Hold on to Hope

Tomorrow's Hope is Today's Healing for Yesterday's Hurts.

Your Hope is His Healing

Your Promise is His Purpose

May your life be a testimony of the Hope you hold and the lies you let go.

Empowered by His Presence

I have found that worship is not just us singing praises to a deserving God—I have found that worship is God pouring His love back into our undeserving hearts.

In our brokenness we long to be filled but yet it is so hard for us to surrender. Our own pride keeps us from the healing that our souls long for.  We over complicate such a simple process—one name has the power to move mountains, to make demons run and flee;  yet we are the ones that believe more in the power of our emotions then in the power of the name of Jesus.

God does not keep His power to Himself, He empowers His people. 

I think many of us have grown up with the misconception that God is selfish, that He is unfair, that He is waiting to judge us and hold us back.  When we enter into worship with that mindset, we hold our hearts back, we hold onto our brokenness, and we refuse to surrender ourselves to Him.  Oh, how I long for you to truly understand the love of God, the love He has for you, the passion that stirs in His heart for you.  He longs for your complete surrender because it is then that He can completely fill you with His power and His presence—it is then and only then that He can break the chains of brokenness within you.  He has dreams for you, He has plans for you, He believes in you. 

“Whispers can sometimes turn into shouts, that turn into cries, that turn into prayers, that turn into songs that the whole world will sing.” –Steggany Frizzell Gretzinger (Bethel Music)

Our songs of worship are songs that begin as deep struggles or battles.  We cry out the name of Jesus, we cry out in surrender.  As our hearts pour out, as our cries scream out, the ballad begins to build and God’s power and faithfulness pour out of our mouths—His power becomes our anthem.  

Worship is our heart’s surrender.   You weren’t meant to hold on to your hurts, to your burdens, to your pains—you were meant to turn them into a song of hope; a song that nations to come can sing and know that your God never left you or forsake you.

You have a God that longs to hear your song, who longs to hold your heart. 
You have a God that longs for your worship because He longs to empower you with His presence.

Sing out, cry out, pour out your heart—

let your brokenness be a melody 

that turns into an anthem of God’s unfailing love for you.

Turning the page...

I love a new journal.  If you looked around my house you would find a dozen journals half full.
There is just something about a fresh, clean, crisp new journal.  I will pour my heart into a journal, all the joys, pains, sorrows, and accomplishments will fill the pages again and again; but there is just always this longing to start fresh, to start anew.  We all long for fresh starts, new beginnings, seasons where the old can be put on a shelf and the new is fresh at hand.

When I think about my story though, the words on the pages of my journals--there is always this longing for the manuscript of my life to mean so much more.  I get frustrated by my own emotions, I beat myself up for my lack of perfection, I cry out in fear as dreams and longings are not yet met....
because in the end I realize that my story is not my own.  This is when I long to put the current journal aside, and start anew---to open to that first blank page, and with a change of heart, and a willing hand, pray that God would take my pen and write the story He has for me.

My selfish desires arise again and again, and I constantly try to take back the pen, but God is so patient and so gentle in reminding me that His story is so much greater than any story I could dream of myself.  He then, turns the page, and allows me to start again---He is the giver of fresh pages, of new beginnings, of powerful words, and amazing stories.

Everyday and every page is an opportunity to allow God to take the pen and write for us.
He is the author of our story.

So on this crisp brand new page, my heart writes...
"Empty me of all I know...
Turn the page to something new...
Write on my heart your truth,
that my story may be less of me and more of you."