Mighty To Save

Originally when I began the draft for this post, it was because this song followed another powerful song at the Sunday worship/communion service I wrote about and they went hand in hand down the path that led to a transforming Sunday in my life. I remember being so struck by the phrase "everyone needs compassion" and realizing that this included the "really bad people" and not just your "average sinner." Oh come on, you know you know what I mean!

Well, fast forward to a week - no, a season with so much tragedy happening each day. Now I'm confronted by this phrase and an even bigger challenge. EVERYONE needs compassion.  The arsonist who starts fires and destroys homes and takes lives does. The killer of an innocent person does. You do. I most certainly do. Furthermore, we are all in the same boat when it comes to the need for God's compassion - yes, we are equals, nobody is better in God's eyes, nobody is "close enough to perfect." It sounds like a bad place to be, but our God is truly mighty to save and capable of anything and everything. This is fantastic news!

One More Thing...

Does the thought of surrender scare you or excite you?

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you if you have a need or request.

Lois Lynn

Ephesians Prayer

In my reading yesterday, I came across this unfamiliar passage and I couldn't stop thinking about it. I would love to hear that somebody was praying this for me, what about you? What if we all prayed this for everybody in our individual communities, our cities, our states, our nation, all nations?

"I pray that He may grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power in the inner man through His Spirit, and that the Messiah may dwell in your hearts through faith. I pray that you, being rooted and firmly established in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the length and width, height and depth of God’s love, and to know the Messiah’s love that surpasses knowledge, so you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us — to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen."  

Ephesians 3:16-21

One More Thing...

It sometimes seems so difficult to comprehend God's love. This week, list some of the things He has done for you and see if you start to understand it a bit more.

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you if you have a need or request.

Lois Lynn

Feel It

Let's have a little fun since it's Friday. Try to sit perfectly still while listening to this one - I can't do it. I LOVE the music and was hooked the first time while I was playing the drums on my steering wheel, sunroof open, windows down, and the stereo cranked going to a meeting that completely fills my bucket. Could that morning have been any better? Later I listened to the words and it was confirmed - this is now on my playlist.

There's so much in this song that resonates with me. I appreciate the illustration of not seeing the wind but seeing the effect of it. We do not see God, but our faith should be apparent to those around us. It is our best hope to indeed be wrecked by God, to truly welcome the transforming power He gives us and not keep trying to make it on our own.

One struggle I've had all of my life is getting my head and heart to communicate with each other when it comes to God. I am in the midst of this today and so the song's lyrics "Oh I feel it in my heart I feel it in my soul" has almost become a goal for me. Some of you are lucky enough that you FEEL it already. Others of us are struggling to FEEL it instead of to simply KNOW it. If you are one of those people, I am praying for you as I write this.

One More Thing...

To love God, we need to know God. To know God, we need to spend time with God. To spend time with God, we need to hear His voice. To hear His voice, we need to read our Bible. 

Maybe you missed that last step - I did for the longest time. I can also tell you that reading it has been THE key to connecting my head with my heart and discovering a love for God.

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you if you have a need or request.
Lois Lynn

The Language of the Lid

"I don't have enough hours."

"I can't get it all done."

"I'm not good at this."


Do any of these statements resonate with you? These are all examples of the "language of the lid" - things we tell ourselves that keep us from expanding our capacity. Capacity is what you can handle. If you want to increase what you do, increase your capacity. 

In the video below, Craig Groeschel shares a brief story about his lid as he challenges us to remove the lid in our own life. (Thoughts based on a presentation by Craig Groeschel / Expanding Your Leadership Capacity)

Moment of Vulnerability Alert: In my own life, I have a full repertoire of "lids" I use on a seemingly continuous rotation. Do any of mine sound familiar to you? Whatever yours are, I feel certain you are not alone. Are you able to live at full capacity with those lids?

"I'm a burden to them, they don't really want me around. I'm in their way or they are annoyed by me."

"I don't have anything to contribute."

Ever feel this one? "I'm not a good enough Christian."

I want to challenge all of us, myself included, to find somebody you trust and confide in them what your lids are and ask them to hold you accountable to change the self-talk you use. Then let me know how things change for you.

Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21)

NOTE: The video is clear when it plays, it's just the still image that's blurred. 

One More Thing...

Phil 4:13 tells us "I can do all things through him who strengthens me." Do you recall times when you tried to limit God?

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you if you have a need or request.
Lois Lynn

Drops In The Ocean

I have heard this song numerous times, and while I enjoyed it, I found that I often had to turn the volume down if I was in the car because there's one part that sounds like a siren and I always felt compelled to check to see if I needed to pull over for an emergency vehicle. So, while it was memorable for many months, it was for the wrong reasons and I couldn't have told you much about it except for a couple of phrases that were with the best parts of the music.

That was, until two weeks ago when this song began to take on a new depth of meaning. I was visiting a church that does a special monthly Communion Sunday. 

The entire experience was marvelous, but the speaker that day emphasized the humanity of Jesus approaching and enduring the crucifixion. I always understood Jesus was fully man and fully God, but I never quite grasped what it meant to be fully human for him at that moment, knowing what He was facing and choosing to continue.

Our speaker put it in terms that showed the humanity of Jesus while facing great pain and torture. He did not face it with some kind of miraculous ability to not feel what He was going through. He anticipated the suffering. He suffered. He suffered in a HUGE way. He suffered for me. He suffered for you. SUFFERED...that is a powerful word.

I haven't had to deal with much physical pain in my life, but I have had a few painful and dramatic things happen. Many of those, I would not willingly face again and they were NOTHING compared to this. He chose to continue into the pain. Wow. That is love indeed. As the song says, "If you want to know how far my love can go, just how deep, just how wide. If you want to see how much you mean to me, look at my hands, look at my side."

Fast forward to the next Sunday. I went to hear a dear friend speak at his church and he spoke about Thomas. This was twice in 8 days that the physical injuries were impressed upon my heart. We all likely have the same thoughts of Thomas, "Doubting Thomas" - right? I have more to share later with another song, but there has definitely been a theme in my life in recent months and it's even playing out in the music that surrounds me. I hope you can see God's love with new eyes if you need to. I did.

In addition to how much he loves us, it's also a great reminder that he loves us as we are...now. Who else really loves us this much?

One More Thing...

"Won't you lay down your guard and come to me" was another line that hit me. If you think you're the only one who has trouble with it, you're not.

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you if you have a need or request.

Lois Lynn

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZH13wFGffg

The Potter's Hand

I was able to attend the Global Leadership Summit recently, where I'm always inspired and encouraged. One of the sessions was an interview with Brian Houston, the Lead Pastor from Hillsong, conducted by Bill Hybels. Bill then continued the session with some personal sharing about his own connection with music and how important he feels it is to leaders. I believe he said it's been officially studied and documented that top leaders spend a lot of time listening to music. He continued to share a few stories of when a song came into his life at just the right time, and the overwhelming power songs can have in our lives if we allow them to. He has a buddy that he sends songs to and they share in the joy, pain, challenge, etc. of the song and communicate back and forth.

I adore music and it has so often hit me deeply and had a profound impact. So, one of the ideas that popped into my head during that session was to do this on a bit of a larger scale with anybody that may be interested. Therefore, here I am with a new blog. I know I want to share things that inspire me, and my hope is that you will be encouraged, motivated, loved, challenged, or some other good thing by this endeavor. 

I want to start this with a song I heard Sunday, all in God's perfect timing. The Summit left me in a place of conviction to "step it up" among other things. This song has become my prayer since hearing it. To be honest, I was singing along with it, but I had to stop as I realized I was really singing a prayer and commitment to God. I wanted to be sure about it, yet couldn't quite say the words with full conviction. 

It speaks of knowing God has crafted the perfect plan and understanding that He has called us and will guide us. But then it hit me how much God wants a relationship with us when I heard the words about Him drawing us to Himself.

At this point, I was feeling fairly humbled, when these lyrics struck me as a wonderful prayer, if we are bold enough, "Take me and mold me, use me, fill me. I give my life to the Potter's hand."

My prayer for you this week is that you are touched by this, as I was, and maybe we can both pray for him to use us.

  

Please find a quiet moment to still your heart, then listen to The Potter's Hand by Hillsong.

One More Thing...

Can you see God's perfect plan and His holy calling? I'd love to hear about what He's showing you.

Take care, and I'm always here to pray for you if you have a need or request.

Lois Lynn