Bless the Lord, O My Soul
Of David.
103:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
6 The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his acts to the people of Israel.
8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13 As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
14 For he knows our frame; [1]
he remembers that we are dust.
15 As for man, his days are like grass;
he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.
17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
and his righteousness to children's children,
18 to those who keep his covenant
and remember to do his commandments.
19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all.
20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his ministers, who do his will!
22 Bless the Lord, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
1/24/08
1/16/08
The Andy's
Living in Nashville is a double-edged sword. There are a lot of really good concerts here, but since so many artists live here, they usually let there friends play a lot before the show. That can be good. Sometimes it isn't.
Last summer I went with some friends to see Derek Webb and Sandra McCracken. I was excited until Derek Webb informed the audience Andrew Osenga would be opening the show. I didn't want to watch Andrew Osenga. I was ignorant and wrong. He played a few songs, but won me over with 'Early in the Morning.'
So a few months later I went to see Andrew Osenga play in Franklin and he was playing with Andrew Peterson. Andrew Peterson blew me away.
In December I went to hear Andrew Peterson and was introduced to Andy Gullahorn. He was funny enough to just tell jokes for his set, but his humor was instead followed up by a beautiful song about marriage. He has an incredible gift of setting the listener up with humor and then knocking them over with depth.
I now own every album these three have made. I didn't know who they were in May. Now they dominate my cd player.
I found this on Andrew Osenga's website today. It is a self-recorded commercial for Andy Gullahorn's new record, 'Reinventing the Wheel.' It is brilliant. I strongly recommend it as well as everything else these three have produced. I think you will enjoy the commercial. I know you will love their music.
Last summer I went with some friends to see Derek Webb and Sandra McCracken. I was excited until Derek Webb informed the audience Andrew Osenga would be opening the show. I didn't want to watch Andrew Osenga. I was ignorant and wrong. He played a few songs, but won me over with 'Early in the Morning.'
So a few months later I went to see Andrew Osenga play in Franklin and he was playing with Andrew Peterson. Andrew Peterson blew me away.
In December I went to hear Andrew Peterson and was introduced to Andy Gullahorn. He was funny enough to just tell jokes for his set, but his humor was instead followed up by a beautiful song about marriage. He has an incredible gift of setting the listener up with humor and then knocking them over with depth.
I now own every album these three have made. I didn't know who they were in May. Now they dominate my cd player.
I found this on Andrew Osenga's website today. It is a self-recorded commercial for Andy Gullahorn's new record, 'Reinventing the Wheel.' It is brilliant. I strongly recommend it as well as everything else these three have produced. I think you will enjoy the commercial. I know you will love their music.
1/12/08
The Whisper
1 Kings 19:11-13
The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
In this passage, Elijah is coming off one of the most impressive Yahweh vs idol battles of the bible. He was the only prophet of God and he had just gone up against 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah. Yahweh won the battle by sending fire that consumed Elijah's sacrifice. The 850 prophets were killed and Elijah's number one nemesis Jezebel threatened the life of Elijah. Elijah's courage was gone and after asking God to just kill him, he found himself alone in a cave. He was alone, exhausted, and scared. His fear, like ours, paralyzed him and made him self-centered. His self-centeredness only fueled the fear and the cycle continued.
Being the father of a two-year old has provided me with more than a few opportunities to speak into the life of a self-centered, exhausted, and fearful child. When Joshua is scared he doesn't need to see how strong I am. He needs to know I'm calm. More often than not, my response to Joshua's fear is a whisper that tells him daddy is here and he isn't scared.
Elijah saw the fire, felt the earthquake, and heard the wind - all signs of God's power and might. But his comfort came when he heard the sovereign whisper.
I am thankful to hear the comforting whisper tonight. I'm thankful to know my Father is on his throne and in control. There is nothing to fear, because the perfect daddy whispers comfort in the midst of the most terrifying circumstances.
The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
In this passage, Elijah is coming off one of the most impressive Yahweh vs idol battles of the bible. He was the only prophet of God and he had just gone up against 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah. Yahweh won the battle by sending fire that consumed Elijah's sacrifice. The 850 prophets were killed and Elijah's number one nemesis Jezebel threatened the life of Elijah. Elijah's courage was gone and after asking God to just kill him, he found himself alone in a cave. He was alone, exhausted, and scared. His fear, like ours, paralyzed him and made him self-centered. His self-centeredness only fueled the fear and the cycle continued.
Being the father of a two-year old has provided me with more than a few opportunities to speak into the life of a self-centered, exhausted, and fearful child. When Joshua is scared he doesn't need to see how strong I am. He needs to know I'm calm. More often than not, my response to Joshua's fear is a whisper that tells him daddy is here and he isn't scared.
Elijah saw the fire, felt the earthquake, and heard the wind - all signs of God's power and might. But his comfort came when he heard the sovereign whisper.
I am thankful to hear the comforting whisper tonight. I'm thankful to know my Father is on his throne and in control. There is nothing to fear, because the perfect daddy whispers comfort in the midst of the most terrifying circumstances.
1/5/08
Why Mommy and Daddy Are Democrats...Has It Really Come to This?
I ran across two books yesterday. One is called, "Why Mommy is a Democrat." The other is "Why Daddy is a Democrat." I don't even know where to start on this. I'll let you look at some of the pictures. Click on the pictures to see the captions.
I did a little research and discovered the Republicans are quickly responding by creating their own version. So soon, our angry and bitter partisanship can be handed down to our children in dumbed down, under-thought, delightfully illustrated reading material. Forget red and blue states. Let's have red and blue seating charts in the lunch room. We can get rid of the old 1-2 system for separating teams and just put the socially conscious on one side and the tax cutters on the other. Donkey vs Elephant dodgeball!
The books (for both sides) unfortunately provide an accurate snapshot of our current political climate. The majority of Americans digest sound-bytes gleaned from an informant of choice. Someone will win in November. They will have strengths and weaknesses. They will do some good and some not-so-good. God will sovereignly rule over it all.
I'm thankful to live in America. I love our system of government. It is flawed, but I believe it provides one of the best systems for governing in a fallen world. That being said, presidential elections make me thankful to have a King.
This is a great song that helps keep things in perspective. I'll hold commentary. I think the song speaks for itself.
Savior on Capitol Hill by Derek Webb
I did a little research and discovered the Republicans are quickly responding by creating their own version. So soon, our angry and bitter partisanship can be handed down to our children in dumbed down, under-thought, delightfully illustrated reading material. Forget red and blue states. Let's have red and blue seating charts in the lunch room. We can get rid of the old 1-2 system for separating teams and just put the socially conscious on one side and the tax cutters on the other. Donkey vs Elephant dodgeball!
The books (for both sides) unfortunately provide an accurate snapshot of our current political climate. The majority of Americans digest sound-bytes gleaned from an informant of choice. Someone will win in November. They will have strengths and weaknesses. They will do some good and some not-so-good. God will sovereignly rule over it all.
I'm thankful to live in America. I love our system of government. It is flawed, but I believe it provides one of the best systems for governing in a fallen world. That being said, presidential elections make me thankful to have a King.
This is a great song that helps keep things in perspective. I'll hold commentary. I think the song speaks for itself.
Savior on Capitol Hill by Derek Webb
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