in protest

Words. Words. Words. They seem to come from every direction. The television. The radio. The newspaper. Junk mail. Facebook. Blogs. Emails. Music. Phone Calls. Sermons. Books. Magazines. Articles. Billboards. Mouths. I'm often overwhelmed by the words I don't have time to process or read or listen to. There's so much out there that people want to communicate. There are so many stories, beliefs, ideas...that my brain cannot keep up. So, I quit writing.

A little hiatus.

That turned into a three year silence. A three year chasm in my journal, in my blog and in my heart.

And then, I went to a concert where Sara Groves shared the song "It Matters." And, it has me thinking. Perhaps my words could add to the beauty for someone. Certainly not everyone. And, maybe just for me. But, if it adds to my beauty, then I guess I'm living in the space my Creator has given me. Creating. Musing. Listening. And, protesting all that is evil around me.

With the multitude of words coming from every direction, there is a danger that the words of the Story will get tangled up with all the others and will be forgotten. So, in protest of all of the empty words available to us, I want to tell my story... and, I pray that somehow my words tell a greater, more beautiful Story that matters.

the cry of my heart...

Lord, call us into the church.

Call us in often,

  and teach us the old words and old songs

  with their new meanings.

Lord, give us new words for the words we wear out.

  give us new songs for those that have lost their spirit.

Give us new reasons for coming in and for going out,

  into our streets and to our homes.

As the house of the Lord once moved

  like a tent through the wilderness,

  so keep our churches from becoming rigid.

Make our congregation alive and free.

Give us ideas we never had before,

  so that alleluia and gloria and amen

  are like the experiences we know in daily living.

Alleluia! O Lord, be praised!
In worship and in work, be praised! Amen.

-taken from the Covenant Hymnal