Sing the Hallelujah

No matter how far we feel from God, He will find a way to get our attention, to make our hearts sing again...

I was listening to Christmas music on the radio this past December. Hallelujah by Pentatonix came on the radio- my first reaction was “this is a Christmas song?”...

The next time I was in the car, it came on again. So, I listened to the lyrics searching for something that would connect it to Christmas, but that left me perplexed.

Next time I was in the car, it came on again- it was clear that something was drawing me to this song, but what? I went home and looked up the lyrics- trying once again to understand what it all means, and still coming up empty.  

Then later, once again, I turn on the radio and its the same song- this time it’s right at the part where they sing “it’s a cold and its a broken hallelujah”... I teared up. I felt like that one line resonated with my life- I had lost some things I held dear, I had some things break my heart, I had been distant in my relationship with Jesus. The hallelujah I sang with my lips on Sundays at church were just that- cold and broken because the circumstances in my life were overshadowing the joy that was supposed to be in my heart.

I went back and looked at the lyrics for a third time. Now, this may not be “right”, but to me I saw the verses telling stories of circumstances in life- good and bad, rejoicing and heartbreak- and in between every verse is a chorus of hallelujah.

Don’t miss that. The verses about David falling from grace, followed by a chorus of Hallelujah. The verses about losing love and feeling betrayed, followed by a chorus of Hallelujah. No matter the circumstances, they sang Hallelujah. Sometimes it was joyful, sometimes it was lost, or cold and broken. But they sang Hallelujah.  

Do you know what Hallelujah means? It means “Praise the Lord”.

Christmas Eve night, I laid in bed and scrolled through Facebook. On my newsfeed was a link for an autistic girl in Ireland who sang a version of Hallelujah with over 4 million views. I clicked the link, and in a dark room, I closed my eyes and listened. I was soon weeping- not because it’s beautiful (which it is) but because I now knew why I kept hearing this song, why it kept coming on in my car, why this link showed up on Facebook...

Now, the version this beautiful child sang was a different version than the radio one. These lyrics  told the story of the gospel- how Jesus came to earth as a baby and why He did it:

I know You came to rescue me

This baby boy would grow to be

A man and one day die for me and you

My sins would drive the nails in You

That rugged cross was my cross too

Still every breath You drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

The Lord pressed this song on my heart because He knew I needed to be reminded of who He is and what He has done for me. He came to earth for me. He hung on a cross for me. And he gave every breath til His last one, to sing Hallelujah- to praise the Lord. And because of what He did for me, like it says in the song, with every breath I’ll sing hallelujah.

You see, in both versions of the song, the message is clear. No matter the circumstances, the rise, the fall, the heartbreak, and the triumph, in life, and in death, we were created to sing hallelujah. We were created to praise the Lord. Its because of what Jesus did for you and me, that no matter what we face in life, we can sing hallelujah.

So whether you are in a season of pain, or a season of happiness, whether you feel distant from the Lord, or close to His heart- sing the Hallelujah. If it’s cold and broken, sing the Hallelujah- because I believe this with all my heart- the Lord will draw you to him…

Praise the Lord. Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah.

Sing the Hallelujah.

ARCHIVED POST: Staying on the Balance Beam of Life

Originally Written and Posted on April 2, 2014 (with edits January, 23, 2017):

Think about a gymnast on a balance beam. If even one little thing is off by a mere centimeter, her entire balance is thwarted and she begins to fall.

Same with our life. We need to find balance in each area or we begin to fall. Our grip begins to slip until we come crashing down.

But how do we find balance in our life? It’s something I feel like I’m constantly pursuing and not yet grasping… Here’s what I know:

Life needs spiritual balance- You can’t always be pouring into others without be filled yourself through the Word of God. I’m one of those people who willingly takes on tasks and roles- always eager to serve. But you can’t give and give and give, without being filled. I am really challenged to find spiritual balance by pouring into the Word every day and seeking what the Lord needs me to learn.

Life needs physical balance- Balanced meals, balanced activity levels, etc. This is essential for our bodies to function, and not only work, but thrive!

Life needs mental balance. Sometimes this means reading adult books, not just my newsfeed. This means engaging in thought-provoking and creative activities, not just watching Dance Moms. It’s a definite area of improvement for me.

Life also needs balance in relationships- Balanced time between husband and children, and between friends and family. Balance in time together and time apart. Balance in being serious and being lighthearted. Balance in give and take. Sometimes you’re the one to lean on and sometimes you’re the one who needs to lean on the other.

Life needs balance between work and play, between rest and activity. This means sometimes doing chores, and sometimes coloring with sidewalk chalk with your kids; Sometimes giving yourself permission to take a nap, and sometimes knock out those errands you have to run.

Life needs a balance of good and bad. Without the good there would be no joy, no happiness. Without the bad, there would be no appreciation of the good, no lessons learned through perseverance, no faith strengthened.

Life needs balance in every area. I am discovering that if we become too consumed with one thing, even if that one thing is inherently a good thing, other areas in our life will suffer because the balance will be off.

So we know that life needs balance. But how? Just like the gymnast on a balance beam, we too must know where to find our balance.

And the balance starts with making time for Jesus daily. That will allow us to be centered, to put our feet firmly on the ground (or balance beam, if you will). And from there, we can learn how to prioritize the people and things that matter most. Sometimes you can say yes. Sometimes you will have to say no. But, finding your balance means always saying yes to Jesus above all.

I believe that if you put Him first, everything else in life will be balanced- and you will never fall.

ARCHIVED POST: Growing Everyday

Originally Written and Posted on April 8, 2013

So, I grew up in the Barney generation, where a day didn’t go by without the purple magical dinosaur on our TV set. I loved Barney and secretly wished I could be one of those lucky kids on the show. I had it all: Barney lunchbox, Barney thermos, Barney wallpaper, Barney bedspread, and I wore a Barney shirt with a matching purple skirt on the first day of school in first grade. So naturally, I had all the Barney songs memorized. And to this day, the lyrics to such songs are buried somewhere in the memory storage of my brain.

Occasionally, something will trigger a Barney to be brought to the surface, particularly lately now that I’m a parent. There’s not a day that goes by when the “Clean Up” song doesn’t resonate in my head (embarrassing perhaps, but just being honest). The other day, I was talking to Anniston about how much she was growing lately, and up springs another Barney song from the valves of my memory. The lyrics go as follows:

           Growing, we do it everyday.

           We’re growing when we’re sleeping, and even when we play.

           And as we grow a little older, we can do more things

           Because I’m growing and so are you.

After I sang the last line, I paused and thought to myself: “I wonder how I can change this lyric. I know Anniston is growing, but I’m done growing.” It was in that moment that the Holy Spirit spoke to me. I’m never done growing. While my physical development may be complete, I daily need to be growing in the Lord- growing in my relationship with Him, growing into a more godly woman, growing into becoming a better wife, growing into my role as a mother.

In seeking the Lord on how He challenges us to grow, I came across these verses:

Ephesians 4:15-16 says “Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”

Similarly, 1 Peter 2:1-5 beckons us to “put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

Spiritual growth can be tough. Similar to the growing pains my little one will experience as her body matures, her teeth break through her gums, etc., we too experience growing pains in our spiritual development. But the Lord is faithful, and such refinement is necessary. I’m so thankful for the grace of our Lord that saves me and sustains me as I strive to grow in Him.  2 Peter 3:18: “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”

So, I’ll keep on singing…Growing we do it everyday…

ARCHIVED POST: Faith Like A Child

Originally Written and Posted: October 24, 2014

I was teaching our preschool children's ministry a few weeks ago. The Bible story was about God’s promise to Abraham (Genesis 12). God called Abraham to move, even though he didn’t know where to- but he went because God told him to. He believe in God’s promise that He would take care of him and bless him and generations to come.

I asked the kids what they would do if God told them to move. Would they follow God where He told them to go? They all responded “Yes! I would go where God told me to go!”.

What if we all had the faith of these toddlers? Its so simple. They know God is good. They know God loves them. They know God takes care of them. Their little minds aren’t crowded with the details and doubts and fears like us adults. They don’t have those obstacles obstructing their view of God’s goodness. They don’t filter God’s promises through the muddiness of life experiences that jade our perspective.  They just trust. They just believe.

I was really challenged by these little hearts. In the New Testament, Jesus tells us to have faith like the children (Matthew 18:3). I think this is what He meant. Faith to trust God above our own knowledge. To have faith in what He says above what we have experienced. To trust in God’s character more than our circumstances.

I think sometimes our circumstances are more real to us than God. We’ve experienced this or that- we’ve struggled, we’ve endured… the memory of our experiences seem closer to us than God.

But the thing is, God is bigger than our circumstances. He is master of all things. He is always good, even in the bad times- our circumstances don’t change God’s goodness. He is always working on our behalf to grow us into who He created us to be.

We have to trust in Him more than we trust in ourselves. We have to have that simple faith like a child to believe in Him with our heart without letting our mind cloud our faith.

Do what He tells you to do. Go where He tells you to go. And do it joyfully because His promise is always good- He will always take care of us.