What are you focused on?

Being busy is most often used as a guise for avoiding the few critically important but uncomfortable actions. -Timothy Ferris

Hm...

Reformers change structures in society to make them better.
Revolutionaries say--the structure is not as important as the people.
Proactive people are proactive in action.
Reactionary people are reactive in action.

--Rustin Comer Pastor of Bethel Lutheran Encino, CA

Psalm 68

Psalm 68

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. A song.

¹ May God arise, may his enemies be scattered;
may his foes flee before him.

⁵ A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
is God in his holy dwelling.

⁶ God sets the lonely in families,
he leads forth the prisoners with singing;
but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.

⁷ When you went out before your people, O God,
when you marched through the wasteland,
Selah

⁸ the earth shook,
the heavens poured down rain,
before God, the One of Sinai,
before God, the God of Israel.

⁹ You gave abundant showers, O God;
you refreshed your weary inheritance.

¹⁰ Your people settled in it,
and from your bounty, O God, you provided for the poor.

¹¹ The Lord announced the word,
and great was the company of those who proclaimed it:

A very good week.

Okay-best parts of the week! (On a roll for this incredible holiday season!) Great times in the car with Mama Beth& prayer&intercession on the way 2 San Jose, visiting cousin Carl & family, vegan dinners&meals&cookbooks, Helveston family Southern cooking, reading war letters from Grandpa written in 1945 when he was waiting 2 return home from Guam, getting "bemed,' great conversations w/fam and friends, family time w/sis &mom, turkey dinner, visiting East Valley Church, visiting Sam and Michelle &fam! So good...& still going... :-)

So looking forward to the holiday season!!! :-) I've got some GOOD times comin' ahead! ;-D

The Power of Forgiveness

Proverbs 31 Song

Proverbs 31

She dances through the land.
She dances through the land.

She extends hope to the needy

She reaches out her hands.

To the poor and needy
She brings hope to the hopeless--
To the orphan she reaches out her hands.

Wisdom is on her tongue.
Wisdom is on her tongue.
Of the future she can laugh--

If you're in need of wisdom
If you're in need of wisdom
Just ask.

Commit your ways to Me
I will counsel-- I will guide you.
I will establish the work of your hands...

Clothed in strength and dignity
Her children rise to praise her
And her arms--they are strengthened for the task!

Many women have done noble things--
Many of women have done noble things
But of all of them--you have surpassed--

Wisdom is on her tongue
Yeah--wisdom is on her tongue
And of the future--she just laughs.

Clothed in strength and dignity
His wisdom is upon you.
He will establish the work of your hands.

Her children call her blessed
and her husband will rise to praise her
There is oil in her lamp....

Many women have done noble things.
Many women have done noble things...
You have surpassed....

Os Hillman on "The Heights"

"The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights" (Hab 3:19).

The book of Habakkuk inspired Martin Luther's reformation and the book "Hinds Feet on High Places" by Hannah Hunnard. Habakkuk encourages us to question what God is doing in our lives.

When we are thrown into suffering for a period of time, or our enemies are prospering while we are just barely getting by, we wonder about the equity of God and life. Habakkuk affirms that God is God and we are made to scale the mountains of adversity. We just need to be still and know He is at work. He is who He says He is and does keep His promises. God equips His people to scale the heights even in the midst of great challenges. He enables us to go to the higher places with Him where we are set apart from the world.

Sometimes the way we have to go to get us there is through suffering and sorrow, but if we rest in Him and trust Him we come out where He wants us. When Jesus told the disciples He was going to send the Holy Spirit to them, it was in order for them to scale the mountain before them with a new form of power they had not experienced. "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).

If you find yourself in a place of doubting God and His plan for your life, know that this is a normal aspect of your journey in God. However, know that God has made available His Holy Spirit in order for you to accomplish the tasks that lie ahead. Ask the Holy Spirit to enable you to achieve the heights for which He has created you.

Hebrews 10:22-24

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

Prayer Requests....

Here are my prayer requests: 1) place to live by 1st of year! :-) And 2) ...some sort of steady income/finances that I can count on also by that time... And 3) that I can use my gifts and talents wisely in this city and also be able to focus them toward things that have lifelong impact/value.... 4) great friends! And last but not least.... 5) for a move of God in this generation and with the youth of this nation...and in the city of Los Angeles and all the industries of Hollywood... that His glory would be known and that people would fall at His feet and believe....

The one who has gone through the FIRE.

Who is this coming out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all the merchant's fragrant powders?—Song of Solomon 3:6 NKJV


So many full circle messages from the Lord this last week and still...

So beautiful...

Isaiah 66:7-14

7 "Before she goes into labor,
she gives birth;
before the pains come upon her,
she delivers a son.

8 Who has ever heard of such a thing?
Who has ever seen such things?
Can a country be born in a day
or a nation be brought forth in a moment?
Yet no sooner is Zion in labor
than she gives birth to her children.

9 Do I bring to the moment of birth
and not give delivery?" says the LORD.
"Do I close up the womb
when I bring to delivery?" says your God.

10 "Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her,
all you who love her;
rejoice greatly with her,
all you who mourn over her.

11 For you will nurse and be satisfied
at her comforting breasts;
you will drink deeply
and delight in her overflowing abundance."

12 For this is what the LORD says:
"I will extend peace to her like a river,
and the wealth of nations like a flooding stream;
you will nurse and be carried on her arm
and dandled on her knees.

13 As a mother comforts her child,
so will I comfort you;
and you will be comforted over Jerusalem."

14 When you see this, your heart will rejoice
and you will flourish like grass;
the hand of the LORD will be made known to his servants,
but his fury will be shown to his foes.

Today's Beautiful Children: Ps22 Elementary School Chorus in NY!

love this! check it! gonna fall in love with it! ;-) today's children tomorrow's entertainers! check it!






Fell in love with this teacher and these kids! Change the world with your hearts, souls, and music! You are inspiring us! Wow! :-D Reminding me of my own loves, too!

Whoa. This woman had it all together!

9 Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy."

Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character


10 A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. 11 Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. 12 She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life. 13 She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. 14 She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. 15 She gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls. 16 She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. 17 She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. 18 She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night. 19 In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. 20 She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. 21 When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet. 22 She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple. 23 Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land. 24 She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes. 25 She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. 26 She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. 27 She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. 28 Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: 29 "Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all." 30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. 31 Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Untitled Hymn by Chris Rice

Weak and wounded sinner
Lost and left to die
O, raise your head, for love is passing by
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus and live!

Now your burden's lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus and live!

And like a newborn baby
Don't be afraid to crawl
And remember when you walk
Sometimes we fall...so
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus and live!

Sometimes the way is lonely
And steep and filled with pain
So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus and live!

O, and when the love spills over
And music fills the night
And when you can't contain your joy inside, then
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus and live!

And with your final heartbeat
Kiss the world goodbye
Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus and live!

FIRST LOVE--You taught us what LOVE is!

Lord, you ALONE are our FIRST LOVE!!! ♥ ♥ ♥

3You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 4Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. (Rev.2:3-5,)

Quotes

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." --Martin Luther King Jr.

I would I could stand on a busy corner, hat in hand, and beg people to throw me all their wasted hours. ~Bernard Berenson

Chuck Pierce quote:

"The enemy longs to capture us in yesterday. If we become so attached to what the Holy Spirit was revealing yesterday that we cannot move forward, then we are in danger of coming under a religious spirit and missing revelation for the present day."

God, break us out of small minded thinking, legalism, and control! The picture God paints is so much grander than our small minded ideas of what we think or even hope He is going to do! :-)

He is God! The Ultimate Creative Guru! He called the world into existence and then He ordered it. He continues to let His creativity go!

Roll with the punches! Go, go, go!

Jesus Calms the Storm

35That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." 36Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
39He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"

41They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"

To be who you are...

All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what it was. I accepted their answers too, though they were often in contradiction and even self-contradictory. I was naïve. I was looking for myself and asking everyone except myself questions which I, and only I, could answer. It took me a long time and much painful boomeranging of my expectations to achieve a realization everyone else appears to have been born with: that I am nobody but myself. ~Ralph Ellison, "Battle Royal"

He who trims himself to suit everyone will soon whittle himself away. ~Raymond Hull

Commitment:

1. the act of committing.
2. the state of being committed.
3. the act of committing, pledging, or engaging oneself.
4. a pledge or promise; obligation: We have made a commitment to pay our bills on time.
5. engagement; involvement: They have a sincere commitment to religion.
6. perpetration or commission, as of a crime.
7. consignment, as to prison.
8. confinement to a mental institution or hospital: The psychiatrist recommended commitment.
9. an order, as by a court or judge, confining a person to a mental institution or hospital.
10. Law. a written order of a court directing that someone be confined in prison; mittimus.
11. Parliamentary Procedure. the act of referring or entrusting to a committee for consideration.
12. Stock Exchange. a. an agreement to buy or sell securities.
b. a sale or purchase of securities.

Confidence and Rest

Hebrews 3
Jesus Greater Than Moses
1Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess. 2He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God's house. 3Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. 4For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. 5Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house, testifying to what would be said in the future. 6But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast.
Warning Against Unbelief
7So, as the Holy Spirit says:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
8do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the desert,
9where your fathers tested and tried me
and for forty years saw what I did.
10That is why I was angry with that generation,
and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.'
11So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "[a]
12See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. 14We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. 15As has just been said:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion."[b]

16Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? 17And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? 18And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed[c]? 19So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.

17 "Behold, I will create
new heavens and a new earth.
The former things will not be remembered,
nor will they come to mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever
in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight
and its people a joy.

19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem
and take delight in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying
will be heard in it no more.

20 "Never again will there be in it
an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not live out his years;
he who dies at a hundred
will be thought a mere youth;
he who fails to reach [a] a hundred
will be considered accursed.

21 They will build houses and dwell in them;
they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

22 No longer will they build houses and others live in them,
or plant and others eat.
For as the days of a tree,
so will be the days of my people;
my chosen ones will long enjoy
the works of their hands.

23 They will not toil in vain
or bear children doomed to misfortune;
for they will be a people blessed by the LORD,
they and their descendants with them.

24 Before they call I will answer;
while they are still speaking I will hear.

25 The wolf and the lamb will feed together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox,
but dust will be the serpent's food.
They will neither harm nor destroy
on all my holy mountain,"
says the LORD.

Heal the World..

For some reason, I find this song very soothing. ;-) why do i like this video so much? they look like real people... :) and they want to change the world!!!
and they're in asia! lol. shux.

Merchant Band "I Can't Wait"

There's a place I've been more real than what I've seen
You led me by the hand into the chamber of the King
Take me away to the place that I never want to leave

Yeah yeah

I've tasted and I've known of a love that's better than wine
Come to me my Lord
Only You can satisfy
Take me away to the place that I never want to leave

I can't wait for our wedding day to come
Let me see Your face
let me feel Your arms of love
I have been betrothed to a King above all kings

I am not my own and You've pledged Yourself to me
I can't wait for our wedding day to come
Let me see Your face
let me feel Your arms of love

Take me away to the place that I never want to leave
Take me away to the place that I never want to leave

I can't wait for our wedding day to come
Let me see Your face
Let me feel Your arms of love

I can't wait for our wedding day to come
Let me see Your face let me feel Your arms of love
I can't wait for our wedding day
I can't wait just to see Your face

I can't wait.

Beyonce: Single Ladies

All the single ladies All the single ladies
All the single ladies All the single ladies
All the singe ladies All the single ladies

All the single ladies!

Now put your hands up
Up in the club, we just broke up
I’m doing my own little thing

you decided to dip
but now you wanna trip
Cuz another brother noticed me
I’m up on him, he up on me

dont pay him any attention
cuz i cried my tears,
for three good years

Ya can’t be mad at me

[Chorus]
Cuz if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he want it

If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it

wo oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh x2

(Chorus)
Cuz if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he want it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it

I got gloss on my lips,
a man on my hips
hold me tighter than my Dereon jeans

acting up, drink in my cup
I couldnt care less what you think
I need no permission,
did I mention
Dont pay him any attention
Cuz you had your turn
But now you gonna learn
What it really feels like to miss me

(Chorus)
Cuz if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he want it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it

woo oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh 2x
Don’t treat me to the things of this world
I’m not that kind of girl
Your love is what I prefer,
what I deserve

Is a man that makes me,
then takes me
And delivers me to a destiny,
to infinity and beyond

Pull me into your arms
Say I’m the one you own
If you don’t, you’ll be alone

And like a ghost
I’ll be gone

All the single ladies (7x)

Now put your hands up

woo oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh 2x

Cuz if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it

If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he want it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it

woo oh ooh 2x

Snow Patrol

"Chasing Cars"

We'll do it all

Everything

On our own

We don't need

Anything

Or anyone

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

I don't quite know

How to say

How I feel

Those three words

Are said too much

They're not enough

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Forget what we're told

Before we get too old

Show me a garden that's bursting into life

Let's waste time

Chasing cars

Around our heads

I need your grace

To remind me

To find my own

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Forget what we're told

Before we get too old

Show me a garden that's bursting into life

All that I am

All that I ever was

Is here in your perfect eyes, they're all I can see

I don't know where

Confused about how as well

Just know that these things will never change for us at all

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Okay. I don't agree that we don't need anyone else, but there is a sense in a romantic way that its just you and the other...no one else is in it for what you're in for. This is the best way to spend the day. Just being. Sitting. Playing. Looking at the clouds or looking at each other. Just laying on the couch. Forgetting the blur of the world.

I'd Do Anything For Love lyrics by Meatloaf

I'd Do Anything For Love lyrics

And I would do anything for love
I'd run right into hell and back
I would do anything for love
I'd never lie to you and that's a fact
But I'll never forget the way you feel right now,
Oh no, no way
And I would do anything for love
Oh, I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love,
but I won't do that
No, I won't do that

Some days it don't come easy
Some days it don't come hard
Some days it don't come at all,
and these are the days that never end
Some nights you're breathing fire
Some nights you're carved in ice
Some nights you're like nothing I've ever seen before or will again

Maybe I'm crazy, but it's crazy and it's true
I know you can save me, no-one else can save me now but you

As long as the planets are turning
As long as the stars are burning
As long as your dreams are coming true
You'd better believe it, that I would do
Anything for love
And I'll be there until the final act
I would do anything for love,
and I'll take a vow and seal a pact
But I'll never forgive myself if we don't go all the way, tonight
And I would do anything for love but I won't do that
No, I won't do that

I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of, but I just won't do that
I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of, but I just won't do that

And some days I pray for silence
And some days I pray for soul
Some days I just pray to the god of sex and drums and rock 'n' roll
And some nights I loose the feeling
And some nights I loose control
Some nights I loose it all when I watch you dance and the thunder rolls
And maybe I'm lonely, that's all I'm qualified to be
That's just one and only, the one and only promise I can keep

As long as the wheels are turningAs long as the fires are burning
As long as your prayers are coming true
You'd better believe it, that I would do
Anything for love
And you know it's true and that's a fact
I would do anything for love,
and there'll never be no turning back
But I'll never do it better than I do it with you. So long, so long
I would do anything for love
Oh, I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love, but I won't do that
No, no, no, I won't do...

I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of,
but I just won't do that

I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of,
but I just won't do that
I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of, but I just won't do...

But I'll never stop dreaming of you ev'ry night of my life, no way
And I would do anything for love, but I won't do that
No, I won't do that

[Girl:]
Will you raise me up?
will you help me down?
Will you get me right out of this godforsaken town?
Will you make it all a little less cold?

[Boy:]
I can do that
I can do that

[Girl:]
Will you hold me sacred?
Will you hold me tight?
Can you colourise my life,
I'm so sick of black and white?
Can you make it all a little less old?

[Boy:]
I can do that
Oh oh now, I can do that

[Girl:]
Will you make me some majic with your own two hands?
Will you build an emerald city with these grains of sand?
Can you give me something I can take home?

[Boy:]
I can do thatI can do that

[Girl:]
Will you cater to every fantasy I got?
Will you hose me down with holy water, if I get too hot?
Will you take me places I've never known?

[Boy:]
I can do that
Oh oh now,
I can do that

[Girl:]
After a while you'll forget everything
It was a brief interlude and a midsummer night's fling
And you'll see that it's time to move on

[Boy:]
I won't do thatI won't do that

[Girl:]
I know the territory, I've been around
It'll all turn to dust and we'll all fall down
Sooner or later you'll be screwing around

[Boy:]
I won't do that
No, I won't do that
Anything for love
Oh, I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love, but I won't do that

No, I won't do that

I Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians 13

Love 1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Some people read this passage that if you do not possess love to GIVE you have nothing.
Lately, I have been reading it as if you do not have love (as in if you are not receiving love or holding love from others in your possession) --you have nothing.

You can have everything--fame, fortune, leadership, influence, and more. If you are not giving and receiving love--you still have nothing. This is why Hollywood leaves people so empty and all the promises of how great life will be if you only had everything you think you wanted--come up so void.

If you don't have love in your possession--you have nothing.

I have recently talked with beautiful and passionate, tenderhearted, sincere people who appear to have it all, but through their tears have shared the brokenness of their own lives. Appearance isn't everything. You can look like you have it all, but if you don't have love. You still have nothing.

Love comes from God.

Who are you receiving love from today?

New York City: Before and After

http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2009/09/manhattan.html?sc=fb&cc=fp

One of my favorite cities in the world! :-) Busy busy! New York City! :-)Manhattan! :-) Beautiful, colorful, and full of culture! I love that I got to go to school here and I will always love and miss this city! This city is marked for greatness. May God arise and may the Light of the Kingdom shine in this place!This picture is incredible--showing the abilities given to the sons and daughters of God to create culture and to build with our God given gifts and the influence of our personalities in cooperation (hopefully) with God to inhabit the earth.These cities remind me of cities in the Bible like Sodom and Gomorrah and the tower of Babel. We have the opportunity to create with or without God because we are made in His image and He is Creator. If we create without God it is for our own glory. To create WITH God is including Him in the plans and recognizingHe is Creator and we are creatures (and thus dependant on Him). It is taking action with our God given human wills and desires, but allowing God to be God instead of trying to be gods ourselves. When we look to Him first we can cooperate/participate in His greater good being worked out in the earth. This picture is so interesting... Reminds me of my former contemplations on cities which I have rarely talked about as much as I think about them, but have managed to blog about twice!

http://skylineballerina.blogspot.com/2004/07/seattle-skyline.htmlhttp://skylineballerina.blogspot.com/2006/09/god-of-city.html

I haven't even read this article yet, but I loved this picture, so I had to post! ;-)
Blessings!~S.

What is Love? (One Hit Wonders) by Haddaway

A link from a friend of mine reminded me of this one hit wonder by Haddaway.... Everybody's heard it. The push and pull of wanting to love and being afraid.

Give me a microphone.

by Haddaway

What Is Love?

What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more
Oh, baby don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more

What is love
Yeah

Oh, I don't know why you're not there
I give you my love, but you don't care
So what is right and what is wrong
Gimme a sign

What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more
What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more

Whoa whoa whoa, oooh oooh
Whoa whoa whoa, oooh oooh

Oh, I don't know, what can I do
What else can I say, it's up to you
I know we're one, just me and you
I can't go on

What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more
What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more

Whoa whoa whoa, oooh oooh
Whoa whoa whoa, oooh oooh

What is love, oooh, oooh, oooh
What is love, oooh, oooh, oooh

What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more

Don't hurt me
Don't hurt me

I want no other, no other lover
This is your life, our time
When we are together, I need you forever
Is it love

What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more
What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more (oooh, oooh)

What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more
What is love
Oh baby, don't hurt me
Don't hurt me no more (oooh, oooh)

What is love?

Psalm 95:6-11 & Hebrews 4 & Isaiah 55:9-11

6 Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;

7 for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.
Today, if you hear his voice,

8 do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, [a]
as you did that day at Massah [b] in the desert,

9 where your fathers tested and tried me,
though they had seen what I did.

10 For forty years I was angry with that generation;
I said, "They are a people whose hearts go astray,
and they have not known my ways."

11 So I declared on oath in my anger,
"They shall never enter my rest."

Hebrews 4
A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God
1Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith.[a] 3Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,
"So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "[b] And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. 4For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: "And on the seventh day God rested from all his work."[c] 5And again in the passage above he says, "They shall never enter my rest."
6It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience. 7Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts."[d] 8For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. 11Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.

12For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Jesus the Great High Priest
14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens,[e] Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. 16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Isaiah 55:9-11 (New International Version)

9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

LOVE video collage by Jaeson Ma

Beautiful moments. New Single Released September 1st. "LOVE."
Truly beautiful! Anointed. Check it!

From Job (8)

5 But if you will look to God
and plead with the Almighty,

6 if you are pure and upright,
even now he will rouse himself on your behalf
and restore you to your rightful place.

7 Your beginnings will seem humble,
so prosperous will your future be.

8 "Ask the former generations
and find out what their fathers learned,

9 for we were born only yesterday and know nothing,
and our days on earth are but a shadow.

10 Will they not instruct you and tell you?
Will they not bring forth words from their understanding?

Jewish song/prayer from Annie.

Don't walk in front of me
I may not follow.
Don't walk behind me
I may not lead.
Just walk beside me and be my friend
And together we will walk in the ways of God.

--written for me in my journal by 8 year old Annie on my plane ride from LA to MI.

This chimed with my heart. And so did Annie.

Blessing!

And she is a smart girl! God, I pray blessing and favor over Annie and her sisters and her mom. Jesus bless them and make them great in your Kingdom, great in your heart. Let them find the Love that will take their breath away and breathe your love and life and breath in them. May they seek Your Kingdom first, your joy and your righteousness. And may they find freedom and life in their hearts' desires. In Jesus' name! Amen!

prayer song

God is faithful,
never changing,
always constant,
always stable.
He is loving.
He is kind.
He knows what is on my mind.
Carry me through this trying time
&faithfully hold me by His side.
He will show His grace to me.
Joyfully providing4every need.
He is everything to me.
Faithful Lover, Father, King.
With all my heart He makes me sing.
Alleluia.Alleluia.

Small Town by My Ephiphany

Keep hearing these first two lines ringing in my head! The only two lines I knew... :-)
Keep hearing it ring as I drive about Stevensville--beautiful little small town in which I was raised! Glad for my roots and wings!...


i was raised in a small town
i couldn't wait to leave that small town
'cause i couldn't sit around and think that ignorance is surely killing me
and i'll be left flipping the sign at a closing burger king
with kids who gave up just like me

it is no one's fault
'cause no one wants to live this way at all
but they're so consumed their dreams just fade away
but what would you trade to get one thing to take what love has made
the system is flawed and the system fails us all
i need you to recall, because right now i can't feel your love at all
and i need that here to correct my past mistakes
the only real thing here is you,
and i wonder, watching, which one you would choose

i just hit the hard ground, but i was running when i hit the hard ground
i watched the dirt beneath my feet,
and all the bridges that were burning behind me
i'll be so free, someday baby
but you're like me, you'll have to wait and see

it is no one's fault
'cause no one wants to live this way at all
but they're so consumed their dreams just fade away
but what would you trade to get one thing to take what love has made
the system is flawed and the system fails us all
i need you to recall, because right now i can't feel your love at all
and i need that here to correct my past mistakes
the only real thing here is you,
and i wonder, watching, which one you would choose

lies can run while truth is tying it's shoes for you
lies can run while truth is tying it's shoes for you

some dreams take so long, don't ever let go
we've come too far, to give up and go home
some dreams take so long, don't ever let go
we've come too far, to give up and go home

Love With Find A Way- Amy Grant

Love will find a way, Love will find a way, I know its hard to see the past and still believe Love is gonna find a way. I know that Love will find a way, Love can make a way, Leave behind the doubt; Loves the only out; Love will surely find a way.

Children of the World (Amy Grant)

I dedicate this song to my sister Becky. I can see the heartbeat of all the little children!


Every life, every beating heart
Has a searching soul inside
Ever needing, ever seeking out
The meaning of life

I refuse to believe that we're only here to live and die
In the futile days of a faithless haze
Never asking why, why would I
When I've felt the hand of eternity
It's a legacy I will leave,
I want to leave

For the children of the world
Every single little boy and girl
Heaven plants a special seed
And we must have faith for these

I will stand for the truth I've seen
So the truth is seen in me
I will give from the source of love
So all that I believe is handed down

For the road that's yet to be travelled on
By the ones who will carry one,
I'll carry on

For the children of the world
Every single little boy and girl
Heaven plants a special seed
And we must have faith for these
Red and yellow, black and white
They are precious in the Father's eyes
Like the Father may we see
That they have a destiny

And give them the light of love to lead
Though the darkness around us now
To a place where hope is found

Celebrating Important People in My Life: Sarah Freeman

This is Sarah Freeman! A very important Sarah in my life! Oh yes! We met through a mutual friend who connected us on the possibility of going on a trip to India altogether back in 2006/2007. And we never met in person at that point, but we had SO MUCH in common--we continued to talk on the phone ALL YEAR! Ha! This was becoming one of the strangest phenonomons of the times--some people have cyber friendships--we were having a phone friendship! We ended up working together quite a bit by telephone bonding over our mutual passions, similar lifepaths, and friends in common and we ended up working together as Sarah was founding the very beginnings of Faceless International and I was coming as a strong partner through prayer and support! Sarah is a brave woman--quitting her job in Florida and moving to Nashville to start a non-profit that helps educate young people on issues of injustice, poverty, and in particular the human trafficking issue--which wasn't getting as much press back in that day! Faceless also organizes trips for young people and people in the music industry to take trips overseas to see the needs firsthand so that they can help "Be the Change" they want to see in the world! :-)

I was there for the discussion at the very beginning and offering my strong support and encouragent to Sarah along the way! She has been a faithful and courageous woman to risk everything and continue living day to day contending for the future of this organization believing that God placed the call in her heart for a reason. Through all the blood, sweat, and tears...she does not give up...but continues to encourage others in their call and to encourage us all--especially through the Word of God everyday!

I love this woman! The first time we met it was in partnership over sharing a vending booth for Faceless International and Zenia Clothing--all in support of the same issues. My friend Molly and I camped with the masses in Bushnell, IL as the parties went all day and all night and the next year I opted for the comfort of Sarah's hotel!

We have never lived in the same city (except once we overlapped in Los Angeles for several weeks and thought we'd died and gone to heaven!) :-) We have only seen each other in cities that were not our own! We have never seen each other in our hometowns or environments!

But we are quite great friends! This woman I know I can call for encouragent, wisdom, prayer, a slap in the face! :-) Anything...she understands both my heart and my decision making process which is quite a feat. She understands how to partner with friends from all places and somehow let the Body be the Body in terms of different parts working together, etc...

We have some mutual friends in common--and though our friend Stephen introduced us--our friendship has surpassed what anyone in that circumferance ever expected!!!

God is good! Sarah and I have had the same timeline and journey for starting our businesses, raising awareness on certain issues, impacting people in the industries, loving the children of the world, and providing opportunities for people to go overseas!! I am so proud of her for moving ahead--brave and sometimes feeling alone--fighting for the destiny that I know the Lord has called her to!

We have both been on the journey of being single woman called to a very strange lifestyle of faith--both longing for a place to settle in relationship--

I love this woman!! She is so faithful!!! She is one who is faithful and true!!! :-)

And she sharpens me!!

I stand in support of this woman in her heart, her faith, her decision making, and her desire to see the world changed through Christ in us! She is a beautiful example of a human being and I am honored and favored in my life to KNOW her!

God has blessed me and I am always smiling when I hear her voice on my telephone line!

Next stop Nashville! ;-)

Love you lady!!

God is FOR you!!! Romans 8.

Joshua 1:9

Lamentations 3:19-26

LUV!

Getting to Know You

GETTING TO KNOW YOU (Oscar Hammerstein)
Anna: It's a very ancient saying, But a true and honest thought,
That if you become a teacher, By your pupils you'll be taught.
As a teacher I've been learning (You'll forgive me if I boast)
And I've now become an expert, On the subject I like most. [

Spoken] Getting to know you.

[Children Giggle]

Getting to know you,
getting to know all about you.
Getting to like you,
getting to hope you like me.
Getting to know you, putting it my way,
But nicely,
You are precisely,
My cup of tea.

[Children Giggle]

All [Except children]:

Getting to know you, Getting to know all about you.
Getting to like you, Getting to hope you like me.
Getting to know you, putting it my way,
But nicely,
You are precisely,

Anna: My cup of tea.

All (including children):

Getting to know you,
Getting to feel free and easy.
When I am with you,
Getting to know what to say
Haven't you noticed
Suddenly I'm bright and breezy
Because of all the beautiful and new
Things I'm learning about you
Day by day.

Getting to know you,
Getting to feel free and easy.
When I am with you,
Getting to know what to say
Haven't you noticed
Suddenly I'm bright and breezy
Because of all the beautiful and new
Things I'm learning about you
Day by day.

This reminds me of my children in Myanmar--plus just the normal getting to know you's of life! :-) Aww! These children are so cute!!! These are my children! :-) Yes! And I will get to them eventually. They are so beautiful!!!

And on a side note!! I love my friend Sarah Freeman who shares this passion for the children of the world and orphanages and schools and is positively making a difference through Faceless International! I will never forget how she went to India and seeing all the brokenness--always chose to emphasize all the joy in the children's faces! God is with them! He is raising them up!!
I love this song and all the laughter of the children!!

And I love my friend Sarah Freeman!! Thank you Jesus for such a good and sharpening friend!

This Spinning Planet...

In case you are ever tempted to be worried about the details in life.... I take comfort sometimes in reminding myself that this planet is spinning and revolving by the wisdom of God and if He can take care of that...He can take care of THIS!

I read this article from the New York Times and loved it. Think about these things! Ponder the God of the Universe and Beyond who created a whole solar system and more to make sure that we are all set up here on Planet Earth. Also at any time something crazy could happen. His great power & wisdom are beyond our logic and intellect! It is just amazing that this is all in His hands and all created to move at the sound of His voice!

He is CRAZAY intense! Wow!

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/26/weekinreview/26overbye.html?_r=3

Settling In....Everything New.

Home again. Home again. Jiggity Jig. (as Mom and Grandma Robinson would often say upon returning home)

What is home? :-)

Luke 9

The Cost of Following Jesus
57As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."

58Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."

59He said to another man, "Follow me."
But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."

60Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God."

61 Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family."

62Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

Well, I have thought of this topic so many times and for so long. As a young woman who owns a house in Michigan and yet has been called all over the country and the world, I have often thought about the concept of home.

I think we all have a longing for a resting place.

Psalm 84

1 How lovely is your dwelling place,
O LORD Almighty!

2 My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.

3 Even the sparrow has found a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may have her young—
a place near your altar,
O LORD Almighty, my King and my God.

4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
they are ever praising you.
Selah

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.

6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
they make it a place of springs;
the autumn rains also cover it with pools. [b]

7 They go from strength to strength,
till each appears before God in Zion.

8 Hear my prayer, O LORD God Almighty;
listen to me, O God of Jacob.
Selah

9 Look upon our shield, [c] O God;
look with favor on your anointed one.

10 Better is one day in your courts
than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
the LORD bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
from those whose walk is blameless.

12 O LORD Almighty,
blessed is the man who trusts in you.

It has not actually bothered me that I haven't had a permanant place of residence b/c truly to me, home IS where the heart is and my heart almost always finds a spot to rest in relationship with God and others. On occasion I DO have a desire to UNPACK my bags!!! :-) and for SOMEONE to know what my life is really like in the unfolding of this journey in the earth! Every heart is longing for a home--for intimacy--to be known....

There is this concept of having community in the Body of Christ--a FAMILY--a group of people to "do life" with. I am totally into this concept--promoting and demonstrating this all through high school and college--in residence life and the Ontario house for the last 5 years--as well as the various groups and communities I have been a part of leading and planting.

This last year, I have traveled 3 months at at time--building family and friends in new communities and expanding my borders in terms of the Body of Christ as a whole.

I have never been one who belonged to just one group, organization, or culture. I have been interested in other cultures and crossed denominational borders and social statuses all throughout childhood and into my early adult life. I see no red tape. I acknowledge no cultural or traditional barriers that others may say might hold me back.

If Christ is the Head of a Body of believers that are fulfilling HIS assignments and partnering with Him in His purposes in the earth--it makes sense to me that I would have both a local role in whatever location I am currently in and also an overall purpose as He is working out His plans THROUGHOUT THE EARTH!!! and He is joining us together as a net--in relationship--for our ENJOYMENT and for HIS PURPOSES!! And we are like a net woven together to strengthen each other and to contain and hold more together than we ever could as one strand that is isolated from the whole and dangling purposely all alone! :-)

Jesus is coming and the NATIONS of the earth will give Him PRAISE and GLORY! He is working out an overall plan to bring redemption and restoration in the earth. There is a plan purposed in the heart of the GOD going out over all the world for Christ to come and receive His Bride in the earth--His colorful and beautiful Bride of many nations, many colors, languages, traditions, dances, foods, and peoples! I am so excited for that day! The nations will praise the King of Kings! The Lord of ALL the earth! There is ONE GOD and ONE WAY TO GOD through JESUS CHRIST our LORD.

I have a heart to see the nations of the earth worshipping and healthy families, societies, and cultures living in the fullness of what God intended for them since the beginning of time before sin entered the world and the brokenness and fallenness of man and creation brought such an effect on the nations of the world. Sin leads to death and brings destruction.

We see so much brokenness, longing, destruction, and pain in the nations of the world and in the lives of ourselves and those around us! God is longing to bring restoration and He is preparing a people who will KNOW HIM and bring HIM praise! And HE is receiving a BRIDE of many colors and many nations with multifaceted beauties and parts! This Bride will partner with Him when the time for TRUE RESTORATION IN ITS FULLNESS comes!

We all need a place to belong. A role--an assignment. A piece of connection with the ground on which we walk that tells us we are part of a larger whole. Culture provides us with that sense of identity. It is both our sameness and our otherness that makes us a celebrated smaller part of an even more spectacular whole.

There is a church without walls. There is a Bride that is being prepared by non-traditional means to be united in the earth with the Man Jesus. God became man and dwelt among us once...and HE WILL COME AGAIN. Will the whole church be ready?

Will we fulfill our role as individuals in believing communities that make up the Greater Body of Christ as a whole throughout the earth.

There is a sense of largeness and a sense of smallness. I am ready to connect again with a body of believers in which my life can take root and be intertwined for a while. Probably (as with all my other relationships) for life. It is hard to do that in some ways starting over completely in a totally new land with a totally different culture and value system. Perhaps I haven't felt fully prepared. But we are prepared. We are always prepared for what and where the Lord really calls us.
I have felt overwhelmed at evidence of the goodness of the Lord and yet wide eyed at all that is new to me in this season.

I love you O Lord my strength! :-) Thank you for giving me a home in your arms of love. THANK YOU for the DIVINE CONNECTIONS along THE WAY!

I pray for peace and joy in the journey for other fellow travelors--as I have been blessed with peace, joy, and love!

I am looking for good friends along the way. I am thanking God for good, new friends in Southern California and for divine connections and friends along the way. I pray my heart can plant here in relationships whether my body stays long in this soil or just uses this as a home base for the time of the Lord's leading!

God, give me the ground on which I walk and relationships here that are ROOTED along the way. I need my feet on the ground in this season in some way! Whatever that looks like, I pray that it be established for me quickly!

I love you O Lord my strength!

Home is being KNOWN!!!

~Sarah A. Weichhand

We choose to go to the Moon!!!

I think this video speaks for itself! :-) I have had a series of dreams about going in a rocketship into space. Some good dreams. Some dreams of warning. I believe God is calling people to walk in wisdom and faith and to go with Him to places that many have never ever dared to go before. When God calls and God equips, God is in control of the outcome as well! We partner with God in faith and in our obedience. We get on the vessel that He has prepared to take us on a wild ride and we trust Him that if He has called us to go, it is going to be exhilarating, peaceful, joyful, and every minute worth the ride!!!

It does take faith to get on and stay on the ride!!!

It is amazing to me the things the Lord has been speaking to me about faith and outer space! I saw this clip today as it just popped up when i googled something else! Actually I saw an MNBC clip and youtubed for this one! (so I could post!)

Well, anyway, be encouraged! When God calls us to do something crazy like go to the moon and back, He has got it all prepared, pre-planned, and in the realm of His control--even if its out of ours! :-) And so we and others can see his glory!!

And those who are willing to go can come back and tell and encourage others!! :-)

In the dream I had, there were all these spaceships (small pod shaped ships) that were meant for space travel and were pre-programmed with a button on the ceiling. In the dream, God was offering trips into outer space for those who would dare to step into the extreme adventure with Him. It was risky feeling and in the natural the adventurer's knew that there was a 1% chance that those little spaceships could be magnetically attracted to one of the stars on the journey and burned up in the star forever-a 1% risk that they would never come back-- but in the spaceships, the journey was preprogrammed--and b/c God was inviting people on the ride--it was up to them to take the journey and adventure knowing that God was in control and that it was a wild trip of HIS ADVENTURE. It was proven to be a peaceful and quiet and joy-filled journey once one was up in outer space looking at the stars out the windows of this pod. But only those with the courage to take God up on His offer for the ride were ever going to be able to encounter this experience! :-)

There were many others who were willing to stay on the ground forever and never see the wonders, but there was an invitation and a opportunity--and those who were willing to step in at that place of faith were about to go on a wild, exhilaratingly wonderful, peaceful, and joy-filled ride.

Several of my friends were in this dream also and I believe that God is encouraging a lot of people right now to be wise in living, but ready to be wild in adventurous living with the God of the universe! When God is calling you KNOW it is going to be a joyful and peaceful, but wild ride! When its God who is inviting you to GO, you can know that it is in the realm of His control-even if it is out of the realm of ours!

Yeah!! He made the earth and the stars. He made creation. He made us!

Get ready for the ride of your life!!!!

xoxo!
Sarah

Theme Songs: How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?! :-)

She climbs a tree and scrapes her knee--
Her dress has got a tear.
She waltzes on her way to mass
And whistles on the stair...
And underneath her wimper
She's got curlers in her hair!
I've even heard her singing in the Abbey!

She's always late for chapel
But her penitence is real.
She's always late for everything!
Except for every meal!
I hate to have to say it..
But I very firmly feel--
Maria's not an asset to the Abbey!

I'd like to say a word on her behalf!
Maria--makes me--laugh!!!!

Many a thing you know you'd like to tell her.
Many a thing she ought to understand!
But how do you make her stay?
And listen to all you say?
How do you catch a wave upon the sand?

How do you solve a problem like Maria?!!
;-)

Ponder:
How do you hold a moonbeam in your hands?!!

Lord, Let Your Glory Fall...

Lord, let Your glory fall
as on that ancient day,
songs of enduring love
and then Your glory came.
And as a sign to You
that we would love the same,
our hearts will sing that song:
God, let Your glory come.

You are good, You are good,
and Your love endures.
You are good, You are good,
and Your love endures.
You are good, You are good,
and Your love endures today.

Voices in unison
giving You thanks and praise,
joined by the instruments
and then Your glory came.
Your presence like a cloud
upon that ancient day,
the priests were overwhelmed
because Your glory came.

Oh, Your anger lasts a moment,
but your favor lasts a lifetime.
Yeah, yeah.

A sacrifice was made,
and then Your fire came;
they knelt upon the ground,
and with one voice they praised.
They sang, “Come, Lord.
Lord, let Your glory fall,
let You glory fall. Come, Lord Jesus.”

Letter to My Friends...

Hello my dear friends and family.

I am just writing this note to let you know that I am safely landed (Purple PT Cruiser and all) in Los Angeles, CA where I believe God has directed me to plant for a season. As far as I can tell, I will use this as a home base if I do any traveling in the future season and I am going to plant a life and relationships in Los Angeles that the Lord is divinely encouraging me to plant.

A while back the Lord gave me the scriptures Psalm 92:12-13

12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;

13 planted in the house of the LORD,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.

I loved these verses. The Lord gave them to me on a trip to LA in 2008. I had been pointed in this direction for several years--hearing from the Lord that He wanted to bring an unprecedented move of His Spirit to this land of Southern California. I had visited several times and had even tried moving here once before, but the doors were closed. It was not the timing of the Lord. He had other things for me to do.

Now, in July of 2009, the Lord has once again almost URGENTLY reminded me of His heart for the city of LA and the many unique groups of people that represent the culture here. This is a culture creating city and it has a unique culture of its own.

God has sent me here for such a time as this.

Right now, I have an overall sense that God is calling me to strengthen and equip the church in LA for what is about to come. The way that God is planning to move is going to hit many by surprise, but the church in LA is being prepared!

I have met many great people here even in the last few days and am connecting with the Body of Christ as a whole in these parts. I am looking forward to more of what the Lord has for this city.

I will not be working hard striving and trying to create a life here. The Lord has called me away with Him to a quiet place. I have been instructed clearly to come with Him away for a while.... I have been promised downloads of revelation and songs of healing and I believe that God is going to be finishing some healing in me as I spend this time away with Him.

So, I am making connetions and looking for a place to stay. (I am currently staying temporarily with friends.) If you know of anyone who would like to help support me while I am out here investing in this land, just let them know that they are welcome!

The soil is rich and the the harvest is going to be a BIG one!

GOD is going to do it.

People have often misunderstood my calling and my personality. It appears to some that I am not being responsible as I am living this life by faith.
But God knows that I am trustworthy and I find great solace in His own kind words to me. I am trustworthy, integretous, and fair.

My calling is not to any one group of people only. I have never fit into a group, a church structure, or body of people exclusively. I belong to the Body of Christ and I am obedient to the One True Head--Jesus Christ. He is my perfect leader and I am called not just to one group in Los Angleles, but to this city as a whole.
In fact, I belong to many cities.

It is time to take cities in preparation for nations! Christ is coming and He wants His Bride to be ready. He is coming for the nations of the earth.

I am not going to get bogged down with assignments that don't belong to me. I belong to Jesus and God is preparing a Bride for the Son. And I am READY!!!

I am called to train, equip, and intercede. Most of all, I am called to BE in relationship with Christ as He is training, equipping, and interceding for His Church.

Lord, let your glory fall!

We stand with You.

Our Partnership With God

II Corinthians 1:19-21

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by me and Silas and Timothy, was not "Yes" and "No," but in him it has always been "Yes." For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God. Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

A Call to Anguish... David Wilkerson

There is a longng in this that is not expressed in words. Let it go deep. Let it cause pain. Let God birth true passion that comes from His love. Let God cause death of self that causes life of Christ to spring up through us. Let us go with God into the depths of His heart that birth true passion and love. He rescues from the one who steals, kills, and destroys. Jesus came that we might have life. Are we willing to go with Him into the true passion, the true suffering, the truest purest love. There is an invitation here that cannot be expressed in words. Hear the groans of the Spirit and enter in....

The Climb by Alexander, J; Mabe, J. ...... Sung by Miley Cyrus

2 Chronicles 31:21

In everything that he undertook in the service of God's temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.

Christ loved the church.

Ephesians 5:25-26 “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word."

Daddy Dave's Integrity Lessons

I just found this email in a binder that was getting sold in the garage sale. One of the customers brought it to me. It was printed off my Dad's email and it said,

"Dave, in pastor's sermon Sunday morning he quoted a statement that made me think of you. It went something like this:

Consistent faithfulness acted out results in integrity.
Integrity often results in influence.
And influence is a divine gift.

Dave, you have lived your life before those of us that work with you in a consistent faithful manner and have earned a high level of integrity. Your integrity has resulted in a great deal of influence as well."



I'm glad she found that. That was so nice and so true. I have had good role models in life to look up to and in whose tangible footsteps of integrity, in my own way, I can also follow.

Thanks Daddy Dave for the integrity lessons! ;-)

Love,
Your daughter.

.......Brilliant light shining from within!

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness,

that frightens us most.

We ask ourselves,

'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented, and famous?'

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.

There is nothing
enlightened about shrinking so that people won't feel insecure around you.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us;

it's in all of us.

And when we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear,

our presence automatically liberates others."

often credited to Nelson Mandela for parts of this quote that showed up in his 1994 inauguration speech, this quote was actually penned by Marianne Williamson in her book A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course In Miracles.

The Holocaust: How it really was.

"All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." -- Edmund Burke

Little Wonders--Rob Thomas

let it go,
let it roll right off your shoulder
don't you know
the hardest part is over
let it in,
let your clarity define you
in the end
we will only just remember how it feels

our lives are made
in these small hours
these little wonders,
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away,
but these small hours,
these small hours still remain

let it slide,
let your troubles fall behind you
let it shine
until you feel it all around you
and i don't mind
if it's me you need to turn to
we?ll get by,
it's the heart that really matters in the end

our lives are made
in these small hours
these little wonders,
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away,
but these small hours,
these small hours still remain

all of my regret
will wash away some how
but i can not forget
the way i feel right now

in these small hours
these little wonders
these twists & turns of fate
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away but these small hours
these small hours, still remain,
still remain
these little wonders
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away
but these small hours
these little wonders still remain

Theme Songs: Love is All Around

("Love is All Around" by Paul Williams) - Mary Tyler Moore Show Lyrics

Who can turn the world on with her smile?

Who can take a nothing day, and suddenly make it all seem worthwhile?

Well it's you girl, and you should know it.

With each glance and every little movement you show it.

Love is all around, no need to waste it.

You can have a town, why don't you take it.

You're gonna make it after all.

You're gonna make it after all.

How will you make it on your own?

This world is awfully big, girl this time you're all alone.

But it's time you started living.

It's time you let someone else do some giving.

Love is all around, no need to waste it.

You can have a town, why don't you take it.

You're gonna make it after all .

You're gonna make it after all.

Truth

Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers, pray for powers equal to your task. --Phillips

Top 20 for local culture:

Okay, so here is my top twenty list for local culture in Grand Rapids.
I am going to TRULY miss it when I am away!!!!

1. great local hangouts--I could give anyone the coffeehouse tour
2. the Grand River
3. the local parks (including our backyard!)
4. the local people (treasures and jewels, folk--they don't come better than this.)
5. East town.
6. East Grand Rapids and Rose's restaurant
7. the Ontario House and women!
8. the amazing fathers and mothers and families at the churches just down the street
9. my neighbors
10. the local restaurant culture
11. the farmer's market
12. my favorite hairstylist (who just moved back, thank God, I've been without her for the year!)
13. my family and friends for years
14. the underground
15. college town
16. book clubs
17. locally owned businesses
18. Lake Michigan (though techically this is a Michigan gem--not just Grand Rapids)
19. downtown
20. did I mention the restaurants here are amazing! (more amazing than anywhere else--though midtown in KC does have a pretty nice local restaurant culture.... but in LA I have found nothing like this!)
21. Heartside
22. the anointing for healing and training in this city is incredible!
23.

My top 10 just doubled to 20 and counting. Feel free to add your own! :-)

Put your hands to the plow!

Yesterday as I was praying I saw a picture of wings with feet on them.
Putting feet on my dreams. Yes, yes, yes.


It is time soon to get the move on! Blessings, blessings! My time in Michigan is almost done now!

God bless Michigan! God, thank you for the Ontario House! God bless these women! Bless Grand Rapids. I love this local culture.

God bless Los Angeles, Kansas City, and Myanmar. God bless this humble home. Thank you for the simple joys of being here. Yesterday I was reminded that this time is supposed to be fun! I actually didn't intend on staying this long! But praise God I am steeping in my local culture. I will surely miss it when I am away.

Earlier in the year friends of mine told me that while praying they saw pictures of my coming down the stairs and descending a staircase and then not being able to turn around and go back up. It was only meant for going down. Similarly another picture of putting my feet on the ground. But... I like this picture the best because it had angel wings with feet. And I get it. :-)

Time to move on from here. Oh Lord. You are so good. In your mercy You make a way.

Conversations with Love (Ruth Senter)

So, then, enter my presence--not to pay the mortgage but to savor My love. Come to me as though the slate is clear. It is. Come and enjoy My love. Leave your sense of indebtedness at the door.

As you come to Me released from the bondage of debt, hold your head high. Look Me in the eyes. Sit quietly, without lengthly explanations, without apologies, without promises to try harder or be more punctual with the payments. you do not have to hurry off to get back to work. you have nothing to pay. You are debt-free.

When it gets right down to it, My child, you can do nothing for Me; I've done it all for you. I do not need your service. My work will get done with or without you. I am before all things, and in Me all things hold together. Everything held together before you came on the scene, and everything will hold together when you leave the scene. You need not work so hard at control.

I also know how hard you work to make Me look good, how conscientious your efforts before the watching world. True, they do watch. Your reproduction of Me is important. But I am not tarnished because what you do may blur My image sometimes.

Yours is not the only picture others have of Me. I paint Myself in the sunsets, write Myself on the ocean floor, print My footsteps in the clouds, plant My name among the redwoods. I imprint Myself on people near and far. I am beyond your meager picture frame that houses My image. If you fail in your PR efforts, I am not without witness. Even the rocks cry out.

...Come spend time with Me, and others will notice. "Here is one who is loved. She has nothing to prove. See how relaxed, how unpretentious. No tooting horn, waving banners, proclaimed accomplishments. She's comfortable to be around. Love is written all over her face." People who don't need to prove anything are My best representatives.

You want to know how to motivate others to do love? It isn't by doing more love so you can be their model. It's by coming close to Me, letting My love soak into you like water saturating a sponge. Others will know when you are full. When their lives touch yours, love will seep out. Then it will be My love that motivates them, not your deeds.

Choose one thing: to come near.

Philippians 4:6-8

6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Above All Else

Jesus, my passion in life is to know You
May all other goals bow down to
This journey of loving You more

Jesus, You’ve showered Your goodness on me
Given Your gifts so freely
But there’s one thing I’m longing for

Hear my heart’s cry
And my prayer for this life--

Above all else
Above all else
Above all else
Give me Yourself

Savior, the more that I see Your beauty
The more that I glimpse Your glory
My heart is captured by You

Jesus, You are my greatest treasure
Nothing this world can offer
Could ever compare to You

So, hear my heart’s cry
And my prayer for this life

Above all else
Above all else
Above all else
Give me yourself.

~Vicki Beeching

Romans 5:7-8

7Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Palm Trees

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree.
They will grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God.
The will still bear fruit in old age.
They will stay fresh and green
Proclaiming, "The Lord is upright; He is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in Him."

Psalm 92:12-15

Healing for the Nations

Hope, deliverance, and peace...


I see a healing leaf falling from a tree of life, planted by the river--its waters never fade....

“And the LEAVES OF THE TREE WERE FOR THE HEALING

and RESTORATION OF THE NATIONS.”

Revelation 22:2b

Revelation 22

The River of Life

¹Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ²down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. ³No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. ⁴They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever. ⁶The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."

Jesus Is Coming

⁷"Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."

⁸I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. ⁹But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!"

¹⁰Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. ¹¹Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."

¹²"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. ¹³I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

¹⁴"Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. ¹⁵Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

¹⁶"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you^a]">[a] this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star."

¹⁷The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.

¹⁸I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. ¹⁹And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.

²⁰He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon."
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

²¹The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen.

Hope for the Nations

Jesus, hope of the nations.
Jesus, comfort for all who mourn.
You are the source of heaven's hope on earth.

Jesus, light in the darkness.
Jesus, truth in each circumstance.
You are the source of heaven's light on earth!

In history, You lived and died,
You broke the chains, You rose to life!

You are the hope, living in us!
You are the Rock, in whom we trust.
You are the light
shining for all the world to see.

You rose from the dead, conquering fear--
Our Prince of Peace, drawing us near.
Jesus our hope
Living for all who will receive--
Lord we believe!!

In Danger or Dangerous?

Risk that God respects is fueled by a passion for His purpose and a willingness to subjugate our lives to His mission. Prayer moves from "God, what is Your will for my life?" to "God, what is your will and how can I give my life to fulfill it?"

I want to reiterate the fact that the center of God’s will is not a safe place, but the most dangerous place in the world. God fears nothing and no one. God moves with intentionality and power. To live outside God’s will puts us in danger, but to live in His will makes us dangerous.
--Erwin McManus

"I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."1 Timothy 2:1-4

Deposits of Salt for the Nations of the Earth

B flat, G minor, E flat, F

You are the water and I am the sea
Come and fill me Lord.
As deep cries out to deep.
Come and fill me, Lord
As the waters cover the sea.

Empty out this earthen vessel
Vessel of honor, made for your glory
Vessel of honor
Holy, Holy
Filled with your glory

I wanna be deeper, Lord.
Purify me.
Remove anything that would get in the way from being totally filled with You only.
Fill me with the deepness of your presence
Saturate me
And fill my heart
As the waters cover the sea.

I see holy love
burning white and bringing healing
It is hope! I see a deposit of hope
I see white fire swirling around and it leaving a deposit of hope that looks like salt!
It is leaving behind a deposit of salt
which is hope for the nations.

God says, I am making a deposit in you
It is healing love
It is a white hot fire
And its leaving a pile of salt behind
For you to dance freely
Sprinkling hope to the nations.
And healing.

I am perfect in your sight.
I am perfect and righteous and holy and white
Perfect and righteous and holy and white.
There is healing...
There is perfect love
There is perfect love
There is freedom here...
You are smiling at me...
I can't mess up...
I am perfect in your sight
And whatever I do is honoring to you
You enjoy me perfectly
And you can't love me more than you do right now.

So I come into your chambers
And I dance at your feet, Lord.
You are smiling at me, Lord.

I come into your chambers
And you are smiling at me.
You love me perfectly, Lord.

No perfectionism in this place.
No room for condemnation or shame.
There is perfect freedom in this place
B/c perfect love casts out fear.
Love will bring the healing, Lord!
Love will bring the healing!

Love covers everything!!!
And you are smiling at me!!!!

You are holding me near.
Calling me dear.
Wiping my tears.
Casting off fear.

There is freedom!!!
You love me.
Perfectly.

i see a dance move,
drawing me near, holding me near
then releasing me
freeing me to dance in his freedom, his perfect liberty
in perfect confidence and freedom
b/c His love covers me!!

Hallelujah!

Release a new sound to the nations of the earth! Release a new sound into the earth!
Alleluia!!!!

(cannot hide my love!!!)

Salt for the nations of the earth.
I saw Love coming as white hot fire bringing hope and healing to the nations.
Leaving deposits of salt to be sprinkled on the nations of the earth.
The Lord is bringing His white hot love--swirling in to bring hope and healing to those who have been hurt or oppressed.
The white hot healing fire was coming and purifying and when it was done would leave behind a deposit of salt which was meant to be sprinkled on the nations of the earth.

It was hope for the nations.