That Baby is My Fount of Every Blessing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lE6JHxscSP0

This is the link to Paul Cardall's beautiful rendition of one of my very favourite hymns for the past several months. This version is completely instrumental and beautifully arranged and performed in my opinion, but it is the words that truly stir my soul. As Christmas quickly approaches, may that Baby Jesus, the True Saviour of the world be your Fount, the One who fills your heart with joy and love, and the Tuner of your very soul.

1. Come, Thou Fount of ev'ry blessing, tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
   Streams of mercy, never ceasing, Call for song of loudest praise.
   While the hope of endless glory fills my heart with joy and love,
   Teach me ever to adore Thee; may I still Thy goodness prove.

2. Here I raise my Ebenezer, ["Ebenezer" means "Thus far the LORD has helped us"] Hither by Thy help I've come; and I hope by Thy good pleasure, safely to arrive at home. Jesus sought me when a stranger, Wand'ring from the fold of God; He, to rescue me from danger, interposed His precious blood.

3. Oh, to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be; Let that grace now, like a fetter bind my wand'ring heart to Thee: Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it; [How deeply this line has struck my heart for some time. My sinful wandering and disregard for my Jesus is so often. Thanks be to Him alone for seeking me continually in purely undeserved and unconditional grace!] Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above.

4. Oh, that day when freed from sinning, I shall see Thy lovely face; clothed then in the blood-washed linen, How I'll sing Thy wondrous grace! Come, my Lord, no longer tarry; Take my ransom'd soul away; Send Thine angels soon to carry me to realms of endless day.

Lyrics courtesy of Lutheran Service Book #686

Sola gloria a El Dios Todopoderoso, El Padre, El Hijo, y El Espiritu Santo. Feliz Navidad. Come soon, Lord Jesus, my Joy, my Strength, my Prince of Peace, the Lover of my Soul, my Everything. 

The Door is Cracked Open

So a week ago I had no idea where our Lord would be sending me to serve during deaconess internship. Lima, Peru it is! What a wonderful weekend it was, with all the excitement, worship opportunities, friends and family visiting, and catching the next little glimpse of the journey with my Lord. He's cracked the door on this next season of life in Peru, and only He knows all that lies beyond.
The reality is starting to sink in, amid the excitement and hype, that I'm actually going to be living 3,000 miles+ away from Indiana, and that my time at Concordia is limited... only 3 more weeks! Weird...
How God has blessed me! With all the lessons (some tough... most... let's be real) He's taught me in the past 4 years, with all the life-altering friends and "soul sisters" (you know who you are), and all the opportunities to love folks with His love! I wouldn't trade these experiences and memories for anything, yet my heart feels ready for the next adventure.
I know that I am far from immune to fear and anxiety... wish that I was! But I am thankful not only because I know I am forgiven for when I do lack a trusting heart and outlook, but also because I am about to be thrust into a world of seriously relying on the provision of God through other people (fundraising!), humbly relearning how much material possessions don't really matter (packing!), and leaning completely on my God as I become the "outsider" in a foreign land and am integrated into the Peruvian congregation of hermanos y hermanas.
My prayer as of today is that Jesus would give my heart peace about the future because He's already there, that He would continue to bless the work being done here and in Lima in His name, and that He would keep my heart appropriately focused on my current mission field here among my hermanos y hermanas here in River Forest.
Love to anyone reading this, in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
You are so very deeply loved and don't you forget it! ;)

The Good Shepherd and the thief

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10

            Answer this question for me: What is abundance? What might be some examples of having something in abundance? Surplus? Overflow? Riches? Security? Purpose?

            You may not be feeling like you’re wallowing in the abundant life right now. Pain and suffering and loss are rampant in this world because of sin. In this section of Scripture Jesus uses the imagery of Himself as the Good Shepherd, His beloved as sheep, and Satan as a sheep thief. Satan’s desire is to latch onto suffering and loss and use them to drive us from our Good Shepherd. He is a thief, a wolf, and the father of lies and deception. When he tries to get into the pasture to attack us, the Lord’s sheep, he tells our hearts falsehoods such as, “God must be punishing me,” “God must not really love me or I wouldn’t be facing this,” and “He has forsaken me. I am truly alone in my suffering.” At times like these when the shock, fear, and pain of loss threaten to overwhelm us, the thief’s voice can all too easily seep into the fabric of our souls, into the inner workings of our hearts. Satan wants to choke off the abundant life Christ has given us.

            But God’s Word tells us that we are not left in the sheepfold alone. Satan’s voice, however alluring and with however much sense it may seem to make at times, comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. Jesus blatantly says throughout John 10 and especially in verse 10 that His entire purpose in leaving the glory of heaven, living among sinners like us, suffering, dying, and rising from the grave was motivated by love to give us life. And not just some ho-hum pseudo life, or a life without hope of healing or the future, but an abundant one! Jesus came that His sheep might be protected and saved from the attacks of the thief and that we would be given life, and peace, and healing in Him.

            Does this mean that the pain of loss will subside overnight? Unfortunately not. But we as resurrection people live this abundant life in the shadow of the cross and in light of the empty tomb. The abundant life is not dependent on human emotions; the truth of God’s promises for you does not dissipate on days in which you feel hopeless. Hope Himself broke through the lies of the thief who says, “There is no hope!” and restored us to life. In this veil of tears our Good Shepherd not only walks alongside us when we are too weak to carry on, but He carries us in His strong arms. You are loved. You are cherished. You are deeply known. The King of Love, your Shepherd is, and He has won for you life abundant. He is carrying you.

            Prayer: Great Good Shepherd, the thief tells me that there is no hope. His lies threaten to overwhelm my heart at times and my heart is broken. Yet I thank you that I have never fallen from your hands, for I have been graven upon them. Thank you for the abundance of life you have given to me by giving your own sacred life on the cross. Protect me from the trickery, lies, and deception of Satan’s voice. Remind me always that you are strong and that you have not forgotten me in this suffering. You are the Great Physician. Heal my broken heart and teach me ever to cling to your solid love and promises. Use this time of confusion and pain to point me to your passion, cross, and resurrection. You are my Hope, King of Love. Amen.

Lutheran Service Book 709 “The King of Love My Shepherd Is”

Not "Christmas-y" yet...

By the grace of God and His blessing of wonderfully supportive family and friends to help keep me sane and focused on what's truly important in life, I have survived my penultimate semester of college. As I sit here at my kitchen table in the boondocks of Indiana staring at a Christmas tree we still need to decorate and a snow-less water-bogged wood, with Christmas piano music playing softly in the background, I find it difficult to sum up all the ways that The Lord has challenged, grown, and healed me in the past months. I have been pushed nearly to what felt like a breaking point mentally and emotionally at various points. Yet, every time God has placed a challenge in my path or allowed me to feel a deep sense of heartache, He has never left me to face it alone; He has surrounded me with people who point me to His agape perfect love and the Truth of His Promises in His Word. Hm... John 1... The Word became flesh and dwelt among us... Interesting "Christmas-y" tie in that just kind of flew from my fingers...
These past few weeks I have been so intensely focused on my own academic world and the expectations associated with it that the Advent preparations have slipped by me. I do not feel very "Christmas-y" yet, and as much as I wish that I could flip some type of a switch and somehow transport my brain back to the child-like excitement and anticipation for Christmas, I know that Christmas as a holiday will come and go in a flash whether or not I am prepared for it. Isn't that just how life goes though? It seems to fly by even if we feel out of control or lost or unprepared.
In reflecting on my "not yet Christmas-y" feelings, I am realizing that while anticipation is exciting and can be quite fun, its not a single day of the year that we're waiting for. Advent isn't about waiting for December 25 only to feel a sense of loss on the 26th. Jesus' coming as the Saviour of the world is an every day celebration, or at least it ought to be, in the life of the Christian. Why can we celebrate that Jesus died and rose for us on Easter? Because first He came as a babe in a feed trough thirty years earlier! Why can we celebrate that we are God's beloved, forgiven, and redeemed children? Because God saw our deep need for salvation and in His mercy (which by the way, means love meeting a need) sent Christ Jesus into a dark and sinful world to be our Light.
So I don't really feel like it ought to be Christmas already... oh well! It's not about me at all anyway! Every day God gives me breath I can wake up in the head and heart knowledge that my loving God saw my greatest need as I wallowed in a lost estate without hope, yet He did not leave me to remain in despair. He sent Hope Himself to be the Saviour this dark world needed. In my baptism, I am Jesus' and He is mine. THAT is a solid Truth that is not reliant on my fickle feelings.
My prayer this day three days prior to Christmas:
Holy Babe of Bethlehem, I'm easily overwhelmed by the seeming impossibility of facing an unknown future. Lord Jesus, you came as my only Saviour from sin and death and entered my broken realm. You are Truth, Light, and Hope Himself and are already in my future. Forgive my lack of trust in your Providence, for you met my greatest need, so why do I so quickly fail to trust you with all other needs of my heart? You came to forgive and to heal. My heart bursts with joy when I stop and ponder the great mysteries of your Love, your birth, your death, and your resurrection. Take all my worries from me, Lord Christ; I lay them at your holey feet. Fill my heart with a peace, oh Prince of Peace, that this world will never understand. Paz, Pax, Peace, Pace, Rauhaa... Jesus you are Lord. You are Truth. You are my Way, my only Hope, and I know I am yours forever. Amen.
Feliz Navidad. Merry Christmas. Felix Noelle. Hyvaa Jouluaa.
You are loved.

Mourning Losses with Hope

So it seems like another lifetime that I was studying and living abroad in the UK. In relation to eternity its been no time at all, but God has been working mightily and growing me like crazy in the past months. In England I learned more about loving genuinely, and even now as I'm trudging my way through mountains of musty library books, notes scribbled on "American-sized paper" as well as English, essays, Spanish tarea, and applications, He is molding and teaching me. Mourning a loss, I am learning, does not always have to be connected to a death, though it certainly can be. Transitions in life, changes of location, dissappointments, and learning that people change all shape us (hopefully for good), but they can often cause us to mourn some type of loss. When we live in a particular place, we become accustomed to that place as well as the people with whom we are surrounded. Moving tears that away from us. Though this may sound dramatic because keeping in touch is possible, to an extent it still hurts because things change. More to come... got to go.