running to you

It seems like many of my blogs these days have come from songs I am listening to. This is another case of that. I have been listening to the newest Newsboys CD "Born Again." A favorite song on this CD has become one called "Running to You."



The words to the course really jumped out at me as I was listening to them.

When everything is broken

There's a door wide open

You'll find me running through

More than just emotion

My broken heart has chosen

Jesus, I'm running to you

I'm running to you

What is my natural response when my world is broken? Where do I run? Who do I run too? Those are some of the questions that started running through my head since I really stopped to think about those words.

Running to Jesus is the one place where we can always be sure that we will not end up on our own. He will be there! Many times we have to make the choice that is where we will go with our broken heart because it may seem more natural and easier to turn elsewhere.

do you ever wonder . . .

Do you ever have those moments when you begin to wonder how another person came to the conclusion that they did about something? The conclusion - your conclusion - seems so logical to you and you are sure it is the only one, except for the other person who has come to a different conclusion based on the same set of facts. Do you ever wonder if maybe you are actually the one who is "out to lunch" with your conclusion?

Do you ever wonder how someone could possibly think that what they are doing is sane? Or safe? Or smart? You would never do it and so you assume that no one else would either. And maybe you are right about it not being sane or safe or smart. But maybe you are not right, and while it looks crazy to you there is nothing wrong with the other person doing that?

Do you ever wonder why you chose to do what you do right now - whether it be your job, or school, or staying at home with your kids? Do you ever wonder about what it would be like if you had chosen something totally different? If you had taken that huge, scary risk to follow a crazy dream?

Do you ever wonder why you do things the way you do them? Do you ever wonder why some people do things the way they do them? Do you do things certain ways because that is how you taught to do them? Or because it works for you? Or because you just wanted to do it differently than everyone else?

Do you ever wonder why we spend so much time trying to be different from everyone around us? Why can we not be happy with who we are? Do you ever wonder where our focus on trying to stand out from the crowd comes from? Do you ever wonder if there is sometimes value in blending in with the crowd?

Lately I have had these questions and more running through my head. I do not have an answer to many of them, but they have been making me think. Maybe they will make you think too. I would love to hear the way you would complete the question: Do you ever . . .

i'll be there

I was listening to a CD today that I haven't listened to in a while. The lyrics of one of the songs really got me started thinking. The song is called "I'll be There" by Faber Drive. (They're not a "Christian band" but there was definitely some good stuff in this song.)

Here's the lyrics for you to read and think about. (I tried to post the song but I could find a small enough screen of it that it fit on the blog well. You can find it on youtube if you want to listen to it.)

If you're lost

And you need to find

Some escape

Or some peace of mind

Call my name

When you need a friend

And I'll be there, I'll be there

If your dreams

Are drenched in sweat

You can't sleep

There's too much in your head

Cally my name

When you need a friend

And I'll be there, I'll be there

When you can't carry on

When the roads way too long

Know that you're not alone

I can carry you home

If you hold on tonight

I'll be there

If you give

'Till you've got nothing left

Wanted more

But you end up with less

All your friends

Have turned away

But I'll be there, I'll be there

 When you can't  carry on

When the roads way too long

Know that you're not alone

I can carry you home

If you hold on tonight

I'll be there

The weight of the world is too much to take

Pulling you down like a tidal wave

I can hold you, I will hold you

Here and now

When the world seems wrong

When you've come undone

Know you're not alone

I'll be there for you

When you can't carry on

When the roads way too long

Know that you're not alone

I can carry you home

If you hold on tonight

I'll be there

When I first listened to this song I started thinking about the importance of having people in your life who you can call on when you need a friend - when things in your world do not seem right and you are not sure you can make it. Most of us have probably been there at one point or another in our lives and we have been incredibly grateful for those people in our lives who were there for us. We need those kind of friends. We need to be that kind of friend.

We were not made to go through this life alone. If you have ever tried for any length of time to just do it all on your own, this has become abundantly clear to you. Eventually trying to do it all alone becomes overwhelming and we ready to just give up. These are the times when we need to have friends that we can call on who will walk with us, encourage us, challenge us. The life of a follower of Jesus Christ was meant to be lived with others.

Let me ask you a few questions here that I was asking myself for reflection:

Do you have friends who would come when you needed them no matter what they were doing at the time?

Who are the friends you could call on when you were in need?

Are you the kind of friend that others could call on when they were in need?

Are there any changes that need to be made for you to have this kind of friend in your life? To be this kind of friend to others?

As I listened to the song a second time I started to think about all the times that other people have not been able to be there for me. I came to the conclusion that, while we need friends, the only One we can ultimately rely on to be there completely for us (the way this song describes) is Jesus Christ. He will never fail to show up. He will never leave us when we are still in need. With Jesus we will never fail to make it through any situation. I know this to be true from my own life.

The question is: Am I willing to say that I am okay with God being the only One with me always as I go through life? I know if I am honest, that is what I wish I could say, but I know I cannot say that all the time. That is an area where I am still growing and learning. It seems difficult because I cannot see Him when He is with me and sometimes I just want to see, hear, know there is another person right next to me. But, I think as we continue to grow in our relationship with God, we become more and more comfortable with the idea of Him being the only One we can rely on.