Donation for a Good Cause

Many of you know that Stanley is the love of my life, my puppy-dog. (Okay, so he's not a puppy, but he sure acts like one!) 

Been praying and praying, and it seems that more and more tumors and trials and tribulations keep popping up.  He now has to go to WSU for almost a whole month for radiation treatments, and it will be around $4000. 

Please, if you could spare a few extra dollars to help cover the costs?  Here's the GoFundMe link...

Save Stanley's Leg

Thank you.

I'm Gonna Sing When the Spirit Says "SING!"

For those of you who have been following for a while now, you are familiar with how hard it was to be asked not to sing at mass anymore at St Stephens.  Fear not!  That has been resolved, for the most part!!!

I went back to the music ministries at St Stephens and asked if I was needed anywhere else.... the first couple I spoke with left me feeling very hopeful, I could hear harmonies and melodies spinning together, but they had another vision for their direction, and never called me back.  It was at that point that I resigned myself to just being a participating member of the congregation, just sit in the sanctuary as one of many in the Body of Christ, and wait for the Spirit to move me.  I knew, when the timing was right, He would use my gifts again. 

A few days after coming to this realization, my parents said they wanted to head out to St Barbara's, a smaller parish in Black Diamond.  Of course I said yes, it was the first time they wanted to go to church other than a holiday in years!  The music was very familiar, between songs that I'd sang in choirs or at churches over the years, and I sang along with every one.  At the end of mass one of the women in the choir practically ran over to me, grabbed me by both arms and said "I was watching you all of mass, you knew every word to every song we sang.  COME SING WITH US!" so excited, eyes lit up & dancing... how could I have said no?! 

So, I was a regular member of the congregation for one service.... now I'm singing every Sunday morning with the church choir, and will start in the cantoring rotation on June 8th.

I have always believed that God will open a window when a door is closed for us, and this has got to be the most literal, direct "window" I've ever had opened for me, AMEN!

Fellowship Through Music

Here it is!  The master list, in no particular order, without the artists names (at this point- can't get excel to play nice)  It was really neat to see people come together - on facebook! - and to read everyone's stories as to why one song or the other was so special to them.  I'm sure there are inifinately more, but this is a good starting place, don't you think?

Old Rugged Cross

Open the Eyes of My Heart Lord

Here I am to Worship

We Fall Down

Blessed Be Your Name

The River Lullaby

Voice of Truth

I Can Only Imagine

Shout to the Lord

Be Thou My Vision

Homesick

Something Beautiful

I Love You Lord

Prayer of St Francis

This Little Light of Mine

Heaven

Blessings

I Love You This Much

I Believe

Dig a Little Deeper In God's Love

Here in Your Presence

Desert Song

Love Song for a Saviour

Take My Life

Create in Me a Clean Heart

You Found Me

In Christ Alone

Mighty is the Power of the Cross

You Do All Things Well

Strong-Strong Wind

Revelation Song

At Your Feet

With Everything

Jesus Paid it All

Jesus Take the Wheel

Set Me as a Seal

Dive

Put Your Hand in the Hand

How He Love Him

Rise Up

Deep Calls/To Deep?

Your Love is Extravagant

Hello Lord

The Word

In My Arms

All Around Me

You Said

Beautiful Saviour

On Fire

Enough

I Need You to Love Me

Porcelain Heart

Never Alone

Exodus

Beautiful

For My Love

Priase You With Dance

Refine Me & Undo Me

Unafraid

Only a Man

Dare You to Move

Sweetly Broken

In Your Presence

Open Skies

Dance with Me

Does Anybody Hear Her

Someone Up There Loves Me

Make Me a Channel of Your Peace

Who Am I

El Shaddai

I have Decided

Awesome God

There is None Like You

Here I am to Worship (duplicate)

I Will Call Upon the Lord

He Has Made Me Glad

Better is One Day

I Will Celebrate

Thirsting

How Great Thou Art

Because I have been Given Much

There is Sunshine in My Soul Today

In the Garden

We Won't Be Quiet

Stand By Me

Breath of Heaven

Mary Did You Know

In the Light

Wonder

Oceans

Set a Fire

Breat Every Chain

Majesty

God of Wonders

I'm Not Who I Was

More Like Falling

What Faith Can Do

Word of God Speak

Love Take Me Over

East to West

How Many Kings

Heaven

By Your Side

What Do I Know of Holy

Amazing Grace

Help Me Find It

Rise Up

Lord, I Need You

Beautiful

Bring the Rain

Only Grace

There is a Way

Worn

I Can Only Imagine

Redeemed

Need You Now

Forgiveness

Like Jesus Does

Walk by Faith

Take My Hand

He Won't Let You Go

You Move Me

Oh Draw Me Lord

In My Life

Wonderful, Merciful Saviour

Were You There

Deep

Yesu Azali Awa

Amazing Grace

Come, Now is the Time to Worship

I Will Rise

Exalted (Yahweh)

My Beloved

You Are My King

The Heart of Worship

Lord You Have My Heart

How Deep the Father's Love for Us

Draw Me Close

It's Been a While...

... and there's been a lot going on.  I'm very much in a "Be Still" period of my faith, where I'm waiting, listening, and watching for signs from the Holy Spirit.  I have found a few very direct answers, and those answers have resulted in very many happy tears being shed. 

We've all heard the phrase "Thank God for Unanswered Prayers" but let us not forget to thank Him for the ones He answers!

Surrounded by God

One of my most favorite bookstores is in Tacoma, by the Tacoma Dome, and it just says "Books" on the side of the old building.  You walk in to a labyrinth of floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, with little routing cards pinned to pieces of wood between shelves, and arrows, genres, and directions instructing you when to turn where to find the room with the right colored door.... it looks like it could be the baby brother-of-bookstores to Portland's Powell's! 

My most favorite room is the one with the green door, I think it's the green door... maybe it's the red door?  I don't know.... It's where all the cook books and religious books are.  Such an appropriate pairing, don't you think?  Jesus asks us to come together and break bread in His name - DONE!  *grin*

I don't know if the pictures I took will do the book store justice... I tried to use the panoramic function on my iPhone....

As I was spending time with God all around me, Faith all around me, I was drawn to one bible in particular - an old French bible from 1890.  Oh, how I wish I could read French!  I would have purchased it, in a heartbeat!  There's just something about deep, old Faith that moves me every time - feeling that connection of belief, the Holy Spirit, the timelessness awe that IS God - there are no words!  Holding the book took my breath away.  (I might just have to pick it up tonight after work)  I've written before, about over 100 years of bibles on a shelf at the Family Farm.... You must experience it for yourself. 

There was another bible as well, it belonged to a man named Wayne Bailey 1947-1989, and someone documented "found with Wayne's things"... This bible also stirred something in my soul.... I have a soft spot & say a little prayer every time I meet a man who is not afraid to live his Faith.  Even if Wayne never went to church, he kept a bible with his things, in a place that it was found after he passed.  I'm not sure who he was, but his name will live on, and his bible will help bring God's word to someone else, long after he passed.

On a completely non-faith-related note, I think the prime discovery of that day was a Latin translation, illustrated version of Winnie the Pooh! *giggle*grin*  Always a child at heart, don't ya know!

#lent2014

It's that time of year again, folks!  What have you decided to change in your life?  Last year I did Grateful Photos and those were really a lot of fun, helping me to quite literally count my blessings.  Quite a few of my friends are giving up Facebook for the Lenton season, and I really thought about that, prayed about it, but one word kept coming up over all the others: GRACE. 

No, I'm not giving up Grace.  I am asking for Grace, every single morning before I even get out of bed, every day.  We really should be doing this anyway, but I'll be the first to admit that I get preoccupied with the day ahead of me and just trust that God will give me what Graces I need when I need them.... but to put intent, thought, and effort into it, it has a deeper meaning.

On this first day of Lent, I asked for the Grace to forgive people who have hurt me.  Again, something that should be a given, but I let it be out-of-sight-out-of-mind and just keep moving with the bandaid rather than helping the wounded parts of me to heal.  That proverbial bandaid defeats the purpose of forgiveness.  I used to think that forgiving meant forgetting, but that's not the case, most definitely not in this situation.  And the person who has hurt me so deeply is in a circle of friends whom I'm not willing to give up, so I must find the Grace to forgive.  I will be tentative and cautious when speaking (if speaking) with her again, but I need to heal my hurt, I need to ask God to heal my hurt. 

Mother Mary, you bestow Graces upon us, as you are filled with God's Grace.  Please help me, grant me God's Grace to forgive those who have hurt me so grievously.  Jesus, fill my heart with Your Love and help me to share that Love with others, as You have asked me to.  Amen.

Matthew 22:37-39

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself."  ~Matthew 22:37-39

This is the Verse of the Day today, and it is quite appropriate for what's weighing heavy on my heart:  Bullying. 

Last night I found a publicly posted situation between two of the kids from the youth group, and it broke my heart.  I'm not going into any further detail than that, but man.... it's a prime example of the hypocracy in Christianity that is such a turn-off to so many others!  How does someone who's raised in a loving, Christian household with kind and gentle parents resort to public humiliation and slander for entertainment?  How does gossip really, truly make you feel better about anything you do? 

Choosing to call yourself Christian and then choosing actions motivated by anything LESS than Christ's love is a travesty to Christianity.  It's a false, absurd, distorted representation of what Matthew writes, of what Jesus teaches us. 

I've said it before and I'll say it again.  You NEVER know when your actions or inactions may affect someone's life, for the better or worse.  You may be the last person they speak with before they decide to end their life.  You may be the person they speak with that helps them change their mind about ending their life.  You may be the person they speak with who turns them off once and for all from what they think is a joke-of-a-Christian.  You may be the person they speak with who helps them see that Christianity is no joke. 

"Love your neighbor as yourself."  That doesn't mean look in the mirror and tell yourself that you're a bitch or a slut (and I'm quoting that).  It means looking at those around you and saying the same thing you'd say if you were looking in a mirror..."You look good today." "That outfit compliments your figure." "Your hair looks really nice.".... You get the idea! 

None of us are perfect, but we can definitely make a more concious effort each and every day.  That's a direct order from J.C. right there.  Forget wondering how someone sleeps at night after tearing someone down.... they've got to work to make things right between themselves and God.