The Rest of Them

People-pleaser that I am, I very often have to utter this song as my prayer. More than the heartfelt melody, these lyrics reflect what I often plead to God about. May He constantly help me to seek His pleasure alone and lay down any earthly approval that I have idolized.

Verse:
There are people who come and go in life
Who try to take away the heart that’s Yours;
And when I have turned away
To less important things,
Have me, bring me, pull me back to You.

Chorus:
None other may I love but You, O Lord,
None other may I seek but You alone;
And the rest of them,
No matter who they are,
May I lay them down before Your throne.

I Pray These Things for You

The year 2008 has been a year of numerous comings and goings in my life. So many faces have come and gone. New/old friends, mentors and students, church crowds and long-time coworkers and dear relatives...including myself...all have been part of the cycle. It's all quite bittersweet, and my mind recalls this composition.

I wrote this song as a gift to my best friend when she and her family moved to California almost five years ago. Now, even while I wish the same things for the other coming/going people in my life...I try to hope that all my family and friends share this prayer too...

Verse 1:
I look at you one final time
Before I let you go,
The time to pass before we meet,
Only God can know.
How to face the things beyond this land
Not one of us know now,
But look to Christ, our Master,
He’ll be there to show you how.

Verse 2:
The changes that will happen
Within the years to come,
May bring you pain and hardship
Or jubilant song.
The years ahead lie blurry
Like a bend upon the road.
But today let’s join our hearts to thank
What God has since bestowed.

Chorus:
Faith will give you confidence
For every day in view,
Hope will give you promises
When things look grey and blue,
Love is greatest over all,
For it will see us through,
No matter what tomorrow brings,
I pray these things for you.

Homesick for Heaven

People sometimes do not understand why I say I'm homesick when I'm actually spending the staggering majority of my time at home. When I say I'm homesick nowadays though, I'm referring to quite a different home, a Home more real than anything. Am I suicidal? No. Yet sometimes, I do get homesick...in this piece, I've once again borrowed a few lines from a friend. If you read this, you know who you are. Thanks for the help.

When struggles always reoccur…
When battles in the soul refuse to end…
I’m homesick, I’m homesick,
I’m homesick for heav’n.

When those one cares about the most…
Fall short of what ones wishes they had been…
I’m homesick, I’m homesick,
I’m homesick for heav’n.

When I discover in myself…
Repeatedly what I detest to see…
I’m homesick, so homesick,
So homesick for heav’n.

When knowing what is right to do…
Cannot equate to making it come true…
I say, “Lord, I’m homesick,
I’m homesick for heav’n.

“Lord, burn me hard, and burn me bright,
And burn me fast until the end,
That in You, I soon might
Be back home in heav'n."