November 22, 2024

From The Inside Out

July 13, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv
A thousand times I’ve failed
Still Your mercy remains
And should I stumble again
Still I’m caught in Your grace

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame

Your will above all else, my purpose remains
The art of losing myself in bringing You praise

My heart and my soul, I give You control
Consume me from the inside out, Lord
Let justice and praise, become my embrace
To love You from the inside out

From the inside out, O my soul cries out
And the cry of my heart is to bring You praise
From the inside out, O my soul cries out
From the inside out, O my soul cries out
From the inside out, O my soul cries out

Singer-Songwriter: Joel Houston ~ along with Hillsong United

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

My Bible study lesson today was titled “Inside Out” by Beth Moore from her study, Children of the Day.  At first I didn’t relate the title to this song.  The lesson is based on 1 Thessalonians 4:9 AMP:

But concerning brotherly love [for all other Christians],
you have no need to have anyone write you,
for you yourselves have been [personally] taught by God to love one another.

Did you catch that last phrase, “…personally taught by God…”?  The Thessalonians didn’t need anyone to instruct them on how to love other Christians for they had been PERSONALLY TAUGHT BY GOD!  This thought blew my mind.  It totally captivated my attention.  The Thessalonians had learned to love FROM THE INSIDE OUT!  They learned it straight from God.

And you know what?  We can, too!  When we made our decision to surrender to Jesus and follow Him, we literally received the Holy Spirit into our beings.  Look at John 14:26 HCSB:

But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit
—the Father will send Him in My name—
will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.

The Spirit of God resides in us and will teach us all things!  Our learning does not have to be from the outside in.  Beth Moore puts it this way:

“God’s Spirit bypasses all formal routes of the learning curve and the lesson comes straight from Him.”

(Wow…if that doesn’t excite you, I’m not sure anything will!)

Then this song came to mind and I looked at it in a whole new light.  What if we truly gave God control—complete control?  What if we allowed Him to teach us, to “consume me from the inside out” instead of being stuck in our preconceived ideas?  What if we truly learned to love as the Thessalonians did…”from the inside out?”

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Father God, Thank You so very much for placing Your Spirit within us.  Open us to His teachings.  Teach us, O God, for we cannot learn as much on our own.  My soul cries out to You in praise.  Teach me, O God, from the inside out.  In Your Holy name, we pray, Amen – so be it!

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Touch The Sky

May 11, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

What fortune lies beyond the stars
Those dazzling heights too vast to climb
I got so high to fall so far
But I found Heaven as love swept low

My heart beating, my soul breathing
I found my life when I laid it down
Upward falling, spirit soaring
I touch the sky when my knees hit the ground

What treasure waits within Your scars
This gift of freedom gold can’t buy
I bought the world and sold my heart
You traded Heaven to have me again

Find me here at Your feet again
Everything I am, reaching out in surrender
Come sweep me up in Your love again
And my soul will dance
On the wings of forever

Hillsong United
Written by Joel Houston, Dylan Thomas, Michael Guy Chislett

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Then I fell on my knees and spread out my hands to Yahweh my God.
Ezra 9:5 HCSB

Let them take hold of My strength and make complete surrender to My protection,
that they may make peace with Me!
Yes, let them make peace with Me!
Isaiah 27:5 AMP

“God said, ‘No, it doesn’t matter who you are,’ and because of that, we don’t have to try and elevate ourselves in order to find God. We find God from a position of surrender.”
– Joel Houston
(Read more here.)

“I got so high to fall so far…
I bought the world and sold my heart.”

Ever wonder why we let it get to this point before we surrender to God’s will?  Why do we insist on trying to do it on our own and then run to God as a last resort?  Why does it take abject failure to bring us to our knees?  As Christians, we know the rewards of turning our lives over to God.  So why do we keep taking it back again?  Our attitudes change and our focus shifts from the wonders of heaven to the realities of this world.  We seek happiness and meaning through earthly desires, instead of falling at the feet of Jesus.  What we need to remember is found in Galatians 2:20 AMP:

I have been crucified with Christ [in Him I have shared His Crucifixion];
it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me;
and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in
(by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God,
Who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Christ loved us enough to die for us so we could live by faith rather than chasing earthly desires and passions.  Galatians 5:24 NLT tells us that “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to His Cross and crucified them there.” True meaning and happiness can only be found in our total surrender to Him.  We can find new life only when we fall at the foot of the cross in complete surrender.

“My heart beating, my soul breathing
I found my life when I laid it down
Upward falling, spirit soaring
I touch the sky when my knees hit the ground
Find me here at Your feet again
Everything I am, reaching out in surrender
Come sweep me up in Your love again
And my soul will dance
On the wings of forever”

This is my favorite part of the song.  When we hit our knees and spread our hands to Yahweh, we find peace and protection in Him. Then we can touch the sky and our souls can dance on the wings of forever.

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

2014 – My Journey This Year

December 31, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

My journey this year has been exciting.   My one friend has lost her mom after a stroke.  Another is getting to watch her oldest children go through relationships as young people and see how they navigate with God at the head of the relationships. I have met new friends…older and younger.  We have finished expansions on our home and repainted other areas.  Through this I have learned how impatient I can be.  And then I have learned to continue to look toward God for my Strength and my Shield.

I have seen relationships end and others grow in numbers (those are fun!).  Baby showers are the promise of new life to come.  God has given us the gift of new life around us.  God has given me the responsibility, along with others, to help lead our area in the Children’s Ministry; and it is fun to see the children grow and come through our doors at church for Early Childhood group. I helped organize our team for the Hallelujah Hoedown…which was a blast. It was hot, but it was fun.

I have learned this year to focus and trust God more. Working through the practices for the Hoedown, took lots of time. I was and am very thankful for what time all the volunteers gave to me and to the children this year. I have learned to look at myself and know my limits…there and at work.  At home I have learned to not be critical of others.  I have learned to pray more and wait patiently for God’s grace.

With Everything ~ Hillsong United / Joel Houston, songwriter

Filed Under: Seeking Him Daily Devotional Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

From The Inside Out

August 2, 2014 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv
A thousand times I’ve failed
Still Your mercy remains
And should I stumble again
Still I’m caught in Your grace

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame

Your will above all else, my purpose remains
The art of losing myself in bringing You praise

My heart and my soul, I give You control
Consume me from the inside out, Lord
Let justice and praise, become my embrace
To love You from the inside out

From the inside out, O my soul cries out
And the cry of my heart is to bring You praise
From the inside out, O my soul cries out
From the inside out, O my soul cries out
From the inside out, O my soul cries out

Singer-Songwriter: Joel Houston  /  Performed by Hillsong United

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

My Bible study lesson today was “Inside Out” by Beth Moore from Children of the Day.  At first I didn’t relate the title to this song.  The lesson is based on 1 Thessalonians 4:9 AMP:

But concerning brotherly love [for all other Christians],
you have no need to have anyone write you,
for you yourselves have been [personally] taught by God to love one another.

Did you catch that last phrase, “…personally taught by God…”? The Thessalonians didn’t need anyone to instruct them on how to love other Christians for they had been PERSONALLY TAUGHT BY GOD!  This thought blew my mind.  It totally captivated my attention.  The Thessalonians had learned to love FROM THE INSIDE OUT!  They learned it straight from God.

And you know what?  We can too!  When we made our decision to surrender to Jesus and follow Him, we literally received the Holy Spirit into our beings.  Look at John 14:26 HCSB:

But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit—the Father will send Him in My name—
will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.

The Spirit of God resides in us and will teach us all things!  Our learning does not have to be from the outside in. Beth Moore puts it this way:

“God’s Spirit bypasses all formal routes of the learning curve and the lesson comes straight from Him.”

(If that doesn’t excite you, I’m not sure anything will.)

Then this song came to mind and I looked at it in a whole new light.  What if we truly gave God control—complete control?  What if we allowed Him to teach us, to “consume us from the inside out” instead of being stuck in our preconceived ideas?  What if we truly learned to love as the Thessalonians did…”from the inside out?”

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Father God, Thank You so very much for placing Your Spirit within us.  Open us to His teachings.  Teach us, O God, for we cannot learn as much on our own.  My soul cries out to You in praise.  Teach me, O God, from the inside out.  In Your Holy name, we pray, Amen – so be it!

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,