what a beautiful song

I sang this song today...and it's a song I have sung many times...but, the words permeated today...

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

Sorrowing I shall be in spirit,
Till released from flesh and sin,
Yet from what I do inherit,
Here Thy praises I’ll begin;
Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Here by Thy great help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.

Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood;
How His kindness yet pursues me
Mortal tongue can never tell,
Clothed in flesh, till death shall loose me
I cannot proclaim it well.

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

O that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Clothed then in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransomed soul away;
Send thine angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless day.

Written in 1758 by Robert Robinson.

sigh

As I was driving home last night, I was listening to a Brooke Fraser song that seemed to strike a chord deep inside me...

C.S. Lewis Song

If I find in myself desires nothing in this world can satisfy,
I can only conclude that I was not made for here
If the flesh that I fight is at best only light and momentary,
Then of course I'll feel nude when to where I'm destined I'm compared

Speak to me in the light of the dawn
Mercy comes with the morning
I will sigh and with all creation groan as I wait for hope to come for me

Am I lost or just less found? On the straight or on the roundabout of the wrong way?
Is this a soul that stirs in me, is it breaking free, wanting to come alive?
Cause my comfort would prefer for me to be numb
And avoid the impending birth of who I was born to become

Speak to me in the light of the dawn
Mercy comes with the morning
I will sigh and with all creation groan as I wait for hope to come for me

For we, we are not long here
Our time is but a breath, so we better breathe it
And I, I was made to live, I was made to love, I was made to know you
Hope is coming for me
Hope, He's coming for me


...even more so today.

the day after Passion Kyiv

*copying this from my other blog*

So. I’m currently on a plane to Helsinki, Finland. VERY quick layover (hope we make it....if I post this soon, we did NOT!). Then, another flight to Stockholm, Sweden. Which basically means I have come and gone from Kyiv, Ukraine. And that is all that is ridiculously crazy to me. 60+ days of intense in-your-faceocity (yes, I made a new word, Webster) and all is said and done.

Passion Kyiv. Where do I start? Let’s see. Maybe I will start with my two Kyiv best friends, Christine & Jo. (I’ll have to get pictures from them and post later.) Christine and Jo are two fabulous women who basically did everything I could not have come close to doing by myself in Kyiv. Christine is an American that has been living in Kyiv for the past 3 years with her husband and children and Jo is an Aussie who has lived in Kyiv for the past year or so. (Hope I got that right, girls!!!). I LOVE THEM. It about killed me to say goodbye to them and I must confess that it brings tears to my eyes to even write this right now. If you can develop a deep and everlasting friendship within just a few days time, we did it! I guess that’s where God steps in and says, “Hey, it’s all good...your plans are pretty lame, so I’m going to go ahead and prepare the way for you. Just chill.” So...Jo and Christine, I WILL be coming back to visit and WILL be expecting some Gloria Jean’s time. :O) Love you and miss you already.

Ok, so the actual event itself! You HAVE to check out the 268 blog. Jeremy Cowart has been taking some *ok* pictures. (pause) I mean, seriously? Ridiculous. He even did a quick “shoot” of my star tattoos the other day. I don’t know if it will make the Passion World Tour book, but who knows. Maybe one day when I’m famous, he will put it on his website. Ha ha. So, go check out the blog...there are some great stories and AMAZINGGGGGG with a capital RIDICULOUS pictures posted there.

To give you the quick background on Kyiv...when we started planning, we had NO IDEA how many people we could expect to show up. We would get mixed reactions from people. Some would say thousands would come, some would say we would be fortunate if 1000 showed up. Because it was a free event, we had no idea of knowing until the doors opened and people came in. SO...5:00 rolls around and a few hundred people are hanging outside. Praying. Preparing. Wow. 6:00, doors open and they start pouring in. By the hundreds. Still not sure what to expect, though. At 6:30, we enter into a time of prayer. Louie, the bands, our wonderful, wonderful, wonderful Kyiv leadership team, our team....an outpouring of the Spirit...just crying out to God to be THE God of Kyiv. Such a dark city, such a closed city. 6:55, we walk out to the backstage area and through the curtain. THOUSANDS have shown up. WOW. Truly, WOW. Louie posted a blog that said, “How do you say WOW in Russian?” That was literally how we felt. And they kept coming in. All in all, we had over 4,000 at Passion Kyiv last night. MORE than we could have ever expected, ever asked for, but truly what only God is capable of doing. Certainly nothing four human beings are capable of planning for, that’s for sure.

The night was a typical Passion event for those of you that have ever attended, volunteered, or just know what Passion is all about. But, it was so much more than that, too! We sang some in Russian...kudos to the guys for learning that in such a short time. You guys have my respect. Louie was translated the entire night by our friend, Oleg. What a cool guy Oleg is. I wish you all could meet him! We also took up an offering for Stockholm (the next city on the tour). Kyiv is a city that is hit hard by poverty, yet the students believed in what we were doing, what GOD is doing, the message of GRACE....they believed in that so much that they gave what they had so that another city could hear like they had. I am TRULY humbled. Truly. I know that God specifically placed me on the Kyiv team for this moment. Kyiv feels like a second home around the world and I am honored to have been a part of such an amazing journey.

So...I sit on a plane. I can’t believe it’s over. But, it is for me. For those still in Kyiv, there is much to do, much to come still. I look forward to seeing what God has brewing in such an incredible place! And I look forward to returning one day....soon!

Now, it’s on to Stockholm, Sweden, where I will be more of a staff person. I get to help with media and just be a generally helpful person. Hope I do well with the task assigned!

So...skipping ahead a few hours...I am now at the hotel in Stockholm. This is a pretty cool city, at least what I’ve seen of it. I think I might try and grab a dinner with the guys later. I had the pleasure of traveling with the “Brits” today. They are a fun bunch. :O) So, I may go eat some good food with them and then hit the ground running. By that time, the rest of the gang should be at the hotel.

Anyway, sorry to spill so much in my first update! So much to share! Hope you are along for the ride!!!!

just 4 minutes?

I've been meaning to blog about this for a while, but am now just finding 4 minutes to do it. So, here goes:

Why are the catchiest songs in the world the DUMBEST songs lyrically? Seriously, Madonna. You have a great catalog in your past...and you are working with Timbaland and JT. This is all you came up with? 4 minutes to save the world? Why not 5? Why not 3? Do you think it might actually take 20?

But driving in my car, I find myself doing a little dance anyway. Guess that's why you hired the big boyz to help you out.

Here you go, fans:

Oh snap!

Tonight I went and saw Cloverfield with Jerry, Kelli, Meredith, and Jared. The movie pretty much rocked early '08. With a director like JJ Abrams, how could it not? I think if I were going to stalk someone, it would be him. I mean, come on. Alias, Lost....those two shows alone right there would seal the deal for me.

"Why, yes, Mr. Abrams. I WILL marry you. Oh, and you want me to act in your kick-butt thriller where I will play a super cool spy who runs through the city of NY battling a monster that got trapped in a time machine in an island in the middle of the pacific and just now showed up for mankind to discover? Ok!"

Seriously. I love him.

Tomorrow night, I am going to see Barry Manilow.

Hello. Could this weekend BE any better?

can i just say?

My new favorite singer/songwriter lived up to her "favorite" status last night. Sara B. BROUGHT it live! I'm that kind of music listener that I will endlessly listen to a CD...over and over and over....and then get tired of it. But, not this one. After seeing Sara perform last night, I have a new appreciation for her writing and her music. She is an incredible musician! Do I sound like a star-struck fan? Good, 'cuz I am!

I saw her open for Paolo Nutini at The Tabernacle last night. I didn't even stay for his set because I figured nothing could top hers. Between her vocals, her keys, and the overall vibe of the set, I have to say that was probably the best musical performance I've seen in quite a while. I wish everyone could see her live. Amazing, absolutely amazing. Geez....shut up, Michele. It sounds like I'm in love with her. Freak. I'm pretty sure I have a musician crush, that's all.

But, seriously. If you get the chance to go see her, do it. She played in Nashville two nights ago, so that's a bummer if you missed it. Hopefully she will be back around in the spring. I'm willing to take a road trip with anyone and to anywhere.

This was my feeble attempt to sneak a picture without looking like a dorky fan (which I so obviously am):



So, that's my promotion. Go check her out if you dare.

chattanooga. oh, chattanooga.

Well. I'm not sure words can describe last night. Pictures probably can't even do it justice, but I have to at least try.

So...it took me a long time to get out of Atlanta because of the traffic. Surprise surprise. I made the most of it, though, by taking pictures on the iphone. It pretty much rocks. I finally arrived after 3.5 hours. That's over the top....for 110 miles.

Anyway, at least I didn't miss Flip's show. He's in a band called Alter Bridge. They are pretty much a freakin' amazing rock band.

Here's a pic of Flip doing his thing on the drums...


Here's a pic of Flip and Mark...he's a so-so guitar player....yeah, right.


Ok, so that was the great "lose my hearing" part of the night. From here on out, I will only let the pictures speak...








Yes, I know. Random. But, that pretty much sums up the night. Just be glad I didn't post any pictures from the parking lot.

if i could write a song...

There's too many things that I haven't done yet
Too many sunsets
I haven't seen
You can't waste the day wishing It'd slow down
You would've thought by now
I'd have learned something

I made up my mind when I was a young girl
I've been given this one world
I won't worry it away
But now and again I lose sight of the good life
I get stuck in a low light
But then Love comes in

I do what I can wherever I end up
To keep giving my good love
And spreading it around
Cause I've had my fair share of take care and goodbyes
I've learned how to cry
And I'm better for that

Red letter day and I'm in a blue mood
Wishing that blue would just carry me away
I've been talking to God, don't know
If it's helping or not
But surely something has got to give
Cause I can't keep waiting to live

How far do I have to go to get to you
Many the miles
Many the miles
How far do I have to go to get to you
Many the miles
But send me the miles and I'll be happy to follow you Love

a good day

Today has been a good day, despite the migraine that WILL NOT GO AWAY!!!!!! (yes, it requires caps) Here are my reasons for why it's a good day:

1. I woke up. Thanks, God!
2. There were two sleepy pups snuggling me upon my waking.
3. My shower was not rushed and I had time to make coffee and eat cereal. Yeah corn Chex and decaf Dunkin' Donuts coffee!
4. There was no traffic, despite having to drive 45 minutes to our campus that is OUT in the boonies (you can't even call it the suburbs of Atlanta at that point) for our monthly all-campus staff meeting.
5. An encouraging afternoon meeting...more to come on that later. I walked away from it, though, feeling very inspired.
6. **Another random moment that I can't really share on a public blog, but has to at least be given a "nod" to.**
7. Upon arriving home, two very excited dogs greeted me....no human is ever that excited to see me! :O)

I know, it's nothing extraordinary. You were expecting bells, whistles, and fireworks, I bet. It has been a good day, though...and it's not even 5:00 yet!

Although, now I get to work for about 5 hours straight doing audio edits and keynote slides. Oh well, I am thankful that I have a job...and that I enjoy it!

Another reason why today is a good day...I am listening to a new song by an amazing singer/songwriter that I met last year. Her name is Alisa Turner. Check her out on myspace. The new song is called "Snow". One of my favorites is there, as well, and is called "Undeserving".

That's all I got for now. Time to get to work. Be blessed.

me happy about today...