your spirit is water to my soul

Praise God!

I had no one to share this with, but I figure this is not a moment I want to forget and let slip away.

As I was listening to Pandora, the song "better is one day" started playing. In my mind, I was thinking, "oh, I haven't heard this song in a while. It's a nice song." I also happened to be reading Psalm 83. I was already at the end of the chapter so I moved onto Psalm 84 which began with:

"How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh cry out for the living God."

God is truly wonderful and amazing. Many times I feel spiritually dry and distant from him but he always finds a way to pull me back. The little things he does in my life mean more to me than anything else. They are proof that he is here with me. I am not alone, and I am blessed by the Living God. Better is one day in God's courts than a thousand days anywhere else.

your name is a shelter like no other

why is it so easy for us to forget about God in the midst of chaos, when in those times we actually need Him most? we are so foolish. what he can offers us is greater than anything in this world - it is greater than anything we have ever experienced, and it is free! all we need to do is accept it. we can step out of darkness and into the light, we can live freely and joyfully instead of with burden, in fear, shame, and guilt. His gift is everlasting and eternal and it will bring us true satisfaction! here is a song i absolutely love:

He is good

our patience and love are so limited. but the Father's love endures forever and His patience extends to the ends of the earth. He gives us comfort and He offers us a life of joy and peace.

just a simple thank you

tonight at aacf, we did so many "random acts of appreciation". at first i was kind of thinking this was a good idea but a silly thing to do. i really doubted that the people we handed things out to would be that appreciative. however, by the end of the night, i was proven wrong and it was actually really fun to do. i want to do it more often because some people just never hear the words thank you near enough.

so this is basically what everyone did:
1. handed out candy to random people passing by
2. handed out candy with sticky notes
3. posted sticky notes with nice messages all around the library
4. walked around with a poster that says FAMILY and people write what they think
5. hand made 'thank you' cards for security guards at all the dorms

so walking back to hojo (the dorm i live in) i started getting nervous about giving this thank you card to the security guard. one, i was worried it would be one of the security guards i had trouble with in the past. two, i was scared that he would not accept the card or just look at it and toss it aside. three, i was worried that others would see what i was doing and judge me - though why would that bother me? anyways, i got back to hojo and i was relieved to see one security guard i never really talked to before. so i walked right up to the front desk and just stated: "hi, i'm part of a student organization on campus and we made this thank you card for all the security guards here to show our appreciation." immediately, the guard smiles and took the card and opened it right up. he didn't look up to check when i swiped my card (which is unusual because they normally stare us down). just seeing him happy made me so happy! i was smiling all the way up the stairs.

just thought i'd share this moment because it was pure joy and happiness. it just erupted from inside me. and it was great.

refiner's fire

tonight i went to a 'family fun night' at my pastor's house. it was exactly how it is described - a night full of fun with your family. we had a home-cooked meal together, played a game of pictionary, and had a time of worship and prayer. this whole week was a bit stressful so it was nice to be in a relaxing environment away from campus.

walking to my room, i heard music coming from the room i was passing by. i was really curious to see what instruments were playing and what songs the person/people were playing and singing to. to my surprise, it was a group of guys worshiping the Lord. they were singing and playing Refiner's Fire. i was so temped to knock on the door and sing with them. i'm sure that if someone else was with me, i would have knocked on the door without hesitation.

i know i write about songs a lot, or at least include a song with each post. i don't do it on purpose, but i realize that God really speaks to me through song lyrics. and this song i absolutely love. we are God's creation and it hit me the other day, just how far from perfect we are. seldom am i not judgmental, prideful, or sinful. but God loves us nonetheless. he has cleansed us by the blood of Christ and we are set apart from the world because of him. it is so difficult these days to be set apart from the world without insulting or offending someone or being judged. we are constantly trying to fit in and blend in with our peers. i know i do that a lot because i don't want to draw attention. but if we're just blending in and living lukewarm lives, then we're not fulfilling our purpose and God's will for us. if we don't do our part, why do we expect God to do his part? though he does do his part because he can't help but love us. it is his character to be loving, forgiving, holy, and merciful.

Purify my heart
Let me be as gold and precious silver
Purify my heart
Let me be as gold, pure gold

Refiner's fire
My heart's one desire
Is to be holy
Set apart for You, Lord
I choose to be holy
Set apart for You, my Master
Ready to do Your will

Purify my heart
Cleanse me from within
And make me holy
Purify my heart
Cleanse me from my sin
Deep within