faster

my heart beats faster
my speech gets faster
my heart is full
overwhelmed
with the beauty
the complex simplicity of
the subject of the worship of our God

worshiping in spirit and in truth
holy, holy, holy is the lamb, who sits on the throne
trust and obedience
love and obedience
[love with all our hearts, souls and minds and strength]
praise
delight
surrender
sacrifice
deny self
new life
hope

worship is more than music
music is just ONE way that we come to worship. praise softens our hearts, making us open
I believe God speaks through music but is not the only way.
{I kinda have a crush on music…but it’s not the end all}
worship in community, with fellow believers is powerful
worship in solitude, with our Creator, is powerful
worship is: ‘where your treasure is, there your heart will be also’

to be continued… <3
Sandals Church audio right here: http://www.sandalschurch.com/podcast/GLORYHONORPRAISE.mp3

Check out the Sandals Vimeo to see the video’s from Sunday: http://vimeo.com/sandalschurch (the last 4 are are from this past Sunday)

Worship is – 2 quotes

Worship is powerful because God’s presence comes to dwell in our midst when we praise Him, and in His presence we find healing, transformation, and direction for our lives.  In fact, the more time we spend praising the Lord, the more we will see ourselves and our circumstances grow in wholeness and completeness.  That’s because praise softens our hearts and makes them pliable.  It also covers us protectively.  The more pliability and covering are maintained, the more quickly our hearts can be molded and healed. - Stormie Omartian, from Praying God’s Will for Your Life 

//

 

“Worship is an act of obedience of the heart. It is a response that requires the very core of who you are to love the Lord for who He is, not just for what He does.”  Darlene Zschech (I think it’s from one of her books, I have it written down, but don’t recall the source.)

Two of my favorite quotes on what worship is.
 

waiting for the bus

this is just for felicity!

school days in Australia…

What I’m thinking about tonight

Reflecting on some quotes from the portions of saddleback worship conference that I was able to watch online; journaling as I  review the notes I took on Twitter and have printed out.

Buddy Owens:
“be faithful to His general instructions while you wait for more specific instructions”

“it’s actually the little things that matter most. God is not impressed by our talents and accomplishments. He is impressed by our character-how we become more like him – it’s an ongoing daily process.”
Wonder what aspects of my character need work …

‘God: “are you sure you wanted me to use you? Or did you just want to use Me?”‘

“be faithful in the little things that God asks us to do in Scripture, in living out his will”
Back to the basics. Faithful with the people, relationships, treasures, talents and gifts you’ve been given, and obedient to the things we know we are to be obedient in. I think obedience is huge and often overlooked these days. Back in college in my freshmen Bible class, Exodus-Deuteronomy, I learned that there were some treasures hidden in Deuteronomy. I better understood the relationship between  obedience and love, and how obedience is one of God’s love languages- that God desires our obedience and that is one way we can show Him we love Him.  Makes sense right? Check this out: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Deut 6:5, nlt I won’t go into other verses and exegesis. I just wanted to share the connection I found.

“don’t miss what is right in front of you”

“the question of significance has nothing to do with you. The question of faithfulness has everything to do with you.”

James 4:17

“God’s will happens one day at a time – and usually in hindsight.”

“don’t be frozen by the specifics – the destination could change – the path, the way is what it’s all about.”

“we tend to think of God’s call as locations and activities, because we want to approve it first. Make your mind up to do what God wants you to do even before you know what it includes. Say yes now instead of later.”

“be a worshiper, be in the word and let Him change the way you think – then you will know His will” his good pleasing and perfect will  - Romans 12

This last part is comforting to me. So much of the words above are hard for me to fully accept. I can pass them on as inspiring and convicting, but it is not easy to live out a life of obedience, it’s not easy to let God lead us, it’s not easy when God asks us to wait. It’s frustrating and confusing when all we have is trust and little things. Why do we crave significance, why are our occupations and careers and the pursuit of said careers so primary to us? Why does God plant dreams in our hearts when we have to wait…for a really long time…why is it so easy to think about tomorrow when we are still in the middle of today, with plenty of God’s will in one day..? Why do we get discouraged? Why do we wrestle with the same things over and over again…? I shared with a friend last weekend that there are things I don’t talk about, like my future hopes and dreams, because I’ve been made to feel like they shouldn’t be pursued. This has left me confused and all I want to do is serve the Lord, and find myself with ideas and I know that Gods dreams are bigger and better than mine, but I also believe firmly that my dreams are from God, or at least a variation of them. I know God wants us to use the gifts and talents he has given us, that we shouldn’t keep those to ourselves. I have been very conflicted regarding this over the past year.

It’s also hard to trust that God’s will happens everyday. Why are we so easily bored with the mundane…? The tedious tasks at work, the uncertainty of future…

Scary. But I know He’s in charge, Sovereign, and patiently listens to my questions, my cries and my prayers. Slowly revealing insights and truths through His word and time with the Lord.

Continuing to lean on Him – I wouldn’t be able to get up in the morning without Him. The joy of the Lord is my strength.

-Lori jo

Psalm 37:1-7

Ps37



 u Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not v envious of wrongdoers!
 2 For they will soon w fade like x the grass
and wither y like the green herb.

 3 z Trust in the Lord, and do good;
a dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. [2]
 4 b Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will c give you the desires of your heart.

 5 d Commit your way to the Lord;
z trust in him, and he will act.
 6 e He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as f the noonday.

 7 g Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
h fret not yourself over the one who i prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices!

sorry i’ve been away…making music!

[All winners have been notified. Congratulations Jen and Ali!]

I have been busy and happily so…planning worship sets and leading worship for SCU and rehearsals, practicing [piano] lots, and I spent the weekend getting to know my new mac:

I’m so excited to get more of my songs recorded, and finalized, so they can be more than just words on a page, more than just a melody running through my bray-ee-yain. Sorry…started making up a song right there…did you catch that?

Haha. God is good. God is mysterious. God is faithful and His love is STEADFAST! Future is uncertain…as it always is…makes me a bit nervous, but my hope is in the certainty of eternity, and in the fact that His plans are good. I say this not because I don’t worry, or I don’t question, but to reassure and reaffirm the truth. God is sovereign. I’m on a songwriting adventure and life adventure as well and I can’t wait to see what else God has for me!

stay tuned….;]

Do you want a Christy Nockels CD?

Well then, leave a comment here from now through Sunday at midnight (pacific).  Make sure to leave your correct email address (it doesn’t show up to anyone but me) so I can contact you, when, if you should win.

Tweet to win is still going on #lifelightupftw through Friday. Details here:

Would you like a free download of her title song? Click here

Watch part two of her video:

Prayer is not

Excerpt from Erwin Lutzer of Moody Church, from his book How to Have a Whole Heart in a Broken World.

This book which was published in 1987 is more relevant to me then ever before. Dr. Lutzer goes through the Upper Room Discourse (John 13-17) and reveals the message Christ left for us. Here is an excerpt from the chapter titled Nurturing a Praying Heart, on John 14:8-15. – Lori Jo

"Prayer is not asking for what we want;  it is developing trust that can handle those moments when there is no miracle and when life itself seems to fall apart. Look at Christ in Gethsemane, filled with emotional turbulence, yet submissive to the relentless pain that He would endure on the cross.

Pain is not like putting a quarter into a slot machine-a gambler is willing to part with a bit hoping the return might be worthwhile. When nothing comes out, he looks for some other quick fix that appears to have a better chance of success. In contrast, prayer is hard work; it is getting to know God well enough that we can discern His mind and intentions. And in those instances where we are baffled, the Holy Spirit comes to our aid and through us prays with groanings that cannot be put into human words.

The need of the hour is for prayer, but this alarm sounded by so many falls on so many dead ears. Why don't we pray more when we know we should? Marriages are falling apart; tragedies happen in rapid succession. And many believers have no victory at all over these circumstances. A visitor from another planet would never guess that we had  secret resources that are unavailable to the general population. We live in an age when we need to see miracles-lives put together, individuals saved, and strong, self centered wills broken before the Lord. So why don't we pray more?"

Christy Nockels CD Giveaway Update [tweet to win]

Okay after a slow Monday, [Russ, you win!] I’ve decided to do a tweet to win! Twitter something cute with the hashtag #lifelightupFTW Don’t worry if you aren’t a twitterER. There will be one more blog giveaway! Stay tuned for those details!

The rules…I will make them up as I go…Sort of…
The only rules so far are:

1. Tweet with #lifelightupFTW
2. Deadline is Friday, July 17 at Midnight, Pacific Time.
3. One tweet per person would probably be good, so no one goes crazy with the hashtags…
4. Um…that’s all I’ve got. If anything comes up I will update here!

Proof there is a real CD giveaway: I got mine in the mail yesterday! Thanks EMI CMG!!

CD Giveaway Starts Today!

Today's your first chance to enter to win Christy Nockel’s latest album: Life Light Up

click here Check out Part One of Christy's Video

Get ready, get set, COMMENT!!

Have fun!