A Chris Tomlin Giveaway

I’m not one who typically does reviews. Not because I don’t appreciate the opportunities but because if I can’t say anything nice I don’t want to say anything at all. I feel guilty for taking a book or cd, etc. if I’m not pretty confident I can say all wonderful things about it. I find it is much more fun to cheer on my brothers and sisters in Christ for a job well done rather than discredit the product of their blood, sweet, and tears. So maybe it’s not really fair to say this is a review but rather a shout out to our boy CHRIS TOMLIN who once again has not disappointed with his latest release, “And If Our God is For Us“.

I find the Lord often sends a cd into my life as background music to my most recent turmoils.  The very pressing need of my current prayers have everything to do with trusting that the Lord is always, always on my side even when it feels like He is being mean or asking more of me than He does the average Joe.  Or Jane.  Or whatever.  God’s good intention towards us is perhaps one of the greatest gifts of faith and I don’t know a single person on this planet who doesn’t need to be reminded of that fact on a regular basis.  I was thinking just this thing as I was reading through Chris’ thoughts on the theme of this album. (And no, I didn’t talk to him personally though that would have been awesome to have been able to ask him questions like “Where’d you get that awesome leather jacket you are wearing on the cd cover?” and “Dude!  Louis Giglio is your pastor? Can you get me a signed laminin t-shirt?”.) 

Yep.  There’s a reason I’m not granted interviews with cool people.  (Except that is sort of a total lie because I have one coming up really soon with someone who was just too sweet to say no.  You don’t want to miss it!) 

Back to Chris’  thoughts:   

“For the longest time I had a different title for the album,” Tomlin shares. “At the end of the day though, I really came back to ‘And If Our God Is For Us. . .’ I just love that statement because if you really believe in God, everything is possible. Miracles can happen and all things are available to you no matter what you are going through. There’s a scripture that tells you that God is for you so who can be against you. I love the hope that’s in that statement.”

Well said, brother. And well sung. 

And here’s the awesome part!  The friendlies at The{m}collective have provided a copy of Chris’ cd to give to you.  To enter, simply leave a comment telling us the title of your favorite Chris Tomlin song.  If you aren’t familiar with him, no worries.  Just promise Chris he will become your favorite artist ever if you win the cd.  I will leave the entries open until Wednesday and choose a winner on Thursday. 

November 29, 2010 | Filed Under GiveAway | 53 Comments 

Good Stuff Cheap

This morning my friend and Black Friday shopping companion for the past few years, Tammy,  picked me up at 4:30 IN THE A.M. and we headed toward Chattanooga to ‘gather our goods from afar’.  Because we are P31 women that way. 

Now back in the day, leaving at 4:30 would rate us as hard core but apparently the Black Friday officianados decided to up the game and begin opening stores at midnight.  As much as I want to play, I am just too old.  After a full day of visiting three branches of our family and eating so much food I have to force-swallow the next bite so as not to hurt anyone’s feelings, I am just not up to midnight line-standing at Toys R Us.  Instead, I’ve relied more and more heavily on the online ordering in the past few years and much to my delight I’ve found that many of the BF deals are available without ever having to get out of my pj’s.  By the time I left this morning, I had already purchased the main things I needed.  So, the rest of the day was more about drinking Starbucks and chance lunch meetings with more church bff’s than stalking down a $98 television. 

Now back to the pj’s, I feel I need to interject a word here: 

Dear sweet women and their teenage daughters who wore pajamas in public today,  

THE MALL?  NEKKED?!  REALLY?! 

Love,

Lisa the PW

I hope you girls who braved the crowds found lots of great deals. I am most happy about my $7 feather pillow. And if you wore pj’s to the mall, I hope you found some pants. And undergarments. And a laptop to order from home next year.  No offense.  I’m just looking out for you, darlin’s.  It’s my ministry.

Tammy and I were shopped out and home in time to watch the epic Iron Bowl between Auburn and Alabama. The ensuing trash talk that is sure to take place at church is why Luke and I have taken an oath of neutrality where the two teams are concerned. I like Auburn’s coach but Alabama’s team so it’s best for me if I just stay loyal to my beloved Dawgs and the most fabulous Coach Richt. We may not be winning so much but that in no way diminishes the awesomeness that is UGA football. Jesus is teaching our boys humility so when we are DOMINATING again we won’t be obnoxious about it. Yes, I’m confident that’s it.

So now that Thanksgiving has passed I am lying on the sofa on my cushy new feather pillow (did I mention I love it?) and watching embarrassing amounts of iCarly and looking forward to Victorious’ Freak the Freak Out. I’d love to hear what deals you scored today and what you had to go through to get them?

November 26, 2010 | Filed Under Girls Just Wanna Have Fun | 25 Comments 

apPraise

Yesterday Luke and I met the appraiser at the house.  It was somewhat of a mad dash trying to get the floors cleaned and the bathrooms wiped down so the place didn’t so much resemble something that had been dipped in powdered sugar.  That ordinarily wouldn’t be a bad thing if in actuality the dippee was pastry-like and the sugary substance weren’t 7 months of dust.  As it is, my respiratory tract is in active rebellion and I was starved most of the day because there was no food unless I wanted to lick the dirt off the counter tops or eat peanut butter-filled pretzels which I hate.  No, I do not like peanut butter and I am not sorry for it.

Except on days when that’s all there is to eat.  That or dirt.

So, we are ending the end of this long and tedious building process and hope to be closed by mid-December.  In the meantime, we’ve been living lots of life and the Lord has been talking to me about things that may mean nothing to you but have tested my faith, my resolve, and most importantly, my attitude while I am waiting on the Lord.

I wonder if any of you are currently in a season of waiting?  For an answer that could change everything.  For a Word on how to proceed next.  For some good news for a change, for Pete’s sake, and yet you are scared to death you are about to hear the worst and that the proverbial rug is about to get pulled right out from underneath you.  And then there is what we do with ourselves in that excruciating meantime – the moments between when the thing first presented itself and that day when you will finally know.

I’ve been struggling with this one much and conducting a spiritual appraisal of sorts.  There’s this thing I am waiting on and I have had a very clear idea about what the answer ‘should’ be.  Up until this morning even, I was convinced that this was the only outcome that could possibly make sense, give me joy, or be in line with how God has guided up until this point.  Anyone else ever find themselves in situations where they’ve sought God diligently and all the ‘signs’ seem to align in one direction and then the exact opposite come to pass?  Do you think God gets upset when we ask, with humble heart, “Lord, what’s up with that?!  Are you just trying to kill me?!  Can’t this one thing just be easy?!”  

So, the Lord and I have been hashing through those kinds of questions and this morning I had a break through of sorts.  I felt He said, “Lisa, do you really want this if I’m not there?”  {Silence.}  Do I?  Do I really want the thing if He is not present in it even if the ‘thing’ seems so good or appears to be something that will bring Him great glory?  Or perhaps the harder question:  Have I set my hopes on that thing moreso than the Giver of it?   If the removal of that thing brings Him greater glory, can I be okay with that?  Can I trust Him with even that?

And though it panicked me to say it to Him, I answered ‘yes’.  Yes, I can be okay with that.  I can confidently say that I don’t want anything that becomes a barrier between me, my family, and His Presence and His approval over us.  Anything that I could scratch and claw and manipulate to be mine will only be a deadly abomination if His Spirit does not rest upon it.   Job 26:14 says “Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways and how small a whisper we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand?”  I don’t understand all that He does, but He knows the way prepared for me so when I can’t clearly discern, or when I’ve thought I have heard from Him only to realize I misunderstood, then my faith has to trump my fear and disappointment and follow Him.  And here’s the kicker:  I have to go there free of bitterness or despair or I’ve gained no spiritual ground in the matter whatsoever.

After I prayed this through, the strangest thing happened.  I was at peace.  I’m not saying if the answer isn’t what I want that I won’t cry or that the answer to these times is to pretend the bad things are good.  Sometimes they flat out are NOT good.  But we can all be okay and continue to find refuge in Him because He knows.  He knows what it is like to give up something He loved for the greater good and that when we do the same thing we’ve joined with Him in His sufferings.  We’ve died with Him and in some strange way, that allows us to live like Him and for our souls to remain at peace as we wait. 

“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.”  ~Phillippians 3:7-10

November 23, 2010 | Filed Under Devo's, Faith | 14 Comments 

Next Page »

Social Widgets powered by AB-WebLog.com.