Categories
Life

Strength

Featured song: Strength Of My Life, by Leslie Phillips, from Dancing With Danger, 1987.

Life can be incredibly difficult. No matter how good things may seem to be, we live in a world that is broken, and that brokenness may impact me at any time. It could be something that affects me personally, or it could be something that affects someone close to me, or it could be a place in the world that is hit by a disaster, natural or otherwise. Any of these things may be the straw that “breaks the camel’s back”.

Upon waking up in the morning, the disasters in my life can make me feel like I want to just put my head under the pillow to try to make it all go away. The reality of life is that I cannot really escape from these things. The greater reality of life is that I have Someone to carry these burdens for me. There is no way that I am strong enough, especially when that burden is there facing me day after day after day. Jesus takes the load that I cannot, and supports me in my weakness. Let Him be the strength in your life.

I open my eyes to the sound of morning news
And wish for ten more minutes left to sleep
And as I get into the shower
The thoughts of facing one more day
Overwhelm me and I begin to weep
And I’ve never felt
Like I’ve needed Your help,
So bad

Well, my tears are pushed away now
For the sake of morning rush
‘Til the Bible on the table catches my eye
And I read that You are near to
The hearts that break with grief
And I realize that I don’t have to try
To live life myself
Because You’re ready to help
Me live

And every day I look to You
To be the strength of my life
You’re the hope I hold onto
Be the strength of my life

Be the strength of my life
Strength of my life
Be the strength of my life today
Be the strength of my life
Strength of my life
Be the strength of my life today

Each day has its problems, it troubles and its tears
And it seems I’m always anything but strong
When I learn to know my weakness,
I understand Your strength
And even when the hard times last so long
I won’t try by myself,
I’ll just ask for Your help
Each day

And everyday I look to You
To be the strength of my life
Breathe on me and make me new
Be the strength of my life

Be the strength of my life
Strength of my life
Be the strength of my life today
Be the strength of my life
Strength of my life
Be the strength of my life today

Be the strength of my life
Strength of my life
Be the strength of my life today
Be the strength of my life
Strength of my life
Be the strength of my life today

Categories
Life

Carrying

Featured song: He Will Carry You, by Scott Wesley Brown, from his 1983 album Signature.

sorrowLife brings many joys, but it also brings many sorrows. We suffer sickness, loss of friends and family, and pain from things we do to ourselves and things others do to us. We put on the mask that tries to make it clear to the rest of the world that we are handling everything just fine, thank you, but deep inside we feel like we are dying.

Jesus never promised there would be a life with no trials or problems. He did say that He would be there with me through every step of the way. Nothing — nothing! — would be so big or bad that He would be unable to carry me through it.

Today’s song, sung by Scott Wesley Brown, affirms that promise. And it seems all the more powerful accompanied by the commentary by the words of Larry Black, from whose radio program it was recorded, over 20 years ago.

There is no problem too big, God cannot solve it
There is no mountain too tall, He cannot move it
There is no storm too dark, God cannot calm it
There is no sorrow too deep, He cannot soothe it

If He carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulders
I know, my brother, that He will carry you

If he carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulders
I know, my sister, that He will carry you

He said, “Come unto Me
All who are weary
And I will give you rest.”

(repeat)

He will carry you
He will carry
You

Signature, 1983, Scott Wesley Brown
Categories
Life

U Maija?

Ever feel like nothing is going right, nothing goes your way? Every day seems to be a struggle, a fight just to get through everything? You can have that feeling if you don’t have all of your instructions; you can’t do your job if you have not been told how to do it. Or maybe you’ve been told how to do it, but you didn’t listen very closely or you just plain forgot.

You’ve got pressure on all sides – your boss is wanting more work out of you, and your customers are wanting answers to their questions. Here you are in the middle, trying desparately to please both sides, and quite sure that you are failing both miserably.

Getting yourself centered can help. And I don’t mean “sit on a mat on the floor with your legs in the lotus position and find the center of your being”. The center of your being might very well be rather empty, and what you are looking for is not more emptiness. The “center” you need is to connect with the One who made you.

Connecting with God – there seem to be a million ideas on how to do that, from the very traditional to the very weird. The only God and the only connection that is satisfying and fulfilling is that connection with God through His Son, Jesus Christ. Your connection with him is through prayer. And prayer doesn’t have to be a flowery, well designed, grammatically correct statement that your English teacher would be proud of. It simply has to be a statement from your heart.

Your prayer might just be one word: “Help!” Or possibly two words: “I’m lonely” or “I’m scared”. Or it could be tears that don’t stop.

The prayer you need starts with this: “Jesus, I know I’ve screwed it up again. I need your help desparately. I admit my mistakes – my sins – to you. I’m sorry for those sins. Please come into my heart, and make it your own home. Clean out the garbage there, put yourself in control of my life, and I will follow what you want me to do.”

And whether this is a prayer you’ve never prayed before, or whether this is a re-aquaintance with the savior that you have been ignoring, God will gladly welcome you back. And if you’ve offered that prayer in sincerity, with a determination to make that connection with God on a daily basis, through prayer and through reading his Word, the Bible, you are on the road to getting those struggles and pressures in life to start being easier to handle.

Terry Clark released his first solo album in 1978 called Welcome. On that album is a song with a visually strange title: Ugadano Thawanu Maija. Read it (or listen to the song below) and you’ll know what he means. And carefully read the words: It tells in brief what I’ve labored to say here with many more words.


If you wanna find out who you are
Ugadano thawanu maija
If you wanna wish upon a star
Make sure you choose the one he gave ya

Take his love down in your heart
Let him fill your life with purpose
‘Cause if you really want to make a new start
Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija

He’s the one that we all wanna know
He’s the love that we all wanna show
He’s the one that we all wanna know
He’s the love that we all wanna show

If you wanna know what’s right and what’s wrong
Ugadano thawanu maija
If you wanna feel like you belong
Just give him time to persuade ya
 
Take his love down in your heart
And let him fill you life with purpose
Cause if you really want to make a new start
Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija

He’s the love that we all want
He’s the love that we all want
He’s the love that we all wanna show-ow-ow

Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano ugadano
Ungadono thawanu maija

Ugadano ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija
Ugadano thawanu maija