My Everything

I am finally starting to get better. Thanks for the prayers everyone. I spent the long weekend in bed all day for the whole weekend. It was not fun. But as I said in the last post, it did give me a chance to do some thinking and praying. So definitely a bittersweet weekend! I hope everyone had a great weekend, and for those of you who worked on Monday, sorry. =[ Well, at work I have about 45 to an hour of time when I can do whatever. I work with toddlers and during that time they are napping. So today I spent that time reading through Ephesians, one of my favorite books! I am gonna share a couple of random verses from there. I was also reminded of a song, which I will include in this post. Enjoy from Ephesians 1:7-8, 2:4-6, 2:12-13, 5:18, and 6:13 in that order. Oh, and the song is In Christ Alone (My Hope is Found) by Newsboys.

“Christ sacrificed his life’s blood to set us free, which means that our sins are now forgiven…”

“…We were dead because of our sins, but God loved us so much that he made us alive with Christ, and God’s wonderful kindness is what saves you. God raised us from death to life with Christ Jesus, and he has given us a place beside Christ in heaven.”

“…You were living in this world without hope and without God, and you were far from God. But Christ offered his life’s blood as a sacrifice and brought you near God.”

“…let the Spirit fill your life.”

“…And when the battle is over, you will still be standing firm.”

In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save'
Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Brought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand'
Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand

Ok, sorry about that overload of words, this next part will be short. I don’t wanna say much, I just want to leave you doing some thinking. These verses stood out to me today for an array of reasons. Some got me thinking about and analyzing the way I think and act, others are encouraging with some of the things I am going through. And some are just powerful. The song has been one of my favorites since coming to Northwestern. This was the first place I ever heard the song and now I play it all the time. It’s a powerful song that I encourage everyone to listen to sometime, if the lyrics aren’t enough to grab you, the music sure will.

Christ paid the ultimate sacrifice, and for what? A guilty sinner like me? Yet I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He would do it for me again in a heartbeat. That is how much I mean to Him. It doesn’t get much more encouraging than that. Christ is the ultimate, the only, source of hope around. A real, true, genuine hope is ONLY found in Him and Him alone. In everything that I say and do I should be imitating and reflecting His love, majesty, power, and greatness. I need to let the Lord take care of my battles for me, instead of letting pride take over and trying to fight my battles for myself. Then and only then will I be able to survive. Then and only then will I finish the battle standing firm, beside my King of Kings.

There is nothing to say about the song. I will leave that one hanging. The first time I heard it I could not stop crying. I hope that you find meaning, hope, and truth within the lyrics and music of that song. ((so maybe it wasn't short, but I hope you found something to take away from this))

I pray Father that you may speak through me. Let your light shine through me in all I say and do. Use me to reach others and bring them bowing before your throne. Thank you for giving the ultimate sacrifice of your Son, just so I could live. Thank you for finding me worthy of life, worthy of being called your daughter, worthy of eternal life with You. I praise you Father. I am not worthy to be called your child, everyday is a process. Everyday I fall more and more in love with you. Help me to never lose this feeling God. I love you!