Check out my new blog!

www.coltonccurtis.blogspot.com

You know I love you.

Signing out,

-Colton.

Well, Hello.

Hello to the people who read this blog!

I have some exciting news, well, to be honest, all news is exciting.

I am planning on building a website, therefore i will post blogs on the site, I have so much to share, God is bringing me into a new season, and I am so excited to fill all of you in on His incredible plans.

Just to cover things in one sentence, recently I have been completely overthrown and taken back by God's sovereignty. His perfection.

I cannot wait to elaborate and share about what He has done just in the past summer.

However, at the moment I must see my sister to bed, it's her first big day of middle school tomorrow. :) Pray for her.

One thing that God has really put on my heart is to not rely on people but to rely on Him, so where it may seem as if I completely abandoned this Blog, I want to insure that I have not abandoned my God. My prayer has been for complete and total intimacy with my Dad, and that prayer has continually been answered. New revelations and insights have been flooding my mind and I am totally pumped to fulfill everything that God wants me to do. I have been debating whether or not to write again, but I feel, now that I'm doing it, that is a big Part of God's plan for my outreach. So, I shall keep you updated on the progress of this website, and I can't wait to officially open it for you guys. :) Keep reading!

I have such an incredible peace surrounding me, it's God and nothing but God. Are you ready for this new season? I am.

Changed.

-Colton

Vacation.

Would you ever believe that you would need a vacation from vacation?

Well Hello Bloggers,

I am back, this will be the third time I have been home in almost a month, making that the third time I've gotten a chance to blog. In a way, it's been relaxing, in a way, it feels like I am missing my child, this blog was my baby for so long.

I have to be honest and say that this summer has not exactly felt like a vacation so far. I really want a week to shut everything down and, well... "let it be..."

I've tried to explain to people how they need to take time for themselves, I really think so many of us don't realize how important it is that we give God our FULL attention daily.

I'm reminded of that story about Martin Luther. He spent each morning in prayer before He would get to work, and when He was extremely busy, instead of rushing and getting everything done, He would take even more time out of his day to pray. I think that is so wise, and most of us would do the opposite.

I don't know about you, but I am about ready to throw my cell phone into an ocean somewhere. I feel like God sometimes cries for that to happen. Lately, I feel like I haven't been giving my FULL honest attention towards God, and when life gets busy I don't give Him even more time then regular, which really is how it should be. I am about to change that.

I was in church this evening, and I just felt... peaceful. My mind was growing, and I was thinking, just as an overall thought... God has to be so real, so big, so powerful, He puts upon everyone a different "feeling", he hugs the ones that needs to be held, covers those who need to be protected. As I glanced across the sanctuary I thought about how everyone has a different story, and God wants to hear about every single story. He wants to hear your story, and mine.

So why don't we tell Him?

I have to go back to think of a couple of summers ago when I made the connection that God could be whomever you needed Him to be, a father, hero, saviour? For me, a best friend.

I have to laugh, as I semi-re-read this, I am thinking back to when I started blogging, my thoughts in no particular order, absolutely absurd and almost impossible to decipher... God finds joy in putting the pieces together and knowing what I'm saying. Which I am thankful for.

I'm not an overly patient person, which makes me in the need for time to cool down and chill out. Does that make sense? I think I need to go back to some silence, except this time, some real personal silence, and restore passion, restore purpose, restore.

Isn't that what vacation is really for?

Oh come on, You know I love you. :)

-Colton

Can I have more of you?

Howdy Folks!

Well, it has been close to two weeks! Insane.

My family and I returned from the Island of Prince Edward and went straight to another campground closer to home, this has been the first time I've been home in almost two weeks. Trust me, it feels so weird not to blog every night before I go to bed, you'd think I was on vacation or something.

And now I am running away to work. Let me leave you with this...

I give up trying to earn Your love,

I just look above, up to You.

My desire is to see Your fire,

Growing even higher than before.

Because You are good, beyond measure,

My heart longs to give You pleasure.

You fulfill all my longing,

And all my life I will sing:

God I love You and all You do,

Your joy lives inside and does me good,

Can I have more of You?

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,

Oh, my God, You never let me down,

Can I have more of You?

God I need You right next to me,

For my heart to be satisfied.

I decide how I live my life,

I've made up my mind, I'm livin' for You

- Kim Walker

You know I love you,

-Colton

A Free Life?

'Allo Blog Readers.

Well, tonight will be the last blog for almost a week, I am headed out of the province for a family vacation. I feel "poopy", this month is starting out poor for my blogging participation.

However, tonight I can blog, and that I will, but about what?

What consumes your life?

Examine your life, as I examine mine, what do you spend the majority of your time thinking about, or doing or wanting? Is that healthy? Is it a good given thought or passion?

Do you feel free?

Check it out...

Romans 6:15-21 ----

What Is True Freedom?

^15-18So, since we're out from under the old tyranny, does that mean we can live any old way we want? Since we're free in the freedom of God, can we do anything that comes to mind? Hardly. You know well enough from your own experience that there are some acts of so-called freedom that destroy freedom. Offer yourselves to sin, for instance, and it's your last free act. But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All your lives you've let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you've started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom!

¹⁹I'm using this freedom language because it's easy to picture. You can readily recall, can't you, how at one time the more you did just what you felt like doing—not caring about others, not caring about God—the worse your life became and the less freedom you had? And how much different is it now as you live in God's freedom, your lives healed and expansive in holiness?

^20-21As long as you did what you felt like doing, ignoring God, you didn't have to bother with right thinking or right living, or right anything for that matter. But do you call that a free life? What did you get out of it? Nothing you're proud of now. Where did it get you? A dead end.

Think about a part in your life where you don't walk in freedom but continue to struggle with sin. When do you easily give into temptation? Why? What pain or discomfort does it bring? What do you fear you would lose if you gave up the sin?

Read the passage from Romans again with a specific sin in mind. Think Paul is accurate with his description of living, "any old way we want" to be accurate? What about living in "obedience"?

Pray to God about the things that He is showing you in your life that might be sin, or may not be real freedom. Get my drift? Maybe I am making no sense... If you're frustrated, express it to Him. I honestly think sometimes I forget that God likes to hear EVERYTHING from us. Not just us when we are happy or want something, He wants us to admit, when we hurt, or are sad, or confused, that is the beauty of it... You can say anything, and this Dad will listen. Challenge God to show you a freedom.

Live, off yourself to the ways of God and the freedom that never quits. Rest in His Freedom. Rest.

Teach with your Life

HEY HEY HEY!

Well Hello my friends, this has been a horrid week for blogging, I have been staying at my camp all week and I am finally home for a few days, to be honest, it feels like a part of me is missing when I don't blog. Anyway, how are you?

The run of "Grease" is now over, it was an incredible journey that I will not forget, and the people I have become close with over this journey are really gifts from God. I couldn't be happier.

Well, it is coming on bed time for me, but I don't think I would be able to sleep without blogging, however, before I jet off, I want to leave you with something that I read yesterday morning, and I really like it, check it out.

1 Timothy 4:11-14 (The Message)

^11-14Get the word out. Teach all these things. And don't let anyone put you down because you're young. Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity. Stay at your post reading Scripture, giving counsel, teaching. And that special gift of ministry you were given when the leaders of the church laid hands on you and prayed—keep that dusted off and in use.

In fact, I recommend checking out 1 Timothy 4, the entire chapter, all about teaching with your life, anyway, I can't wait to get back to writing more, have a blessed day, sleep, whatever it is you find yourself about to do when you read this, and you shall hear from me soon!

-Colton

Passion

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Well, first off I have to apologize for missing the past couple of nights blogging, I've been staying at my camp, and I will be again tonight, however I have stolen a laptop just for you! Feeling loved yet?
Well, I want to say "Hi!" and re-introduce myself to this blog, the segment of thirty days of silence is over, and it is time for me to spew my thoughts through my finger tips onto a keyboard into your heads again, excited yet?

So, what has been new?
For me... I am in the show, "Grease", playing Danny Zuko, we have three more shows left and I am having the time of my life. It is such a fun show to do, and I don't know... I don't think I can explain the joy that I get from it. It's funny, today I was driving from the beach to go eat breakfast (Pretty Peaceful) and I was listening to Jesus Cultures' new EP "My Passion." It got me thinking, what is my passion? What is your passion? What is passion? According to Urban Dictionary, Passion is...

"Passion is when you put more energy into something than is required to do it. It is more than just enthusiasm or excitement, passion is ambition that is materialized into action to put as much heart, mind, body and soul, into something as is possible."

What do you think about that?

My strength in life, is I am yours.

My soul delights, because I am yours.

Your will on earth is all I'm living for.

Light that breaks the darkness, showing what true love is.

Always full of goodness, You are my passion.

Well, I am being called to go do a show.

Think about that, ask God to throw passion into your life.

You are my passion.

-Colton

Psalm 100:1-5 ----

¹ Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

² Worship the LORD with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs.

³ Know that the LORD is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving

and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.

⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;

his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Hey, what's shakin'? Well, I find it perfectly timed, of course, that this is the last night of the segment "30 days of Silence", as it was the opening night for "Grease!" Anyway, let's get into this silence! :)

Imagine you are in a great cathedral. Consider how incredibly beautiful it is. Massive ceilings, architecture, stained glassed windows. This is an incredible place, full of depth and mystery.

Now imagine you're still seated in the same sanctuary, this time not in the pews but in the choir loft at the very front of the church, and sitting there in the pews in front of you is God himself. In this worship service you have an audience of One! Your order of worship is Psalm 100. Pause, pray, write, reflect, and listen as you meet with God in this special place. "

¹ Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth."

Begin with this thought today as you worship God in this "choir loft", or wherever you are right now... You are joining a chorus of brothers and sisters in Christ all over the globe! A choir of all ages and ethnic groups. A chorus including not only human voices, but all creation really. How crazy is it to think you're a part of such a vast creation chorus?

² Worship the LORD with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs.

Why don't you, right now, sing your favourite worship song? Write one! If you don't like singing, pray, or dance... worship. :)

Know that the LORD is God.

Take time not to meditate on one aspect of God's character you've come to appreciate over the past 30 days, or over the past year. Faithfulness? Power? Grace? Mercy? Wisdom? Worship for what you know of Him.

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

We worship God because we belong to God. We are His. Ponder that for a few minutes as you consider what it means for you to be His. What does it mean for your life at home, at school, with friends, at church, on the street? What does it mean for you to be "the sheep of his pasture"?

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.

There was only one reason for sheep to be brought into the temple courts; to be offered as sacrifices to God. As you look out from your choir loft today and into the face of God, does it feel like He is worthy of your sacrifice? What might your sacrifice look like? Is it an attitude, a habit, a relationship, a possession? Imagine yourself stepping down from your loft and taking that offering to the feet of God.

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;

his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Close your time of worship with prayer. Focus particularly on the words, "His faithfulness continues."

This may be the end of your quiet time, but it's not the end of your time with god. Watch for Him in the hours ahead. Look for Him in random moments. Search for Him in the faces you pass. Listen for Him in the sounds you hear.

There is no place you will be today, tomorrow, or forever that is not His sanctuary.

Well, these thirty days have been fun, and I cannot wait to talk to you tomorrow.

You know I love you.

-Colton

Day 29 - Enjoy the Silence

Matthew 15:22-28 -----

^21-22From there Jesus took a trip to Tyre and Sidon. They had hardly arrived when a Canaanite woman came down from the hills and pleaded, "Mercy, Master, Son of David! My daughter is cruelly afflicted by an evil spirit."

²³Jesus ignored her. The disciples came and complained, "Now she's bothering us. Would you please take care of her? She's driving us crazy."

²⁴Jesus refused, telling them, "I've got my hands full dealing with the lost sheep of Israel."

²⁵Then the woman came back to Jesus, went to her knees, and begged. "Master, help me."

²⁶He said, "It's not right to take bread out of children's mouths and throw it to dogs."

²⁷She was quick: "You're right, Master, but beggar dogs do get scraps from the master's table."

²⁸Jesus gave in. "Oh, woman, your faith is something else. What you want is what you get!" Right then her daughter became well.

Bonjourno! So read this passage, anything stand out? Haha, how about the line, "Jesus ignored her." I read that and was like, "WHAAA? Jesus did what?" Then I thought about it, sometimes I am in situations like that. Jesus isn't being rude, i think he is teaching us through the silence.

Have you ever been there? Have you ever experienced the depth of silence? Has there ever been a time in your life where you brought something to God, in prayer, and you felt like there was no reply, there was simply nothing, just silence?

Think about such a time. As you recall it, how are you feeling? Angry? Sad? Insignificant? Forgotten? Do you feel sorry for yourself? What is your sense of God in that place of silence?

Journal.....

How does God's silence affect your prayerful requests to him? Do you just turn your back and choose not to ask again? Do you feel rejected, unheard, unwanted, unloved, betrayed? Maybe you feel like it's better to walk away from the whole thing. After all, surrender doesn't hurt as much as outright rejection. Before you answer, look at what the woman in the story did. She didn't walk away, she didn't surrender to despair and cynicism. Instead she kept crying out after Jesus and his disciples.

Go back and read verse 24. You see, Jesus did answer the woman, and His first words may have been more painful and harsh then the silence itself. He didn't heal her daughter immediately as she hoped He would. It must have felt to her as though his answer ignored her questions, not to mention the pain she felt. What I love, is that the woman was persistent... and not because of who she was, but because of who He was. She dropped to her knees, in faith, and said, "Help me!"

Then Jesus spoke again, this time, after the silence, it was with volume echoing all the way back to the sickbed of a little girl in a distant village... "²⁸Jesus gave in. "Oh, woman, your faith is something else. What you want is what you get!" Right then her daughter became well."

We might not always understand those times when it feels as though God is silent, but consider this possibility: In those moments when there is no word, perhaps God is reminding us that, even more than He wants to meet our needs, He wants to understand our own need to meet Him, to fall before Him, and to trust Him.

Don't hide from the silence of God. Sit with it, ponder it, challenge it, and question it. Soon enough the silence will turn into an answer. Whatever you do, don't give up and mistake the silence for lack of compassion or lack of hearing.

Journal what you're thinking.

-Colton

Day 28 - Enjoy the Silence

John 13:5-11 (The Message)

^3-6Jesus knew that the Father had put him in complete charge of everything, that he came from God and was on his way back to God. So he got up from the supper table, set aside his robe, and put on an apron. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples, drying them with his apron. When he got to Simon Peter, Peter said, "Master, you wash my feet?"

⁷Jesus answered, "You don't understand now what I'm doing, but it will be clear enough to you later."

⁸Peter persisted, "You're not going to wash my feet—ever!"

Jesus said, "If I don't wash you, you can't be part of what I'm doing."

⁹"Master!" said Peter. "Not only my feet, then. Wash my hands! Wash my head!"

^10-12Jesus said, "If you've had a bath in the morning, you only need your feet washed now and you're clean from head to toe. My concern, you understand, is holiness, not hygiene. So now you're clean. But not every one of you." (He knew who was betraying him. That's why he said, "Not every one of you.") After he had finished washing their feet, he took his robe, put it back on, and went back to his place at the table.

YO YO YO! Well, my friends we are at day 28. Two days to go, so, smile, and check out the above passage for tonight. Read it slowly and thoughtfully. Jesus is washing the disciples' feet. We know that he spoke to Peter, and we know what He said. However, we don't know what or if he spoke to the other disciples.... HMM.

Imagine we're in that upper room. Jesus is coming to wash you're feet. What does he say to you? How do you respond? Can you feel his rough carpenter hands holding your feet? How do you feel about the King of Kings washing your feet? Can you feel the water on your tired dusty feet? Think about the places you've walked and what you might be carrying from your journey. The symbolism here is deep. Some people are freaked out by feet, but it's so much more then feet! It's life, a soul. Jesus was asking to wash and purify lives here. Incredible, that this King would humble self. How do you feel about that? Peter seemed to blurt out the answer, "You shall never wash my feet." What words come to your mind as you look into the face of God?

Journal your thoughts about what you think would take place.

"Prayer is the laying aside of thoughts. "

-Colton

Day 27 - Enjoy the Silence

Psalm 34:1-18 ------

¹ I will extol the LORD at all times;

his praise will always be on my lips.

² My soul will boast in the LORD;

let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

³ Glorify the LORD with me;

let us exalt his name together.

⁴ I sought the LORD, and he answered me;

he delivered me from all my fears.

⁵ Those who look to him are radiant;

their faces are never covered with shame.

⁶ This poor man called, and the LORD heard him;

he saved him out of all his troubles.

⁷ The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him,

and he delivers them.

⁸ Taste and see that the LORD is good;

blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

⁹ Fear the LORD, you his saints,

for those who fear him lack nothing.

¹⁰ The lions may grow weak and hungry,

but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

¹¹ Come, my children, listen to me;

I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

¹² Whoever of you loves life

and desires to see many good days,

¹³ keep your tongue from evil

and your lips from speaking lies.

¹⁴ Turn from evil and do good;

seek peace and pursue it.

¹⁵ The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous

and his ears are attentive to their cry;

¹⁶ the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,

to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

¹⁷ The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;

he delivers them from all their troubles.

¹⁸ The LORD is close to the brokenhearted

and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Okay, this is cool.

Take a piece of paper, crumple it up, crush it, yah know what... step on it! Then look at what remains. Ever had a day, or week, or maybe even season, when that seemed to be your spirit... broken, misshapen, crushed and creased? Do you feel like that now? Who or what crushes you? Stress? Pressure, tension, change, guilt?

Look at the crushed piece of paper, and think about your own spirit. Maybe you feel frustration, disgust, sadness, rebellion, or emptiness. Whatever it is you feel, allow yourself to feel it fully. Don't hide your emotions. Be honest. Maybe you feel great today, happy! Or maybe your heart is heavy. Worse yet, maybe you've been too busy to let yourself feel anything. Or maybe, you've felt as a Christian, you don't have the right to feel certain things. But, for right now, know that in God's presence you have the freedom to feel anything, whether you feel peaceful, or crushed.

Journal, and write down, HONESTLY, EXACTLY, how you feel today.

David wrote Psalms 34 in a time of dark despair when he was facing grave danger and constant trouble. Even though David was fearful and fragile, he was able to cling to one certainty... "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted."

I know it's long, but read that verses above a few times, let verses 18 really sink in.

Find your trashed piece of paper and spread it out again. Write on it the five key words in this passage - words that offer help and encouragement to us when we are brokenhearted:

-Taste verse 8

-Fear verse 9

-Come verse 11

-Keep verse 13

-Turn verse 14

Keep the paper, let it remind you of the truth in this Psalm.

-Colton

Day 26 - Enjoy the Silence

Luke 19:1-10 -------

¹Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. ²A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. ³He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. ⁴So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

⁵When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today." ⁶So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

⁷All the people saw this and began to mutter, "He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.' "

⁸But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount."

⁹Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

Hey you guys. What's shaking? Okay, so read this and imagine you are the guy in the tree, and you can see Jesus coming.

You wanted to see Him for a long time, but what are you feeling as He approaches? You hiding? If so, from who? And why? In what ways do you feel your life is "out on a limb"? What are some feelings that make you want to stay in that tree?

No doubt, that part of what made Zacchaeus, let's call him "Zac", reluctant to climb down were the faces of the townspeople who looked up at him. Think there is an any people who's faces keep you up in your tree? Who? WHy do they intimidate you from coming down? What thoughts, fears, etc, do you think "Zac" had to lay aside in order to have this encounter with this man named Jesus? What might those thoughts and fears be in your life?

Consider the before "Zac" who was waiting in the tree to see Jesus, and the after "Zac" who actually encountered Jesus. What difference did meeting Jesus making in Zac's life? What difference has meeting Jesus made in your life? What areas of you life are Jesus asking you to make right? How can you begin to do that?

Jot down some thoughts folks.

-Colton

Day 25 - Enjoy the Silence

Jeremiah 20:7-13 -----

⁷ O LORD, you deceived me, and I was deceived;

you overpowered me and prevailed.

I am ridiculed all day long;

everyone mocks me.

⁸ Whenever I speak, I cry out

proclaiming violence and destruction.

So the word of the LORD has brought me

insult and reproach all day long.

⁹ But if I say, "I will not mention him

or speak any more in his name,"

his word is in my heart like a fire,

a fire shut up in my bones.

I am weary of holding it in;

indeed, I cannot.

¹⁰ I hear many whispering,

"Terror on every side!

Report him! Let's report him!"

All my friends

are waiting for me to slip, saying,

"Perhaps he will be deceived;

then we will prevail over him

and take our revenge on him."

¹¹ But the LORD is with me like a mighty warrior;

so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.

They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;

their dishonor will never be forgotten.

¹² O LORD Almighty, you who examine the righteous

and probe the heart and mind,

let me see your vengeance upon them,

for to you I have committed my cause.

¹³ Sing to the LORD!

Give praise to the LORD!

He rescues the life of the needy

from the hands of the wicked.

Hey my friends.

Well, when I first read this a couple time, I really didn't have a clue what to think. I was kind of intimidated by the aggression. However, I kept reading in this book, and I am becoming more and more of a fan of these verse's every time I read.

First, read the passage three times. Then sit quietly, think about the opening line. "You deceived me, I was deceived. You overpowered me." In another version it says "You seduced me, and I was seduced." My mind was like, "WHAAAA?"

It's one of those verses you have to read a few times. After all it's not a usual thing that you hear Thou and seduced in the same sentence. However, seduced is realistically, probably what Jeremiah is feeling. It's like he is saying, "I was deceived, I was seduced. I didn't bargain for all of this when I responded to the call of God." However, the more he experienced the intensity of God's love, the more he was captivated by it.

Jeremiah is saying that the passionate love comes with a cost. Consider some of the following comments....

"I've become a laughingstock."

"Everyone mocks me."

"People think I'm some kind of weird religious freak."

People want to know, why I don't agree with sex, drugs, and alcohol."

Be honest, you aren't going to Hell for answering this, have you ever, as a Christian, felt like.. "Oh my God, what have I gotten my self into?"

STOP. Ponder that question. Allow God to meet you in the midst of your feelings, even if they are feelings of deception and betrayal. Be honest.

Imagine God holding those feelings in His hand, imagine yourself holding in your heart the intensity of his love. "Fire shut up in my bones."

Journal what you're feeling.

In spite of his frustration with God, Jeremiah writes that the lord is with him like a mighty warrior. The great news is that God is with you, in the midst of craziness. He won't take you where He won't go. You will never be alone. This isn't a God who "loves 'em and leaves 'em."

God is there with you all the time.

God is there with you.

God is there.

God is.

Think about it, "The Lord is with me like a mighty warrior."

Close your eyes.

-Colton

Day 24 - Enjoy the Silence

Psalm 40:1-17 ------

^1-3 I waited and waited and waited for God. At last he looked; finally he listened.

He lifted me out of the ditch,

pulled me from deep mud.

He stood me up on a solid rock

to make sure I wouldn't slip.

He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,

a praise-song to our God.

More and more people are seeing this:

they enter the mystery,

abandoning themselves to God.

^4-5 Blessed are you who give yourselves over to God,

turn your backs on the world's "sure thing,"

ignore what the world worships;

The world's a huge stockpile

of God-wonders and God-thoughts.

Nothing and no one

comes close to you!

I start talking about you, telling what I know,

and quickly run out of words.

Neither numbers nor words

account for you.

⁶ Doing something for you, bringing something to you—

that's not what you're after.

Being religious, acting pious—

that's not what you're asking for.

You've opened my ears

so I can listen.

^7-8 So I answered, "I'm coming.

I read in your letter what you wrote about me,

And I'm coming to the party

you're throwing for me."

That's when God's Word entered my life,

became part of my very being.

^9-10 I've preached you to the whole congregation,

I've kept back nothing, God—you know that.

I didn't keep the news of your ways

a secret, didn't keep it to myself.

I told it all, how dependable you are, how thorough.

I didn't hold back pieces of love and truth

For myself alone. I told it all,

let the congregation know the whole story.

^11-12 Now God, don't hold out on me,

don't hold back your passion.

Your love and truth

are all that keeps me together.

When troubles ganged up on me,

a mob of sins past counting,

I was so swamped by guilt

I couldn't see my way clear.

More guilt in my heart than hair on my head,

so heavy the guilt that my heart gave out.

^13-15 Soften up, God, and intervene;

hurry and get me some help,

So those who are trying to kidnap my soul

will be embarrassed and lose face,

So anyone who gets a kick out of making me miserable

will be heckled and disgraced,

So those who pray for my ruin

will be booed and jeered without mercy.

^16-17 But all who are hunting for you—

oh, let them sing and be happy.

Let those who know what you're all about

tell the world you're great and not quitting.

And me? I'm a mess. I'm nothing and have nothing:

make something of me.

You can do it; you've got what it takes—

but God, don't put it off.

Hey Readers! Well I know that is a lot of verses, but check it out, there is a lot of wealth in there.

So, let's meditate on this massive piece of word. First, think of five words or phrases that would describe your life. Journal them. Now, are there any words or phrases from this Psalm that you can use to describe your life? Jot them down.

In this particular Psalm the most vivid image that David uses to describe his life is a deep dark empty place, with no easy way out. Ever feel like that, like you're trapped in a big dark place? What is it in your life that makes it feel so terrible? A particular event? A relationship? A habit? Picture the pit that you might be in, in your mind... the depth, how much effort it takes to get out, etc. Now put Jesus into the picture. Picture him with arms wide open. Not outside the pit calling you to Him, but right in there with you. He is willing to go to the darkest places to save you.

Can you hear Him say, "And surely I am with you always, even to the end of age."? Can you hear Him tell you that He wants to lift you out of the pit? Think about that, He's not commanding you to get out of there on your own, He's asking you to let Him lift you out!

Pray over these questions, and as you do, try to write out your own Psalm. Don't worry about making it sound like the ones in the bible. Make it sound like you. From you to God. A prayer.

Picture a very dark depth, made ten thousand times brighter by the light of life.

-Colton.