And silence hung in the air

Well, the school year has finally begun. Homework is assigned to elementary and college kids alike, and the regular routine of "get-up-and-go" has made itself present.

But there is danger when we are so busy. We try running this race with obstacles surrounding us. Eventually we trip and fall.

How great it is to know that He will help us up when we fall down.


"The Life You've Always Wanted" by John Ortberg mentions the need for solitude, especially when we live in this busy world. We always have such busy schedules, yet we claim to follow Jesus Christ. How can we follow our leader if we move faster than Him? The analogy of a motorboat and a sailboat are compared, as we learn about spiritual transformation. Motorboat: We're in control. Sailboat: The wind is. "If the wind doesn't blow - and sometimes it doesn't - we sit still in the water no matter how frantic we get."

Do you sometimes feel like you're not getting anywhere? It almost seems as if you are no longer learning anything from God. Or are we running ahead of our leader?

We have to learn to slow down.

To find a place of solitude where silence hangs in the air.

And maybe, just maybe, God will whisper to us through that silence.

Yet we so often run from God in the sense that we fill our lives with busy schedules.


The sad thing is, sometimes we don't even realize it.


Our culture is so dependant on time. The bell rings, so we rush off to our next class. We make plans to go to the movies at eight o'clock. Supper is always around six, or perhaps even later in the evening. Our lives are filled with noise: music, computers, internet, homework, and much more.

Why don't we make time for hanging out with our best friend? The One who sent His one and only Son to die for us. Sure, we can be with Him even when we're with our other friends too, but sometimes in order to hear Him speak, we have to find a place of solitude and listen.


Ortberg continues to explain how Francis de Sales compares a clock to our need for extended solitude: "There is no clock, no matter how good it may be, that doesn't need resetting and rewinding twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. In addition, at least once a year it must be taken apart to remove the dirt clogging it, straighten out bent parts, and repair those worn out. In like manner, every morning and evening a man who really takes care of his heart must rewind it for God's service . . . Moreover, he must often reflect on his condition in order to reform and improve it. Finally, at least once a year he must take it apart and examine every piece in detail, that is every affection and passion, in order to repair whatever defects there may be."

I thoroughly enjoy this analogy. But I would also like to expand on it. I have a clock that doesn't work very well. Within a week, it somehow manages to be hours ahead of the time it really is. Still, I plug the cord into the wall and what happens? Lightning storm; the power shuts off. And in the morning, the alarm doesn't sound. If God is our strength - our "power" - and we are disconnected to him (usually because of the storms of life), how can we "go off" for Him as an alarm clock would sound for the sleeping person?

We must stay connected to our God. When the power seemingly does go off, God can turn us back on. Just as an alarm clock serves it's purpose, so should we stay connected to our power source.

At a loss for words

Oh God, your love is amazing.


Your power is beyond my comprehension. Your grace and mercy stretches further than the skies.

Your power is found everywhere in creation.


I cannot even come close to describe how much you mean to me.


Every time I come into your presence, I am at a loss for words. Words fail to describe how awesome you truly are.

And my prayer is that my lips, Lord, would bring you praise not only when everything is okay, but even when in the midst of trouble.


With every breath I take, and every movement I make, I thank you Lord for who you are.


Your love is amazing.

Amazing Grace

1 John 4: 7-21

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us. We know that we live in Him and He in us, because He has given His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like Him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because He first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And He has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.

If I were in a maze of God's everlasting love, I would get lost so easily.

If I were trying to run through the maze of life, I would find many dead ends.

Sometimes it seems like Satan traps me in the corner and he beats me.

Yet God's amazing grace I could never comprehend.

Sometimes I wonder why He chose me to be His child, to follow in His ways.

Why He loves me when I come back after failure, why He helps me up when I fall down.

Even when I hurt Him so, every time I seek Him out, I am truly amazed.

Praise and glory be yours forever. Nothing compares to you. We will cast off our crowns.

Sliding back in the mud

It's so easy to do, isn't it? When something goes wrong, that is usually the time when our tongue slips. Or even when the wrong thoughts cross through the mind. When it rains, it pours. And no matter how hard we try to move forward, it feels like we slide back in the mud.

Psalm 4: 4
In your anger do not sin;
when you are on your beds,
search your hearts and be silent.

Ephesians 4: 26-27
"In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.

Satan is tricky. He attacks when we least expect it. And when he hits us, he hits us hard. He may even continue kicking you when your down. And sometimes it feels like a long time before you can stand up again. But to keep running a race, you've got to get up and keep moving forward.


We are told to put on the full Armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-18. I know I've heard about it time and time again. "Put on the armor before you start the battle." Or how about this one: "Put on the seatbelt before you get in the accident." Yet sometimes I foolishly forget about it. I don't expect the attack of Satan anytime soon. It's all good, right now.

Maybe it happens when you are learning so much through Him . . . in valleys, in the midst of storms, or even on the mountaintop. Then Satan chases after us, his desire to bring us down - and keep us down.


We are so vulnerable, aren't we? We think we have it all under control.

Or maybe we don't.

But He does.


I remember one of the class discussion topics from Psych 30, which I took last year: How teenagers seem to think that nothing will happen to them. For example, we as teens tend to figure that we won't get injured if we try this fancy trick on a skateboard we've never touched before in our lives. What harm can it bring me, anyway?

Don't we as humans naturally tend to think in that way, as well?

"Oh, that will never happen to me. What are the chances that I would get hurt?"

"Oh, I don't need the Armor of God now. I'll ask for it when I think I need it."

Yeah, when we think we need it.


So often I think I'm doing okay with God. Then the tests come. He reveals to me how I need to change. How I need to be more desperate for Him, even when in a world full of things that make me comfortable. How I need to depend on Him for wisdom and understanding . . . and not only when I'm sliding back in the mud. Although it is difficult to feel in need and desperate for Him when we live in this world, that's what I want. To wear the Armor of God everyday as He leads me through battle. In stormy weather or on the clearest of days, it's important to be prepared.