Pray

I mentioned a song in one of my posts yesterday called "Pray" by an artist named Kendall Payne. The lyrics have been bouncing around my head all day, bouncing between me and God as I think of various people and situations in my life. I'm asking Him for these things for me, and for a whole lot of other people I know.

I think I mentioned yesterday that this song almost always reminds me of my friends Marty and Kari. Everytime I hear it, they come to mind. Maybe because they live so many of the truths that Kendall sings about, or maybe because I know them well enough to know that they might pray a prayer that at first glance seems unorthodox and dangerous as this one, but upon closer examination is full of deep and meaningful truths.

I'm particularly caught by the lines that say "May your heart break enough that compassion enters in, may your strength all be spent upon the weak... and when you look upon the broken, may mercy show you what you could not see..." I'll end my intro the same way she ends the song. I'll pray these things for all of you, if you'll only pray the same for me.

So, without further ado, the lyrics to the song that is playing on my ipod even as I write:

I will pray for you now for you have been my faithful friends
While the road we walk is difficult indeed
I couldn’t not ask for more than what you’ve already been
Only that you would say these prayers for me

May your heart break enough that compassion enters in
May your strength all be spent upon the weak
All the castles and crowns you build and place upon your head
May they all fall come crashing down around your feet

May you find every step to be harder than the last
So your character grows greater each stride
May your company be of humble insignificance
May your weakness be your only source of pride

What you do unto others may it all be done to you
May you meet the one who made us
And see him smile when life is through

May your blessings be many but not what you hoped they’d be
And when you look upon the broken
May mercy show you what you could not see
May you never be sure of any plans you desire
But you’d learn to trust the plan he has for you
May your passions be tried and tested in the holy fire
May you fight with all your life for what is true

I have prayed for you now all of my dear and faithful friends
But what I wish is more than I could ever speak
As the way wanders on I’ll long to see you once again
Until then, would you pray these prayers for me?
Oh that you would pray for me.

Potato

Right at this moment, I'm flipping through a cookbook devoted entirely to potatoes. Seems we have an excess from our garden this summer, and my mom wants a potato dish to go with the pork we're grilling for dinner. I happen to love potatoes (I'll eat them over rice or pasta at almost any opportunity), but at the moment, it's more of a love/hate kind of thing.

I've learned never to agree to anything right after I get up in the morning. That's today's life lesson. Because now, I'm flipping through a cookbook about potatoes in all their forms, trying desperately to find a potato dish I'm interested in making, that I can have ready by somewhere between 5:30 and 6:00.

Crossing My Radar

These are some of the things crossing my radar right now:

• Kendall Payne. Seriously, people, if you haven't heard this girl sing, you need to. But mostly, you need to pay really close attention to her lyrics. Particularly, listen to the lyrics of her songs, "Aslan," "Twenty Three," and "Pray." I love the last one especially. Every time I hear it, I think of my friends Marty and Kari - something about the honest unexpectedness of Payne's prayer always reminds me of them, and of my commitment to pray for them.
• Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell. I know I've talked about the book before, but I picked it up on CD at Christian Publications the other night, and I've been listening to it again. You can also download it off of itunes (which would be ten bucks cheaper than what I paid, but I discovered too late). Bell makes some terrifically challenging observations about church life, Christianity, and what following Jesus really means. I don't know that I always agree with everything he says, but it challenges me, especially right now when I'm church hunting, and trying to figure out how to go about making a decision about choosing a church family for the next while in my life.
• Vietnamese food. Vietnamese food is always on my radar, but I had it last night for the first time in nearly a month, and I'm loving it. Mmm.... rice vermicelli and veggies and meat all mixed up in a bowl. So good.
• Novels. Novels are on my radar screen again. I've been reading somewhat voraciously again in the "brain candy" genres. And loving it. There's something fantastic about becoming fully involved in another world or life for a couple of hours.
• Bubble Baths. To be engaged in for an hour or so at a time, preferably with a good novel to keep you company.
• "Man of the Year." I saw this movie with Megs last night, after having Vietnamese food. I haven't laughed that hard in ages. Williams is always a toss up, because he can be hilariously funny, but incredibly crude at times. Yes, he has some zingers, but mostly it's a very funny movie. And, American political comedy can also be a toss up - making you laugh but generally leaving a bad taste in your mouth - a sense of hopelessness in the face of a culture that doesn't really care. Not so with this movie - you come away encouraged about political life, about ethics and morality, about the fact that you can get involved and make a difference. Definitely worth seeing.

So, those are the big things crossing my radar at the moment. Have any comments, or counter-recommendations?

The Things Crossing My Mind

Happy Friday the 13th to you all!

So, I promise I will explain the pictures in my last post, just not right at this moment. Just let me say that I was looking at them again this morning, sitting at my desk, and I love all of them. They epitomize moments, or emotions, or events of the summer, and that makes them special.

This morning I officially became one of the c-train ladies I used to mock in my head as I commuted to and from school. I wore running shoes with my dress pants and clothes, and carried my high heels in my bag. You see, I have had problems for years with the tendons in my feet developing tendonitis, and they were sore this morning, and I decided I didn't want to have to stand on the train in heels, or make the fifteen minute walk from the train to my office in heels, so I wore runners. You may now all engage in mocking laughter. But, in my defense, they are very cute runners (which I tried to find a picture of on the web, but couldn't, and which didn't in any way match or blend with my outfit!)

I'm trying to develop a bit more disciplined routine of prayer and bible reading. So I'm doing this thing, where, as I crawl into bed to read before I go to sleep, the first thing I read is a chapter of scripture. Then I grab a new journal I bought, a small one, and I write down one or two lines from the passage I just read that caught my attention. Two nights ago it was "the kingdom of God is near." Last night it was, "I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners," and "The sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the sabbath." After that, I write a short prayer, end it with Brennan Manning's prayer "Abba, I belong to you," and put the bible and journal away.

The thing that makes this a discipline is that it is the FIRST thing I do when I crawl into bed. It has priority. I don't pick up the novel that I left in a really tense place, I don't play something on my ipod, I don't flip through a magazine, any of the things I might do to unwind before sleeping, until this is done. It doesn't go by the wayside like my old routine, where I might read a novel, and then suddenly realize the time, and just choose to put off scripture reading until the next day.

And the little journal - it travels with me. If I'm thinking or praying on the c-train - which I often am - I can jot down anything that seems significant as I pray.

Here's to hoping that this works. I really would like to establish a more disciplined routine of spending time daily with God.

I'll Add Words Later

I'm putting up some pictures from my trip, and from a couple other events over the summer. Sometime in the next few days I'll tell you why I picked these. They all have memories, are things I love, or define something about doing a 12 hour roadtrip twice in one week with one of your best friends.