Hymn 190

In Physics class, we always start out singing a hymn. One day someone suggested "Hey, let's sing 190!"
"No!" chorused the reply when people saw the what 190 was. Jesus Love Me.
As a little kid, that song was the one we always sang. Soon, it because the symbol of childhood. When I decided that I was an adult, that song became "unfashionable." That song quickly became one of the "oh, that's a little kids songs" that I sang only because there were toddlers in church, or because my mom made me.
It's been a few years since then. I've sang that song every once in a while. I smile at the little kids toddling up to the front of church for Children's Story while that song is tinkling in the background. I've realized it's not such an awful song. To the contrary, I've realized how awe-inspiring it really is.
"Jesus Loves me! this I know for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to Him belong, They are weak, but He is strong." I feel weak. I am just not strong enough to conquer my temptations, to give them all to Jesus. But that's OK, because He is strong. He can cover my weakness!
"Jesus loves me! He who died, Heaven's gates to open wide. He will wash away my sin, let His little child come in." Isn't it incredible! He died, and washes away my sins so I can go to heaven.
"Jesus take this heart of mine, make it pure and wholly Thine. On the cross You died for me, I will love and live for Thee."
That is my prayer, that He will take my heart and make it pure. I surrender it to Him!

He's coming!

I have been so blessed this week. The other day, I was talking to my mom and she said that she was going to come up and visit me. Next Week! It was such a blessing and has taken my mind off of many of my problems. It is so exciting to anticipate the amazing time we will have together.
It made me think about the coming of the Lord. He is coming. Soon! And how exciting is it to think about what is going to happen when He comes. So much more exciting than spending just a week and a half with my mom, I'll be able to spend eternity with the host of saved saints, and most importantly, my Lord.
In orchestra, we have been practicing a lot of songs about the second coming. "Don't you see my Jesus coming? With ten thousand angels round Him, How do they my Jesus crowd! I'm bound for the kingdom, will you go to glory with me? Hallelujah! O praise ye the Lord!"

Back at Last!

At 12:16 AM, Tuesday, February 14, we got back to School from our 2 week long evangelism trip to Las Vegas. It was an amazing opportunity to share our music and to connect as a school. There were to many neat experiences and blessings to be able to name! But despite all the fun we had, there was nothing quite like coming back to school. In last two days, we spent about 24 hours on the buses, northward bound. I don't really mind long bus trips, but that was a bit too long. So when we got here, even though I was half asleep, I was so excited! A real bed! Good water! What a privilege!
As I lay in my bed last night, I couldn't help but think "Ahhh. This is so nice!" It was almost too comfortable -- it took me quite some time to actually fall asleep!
We are going home, and what a blessing to be able to rest after this most epic evangelism trip. We have been sharing our faith in Jesus all our lives, and now we get to be brought home to Him. It has been a long trip, and we are all so tired. I can just imagine sitting in Heaven, soaking up the reality. "My body is perfect -- no blemishes! I don't have to worry about sin, and the effects it has on me -- that's all taken away! Praise the Lord! I'm here, with Jesus!"
God has so much in store for us, more than we can ever imagine. Sometimes I think that there are things that I will miss when I get to heaven, but I have the assurance that what God has planned is even better than everything here. We won't even miss those things. Praise the Lord for that blessed hope. We will soon be in Heaven, at last!

Hoover Dam

The other day we took a field trip to the Hoover dam. It was so neat to go inside the actual structure, to see the electricity generators and learn about the history. People used the water, that once caused much harm, to benefit people all around the area by creating electricity and providing water for irrigation. There were so many details that I would never have been able to notice if I were in charge of building that thing. For example, they ran cold water through the cement as it hardened to help speed up the process.
But God is building an even more impressive structure, your character. There are so many intricate details that make up who you really are. He works every detail, person, and experience to have a changing impact on who you are. Every single trial and hardship you've ever encountered has changed some aspect of your life. But He promises that He is strong enough to deal with any trial that comes your way. He is working on you, building in you that phenomenal structure, so long as you let Him be the cornerstone. It took 5 years to build the Hoover dam, but your character will take a life time. Remember that your character is the only thing that you can bring with you from this world to the next -- Take the time to build it right. God cares about us, and He knows what he's doing. Trust Him.

Best Birthday Present: Part 2

I know this is delayed, but I decided that I need to keep writing on this. I learned so much from my birthday this year -- It will be one of my favorite birthdays for a long time!
So at 5:00 in the morning, my room mate, Sam, woke me up by jumping on my bed and yelling "Heather! Wake up, it snowed!" I shot out of bed, and groggily ran outside. Sure enough, there was almost 2 inches of snow, covering everything around. There were still snowflakes lazily drifting down. Praise the Lord! He answered my prayers.
I couldn't believe how faithful God is. So many of my friends woke up on Thursday and thought "Hey, look at the snow! Heather's going to be so happy!"
Over steaming cups of hot chocolate, Sam told me of a conversation she had with one of the guys. "I knew it was going to snow." He said. I expected a smart continuation like "They changed the forecast" or "of course, the wind last night rolled the clouds and coldness in." But no. His reply was "We prayed for it."
He knew it was going to snow, because we had been praying for it. What faith! I wish that I had that much faith.
So, the part two to the best birthday present was not only snow, but faith.

The Best Birthday Present: Part 1

Today has been a day of learning and of re-learning. These last couple of weeks, I have been praying to God, asking Him for snow on my birthday. I know it's a small thing, but to me, it was big enough to pray about. To me, my birthday has always been full of fun out in the snow, when it's warm enough. (The day I was born it was -50 F. Not much stuff going on outside then.) We had nice weather last week, with temps hoovering around 0 F. The snow reminded me of home, and all I wanted was for it to last until tomorrow.
It didn't. Last night, as I walked up to the dorm, the rain that ran down the road was blurred by the tears that ran down my cheeks. My snow was gone! And it was so close!
As my feet trudged up the hill, my mind tried to wade through the mud of my thoughts. Lord, I know you're heard my prayers. I want to accept your will here! Please encourage me tonight.
Feeling like being solitary, I sat on a couch by myself in worship. I bet the look on my face spelled "bad mood, coming through." A few songs went by before I got the encouragement I had asked for. "Jesus, what a help in sorrows! While the billows o'er me roll. Even when my heart is breaking, He my comfort helps my soul. Hallelujah! What a Savior! Hallelujah! What a friend! Saving, helping, keeping, loving, He is with me to the end."
Isn't God good? He knew exactly the words I needed to hear. I know that even though my heart is breaking, He will comfort my soul! Even if I don't get snow, I know He loves me, and will bless me.
"For I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content" (Phi 4:11 NKJ). I think that Paul, if anyone, had reason to be unhappy with his life, and wonder why God didn't bless him more. But he had learned something. God's blessings don't always come as answers to our wishes. God knows what is good for us. Like a parent encouraging a child to eat broccoli, God will encourage us to trust Him, even though the situation is tough.
Oh the lessons of God's love! He wants to teach me to be happy with the lessons and even the trials that come my way. What an amazing gift God is trying to give me: Contentment. Now that's even better than snow!

The Rock or the Sponge?

The other day, I was talking to a friend about how different people control their anger. He worded it this way: "There are two types of people: Rocks and sponges. Whenever it rains on a rock, the water just bounces right off, without affecting the rock at all. When it rains on a sponge, all the water just gets soaked up. Eventually, when you squeeze the sponge the right way, the water explodes everywhere."
I realized how true that is. I know I tend to be like a sponge. I don't let things just bounce off me. Problems and grudges and sins build up inside until I just can't take it any more. What an unpleasant experience for anyone around me!
I was thinking how unfortunate that is. Why can't God just take away the water? I wouldn't have a problem with that. Doesn't that sound nice? Then I realized just how selfish that would be, for me to deprive God of His means of changing and building my character for His kingdom. God doesn't want me to suffer, but He knows that if I want to be right and ready for His kingdom, I need to get through the trials, with His help.
Later that week, I was sorting carrots (which happens to be a very inspirational task). I was wondering what I, as a Christians, need to be if I can't be a rock or a sponge. Something in between maybe, like coral. The water goes in me, and kinda falls out the other end. I live in the water, but I'm not really affected or changed by it. That didn't really work.
Then all the sudden, I realized what I need to be: a plant. A plant starts as a seed -- kinda hard. It may not seem like its doing any better than a rock. But look at it. It grows! How amazing, that something that should be dead can have life like that!
If a plant goes without water for too long, it won't survive. The rain may seem to pelt the plant and cause it to slouch, but not for long. God uses the water to bring life to the plant, and life to us too. There are cells in the plant that take the water and basically make life-giving oxygen out of it.
Isn't God amazing? When I give Him my trials, He will make them into blessings. If I choose to give Him my life, He will be able to impact others through me. Only when I live like the plant, living to give, will I be able to grow closer to Christ.