Music Video

For you...

Always There

 

When I am less than I should be
And I just can't face the day
When darkness falls around me
And I just can't find my way
When my eyes don't clearly see
And I stumble through it all
You I lean upon, you keep me strong
And you raise me when I fall

You are there when I most need you
You are there so constantly
You come shining through
You always do
You are always there for me

When life brings me to my knees
When my back's against the wall
You are standing there right with me
Just to keep me standing tall
Though a burden I may be
You don't weary, you don't rest
You are reaching out to carry me,
And I know I'm heaven blessed.

You are there when I most need you
You are there so constantly
You come shining through
You always do
You are always there for me

You are there when I most need you
You are there so constantly
You come shining through
You always do
You are always there for me

You are there when I most need you (you are there)
You are there so constantly (so constantly)
You come shining through
You always do
You are always there for me

For me

What Do I Know?

I just heard this song, What Do I Know by Sara Groves. And it really meant something to me, it touched me. It's a sad song, but it will probably mean a lot to you if you are grieving right now. At least, you'll really understand the emotions of it.
I have seen this, the way life ends "too soon" at 80 or 90 years old. I've seen it a lot doing clinicals in a long-term care facility. I was just talking with a fellow student about why we feel like an aging body that starts breaking down, why death, is so un-natural. Because God made us to live forever. We were created for an eternity.

Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

Precious in the sight of the Lord, Is the death of His saints.
Psalm 116:15

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Romans 8:18

Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them.”
Revelation 14:13

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
Revelation 21:4

"O Death, where is your sting?"
I Corinthians 15:52-57
Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed – in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”

” O Death, where is your sting?

O Hades, where is your victory?”

The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

"Veil of Tears" Film Release

Gospel For Asia is opening a film this week in theaters across the U.S., Veil of Tears. Please check for information regarding theater locations, remaining simulcast options, or more information about "Veil of Tears."

Yes, this film does talk about a wieghty subject. It is uncomfortable to hear of a real life tradgedy being lived out along side you in this world. It is easier to ignore, or forget. And though this film is about Asia's most mistreated, it's still described by the Dove Foundation as a film "that will cement your belief in the possibility of hope."

This film will be showing for only one week, starting tomorrow. I hope you are all able to go see it. But if you are not, please pray that God would use this film to bless and move those who do go see it to serve as the Body of Christ should.

What Others Are Saying About "Veil of Tears"

"When I saw it, I knew I would never—could never—be the same. 'Veil of Tears' has taught me how to pray, to give, and to make a difference for Christ." - Joni Eareckson Tada "'Veil of Tears' was so moving and informative. I want everyone to watch it and join us in making a difference in the lives of these women." - Francis Chan

"A well-produced, powerful and shocking exposé. 'Veil of Tears' will have you in tears." - Ray Comfort, Living Waters "A powerful, riveting film . . . that grabs at the heart and won't let go!" - American Family Association

"'Veil of Tears' asks the question, 'Do we care?' Now it's up to us to answer." - John Schlitt, PETRA (Lead Vocalist) "This factual account of the oppression of millions of women in Asia must be told. Though the story begins with tears, the Good News is that help is on the way through the ministry of compassion seen here." - Robert Coleman

Remember

I was thinking of the passage in Psalm 106. I read it this morning and these are the parts that really stuck out to me:
"Praise the Lord!
Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord? Who can declare all His praise? . . . Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders; they did not remember the multitude of Your mercies, but rebelled . . . Nevertheless He saved them for His name’s sake, That He might make His mighty power known. . . Then they believed His words. They sang His praise. They soon forgot His works: They did not wait for His counsel, but lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tested God in the desert. And He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul. . . Who had done great things in Egypt, Wondrous works in the land of Ham, Awesome things by the Red Sea. . . Then they despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His word, but complained in their tents, And did not heed the voice of the Lord. . . Thus they were defiled by their own works, And played the harlot by their own deeds. Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against His people . . .Many times He delivered them; but they rebelled in their counsel, and were brought low for their iniquity. Nevertheless He regarded their affliction, when He heard their cry; and for their sake He remembered His covenant, and relented according to the multitude of His mercies. . . Blessed be the Lord God of Israel From everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say, 'Amen!'
Praise the Lord!"
And then I also read this today.
 Just little reminders,
to remember.
How many times are we commanded to just remember?  In the King James Version bible, the word "remember" appears 148 times. So, we're reminder to remember a lot.

I'm reminded of ten big, daily reminders.

I don't know if you've seen the video, The Gospel, but chances are you have. I would recommend you watch it again.

It's too easy for us to go through each day with out taking the time to think on, to remember, Who God says He is, what He has done for us and the blessings we have been given just this very day.




Psalm 77:11 "I will remember the works of the Lord: surely I will remember thy wonders of old."

~Ashlin

Genius - The Movie

I don't know if you have heard of The Way of the Master, but it is a great outreach ministry that is worth taking the time to visit. If you've ever seen any of their videos you have than you know how they can make you stop and really think about some things. Their movies can start up quite a bit of deep discussion too, if you watch them with a group.

If you haven't seen their new movie, Genius. Here it is:


These will be a well spent 30 minutes!

Let me know what you think; about the video, the ministry, anything, and it might just start up another conversation!

Blessings,
Ashlin

Michael Jr.

    Michael Jr. is my favorite comedian. Period. (I said period even though I put a period already to add emphasis. It's redundant and weird but I've seen it done. One thing I've never seen done, though, is for someone to explain why the said 'period'. . . Now that's weird. . .)
    As I have already said, this month is is Black History Month. I'd love to hear some of what you've been learning about. What is your favorite black historical figure? Have you learned of any new people from history this month that you previously had never heard of?
    Well, you might enjoy testing your knowledge of Black History by watching this funny and interesting video by Micheal Jr.

Take your pick, they're both funny. You can pick both, it's okay.

 

 This guy is just plain funny. I call him hilarious. He is a Christian too, so I will garantee that you will like his stuff if you liked what he said in the video(s). http://michaeljr.com/

 

Have a great day (and keep brushing up on your history),

Ashlin

The Entire Bible in 30 Minutes?!

 Yes, the video below is Genesis through Revelation (Page made possible by Compass Pointes!)

I thought this was very interesting. I hope you do too.

My Theme Song

If I had a theme song I think it would be The Chasing Song by Andrew Peterson.
I really like all of Andrew Peterson's music. I hope you like this song too.

Now and then these feet just take to wandering
Now and then I prop them up at home
Sometimes I think about the consequences
 Sometimes I don't

Well, I realize that falling down ain't graceful
But I thank the Lord that falling's full of grace
Sometimes I take my eyes off Jesus
And you know that's all it takes

Well I wish that I could say that at the close of every day
 I was happy with the way that I'm behaving
'Cause Job, he chased an answer
The wise men chased the Child
Jacob chased her 14 years and he Captured Rachel's smile
 Moses chased the Promised Land
Joseph chased a dream
David, he chased God's own heart
All I ever seem to chase is me

Well, they say a race can only have one winner
And you know you've got to pull out front to win
God knows the only time I'm winning
Is when I'm chasing Him

Well I wish that I could say that at the close of every day
I was happy with the way that I'm behaving
'Cause Samson chased a woman and he chased the Philistines
I'm not quite sure what Jonah chased
But I know he caught the sea
Cain, he chased the harvest
While Abel chased the beasts
David, he chased God's own heart
All I ever seem to chase is me

And Jesus chased the moneymen
And he chased his Father's will
He chased my sin to Calvary
And he caught it on that hill
Saul, he chased the Christians
Till his blindness made him see
David, he chased God's own heart
All I ever seem to chase is me

It's Alright

Verse of the Week has an added video today. =)

"But He said to them, 'Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?' Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm." Matthew 8:26

Olympic Resolve in Prayer Life

We see the passion and determination in the faces of athletes taking part in the Olympics; they give their all to do their very best.

Together as the Body of Christ, we can stand in the gap and pray for the nations with the same fervency and purpose as athletes who compete for a heavenly prize.

The first Friday of every month from 7:30 to 9:30pm, CST you can pray with the GFA family via live streaming services. @: gfa.org/prayer This Friday night, let's believe the Lord will do miracles in the lives of those who have no hope throughout Asia.

Intercede for one another, cry out for the lost, ask God to meet the needs of the helpless and weak. Just like the speaker says in the video above, sometimes it is uncomfortable to know what is going on, we don't always like to hear about those in dire circumstances with great need of our prayer, but what a privilege it is to take on the burdens of others and bring them before the throne of God. "Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ" -Gal:6:2

Mortification - by J. I. Packer

Can you believe July will be over in 2 weeks? Wow.
Oh, back to the post...
My mom recently showed me a post on John Piper's blog. It has really blessed me and so I wanted to share it with you. Please tell me what you think.

Oh, and if your internet is as slow as mine you'll be glad I wrote out all that he said, if not you'll enjoy the video.

J. I. Packer: "Personal prayer begins before the Throne of God with my acknowledgement that He is great, glorious, all-powerful, and ready to help me and I am weak, unstable, with no strength of my own to get things right in spiritual terms. And thus I need His help and need it urgently at all points of obedience but certainly at the point in which I am called to mortify sin.

Sin, I understand in that phrase, is sin in the sense of ungodly and anti-God inclinations in the heart. They are positive inclinations to act in disobedience and they are also negative, that is, they are inclinations not to bother about moral and spiritual issues. That kind of inclination used to be called 'sloth', spiritual laziness. And as far as I'm concerned sloth is still the best word for it. But if I want to mortify sin what I must do is first of all ask God to enable me to see the it sin as He sees, that is as spiritual equivalent as dirt in places where cleanliness ought to be, as something very ugly as well as something very guilty. In prayer also I ask, yes I must ask the Lord to direct the Holy Spirit within me, to drain the life out of sin and in prayer I must seek it seems to me both to see and to fellowship with the Lord Jesus whose disciple I am, whose servant I am and Who most certainly echos the Father's directive that I mortify sin. By the way that directive is expressed by two Greek words. One of them comes in Romans 8:13, I think, and it means put to death. and the other comes in Colossians 3:4, if I remember rightly, it's a different word but it also means put to death, and put to death is the basic idea.

If the Father and the Son in mercy show me Their love to me and draw out of me grateful love to Them, if at the same time the Spirit makes me aware that my sinful habits are what they are and that each single one of them is anathema to God. God wants to see the last of it. And through the power of the Holy Spirit He can actually bring that to pass. Well then I pray, continue to pray, I cherish grateful love to the Father and the Son in my heart, I thank the Lord Jesus for the new life that I already have in Him, risen as indeed I am in Christ, in dwelt by the Holy Spirit, called to holiness and promised all the enabling I need to achieve holiness. I expect to find as I pray along theses lines day by day and - well it depends on the sin that is bothering me at the moment, it may be hour by hour. But as I pray regularly along these lines so I look to find and by the grace of God -again and again I do find- that the sinful desire that was grabbing my heart is getting weaker, and love and loyalty to the Lord and a spirit of praise, adoration and thanksgiving is getting stronger and stronger. And I experience at that point what Thomas Chalmers called "the expulsive power of a new affection".

Love to the Father and the Son simply drains the life out of love for sin and for the particular happiness in which sin expresses itself. I never get to the end of mortifying sin because sin in my heart is still marauding, even though it is not dominant. Sin is constantly expressing itself in new disorderly desires, as bindweed is constantly expressing itself in fresh shoots and fresh blooms. Once bindweed has established itself in your garden or hedge it is very difficult to get out because it is always extending itself under the surface of the soil. And sin in the heart is rather like that. But as blooms of sin break surface and I recognize them, I am called to — indeed deep down in my heart I want to — go into action with this prayer procedure for draining the life out of them. And I think this is a discipline every Christian has to wake up to right at the beginning of the Christian life and continue with as long as we are in this world.

So I picked up what I know about mortification very soon after my conversion which was more than 65 years ago. And mortification is still necessary. There are sinful desires associated with old age, same as there are sinful desires associated with youth. I'm older now but sinful desires, like the bloom of the bindweed, do from time to time grow up. And from time to time I have to go back to the beginning and labour in the practice of mortification as described."

Have you ever heard of J.I. Packer? What did you think of all he said?

Have a great week, all.

Oh Lord, You're Beautiful

Tchaikovsky, Quotes From My Sister, 2012, Ect.

While this is not the type of videos I usually share, I have been listening to Tchaikovsky's music dance around in my head so much I thought I better listen to some of his music so that maybe it would be able to skip out of my mind and be free.

2012 is only 13 days away.

And it is so easy to get wrapped up in all the fun or stress or other things that inevitabley come around this time of year. I'm reminded of how great my little sis is, last year she reminded me to think of others a little more. She said she didn't make New Years resolutions, but what about making a Year End resolution. Like 'I resolve to pray for all the people I've come in contact with this last year' or 'I resolve to spead some joy to someone who needs it' and other things like that.

Well I just have to quote her right now, and I hpe she doesn't mind, but like I said she's great. She said, "And whether you make a resolution or not, please remember all those who went without someone this year. Went without a father, a son, a brother, wife, mother, daughter, husband. This year...and maybe for every year. For every hero we have out there, there is a hero at home, trying to keep together an imcomplete family."

I don't know if you all know it but I have three amazing sisters, that I'm not sure why God allowed me to be related to such inspiring Christians but I'm oh so blessed, and she is one of them. So, don't forget those troops who are spending the rest of 2011 in Afghanistan or Iraq or any place away from their family, and let's remember to keep them in all our prayers.

-Ashlin

"Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments" -Deuteronomy 7:9

Amazing Grace

I love the song; his voice is amazing. But I also love what he says about the song. I hope you enjoy it.
(Don't forget to pause the player on the side.)

Sunday Is....

International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church

Wake Up and See the Glory!

P.S. There is a book give away going on!

Dancing with Orphans

I don't know anything about the organization associated at the end of the video. I just heard the song and thought I'd share it. I hope you enjoyed it.

-Ashlin