are other times I just want to throw in the towel. However, Christ endured more the harshest punishment known to man, and he continued to walk on, he continued to forgive, he continued to love, even to the point of death. He walked on for you, for me, for all of us. Holy week is a time that we focus in on the great sacrifice Christ made out of love. We focus on how much God loves us. In my mind, there is nothing better to focus on as we approach the celebration of the resurrected Christ.

Megan's prayer: Raze's "Always and Forever"

Today's song made me feel a bit sad. As I listened, I reminisced about all of the "best friends" I have had over the years. It's no surprise that they have changed over the years as I have grown, but it is sad to think about all of those relationships that are now just memories.

What I ended up focusing on wasn't the past friendships, but the current ones. The line that really stuck with me was "miles and miles and miles are between us." I instantly thought of two of my favorite people who are currently 360 miles away from me.

Although I went from seeing them 2 times a week in class, plus on weekends last year, to only once every 3-4 months now, things haven't changed much, and that thrills me. When I get the chances to see them, we pick up right where we left off. Whether they like it or not, they are going to be my friends for a long time still to come.

I think it's no coincidence that we all met in a religion class. I truly feel blessed.

Chris' prayer: Raze's "Always and Forever"

There are a significant number of songs in my iTunes that I have "accidentally" run into. Songs that I never would have discovered if it weren't for some happy accident. This is one of those songs. This is the last track from the WOW 2000 CD, which was given to me by a friend. There are some wonderful Christian tracks on that CD. All kinds of songs about praising God, and listening to Him, and worshiping Him, and thanking Jesus, and then there is this song, sitting there at the end of the CD. Not explicitly Christian, it almost doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the music on the CD.

But it probably became the most played track from that CD. Just a simple message about friends who are there for us through all the ups and the downs, this track reminds me where I find a lot of the love that God has for me. I am so loved and so cared for by my friends. They show me, whether they are Christian or not, whether they attend services weekly or yearly or not at all, just how much God loves me. And they show me how long He will love me, too:

Always and forever.

YouTube | Lyrics

Catie's prayer: Raze's "Always and Forever"

we will be friends(strong)
forever and ever

There have been many times throughout my life where I felt abandoned, alone, like I had no one to run to. However, so many times I forget to look to Christ as a friend, someone there to help me out, someone who is my friend. A friend that will never leave, no matter how bad the storm gets, no matter how stubborn I'm being, whatever. He's in it with each of us, forever and ever.

Megan's prayer: Point of Grace's "Saving Grace"

I used to be a proud owner of a "WWJD?" bracelet. I wore it probably over 2 years. But although I wore it, I don't know how often I really thought about the question that was written on my wrist.

What would Jesus do?

Now, more than ever in my life, I find myself focusing on the answer to that question. I believe that the answer is "love." Jesus was God's perfect example of love that he showed to the world. Jesus' death is the perfect example of how much he loved the world. I think that if I was able to show even 1% of that love to others, I could change the world.

(It's) all about living love
Being Jesus to those he came to save

What could happen if we all loved just a little more? What would happen if we all took on the task of "being Jesus" to others?