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Beyond a devotional site, this is a place to journal and to study Scripture. There are treasures buried here!

God-Hungry = "Relationship-Starved"

One of my favorite quotes on friendship came from a book by Dan Allender, called "The Healing Path." He told the story of a friendship gone awry, due to misunderstanding. One Sunday after church, Allender made an attempt to reconcile with this friend, to no avail. He wrote, "I watched a friendship drive away."

This morning, a very dear friend literally drove away, down the Alaska-Canada highway, moving to the Lower 48. Thankfully, it's not the end of the friendship, but it certainly is the end of our "coffee" times at B & N.

It saddens me, yet strangely comforts me, that friendship does come and go with the seasons of life. The verse on the card I gave to my friend said this: "Let the seasons change as they may, but hold fast to your true friends."

Here is my "good-bye" note:

Dear Sam, (Samantha)
I miss you already — before you have even left AK. I know that the seasons change, and life goes on, but I pray that we will be "forever friends" who keep in touch, (at least on a semi-regular basis!) the kind of friends who pick right back up where we left off in the conversation.
So many things remind me to think of you — and pray for you — from Michaels, to coffee, to church, to military, to "Martha" :-) As Brian said, "There is no other person like Sam: she's one of a kind!"
Your friendship has been and always will be a treasured gift!

P.S. For an excellent post on friendship, click on the title above.

Fitting into Culture (Click this title)

"Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you" (Romans 12:2 Message Bible)

This is painful to ponder. How often our actions, our habits, and our thoughts are accustomed to doing what everybody else does, going with the flow. If other people we know see a certain movie or tv show, read a type of literature, listen to some genre of music -- why shouldn't we check it out? We might be missing out on something! We might not be considered "cool" or whatever the "now" terminology might be.

The article referenced above (linked to the title) includes a section for prayer and contemplation. The website is called "Journals of the Heart" and the article is called "A Time for New Choices." Is it just coincidence that I came across this resource at the same time as I began a new venture into one of the popular social networking sites, Facebook? Did I really hear a whisper from God, asking why don't you have more interest in "Heartbook" than "Facebook"?

This article is so convicting! Read it now, and answer the questions at the bottom, just as I am doing. Then, pray with me, the words that Brenda wrote: "Help me not to look at others and choose what is profitable or unprofitable for me based on what they have liberty to do. I let go and make more room for You in My life and heart."

Lord, Captivate My Heart...

Caroling, Caroling Now We Go!

Tonight, we went Christmas caroling around the neighborhood behind the church. You would think that a simple concept like walking around the area homes, singing carols, would be --well, simple! No less than four staff meetings, three volunteer children's workers, and two-full time pastors were involved in bringing about the fruition of one person's romantic holiday idea.

It was, quite simply, a smashing success. Everybody pitched in to help, with plenty of adults to supervise the children. There were candy canes to give out, along with invitations to our Christmas musical presentation, next Sunday night, and hot cocoa and cookies for all to enjoy after the caroling. We had printed lyric sheets for all the words. (Who can remember every verse, for all the carols, even the most popular ones?) And we had flashlights, to read the words, and maps to direct the teams.

The response to our musical overture was varied, some listened inside closed doors, and never responded at all, but most came to the door. One little old lady cried, and another one tried to give us money. Most were pleasantly receptive; we only sang one or two verses, and then resounded with "Merry Christmas" at each home.

Rosy-cheeked cherubs, all tired out from their winter walk, devoured their cookies and candy canes, and sipped hot chocolate after the caroling was over. It was worth all the effort.

My Song in the Night

MY SONG IN THE NIGHT
Southern Folk Hymn
arr. Paul J. Christiansen

O Jesus my Savior, my song in the night,
Come to us with Thy tender love,
my soul’s delight.
Unto Thee, O Lord, in affliction I call,
My comfort by day, and my song in the night.

O why should I wander, an alien from Thee,
Or cry in the desert Thy face to see?
My comfort and joy, my soul’s delight,
O Jesus my Savior, my song in the night.

My song in the night, my song in the night,
in the night, in the night, in the night.

O Jesus my Savior, my song in the night.
Come to us with Thy tender love,
my soul’s delight.
My comfort and joy, my soul’s delight,
O Jesus my Savior, my song in the night.

My song my song in the night,
in the night, my song
My comfort and joy, my soul’s delight.
O Jesus my savior, my song in the night,
in the night. My song in the night.