Of All the Dreadful Things To Say...

... i am glad i don't know anyone mean enough to say this:

"how often have i wished that i possessed as little personal Beauty as you do; that my figure were as inelegant; my face as unlovely; and my Appearance as unpleasing as yours! but ah! what little chance is there of so desirable an Event; i have had the Small-pox, and must therefore submit to my unhappy fate." ("Lesley Castle" by Jane Austen, juvenalia [sp?])

Gravity

i saw sandra this weekend in knoxville, as you know, so you must have seen this coming.

everyone MUST go buy her new album off her website. seriously. it's incredible.

ok, so here's the closest thing to a title track she's got on this one. keep in mind the image of an apple falling off a tree in the context of john 12:24 ("truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit"). also remember the whole encounter with God moses has in exodus 3 ("do not come any closer... take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." - exodus 3:5).

take off your shoes
where it burns red fire
in the sacred place
with a new desire
the more that i speak, the less that i understand

you fall from the tree to the ground
and gravity love, it takes you down
till your heart comes free in who you're meant to be
just like gravity

step from the ledge
truth falls fast
standing in the shade
with the weak and the blessed
and the night of tears is breaking into a day of son

and you fall from the tree to the ground
and gravity love, it takes you down
till your heart comes free in who you're made to be
just like gravity

wake up, dead man
rise from your sleep
wake up and come to Me

and you fall from the tree to the ground
and gravity love, it takes you down
till your heart comes free in who you're made to be
just like gravity

light comes in
and now i see
when i hear my name
like You're washing me
i can walk on water if You hold out Your hand

and you fall from the tree to the ground
and gravity love, it takes you down
till your heart comes free in who you're made to be
just like gravity

This Weekend

this weekend is the roadtrip to knoxvegas to hear sandra play and see a dear friend who is now knockin' 'em dead at UT. so that will be a fun slieu of events.

i love driving.

Some Things

some things are cheapened when they are made widely, publicly accessible. that is why i haven't posted much substantive stuff lately - alot of such things have been happening, and i don't feel like talking about it here. so i thought that bore explanation.

i will say this: i am really really regretting my decision to take 700 hours of english. actually, that's not true: i just don't like this stupid poetry background reading. i think i will skip it.

the purpose of the law is believers having Christ for their righteousness - name this paraphrased passage!

I Can't Get No

mashed potatoes. I can't get no mashed potatoes but I try and I try and I try and I try -
I can't get no mashed potatoes. No no no.

i have a cold.

and i have plenty of mashed potato access at le pit. don't panic.

I Can't Help It

i absolutely love this song and i have a compulsive desire to put it up. so here we go... :)

for all the saints

for all the saints who from their labors rest,
who, Thee, by faith, before the world confessed,
Thy Name, o Jesus, be forever blessed;
allelujah, allelu

Thou wast their Rock, their Fortress, and their Might,
Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well-fought fight;
Thou in the darkness drear their one true Light;
allelujah, allelu

o may Thy soldiers, faithful, true, and bold
fight as the saints who nobly fought of old
and win with them the victors' crown of gold
allelujah, allelu

and when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,
steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
and hearts are brave again and arms are strong;
allelujah, allelu

the golden evening brightens in the west;
soon, soon to faithful warriors comes their rest;
sweet is the calm of paradise the blessed;
allelujah, allelu

but, lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day!
the saints triumphant rise in bright arrray;
the King of glory passes on His way -
allelujah, allelu

from earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast -
through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
"allelujah, allelujah"

FACT:

rootie is my homegirl

I'm Tired and Lazy

so tonight i'm just posting the lyrics to a great andy peterson song. as a matter of fact, andy is selling the cd this song comes from (which is EXCELLENT) for really cheap. you can get 5 of them for $10. check it out on his website. beat that, itunes.

All Shall Be Well

we touched down on the sound at the top of the world
in the land of the midnight sun
where the frozen river melts away and breaks into a run
into the sea, into the mighty waves
that waited just to see it
from a long way off that river thawed and the tide ran out to meet it
"welcome home, unfrozen river, welcome home"

'cause all shall be well, all shall be well
break the chains of the gates of hell
still all manner of things will be well

see the quiet hearts of the children of the children of this land
they have stayed alive in the day-long night
by the fires that warm their hands
there is a wilderness inside them,
it is dark and thick and deep
and beside the fire at the heart of that wood
is a precious missing sheep
so go on in, hold your torch, and let it shine

'cause all shall be well, all shall be well
break the chains of the gates of hell,
still all manner of things will be well
all shall be well, all shall be well
the Word of God will never fail
and all manner of things will be well

there's a light in the darkness
there's an end to the night

i saw the sun go down on a frozen ocean as the man in the moon was rising
and he rode the night all full and bright
with his face at the far horizon
and the night can be so long, so long
you think you'll never get up again
but listen now, it's a mighty cloud of
witnesses around you - they say
"hold on, just hold on,
hold on to the end
and all shall be well"...

No More, My God

no more, my God, i boast no more
of all the duties i have done;
i quit the hopes i held before
to trust the merit of Thy Son.

no more, my God,
no more, my God,
no more, my God,
i boast no more

now for the loss i bear His Name,
what was my gain i count my loss;
my former pride i call my shame,
and nail my glory to His cross.

no more, my God,
no more, my God,
no more, my God,
i boast no more

yes and i must, i will esteem
all things but loss for Jesus' sake;
may my soul be found in Him
and of His righteousness partake.
amen, amen.

the best obedience of my hands
dares not appear before Thy throne;
but faith can answer Thy demands
by pleading what my Lord has done.

no more, my God,
no more, my God,
no more, my God,
i boast no more
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
i just really like this song. favorite parts include: "my former pride i call my shame and nail my glory to His cross" and "yes and i must, i will esteem all things but loss for Jesus' sake; may my soul be found in Him..." (which, of course, is about losing your life to find it). i am so wowed right nowby the doctrine of our union with Christ.

A New Hymn

i don't think i've blogged on this one before... forgive me if i have... (it's another sandra, ps)

Jesus, the Lord, My Savior Is

Jesus, the Lord, my Savior is,
my Shepherd and my God,
my Life, my Strength, my Joy, my Bliss,
and i His grace record

whate'er i need in Jesus dwells,
and there it dwells for me.
'tis Christ my earthen vessel fills
with treasures rich and free.

mercy and truth and righteousness
and peace most richly meet
in Jesus Christ, the King of grace,
in Whom i stand complete

as through the wilderness i roam,
His mercies i'll proclaim.
and when i safely reach my home,
i'll still adore His Name.

"worthy the Lamb" shall be my song,
for He for me was slain.
and with me, all the heav'nly throng
shall join and say "amen."

mercy and truth and righteousness
and peace most richly meet
in Jesus Christ, the King of grace,
in Whom i stand complete.

Jesus, the Lord, my Savior is,
my Shepherd and my God,
my Life, my Strength, my Joy, my Bliss,
and i His grace record.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
i love all the intimacies this song talks about - all these different ways in which Jesus is ours and we are His. the song is so packed with them i feel like i have to listen to/sing it over and over to really let it sink in. my favorite part, though, is the chorus. i imagine it like a venn diagram - mercy, truth, righteousness, and peace (which is an unfathomable combination of perfection, ps) are all their own circles, but somehow the overlapping part is spilling over with gold and jewels... kinda typical pirate fare, if you will. in other words, it's not just that Christ has these characteristics, but that in Him they find their fullest, most glorious explication and display. i just think it's beautiful. it makes me think about the beauty of Christ.

i also am just crazy about the idea that Jesus is my Bliss. that is just so awe-inspiring. Almighty God is my deepest happiness. where in the world did that come from??? [in case you can't tell, i'm in full-on 'holy cow the gospel is earth-shattering!' mode right now...] it just is so exciting to me - i can't imagine anyone wanting to be my bliss, let alone die to make Himself so forever!

tomorrow i'll do a bit on "no more, my God" unless someone wants to chime in and tell me i did it already...:)