Sound the Bugle - Bryan Adams

Sound the bugle now - play it just for me
As the seasons change - remember how I used to be
Now I can't go on - I can't even start
I've got nothing left - just an empty heart

I'm a soldier - wounded so I must give up the fight
There's nothing more for me - lead me away
Or leave me lying here

Sound the bugle now - tell them I don't care
There's not a road I know - that leads to anywhere
Without a light I fear that I will - stumble in the dark
Lay right down - decide not to go on

Then from on high - somewhere in the distance
There's a voice that calls - remember who your are
If you lose yourself - your courage soon will follow

So be strong tonight - remember who you are
Yeah you're a soldier now - fighting in a battle
To be free once more -Yeah that's worth fighting for

----

This song has to be one of the best I've ever seen that chronicles the journey from the complete and utter loss of heart to getting back into the battle for freedom. Let us never forget who we truly are.

----

Why Is Life So Hard?

I was going to write about how hard life has been, but I think John Eldredge says it rather eloquently, so I'll let him say it instead:

Let's start with why life is so dang hard. You try to lose a little weight, but it never seems to happen. You think of making a shift in your career, maybe even serving God, but you never actually get to it. Perhaps a few of you do even make the jump, but it rarely pans out the way you thought. You try to recover something in your marriage, and your spouse looks at you with a glance that says, "Nice try," or "Isn't it a little late for that?" and the thing actually blows up into an argument in front of the kids. Yes, we have our faith. But even there--maybe especially there--it all seems to fall rather short of the promise. There's talk of freedom and abundant life, of peace like a river and joy unspeakable, but we see precious little of it, to be honest.

Why is it that, as Tillich said, it's only "here and there in the world and now and then in ourselves" we see any evidence of a new creation? Here and there, now and then. In other words . . . not much. When you stand the side by side, the description of the Christian life practically shouted in the New Testament compared with the actual life of most Christians, it's . . . embarrassing. Paul sounds like a madman, and we look a little foolish, like children who've been held back a grade. Why is it that nearly every good thing, from taking the annual family vacation to planning a wedding to cultivation a relationship, takes so much work?

It's almost as if there is something set against us.
John Eldredge - Waking the Dead

Haven't you been there? You're standing like Indiana Jones on the brink of the precipice of faith with your foot in the air to take that step. Suddenly you find yourself desperately fighting to . . .

. . . Keep the car running.
. . . Keep the power on.
. . . Keep your place of residence.
. . . Keep your job.

. . . Put your own story here.

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
Paul - 2 Corinthians 4.16-18

I Will Give You Rest

I woke up this morning tempted to throw my alarm clock across the room and wondering why, after 8 hours of sleep, I was still so tired. The first thing that popped into my head was this passage from Matthew:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (11.28-30)

As I lay there pondering my exhaustion level and this passage, I suddenly wondered, If Jesus' promise is rest for our souls, an easy yoke and a light burden, why are we all so tired?

Ask any of your Christian friends, "How are you?" In most cases, you will get some form of "Tired" in response. And it's not just a physical tiredness. We are emotionally and spiritually exhausted.

That's not the promise. The promise is rest for our souls, not exhaustion.

So, why are we so tired?

Romans 1:1-7

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name amon all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

To all those in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be saints.

Grace to you and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

-ESV

St. Patrick's Lorica

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through a confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of Creation.

I arise today
Through the strength of Christ's birth and His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion and His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection and His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.

I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In obedience of angels,
In service of archangels,
In hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of the patriarchs,
In preachings of the apostles,
In faiths of confessors,
In innocence of virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.

I arise today
Through the strength of Heaven,
The rays of the sun,
The radiance of the moon,
The splendor of fire,
The speed of lightening,
The swiftness of the wind,
The depth of the sea,
The stability of the earth,
The firmness of rock.

I arise today
Through the power of God:
God's might to comfort me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to lead me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's Heavenly Host to save me,
From the snares of the devil,
From temptations to sin,
From all who wish me ill,
From near and afar,
Alone and with others.

May Christ shield me today
Against poison and fire,
Against drowning and wounding,
So that I may fulfill my mission
and bear fruit in abundance.

Christ behind and before me,
Christ behind and above me,
Christ with me and in me,
Christ around and about me,
Christ on my right and on my left,
Christ when I lay down at night,
Christ when I rise in the morning,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone that speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

The Best Day - Taylor Swift

I'm five years old
It's getting cold
I've got my big coat on

I hear your laugh
And look up smiling at you
I run and run

Past the pumpkin patch
And the tractor rides
Look now -- the sky is gold
I hug your legs and fall asleep
On the way home

I don't know why all the trees change in the fall
I know you're not scared of anything at all
Don't know if Snow White's house is near or far away
But I know I had the best day
With you today

I'm thirteen now
And don't know how my friends
Could be so mean

I come home crying and you hold me tight and grab the keys

And we drive and drive
Until we've found a town
Far enough away

And we talk and window-shop
Until I've forgotten all their names

I don't know who I'm gonna talk to
Now at school
I know I'm laughing on the car ride home with you
Don't know how long it's gonna take to feel ok
But I know I had the best day
With you today

I have an excellent father
His strength is making me stronger
God smiles on my little brother
Inside and out
He's better than I am

I grew up in a pretty house
And I had space to run
And I had the best days with you

There is a video
I found from back when I was three
You set up a paint set in the kitchen
And you're talking to me

It's the age of princesses and pirate ships
And the seven dwarfs
Daddy's smart
And you're the prettiest lady in the whole wide world

Now I know why all the trees change in the fall
I know you were on my side
Even when I was wrong
And I love you for giving me your eyes
Staying back and watching me shine

And I didn't know if you knew
So I'm taking this chance to say
That I had the best day
With you today

Training - Day 2

Walking back to my building this afternoon in the pouring rain, I thought, Gosh, training tonight is really going to suck. Not only are we mixing in jogging, we have to do it in the rain.

I get together with my sister after work, and she's telling me about all the things that went wrong today. My goodness, getting to train is going to be difficult today.

We get down to the waterfront and what do we find? A little present from Abba:



Shortly after I took that picture and a little further down the path, I hear PFFF! I looked out into the little harbor we were passing and there was a seal! It was too far away for me to see exactly what kind it was, but it was most definitely a seal.


(Sorry for the seal dot, but my camera can only zoom in so far.)

Not only did Abba send us a rainbow and a seal, but when we were almost back to the car, there was a heron fishing off the rocks who decided we weren't enough of a threat to leave his spot.


God loves and richly blesses his children. Not because of anything we have done, but because it's his nature.

Thank you, Abba!