A Beautiful Song is Being Sung, Go Dance!

Do you remember a few weeks ago when I came back and thanked you all for your grace? You all have walked with me through seasons and some of which were "dry" seasons when it comes to blogging. Well I told you then that instead of retreating during seasons that I would dive in and bear my heart. So here you go. :)

 I, being the human I am, failed. I continue to try to live on yesterday's mana. I let my mind wander to what others have and what I am lacking. I stopped noticing the things I am thankful for and stopped looking for the good in my life. I only noticed what wasn't.

This was the foothold I let Satan have. As soon as I gave him an inch, he tool a mile, and then another. He was making his way to my heart and consuming my mind.

I had burning tears sting my face, thinking; NO! This isn't it. This is NOT what I'm going to live in. I felt this when I was younger, misery {there's nothing more in this world, hopelessness}. I cannot live this again!

The interesting thing is that NOTHING in my life changed. There wasn't anything that happened that "ruined" my life. I was living in the same blessings that God had given me, but I was only seeing what wasn't. I chose to allow one negative thought to snowball into a mind consuming battle.

All the while God was there, my best friend, quietly reminding me that he has already won this war. This chaos in my mind, he already quieted it, but I have to choose where I am going to stand; in the chaos or in the peace.

At this the devil yelled! I chose God already. What I am living in is because of others. "They" made me this way, "they" did this! Oh, his yell roared! My rock was strong, but when their sand swirled, it effected my foundation. I should be mad!

And my friend, still quiet, full of peace, kept calling me. His voice so tender and sincere, carrying a melody that my heart longed to dance to. One that was familiar, yet new.

So, we danced. We danced to a song of humility. Because, while meekness can seem so humiliating in the definition we know, there is nothing more empowering. The ones around me, who see the very worst of me will either see a savior who loves like uno other, or a crazy woman.

Nothing about this journey makes sense. I am learning to be okay with that. My challenge, and maybe yours too, is to not try to plan and put together an entire puzzle with only one piece. My dance, the song He is singing over me, is to live each moment with new mana, enjoying all the qualities of that puzzle piece. I am to praise Him with a thankful heart, laying down all of my weakness as well as all of my dreams. My dance is to enjoy with full gladness everything I have and everything I lack, knowing that He is constantly singing over me.

Today, I pray that you find peace. May my weakness show off God's strength! Let Him strengthen you too!

Father, my best friend, thank you for singing such a beautiful song over me. I ask you to sing over everyone of your children. May they hear your song and respond with humility and joy to your love! You know right where they are and everything they are facing. May they hear your quiet whisper through the enemy's roar. In Jesus' name, Amen.

~Awaken Us~

Brenna Stanford

Scripture:

• "For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard." Romans 3:23 NLT
• "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us." John 1:8 NIV
• “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day." Exodus 16: 4 NIV (whole chapter here)
• "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8 NIV
• "For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline." 2 Timothy 1:7 NIV
• "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." Proverbs 4:23 NIV
• "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8 NIV
• "And after the fire came a gentle whisper....Then a voice said to him," 1Kings 19:12-13 (whole chapter here)
• "Oh give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples." 1 Chronicles 16:8
• "Bless the LORD, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul," Psalm 103

The Song We Sing

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us                          You who fear him, trust in the Lord-
     but to your name be the glory,                        he is their help and shield.
     because of your love and faithfulness.
                                                               The Lord remembers us and will bless us:
Why do the nations say,                                     He will bless the house of Israel,
     'Where is their God?'                                     he will bless the house of Aaron,
Our God is in Heaven;                                    he will bless those who fear the Lord -
     he does whatever pleases him.                       small and great alike.
But their idols are silver and gold,
     made by the hands of men.                        May the Lord make you increase,
They have mouths, but cannot speak,                 both you and your children.
     eyes, but cannot see;                                  May you be blessed by the Lord,
they have ears, but cannot hear,                           the Maker of heaven and earth.
     noses, but cannot smell;
they have hands, but cannot feel,                  The highest heavens belong to the Lord,
  feet, but cannot walk;                                        but the earth he has given to man.
  nor can they utter a sound with their throats.    It is not the dead who praise the Lord,
Those who make them will be like them,               those who go down to silence;
     and so will all who trust them.                  it is we who extol the Lord,
                                                                           both now and forevermore.
O house of Israel, trust in the Lord -
     he is their help and shield.                         Praise the Lord."
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord -
     he is their help and shield.                         - Psalm 115 (NIV, 2005)

This Psalm, a song sang at the Passover meal to celebrate how God rescued His people. This song is meaningful and applicable to our lives today.

The first thing that is sung is that God's name will be glorified. This needs to be the heartbeat of our lives, the song that our lives sing. When you hear something like that, the heartbeat of your life, or the purpose for your life, what do you think of? So many of us jump to the big picture of our life, the sum of all of our moments. It is so easy to overlook the fact that the big picture of our life is the sum of our moments.

So if God being glorified is what the big picture of our lives needs to look like, it is also what our moments need to look like. Our moments need to sing God's glory.

Our challenge is to stay in the Word, so we can read and study and hear from the Lord and His instructions for us. Every day we are to wake up, praise Him, and ask the Spirit to fill our heart and mind.

Once we accept Jesus into our heart as savior, the Holy Spirit fills us and we are marked with Him. (Ephesians 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,) So we aren't asking the Spirit to fill us because He left us. We are simply directing our mind and heart to acknowledge that everyday we need God. We are intentionally making ourselves aware of the Spirit and His presence in our life and our need for Him. This is how our moments will glorify God, when we are intentionally about listening for His guidance in our every moment.

The next portion of this song talks about the idols that others were worshiping. While in most areas today people aren't bowing down to a statue, people are bowing down to money, to status, to busyness, to mediocrity, and about a million other things. While I understand that it takes money to survive in this world, I want to help you understand that that does not mean that money is to be your first priority. The same goes for anything else you can fill in the blank with. We can spend a lot of time here and many blog posts here, but we aren't going to today. So I am leaving you with this, NO. THING. is to be in the first priority spot except for God, not your spouse, not your kids, not your job, not anything. That spot belongs ONLY to God. 

The answer for why, follows those verses, because God is our help and shield. God blesses us when we follow and obey Him. No matter who you are, the president or lowest of low, God blesses and loves you when you glorify Him.

>>>>>Side note here. We, humans, we are the ones who established a "rank" within ourselves. The only rank God gave was that we were to rule and reign over the earth. Our sin put everyone in these "brackets". So no matter who considers you what class, or how you even consider yourself, God is adamant in the Word about how He sees you; HIS CHILD. A child of the most high king. The one who created it all and the one in whom everything has its purpose. YOU BELONG TO HIM.

Challenge yourself to be aware of His presence and guidance and to let your moments, each one, bring glory to Him. I bet you will see some major blessings. If nothing else you will be more aware of the Spirit at work in your life, that alone is a blessing unlike any other! If you aren't sure how ask Him. After all, He is your daddy, your best friend, your number one supporter, He wants you to have all the goodness that you can!

Father, thank you for your love and faithfulness to us! Help us to sing your glory today in every moment! Show us just how you are with us. Lead us through each moment. May your Spirit equip us today! In Jesus' name, Amen!

~Awaken Us~

Brenna Stanford

P.S. I am going to be including little nuggets of ways that I have been able to enhance my prayer life, or area of life that these blogs pertain to. Today, I want to share with you the heart fill, the spirit fill! God wired me so that emotions play a big role in how I tick. One thing I have learned is that our limbic system affects our emotions, unlike words. I have been using Frankincense essential oil during my prayer time, and throughout my day. It has helped to stabilize my emotions so that I am more focused on my time with the Spirit, and His presence in my moments.