You Take Me as I Am: Insecurity, My Boring Story, and Coming to Grips with Grace
How could I think that my prideful, selfish, unloving heart being raised to new life is anything less than supernatural? How could I want more drama than that? How could I want a more spectacular demonstration of power than that?
[Sing a New Song] - Defy
Everyone knows the same longing for peace when faced with the hurt and brokenness that is all around us. This is a new song that came out of struggling with this frustration, and we hope that it resonates with you too.
We all are longing so deeply for peace to reign that we can't hide from brokenness anymore. We can't help but take a stand by being peacemakers and refusing to accept the way the world is today.
I Was Made for You: The Story, Singleness, the Church, and a Love Letter to Those Who Really Love Me
As someone who believes strongly in the value of being real, of confessing, of knowing and being known, I live a life torn in two directions. As desperate as I am to be known, I think the vast majority of people around me see the smile on my mouth and call me blessed. What they don’t realize is that I have so much to say that doesn’t come out. They don’t realize I’m a messed up head-case who’s insecure and needy and impatient and selfish—but as much as I want them all to know that and accept me and love me, the reality is that I don’t trust that they’d really accept me if they knew the real me. I can barely get people to like the projected me, so what hope is there that they’ll accept the whole, unfiltered me behind the projected me?
How Am I Going to Be an Optimist about This?
Is the refrain from Bastille's popular song also the refrain of Christians? When the world crumbles around us, in the midst of our guilt and our worry, sometimes our number one concern is "how am I going to be an optimist about this?" After all, if we'll just close our eyes, doesn't it feel like nothing's all that wrong?
"Sooner or Later" by Mat Kearney
Sooner or later, we all endure some form of pain and suffering. As we learn to be honest about this, we are then able to find hope. Because we realize that we are still waiting for something.
"Keep Your Eyes Open" by Needtobreathe
This song reminds me of something that Jesus said: we need to be able to see. Jesus says that unless something supernatural happens to us, we won't be able to see (John 3:3). And those of us who have begun to see, we need our eyes further opened.