Zion & Babylon

"Oh great mammon of form and function, careless consumerist consumption, dangerous dysfunction, described as expensive taste. I’m a people disgraced by what I claim I need and what I want to waste; I take no account for nothing if it’s not mine. It’s a misappropriation of funds, protect my ninety percent with my guns. Whose side am I on? Well who’s winning? My kingdom’s built with the blood of slaves, orphans, widows, and homeless graves. I sold their souls just to build my private mansion. I’m a poor child, I’m a lost son; I refuse to give my love to anyone. Fight for the truth, or help the weaker ones because I love my Babylon. I am a slave, I was never free; I betrayed you for blood money. I bought the world, and all is vanity. My Lord, I’m your enemy. Children sing, Zion’s in sight. Time to make a change, leave your home, give to the poor all that you own. Lose your life so that you could find it. First will be last when the true world comes; livin’ like a humble fool to overcome the upside-down wisdom of a dying world. Zion’s not built with hands and in this place God will dwell with man; sick be healed and cripples stand. My kingdom’s built with the blood of my son, selfless sacrifice for everyone. I said let this world know me by your love. Oh my child, daughters and sons, I made you in love to overcome; free as a bird, my flowers in the sun, on your way to Mount Zion. All you slaves, be set free. Come on out child and come on home to me. We will dance, we will rejoice. If you can hear me then follow my voice.”

a fistful of glitter in the air

DAY

back to back

DAYS

we live in a beautiful world, yeah we do.

DAYS

damaged at best

DAYS

too many false alarms

DAYS

You run with clouds

DAYS

i got my 45 on

DAYS

i don't have diddly squat

DAYS

silence my ignorance

DAYS

I am a daughter of Christ and lover of laughs

DAYS

hey, leonardo

DAYS

a love more faithful than the morning

DAYS

DAYS. 

can i get a yeah girl?

so here's what i think: the best thing you can do right now is to finish what you started last year and not let those good intentions grow stale. you heart has been in the right place all along. you've got what it takes to finish it up, so go to it. once the commitment is clear, you do what you can, not what you can't. the heart regulates the hands. this isn't so others can take it easy while you sweat it out. no, you're shoulder to shoulder with them all the way, your surplus matching their deficit, their surplus matching your deficit. in the end, you come out even.

cities of refuge. eagleology. residency and citizenship. marathon of life.

i learned how to be a friend, a sister, and i saw God's people doing exactly what He designed us to do.

he's unresponsive because you're irresponsible

WARNING: The following is a real journal-esque post. While reading, you make experience boredom, indifference, annoyance, narcolepsy, questioning of the sanity of the author, excessive twitching. 

God, you forgave me. Not because I prayed the right prayer or prayed long enough or hard enough. Not because I feel guilty or not. Not because you loved me a little less or a little more. Not because my first reaction was to pray or to ignore you. Not even because I asked you to forgive me. You were going to regardless. You forgave me because you love me, now, like I am, not less, not more. You've never loved me more and never loved me less. You forgave me because I'm broken and torn about it. You gave me the strength to combat it and seek the way out, and next time I'll lean more on you to do exactly that. 

"The past is playing with my head, failure knocks me down again. I'm reminded of the wrong that I have said and done and that devil just won't let me forget.  My mistakes are running through my mind, I'll relive my days in the middle of the night. When I don't fit in and I don't feel like I belong anywhere, when I don't measure up to much in this life, I'm a treasure in the arms of Christ."

don't be impressed with your own wisdom

What would it look like if you were so content with the commendation of God that you became liberated from the incessant need to save face with other people?

What would happen if you began to hold your reputation so lightly before men because you were so content with your standing with God?

If you held your reputation as of little value before people, you would finally be free to live bold, daring, courageous, future shaping lives that revel in the approval of God and seek that for other people.

Jesucristo

I'm going to Mexico on a mission trip today.
Just a LITTTTTTTTLE bit stoked.

later, illinois.

-k

red letters

          If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself
          and take up his cross and follow me.
          Daughter, your faith has healed you. 
          Son, your sins are forgiven.
          All men will hate you because of me,
          but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
          Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid. 
          Heaven and earth will pass away,
          but my words will never pass away.
          For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed,
          and whatever is concealed is meant to 
          be brought out into the open.
Go,    your faith has healed you. The kingdom of God is near.
          Repent and believe the good news!
          The Sabbath was made for man, 
          not man made for the Sabbath.
          So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.
          For whoever wants to save his life will lose it,
          but whoever loses his life for me and
          for the gospel will save it.
          It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.
          I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.
          Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign?
          Anyone who will not recieve the kingdom of God
          is like a little child and will never enter it.
          Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?
          I am willing. Be clean!
          He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
          If anyone wants to be first, he must be
          the very last, a servant of all.
          Everything is possible for him who believes.
          I have compassion for these people.
          Don't be afraid, just believe.
         The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of man.
         They will kill him, and after three days,
he will rise.

give me tomorrow

we waste our time wishing we were in different circumstances, when we could enjoy our present possessions & set our minds to higher things. the best way to know radiant living is to lose ourselves in the lives & needs of others. the greatest joys that can come to man are those that enter his heart because he shares rather than looks to recieve. the happiest people i know are those who contantly follow in the footsteps of their Master, & go about doing good.

keep my heart

oh,
i am yours,
&
you are mine.

& forever i will pray,

have your way

oh me of little faith

God is not in love
with some future

version of you

i can't bow low enough

I want to be broken.

I want to hear a message that leaves me desperate for change in my ordinary suburban life.

I want to be weakened and to rely on nothing but the strength that comes from Christ.

I want to find a landscape that mirrors no one but its Creator.

I want to feel useless and helpless, realizing that how God uses me is beyond my control.

I want to really give a worry up to the Lord, and refuse to let it tamper with my mind again.
I want to love taking out a lotta bit of hard-earned money and dropping it in the offering box.

I want to radiate.

I want to learn to live intentionally.

I want to trade in my reputation for a new one.

I want to accept more than I judge.
I want to be stripped of my pride.

I want to feel like I am nothing more than a daughter of my Father's.

I want to fully understand that I was bought at a high price.

I want to pray with confidence.

I want to not be able to contain my excitement of the things He's doing.

I want to know the right words to say.
I want to recognize God's handwriting.
I want to see what God could do with a camera, paintbrush, and pencil.
I want to know His favorite color.

I want to be set free.

wisdies

8:30 A.M. Tuesday, March 30, 2010:







sans-wisdom-teeth.

humility

"Where were you when I layed the earth's foundations?
Tell me, if you know and understand.
Who fixed its dimensions? Surely you know!
Who stretched a measuring line over it?
On what do its supporting pillars rest?
Who set is cornerstone in place,
while the morning stars sang in chorus
and the sons of God all shouted for joy?
Can you command the clouds
to envelop you in a deluge of rain?
If you bid lightning speed on its way, will it say to you "I am ready"?
Who put wisdom in depths of darkness
and veiled understanding in secrecy?
Who is wise enough to marshal the rain clouds
and empty the cisterns of heaven,
when the dusty soil sets in a dense mass,
and the clods of the earth stick fast together?
Do you give the horse its strength?
Have you clothed his neck with a mane?
Do you make him quiver like a locust's wings
when his shrill neighing strikes terror?...
Does your skill teach the hawk to use its pinions
and spread its wings towards the south?
Do you instruct the eagle to soar aloft
and build its nest high up?
Is it for a man who disputes with the Almighty to be stubborn?
Should he who argues with God answer back?"

sunny weather

"Pure and lasting religion in sight of the
Lord our God means that we must care for
orphans and widows in their troubles and
refuse to let the world corrupt us." james1:27

We pass by them like they're a statue made simply out of stone, not a living breathing struggling human being trying to talk with another. We avoid eye contact like an awkward conversation, when looking into the eyes of anyone could prove that maybe somebody cares. We change sides of the street, pretending to have an interest in some high end store just to steer clear of their beggar hat sitting in the middle of the opposite sidewalk. We don't stop because we don't have enough time, we're better, we're clean, & we're afraid. We don't stop because of ourselves.
Take notice.
They play music to be noticed.
They shout to be noticed.
They poke and shove to be noticed.
After thousands of people walking by everyday with only 4 or 5 even acknowledging their existance, they start to feel worthless.
It would take acknowledgement. A simple "hello." Something to prove to them that they're valued, they're not worthless, and they're loved by the Creator of the universe, the Almighty God, the Alpha and Omega.
The very being that created each ocean and every mountain top wants to know even the poorest of the poor. Not just acknowledge, but know. Love.

















(i didn't take this)

concierto

i'm working
on the
forever part

hey, it's just art.

we try not to let ourselves
get too far lost,
too far out,
or too far gone.
but in reality, our flawed desire
aren't limited to the boundaries
we attempt to set on them.
enticing temptations slice open
those boundaries like
a scalpel in surgery.
& before long, we've wandered
farther than we ever wanted to go,
bought more than we could ever repay,
and stayed longer than we intended.
& for that, shame appears in
dark circles under our eyes
& in the absence of conversation.
shame that can't account for the way
our hearts are broken
by our own staggering mistakes.
we're past the point of
hallmark cards and coffee dates;
it will take more than
a day off to cure this
guilty pleasure that
can't please anymore.
its getting tough,
but something out
there has what it takes.
someone out there possesses
the right set of tools to fix us.
somewhere, He has the
unwavering motivation that is
going to get our
weak, frail, pathetic
feet back into the shoes
that fit.
He possesses the power
that can get our
dirty, lonely, unworthy
hands up from our sides
& into the air,
giving no one but Him
the glory for performing
such a miracle on
such an undeserving
human.

the story (1)
the overtaking (2)
the problem (3)
the guilty (4)
the prodigal (5)

he gets the last word

"keep a cool head. stay alert. the devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. keep your guard up. you're not the only one plunged into these hard times. it's the same with christians all over the world. so keep a firm grip on the faith. the suffering won't last forever. it won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ- eternal and glorious plans they are!- will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does." 1peter5:8-11

this is Christ's body, broken for you.
this is Christ's blood, shed for the forgiveness of your sins.

"'O SOVERIEGN LORD,
I CAN'T SPEAK FOR YOU!
I'M TOO YOUNG!'
'you must go wherever i send you
and say what i tell you.
don't be afraid of people,
for i will be with you
and i will protect you.'"

There's more to living for God than happy moments and feel-good encouragement. Through scripture, through Jeremiah-like friends, and through tough circumstances, God can pursue us and stretch us. But it's never random. It's never pointless. God always has a plan and we are always in His hands.

feed my starving children

rice
soy
veggies
chicken
end product





















FMSC 2/13/10
today was a goooooood day.

did you know that to be considered
rich in our world
all you need to have
is more than
2 pairs of
pants?

a little logan in my life

Lift up your voice and with us sing.

I found this the other day,
and loved it.
Enjoy.

My name means nothing.
I do not expect (nor do i want) people to bow down to me,
revere me, study me, look up to me, or anything of the sort.
Ordinarily I would want such attention or admiration
but when I can view myself correctly
for which i often do not and i sin in that),
I see myself as an infinitely minuscule, sinful enemy of God.
(Or at least that is what I was).
Now that Jesus has saved me, I am no longer warring against God
but rather participating with Him in mission.
God has taken the sinful, terrible, greedy, self serving,
self seeking, prideful, arrogant, wretch that I am
and redeemed me so that I can rightly live for Him.
If I have done something good in the world's eyes,
I implore this reader to give the glory to God.
Look up to the heavens and thank Him that
He was able to use me in some way.
I deserve the constant eternal torment of Hell
yet Jesus saved me from that.
The miraculous thing is not
that I did something worth admiring
but that Jesus pushed through my depravity
to accomplish something.
I have done nothing worth talking about.
However, Jesus has done something everyone should talk about.
It is His truth that He has entrusted to me.
Because it is His truth, i cannot lay claim to it.
I desire to preach it well so that it may give glory
to the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.
If i preach heresy or lead people astray,
I pray that God would strike me dead.
I would rather die than know that i intentionally
led believers farther away from
their father than closer to Him.