Reflecting On a Lovely Lord's Day

Wow! Where should I begin?

Church this morning was amazing.
To say that the fact that I awoke this morning with any energy and excitement was surprising would be a drastic understatement. I started at my new job on Friday: second shift at a book distribution warehouse. This means that I worked on my feet from 4:00 in the afternoon until 12:30 Saturday morning. After getting home and going to bed around 1:30, I woke up at about 5:45 to go to Massachusetts to help a friend with a moving project. What we expected to take just a few hard working hours, putting me home around 2:00, actually took all day long and we didn't get home until 6:30. I had a meeting to go to at seven, which I was late to, so I hurried and showered and grabbed some pizza Mom had brought home for dinner. Finally, after an enjoyable informative meeting, I went to bed.
Which brings me to where I started this blog. ... It usually takes me about an hour to truly wake up, a process which consists of dragging myself out of bed, showering, getting dressed, eating something, and moving and thinking and generally just 'being awake', before I actually FEEL like I AM awake. I know, I know, that sounds a lot like a woman, a contradiction, or both, but it's the hard, honest truth. But this morning, however tired I was when my alarm went off, I was awake and truly alert, excited, and joyful once my feet hit the floor and I got dressed. Call it a little thing, but I am calling it a big blessing, the first of many on the day. This was a day wherein I had no physical, human reason to be happy, joyful, or awake, but I was all three.

At church, I got excited. No reason, I just was energetic and hyper and excited. Worship team practice was kinda average. Teaching two new songs is not usually a good idea, but that is what we were doing, so stress was a little high. I had brought both songs home from school so I knew them well, two favorites, actually. "By Grace Alone" & "Oh Church Arise" These two songs hold such great truth and the power with which they present that truth is incredible. Today, it was overwhelming.

Between WT practice and the start of church, I was milling about talking to friends and generally spreading my good cheer. Moments before the service was to start, I sat down by myself for a moment. The thought popped into my head "Oh darn! I have so much energy today, and the worship set is really slow and reflective. That stinks. Why couldn't it have been a 'rockin' set today when I feel so up?" But immediately I scolded myself for such talk and reminded myself that my affections (aka: emotions) are not to be manipulated by style, feelings or mood, but rather are to be in response to the level of Truth being presented. It then struck me, that though these songs (both these two and most of the others) were a bit slower and melodically driven rather than beat driven, their truths were of the best and highest out there.

Then the message came and knocked me upside the head with so many different connections, truths, and reminders that I was overwhelmed. The cool thing was that the passage was Phil. 2:5-8 with other selected scripture as well. This is such a familiar passage to me, as a recent Bible College student. I have heard it so many times. I have heard it done well, and botched. Never have I heard it fully explained, but then again, I never will with this one. Today however, God opened His Word to my heart in a new way.
I'm sorry to leave you hanging without specifics, but I have rambled to long in this post, and I am not sure yet what to focus on specifically. suffice it to say that I am right now grateful for God's abundant gifts which truly are new every morning, for His church, and for Truth. These are mine through His Son, whom I am eternally indebted to and through whom I claim as mine these aforementioned good gifts.

Praise God!