Psalm of Praise

O Lord, I am so thankful
For all that You have done;
It’s wonderful that serving You
Can also be such fun!

You wire us uniquely for
A multitude of tasks
And yet You even give new skills
If we will simply ask

I love this lively interplay
Between Potter and clay
Just when we think we’ve got You pegged,
You show up in new ways.

Your faithfulness is evident
We all know You’ll be true
From stories in Your Holy Word
And what You’ll do real soon

Your majesty is infinite
Your mercy has no end
Where our dreams reach their limit
Is where Your power begins.

Oh, praise the Lord forever!
May His name be lifted High!
Let all His saints exalt the Lord;
We praise You, Adonai!

Yes, It's Been a While

So I guess it serves me right for writing what I did in my previous post. I got somewhat out of rhythm with the undertaking of some additional, temporary stuff. I'll do my best to get back into rhythm soon. Thanks for your prayers and patience.

[Insert Title Here]

So when starting this discipline, I found myself having some difficulty at times actually having content flow forth, and it was beginning to feel mechanical. However, by the grace of God, I soon realized that pressing through that initial difficulty would help to form the habit and help it feel more natural.

If you're trying to add a newer, healthier pattern to your life and are starting to experience some difficulty, it is my hope that this will help you to know that it's a pretty common occurrence, and that you can press through. I still have my struggles with this as a discipline, but it has gotten easier and I'm confident will continue to as I keep at it.

Sometimes, Lord, writing for You
Feels like putting pen to paper
For the sake of
Putting pen to paper

I’m feeling tired
My mind isn’t clear
I have no pressing issues
I don’t have overwhelming joys

It seems like I’m just writing
To fulfill a duty
To cross something off my spiritual to-do list
To make sure I’m staying on Your good side

But that’s all silly
And doesn’t even make sense
You don’t have any ‘sides’
And lists/duties turn you into a taskmaster

No, the purpose behind all of this is
To press through the less enthralling times
To develop a habit
To establish a pattern

This is where victories are won
This is where my flesh is subdued
This is where a foundation is laid
This is where a choice meets its results

I am trusting that developing this discipline
Will yield much greater fruit than I can see while I write this
I don’t have any grand ending in mind, so...

Make Me to Shine

Yesterday was Day 1 of the Global Leadership Summit for 2011. This event, as always, was very incredible and had many inspiring speakers who put forward a lot of wonderful material for us conference-goers to chew on, to marinate in, to ingest and digest. I heard a lot of things that made me want to "do something" for God, so this is my attempt to both recap what I heard and declare my intention to make this inspiration last with God's help.

Lord, make me to shine Your light
So that people would see my good deeds
And praise our Father in heaven.

You are good and gracious God
Who has redeemed us from the grave
Who promises to come to our aid
Who will give us the power to do new things
If we will seek Your will
And trust in Your power
And do something.

Lord, give me the strength
Provide me the willpower
To think of the problems
To name the problems
To address the problems
To resolve the problems
That will hinder growth in areas of my life
And in places where You have called me to lead.

Lord, provide me with the insight
To see where I need to give three inches more
Help me to see where I can take action
Give me the courage to do something
Even when I can't see the outcome
Particularly when I feel I've tried everything
Especially when it feels foolish and trivial
Because You have called us to live for You
And nothing You would have us do is trivial.

Help me to stop cutting myself short
And trying to do what's expected
Help me to know that failure is okay
That failure is a learning tool
That failure is a part of making an effort
That failure comes with success
That failure in serving You can never truly be failure.

O God, give me the courage to get down in the trenches
And dig some ditches
In order to make a path
And prepare the way
For Your power to sweep through this valley
In a way I won't see coming.
Help me to keep that shovel handy
And to continue digging away
So that when Your favor comes
It will pool up and stick around
So that it can be drunk and enjoyed
By those who have been dying to receive it.

Lord, make me to shine like a star.
Not in the earthly sense
And not in the Hollywood sense
But in the celestial sense
The light from some stars still reaches us
Even though they have long since died out.
I want it to be this way with me
So that when my time on earth is done
The light I shone will still be visible
Because it's Your light that I want to shine
It is Your light in me that I desire to make so brilliant
Lord, let it emanate from me
Cause it to illuminate those around me
Make it to permeate every fiber of my being
So that I can be a light for You
In a world that desperately needs it.

Lord, this challenge seems appropriate,
But as I get into it, I'm sure I will begin to feel dangerously over-challenged.
Lend me your discernment on how to proceed
Provide me with wisdom on the choices that need to be made
Help me to know exactly what it is You want me to do
Because, through You, it'll really be something.

Morning Psalm

So it's early, and I'm not entirely awake yet, but it's still a good time to praise the Lord and give him our intentions for the day. As for me, I intend to get some caffeine...

“In the morning
When I rise
Give me Jesus.”

Lord, even though it’s early
Even though I’m not entirely awake
You’re still all I want
You’re still all I need
Despite my temptations
Despite my frustrations
Despite my protestations
You are the giver of life
And I want to live my life
With You
For You
Through You
In You
To You

Lord, I declare this day to be
Your day.
(Of course, it already was,
So I suppose I’m declaring my agreement.)
I state my intention
And declare my purpose
To make You the main focus of my day
To live according to Your will
To act as guided by Your Holy Spirit.
(Of course, I want and need to do this every day,
So I suppose I need Your help to do that, too;
For now, help me to do this today.)

Lord, I may not be fully awake,
But I know that I am fully Yours;
Help me to live today
Fully devoted to You.

Psalm of Thanksgiving

I'm feeling thankful this morning.

I have a two-year-old son (our first), and it's been a joy to watch him develop. He is a particularly verbal boy, and so many things he says can make us laugh. However, the sweet things he says are even more enjoyable, and this morning, as I was leaving for church, he said, "I love you, Daddy."

Words can't express how much joy that brings to my heart. It's such a wonderful thing! Here's a psalm of thanksgiving I wrote a few weeks ago that seems fitting for the occasion.

Lord, I am so thankful for the gifts you’ve given me.
I appreciate all of the ways you’ve blessed my life.

I’m thankful for the gift of my son
Who is learning to be so polite
Who is already excited about the things of You
Who wants to read stories from the Bible
Who has a spirit of generosity
Who loves being with me and doing things with me

I’m grateful for the blessing that is my wife
The way You assured me we’d get married
The way she has been an awesome life-partner
The way You’ve guided us toward a stronger relationship
The way we’ve been able to push through the tough times
The way we’ve enjoyed the wonderful times together
The way You help us grow closer to each other
As we grow closer to You

I appreciate so much the skills You have blessed me with
That I can use them to bless Your church
That I am able to support my fellow staff
That I can solve problems for friends and family
That I love using them to serve You
Lord, keep me from a prideful heart
Help me to always see that these talents come from You alone

Lord, You have blessed me so
Your provision, Your extravagance is mind-blowing
I praise You for your lovingkindness
I exalt You for Your faithfulness
You alone, oh Lord, are worthy to be praised
I direct my exaltations to no one else but You.

AAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!

This day had a few frustrations for me. The following psalm was written after a similar day, and is a good reminder of the work I am still trying to do. Hopefully, reading it can give help you turn your frustrations over to Him and allow him to calm you down and refocus your energy; I know it was a good reminder for me!

Lord, I need Your help to calm me down;
This anger is overwhelming me!

All of these minor frustrations
Seem so, well, minor
That is, until they start to build on one another
Feed off one another
Cascade over one another
Spread through one another

You tell us not to sin in our anger
Showing that anger in and of itself isn’t bad
But that warning is extremely prescient
As my thoughts have not remained pure amidst my frustration

And yet, I know that You can deliver me
That You can help me have a pure anger when needed
But, more importantly, I need to learn to be less frustrated
I have to readjust my threshold for turning to You

Retrain my ways, oh Lord
Make a clear pathway for the synapses in my brain
Help the neurochemicals to pass easily in a new direction
And let me develop a new habit of turning to You when the smallest frustration hits

Oh Lord, Your ways are good
Your ways are just
Your ways are true
Your ways are perfect
Help me to conform my ways
So that I may be more like You.

Better than Advertised

So I came up with this while contemplating some of the various things that get modified for mass marketing and consumption, and wondered...well, you'll see.

I watch a movie
That’s adapted from a book I’ve read
And think to myself,
“They left out the best parts!”

I listen to the radio
And hear a song from an album I own
And think to myself,
“This version loses the original impact of the song!”

I hear people talk about God
The same God I’ve read about in the Bible
And think to myself,
“How did they get this image of Him?”

Lord, how do we prevent this?
How can we help to present You more accurately?
Help us, oh God, to be true to Your Word
When we talk about You to others.

I suppose it comes down to a single concept;
A simple but powerful question comes to mind
Are we,
As a nation,
As a continent,
As a people;
Are we willing to go beyond what we hear about You from others
And go straight to the Source?

Will we read Your Word
Will we meditate on it day and night
Will we talk about it with our neighbor
When we get up in the morning and when we turn in for the evening?

Actually, the first question
Naturally leads to a second question:
Will we,
As believers,
As followers,
As Christians,
Will we go beyond the written Word
And have a life that speaks Your name?

Lord, these questions are dangerous
These queries will not permit us to stay in the safe little boxes
We’ve put ourselves in
And we’ve tried to put You in
But You will not be contained
You will not stay in one spot
And so we need You to open our eyes
Open our ears
Open our hearts
And open (or close) our mouths.
Help us to experience the real You
And know it’s You with every fiber of our being

Lord, this is the kind of thing that will change our lives
But that’s the point.
Let us embrace it with all that we are,
‘Cause it’s far better than we’ve been told.

Desire Psalm

Before I post the psalm, let me explain how it came about...

I recently attended a class on spiritual formation, where one of the topics discussed was the concept of “disordered desires.” The idea behind this is that the sins to which we often attach ourselves are the result of trying to meet a good, healthy desire through means that are contrary to the will of God. I had learned about this before, but was previously unsuccessful at identifying one for myself. This time, however, the scales were lifted and I immediately saw that: 1) my desire was to be desired, and 2) that experiences in my formative years made me feel that my mistakes made me undesirable.

This knowledge was revolutionary in itself, but a worldview this deeply engrained was going to take further unpacking. God patiently showed me that to Him, my mistakes made me more desirable because He longed for the barrier to be removed and for us to be reunited. I was the sheep that had wandered off!

Even in the midst of exploring this new information, though, I was feeling undesirable for taking so long to come to this realization (I said it runs deep). This time, God had to firmly tell me to “Stop it!” I needed to embrace his view of me and get rid of the one that the world had given me. One of the assignments for this class was to write a psalm, and doing so has helped to strengthen this newfound conception of myself.

Okay, now here's the psalm:

O Lord, I come before You;
I enter into your presence
Feeling undesirable,
Considering myself as one to be shunned.
Why, O Lord, have I strayed from Your path?
Why did I depart from Your ways?
At times I ignored Your urgent warnings,
In other instances I leapt before looking.
Yet the circumstances aren’t what matters,
My mistakes are what is the matter;
You cannot want me in Your presence;
I don’t deserve to be in Your sight.

And yet, somehow you tell me,
For some reason, you say
These things make me more desirable to You;
Like a small child with a skinned knee, You long to comfort me and make it better.
My departure causes You to enter into hot pursuit
Chasing after me with unyielding determination
This is why You are everywhere
So that when I turn back, You’re ready with open arms

But this still seems so unnatural
So contrary to Your nature
For You despise sin;
Should I not then be despised?
But then I remember the sacrifice of Your Son,
The blood that Jesus shed on the cross for me and for many
So that you would not see a sinner,
But instead would see one of your children hurting and want to remove the pain.
I have to remember,
I must continually remind myself that
Your ways are not my ways,
Your thoughts are not my thoughts,
Your conclusions are not my conclusions,
Your big picture is not my big picture.

And so, I will reject this categorization that has plagued me for so long;
I will refuse to believe something about myself that You tell me is untrue.
I will choose to put on this new identity;
I will embrace what has been true about me all along.
I remove myself from the category of “undesirable”
And put myself in the place designated “wanted”, “longed for”, “sought after”.

O, praise the Lord for His never-ending love!
Wonder at his unquenchable desire!
Let His saints rejoice in their desirability,
Let the sinners know God longs after them as well;
For He wants all His people to be His forever,
And all of humanity is still firmly in His sights.
Praise the Lord, for his extreme desire
Worship Him for the extraordinary step He took to win us back
Exalt Him, for He is most worthy to be desired
Stand in awe, for He desires…us.

So What's This About, Anyway?

Phew! I'm so glad you asked...

So this came about because of an assignment for a class on Prayer; the assignment was to write our own Psalm as a prayer exercise (you can read it in this post). Well, God had been showing me some pretty heavy stuff, and writing the psalm just seemed like a good way to encapsulate everything God had been showing me.

Well, through a series of circumstances, I ended up sharing it at church. I am (as of this writing) still hearing from people about how much they appreciated me sharing it, and have given out at least a dozen copies. I met someone this past weekend who asked me to email them a copy, and in their reply they told me that my psalm is something they can turn to help them remember how much God loves them.

When I sat down to write that psalm, I had no idea that it would have that kind of impact. It has been and continues to be overwhelming. I feel so grateful that I'm not alone in these feelings, but to have my words end up holding such power...I don't know what to do. Except...

So as part of this class, we were to pick a prayer exercise to engage in for three weeks. Well, I chose to continue to write psalms, or sacred poetry, or whatever is the best term for it. My classmates were very supportive of the poems I posted, which often felt very rough to me and not terribly impressive (but then again, I didn't think much of the first psalm, either).

I have been feeling this simmering urge to write, but it was never at the forefront of my plans or dreams. However, the urgings of several respondents to what I shared at church have made me reconsider. It is always a titillating thought that people might want to read what you've written, but this experience is showing me that there might be people out there who need to read what I'm writing.

I know that last statement sounds extremely self-important, and that I'm including it as a reason for starting this blog doesn't exactly help my argument against it. Nonetheless, I don't say it because that's my opinion, but merely because of the reaction to what I've already shared. It's somewhat frightening to think about and adds all kinds of pressure, so I think I'll just focus on God and writing to and for Him and let others react as they may.

My hope is to post about three times a week. I don't know what the schedule will be yet as I'm still new to this, but I hope to find a rhythm soon. I'll post a schedule once I've established one. For now, I've got a few psalms already composed that I'll put up over the next few days.

That's all for now; thanks for reading!

Mic check 1, 2, 3

Is this thing on?