ponderings on heaven

I've always loved music and wanted to be able to play and sing. Whenever I sing to myself, it sounds good and I was happy, but I have a brother who has more of an ear for music than I do and he always told me I didn't sound good. So recently I did record myself singing and yes, it sounded awful. Seriously.

Whether it's a good thing or a bad thing that it sounds good in my head, I don't know. Yes it's quite hard, but there was one thing that stuck out for me as good. One of my current favourite songs, the one I tried to sing, was "Better Than a Hallelujah" by Amy Grant. One line says "God just hears a melody".... so to God, even if we are the most horrific singers ever, well not to Him, I bet it's a beautiful melody to His ears.

This topic is also making me think of heaven. Since we'll have new bodies and everything's gonna be great up there, I'm sure we'll be able to do loads of things we just can't do here on earth. Another time I think of heaven a lot, especially lately, is when people say they're moving away. A while of sadness and grumping later, then I just realise what BLISS it's gonna be up there. There's an old hymn that says we shall never part again. I like to think it not only means no more parting from death, but also that we won't have to live far away, we'll be able to be together forever.

While I'm on the topic of heaven, it reminds me of one of the songs we've been hearing on Grandad's old LP records - many beautiful songs, but this one is called Will There Be Any Stars?
It's sung by Burl Ives

It talks about "Will there be any stars in my crown?" This is kind of a different topic from above, but the stars in the crown refer to good things we do on this earth that make God pleased. Whether it's really stars or not, I don't know, but they're little rewards, or something like that. Whatever, it's all gonna be good. But it does say that as much as we long to be there, there's things we need to do here first. Different for each one of us.

Still on this theme, another old song talks about "the good Lord's blessed the labour of these two hard-working hands and when all of life is over ... then these hands of mine shall touch the hands of God". Pretty much what I talked about before, but at the beginning of the chorus the singer belts out: There'll be a welcome there for me! And I find it really touching hearing words like that sung by people who have since passed into eternity and are up there enjoying this life at this moment. Same when I remember people say things like "my name's written in the book of life and someday I'm going up to be with Jesus", in no time at all, they're there.

That song brought to mind something else so I'll write about that too. It begins with "There are many things in life that I cannot understand". I'm sure that's true of us all. One thing about heaven that I've pondered without a productive answer, concerns those who died and were old enough to think for themselves, but for whatever reason weren't like an adult but more like a child and maybe their brain didn't work for figuring things out. I know it's simple enough for loads of people to understand, and I'm having a hard time describing what kind of people I'm on about, but I hope folks reading this will understand where I'm coming from. On this, I don't think there's really a concrete answer. So this song tells us, well we're not God and we'll just have to wait to know these things!

Does it matter?

Sometimes, people attract you for whatever reason. You admire them for being so nice, genuine, caring, meaningful, open, loving, or courageous. Or whatever you like or believe, people attract you when they have the same values. You know, it immediately turns you on when you hear they're a Christian, or turns you off when you hear they're an atheist. As judgemental as that sounds, and I certainly don't intend to do it, but sometimes that's just what happens.

Well, then you might find out something else about them that might make you feel differently. For me, that might have been : that they have been involved in as physical fight, that they swear, that they have had sex before marriage, or even that they're a Catholic or an atheist, supposing I've liked them in the first place. I saw something on my family tree recently in the dates that, if they are correct, point towards something wrong.

So what do you do? If you're human, you might turn off and your opinion of the person goes down. Or, what would Jesus do? Love them anyway. As much as I say I would do the same, I have had so little experience with some kinds of people that I wonder if I even would treat "different" people normally. Or if it's something they've done, forgive them. Or if their values are not what you'd agree with, pray for them. Sometimes that too seems like a tall order that doesn't seem like it will ever happen. I've started trying to pray for those on TV who I like for some reasons, but not for others. God can change people. "Nothing is impossible for God".

This song talks about that phrase in "nothing is impossible for You", repeated over and over, and although it's called "Healer", it can also be referred to being healed from sins.

Our God is a great big God...

Well, camp was an amazing time in which God was ever present! The total of kids becoming Christians was about SIXTEEN. Just amazing and so humbling for us. Some of them have no Christian connection so we're very aware sometimes that this might be all they get.

Each night four of us leaders did a question and prayer session with the girls in our dorm. At the beginning we asked around, were they a Christian, and we got some "don't-know's". It was amazing how often those kids who didn't know asked so many questions over these nights, until at the last we prayed round they ALL piped up and then one who'd been a "don't-know" quietly said "I prayed the prayer". We were all cheering for her and prayed round again for her, and we were all crying! And for me, it's a big deal since I almost never cry so God was totally there. He really was.

Something else I'd like to share: some kids came through the kids' club thing our small church runs and again the responsibility on us there is HUGE. That is all they're usually getting as to hearing about Jesus and I've felt ever since I became a Christian that this church doesn't do Him justice and HOW can someone be saved through this? I've been feeling like someone needs to do something for ages and then read this portion of scripture in Jeremiah which really encouraged me! And btw, I'm not one who regularly reads my Bible, other than my study notes, it's just what came up!

"The word of the LORD came to me, saying,
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew [a] you,
before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."

"Ah, Sovereign LORD," I said, "I do not know how to speak; I am only a child."
But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a child.' You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you," declares the LORD.

Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, "Now, I have put my words in your mouth."

So I would say it's all worth it! Ok, from camp you do come home with lack of sleep and sun burns, but it's definitely worth that.

Here is a song we learned which made me cry a few times.

"Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them."

On that note, let the summer begin! Or it may have already begun for some, but here, it is just beginning. I'm off to camp today for a few days and really hope I will have the confidence to speak up, enjoy myself, and most importantly help to share the love of Jesus.

I hope everyone has a fantastic summer, whatever you're doing! I love summertime, maybe because I was born at this time of year.

Thank You Jesus for friendship and sunny days. Thank You for the chances we still have to be together with other Christians and bringing You into other people's lives. I also thank Jesus for all these parents who send their kids to a Christian camp when they have no Christian background, just send them off to camp anyway. Kids have been saved at the camp before, let's pray for more.

Enjoy yourselves everybody.

Each mile I put between the past, and the future in Your hands...

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11

I've known that verse so well over the past few years. At the stage I'm at in my life right now, it's more and more relevant. Making decisions is one of the hardest things in the world for me, so even more so when it's big decisions. The only decision that's currently easy is I'm going with what God wants and putting it all in His hands. That's probably easier saying it like that than actually doing it. I don't really like changes, but at the same time want to do something really big and different.

But in the past few days, while looking through my blog list as usual, a thought comes to me that I can be thankful that I do have decisions to make, that my future is open. I do wonder why I read people's blogs that make me so emotional, but at the same time I just love this thing of getting to know people from across the ocean and get inspired by them all the time.

So what I'm saying now, in particular, is about the things happening with Kristen recently. Some people have fewer options, and when they look to the future, it's not quite the same as when we do. Dreams and ambitions can seem further away, so I guess I can count myself lucky, even though I'm one of those people who have so few concrete plans.

Here is my current favourite song, which offers so much hope.

The Joy of Chrissie

It's all over blogland right now. Over on All Are Precious In His Sight, Chrissie has gone to be with Jesus. I don't think it's really sunk in yet. Although I don't know them personally, a few months ago God led my heart to this family, as He has to many others. From what I can see, she was such a beautiful and happy little girl, so full of joy, as was, quite appropriately, her middle name.

On Building the Blocks I just read a post about Chrissie too - about the phrase Boss Your Heart which, as stated in the post, was something said to Chrissie just before a miracle occurred. So what that post said was that in memory of Chrissie, who I know I will remember for a long time, to let God be the boss of our hearts. Forever.

"Jesus Jesus, precious Jesus, oh for grace to trust You more. I'm so glad I learned to trust You ... ". I'm so glad I have Jesus. I thank You Lord for Chrissie's short life and for the many miracles You performed during it. I thank You for the whole heart of love You gave her, although her heart physically did not work as it should. I thank You that she is now in Your arms and being loved by You for eternity. We pray for those left behind, in whose hearts her memory will always live on. I pray for comfort, strength and peace for the family and all who knew her personally. Amen.

As I said once before, something like this takes the importance of everything else away. It doesn't matter that I never met her in this life. God drew me to her in spirit, through the amazing gift of the internet. I still feel emotional over it. So right now I hope we will all keep her memory alive.

* This picture is one I did on Paint for Chrissie's prayer book. I feel it is indeed very fitting: she is Princess Chrissie, the daughter of our King, Jesus Christ. And now she is with Him always. Smiling all the time. And, one of the little hearts has an extra line through it. That wasn't intended, but the more I look at it the more I feel it is meant to be. She had a "broken" heart while here on earth, but now it is healed like the other full hearts on the picture.

Smile for Jesus Chrissie ... and everyone smile for Chrissie.

The coolest kid in town ...

Here's another interesting little story. When a group of people were selling eco-friendly bags here, one actually called out "You'll be the coolest kid in town!"



Is that a good enough reason to buy one? I've never really wanted to be that popular. The things the so-called "cool" kids around here wear and have seem a bit over the top sometimes. And to support this, here is a quote from iwise.com:



"I want to be different, like everybody else I want to be like. I want to be just like all the different people. I have no further interest in being the same because I have seen difference all round and now I know that's what I want. I don't want to blend in and be indistinguishable. I want to be part of the different crowd and and assert my individuality along with others who are different like me."

What does God say about this? To look at Romans 12:2, we are told to "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

In a previous post, I mentioned Philippians 2:14-15, as it has the words "shine like stars", which I have a bracelet with that on. God's view of "the coolest kid in town" is different to that of the world's. So let's be the coolest kid in town, in God's eyes!


On another topic, on the query in the last post about the Iceland volcano, that's in the comments on said post. And the funny story about that, for you people not in this area, there was a group of scientists from somewhere in the UK stranded in Norway and they got on a ship headed for Orkney. But they are now stranded in Orkney as the regular boat for here passed them headed for Norway!

And finally please pray for Chrissie - go over to All Are Precious In His Sight for details.