worship

Remembered and Redeemed

When I look at the heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?
Psalm 8:3-4

When I think of the righteous and holy King, who am I that He should think of me? Who am I that I should be redeemed by His blood? I am a jar of clay, a creation from dust to dust, and in the end, an unworthy servant. That He should set His love on me speaks nothing of my worthiness and everything of His mercy. Continue Reading

Waiting in His Path

In the path of Your judgments,
O Lord, we wait for You;
Your name and remembrance
are the desire of our soul.
My soul yearns for You in the night;
my spirit within me earnestly seeks You.
For when Your judgments are in the earth,
the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
Isaiah 26:8-9

The path of the Lord is level and true. His way is full of light and peace. He is a steady and strong rock for those who tread the narrow road; He is eternal life for those who walk in the everlasting way. My soul know that His thoughts are just, and His ways are good. Continue Reading

When the Magnolia Blooms (For Those Who Wait)

Spring is a time of new life. The air is ornamented with bird songs, sweetened by the fragrance of trees blooming, and kissed with hints of warm breezes chasing away the deadness of winter.  All nature seems ready to explode with a whirling dance and a joyful noise announcing life abundant.

The subtle yet surprisingly swift changes outside echo the events of life as summer approaches. Spring means anticipation and change, tears and laughter mixed as endings and beginnings collide.

Oberlin is home to several tall, graceful magnolia trees, and their blooms always came just in time to usher the campus into a season of exams and papers, juries and competitions and performances. Seeing those large pink flowers assured me that the battle with cold and snow was past and that the perseverance of many months of hard work was about to reach its conclusion. Year after year, those magnolias told me I could breathe a little easier, while at the same time making my heart beat a little faster as I dreamed of the possibilities on the horizon. Continue Reading

Set Free

Hallelujah! I have found Him
Whom my soul so long has craved!
Jesus satisfies my longings;
Through His blood I now am saved.1

Satisfied.

What a beautiful and perfect covenant it is that satisfies the infinite righteousness and eternal love of the Lord of Hosts yet is mindful of me, to satisfy the searching of my soul. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6).

“The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price” (Revelation 22:17). How glorious that we who are thirsty and desiring of the water of life may still take it freely. How cool and sweet and pure it is! It is beyond price and obtained without payment. In great mercy and grace the Lord has passed through my Samaria and has spoken such curious and good news – that I need not draw water from earth again. He has met me at my broken cistern and shepherded me to a fountain that never runs dry. And there I have found the Scripture to be true, “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation” (Isaiah 12:3). Continue Reading

Into Darkness Shines Everlasting Light

Among my favorite things about the Christmas season are the lights – hung on trees, fastened on light posts, strung on banisters and rooftops and storefronts. There is a quiet elegance to tiny bulbs illuminating chilly evenings and grey, winter landscapes. Anticipation fills the stillness, and as I drive home a gentle comfort whispers that perhaps the darkness is not quite so deep as usual tonight.

Even such small lights can bring hope. But the joy they proclaim comes and goes so quickly – soon Christmas will be over, we will grow tired of the decorations, and the lights will be put back in boxes where they will dance themselves into preposterous knots and inconceivable tangles over the next eleven months. Continue Reading

A Well-Tuned Heart (About)

Jesus is sweeter than life. There is nothing and no one that is His equal. He is freedom, peace, truth, and the longing of our souls, and I’m learning that nothing really seems to matter compared to knowing Him. As Paul said, “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Phil. 3:7-8a).

When we place our faith in Jesus, all our sin is washed away, our debt having been nailed to His cross and paid in full. The Lord in His grace and love promises that we are a new creation, reconciled at last to Him. He takes away our heart of stone and replaces it with a heart of flesh, one that is free to beat in sync with His, one that is transformed “to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13). A miracle has taken place. Continue Reading