Love, Heal Me: What I've Learned About Trials

Some songs I love:

Love, Heal Me by the City Harmonic (The song that inspired this blog's title - my heart's cry for the past year.)

Fell Apart by the City Harmonic (One of the best opening lines ever! These City Harmonic songs became my prayers at a time I was too broken to pray for myself.)

Oh, What Love by City Harmonic (Always makes me cry. Grace, forgiveness, mercy, healing, hope, purpose ... it's all wrapped up in that amazing love!)

Praise the Lord by the City Harmonic (This really is the key to getting through the trials with your faith intact, even if it's a bit battered and bruised. I love the way that City Harmonic's lyrics touch the very heart of being human, that crossroad where painful heartache and faith meet. I really do listen to their music practically everyday. I honestly don't know how I would have got through last summer without them. Such a God-send. Get their CDs. You won't be sorry!)

Coming My Way by the City Harmonic ("Getting on with living" while waiting for God. Love that!)

Sweetly Broken by Jeremy Riddle (The inspiration for my other blog, The 'Sweetly Broken' Journey.)

I AM by Crowder (Such a great reminder that He's always with us, always holding onto us.)

God Moves in a Mysterious Way by Jeremy Riddle (Love this song. The author of the poem it's based on - William Cowper - knew pain, to the point of attempting (or just contemplating?) suicide several times, so I've read. I treasure words of faith written by people who knew deep pain and yet still managed to cling to the Lord, who held on through life's storms and the darkest nights, who have learned that our God is a good, loving Father even when life is not good and that He can be trusted even when we can't trust ourselves.)

Blessed Be Your Name by Newsboys (I always said I want this one at my funeral, along with Sweetly Broken, Manifesto, and Oh, What Love. What a way to go!)

Hallelujah by Newsboys (Looking forward to that day!)

My Jesus by Todd Agnew (That's my Jesus. It shows why I love Him. Why I follow Him. Why I want to be like Him. I love this song!)

We Believe by Newboys (Oh, how I wish all Christians could sing this out loud and really mean it! Far too many have denied these very basic truths.)

Secret Ambition by Michael W. Smith (Because everyone should watch this video at least twice in their life.)

Manifesto by the City Harmonic (Love it! Love it! Love it!)

Confession (Agnus Dei) by the City Harmonic (I woke up once singing the line "Lamb of God who takes away ..." over and over again in my mind. I have loved it ever since.)

Honestly by the City Harmonic (A new one I just found on-line, recently released on their newest album. So good and so right on.)

Lord, I Need You by Matt Maher (This one meant so much to me when we sang it at church while I was in a very dark time.)

Better Than a Hallelujah by Amy Grant (It's okay to pour your pain out to the Lord. You don't have to hide it from Him.)

Your Hands by JJ Heller (No matter how our world is shaking, we never leave His hands.)

Stuck in a Moment by U2 (Obviously, this isn't an overtly Christian song, but I love it. And while I don't totally know what all the lyrics mean, I do know that it's about an imaginary fight between Bono and INXS's lead singer, Michael Hutchence, who committed suicide. Bono is arguing with Hutchence, trying to convince him that suicide is not the answer. While I never thought "I want to kill myself," I did get to the point last year - 2016 - where I thought, "So this is the point people get to when they kill themselves." And that's not a pleasant place to be. My heart breaks today for anyone who feels so hopeless and discouraged that they take their own lives. Remember that while the pain you're going through today might be enormous, it's just a moment in time ... and that moment will pass. God can always pull us out of whatever dark moment we are in, as long as we hang in there, seek help, and reach out and grab His hand.)

This one is because we need it right now:
Colored People by DC Talk

Two for when you feel all-too-human:
Man of God by Audio Adrenaline (A great reminder that we are all human. And God knows it and loves us anyway.)
What If I Stumble? by DC Talk (And guess what? We will all stumble. We will all fall. Thank God that He's here to pick us up and put us back together again.)

And four "Just For Fun" blasts from the past, for when you get discouraged because it feels like evil is winning:
Witch's Invitation by Carman
The Champion by Carman (Whoever made this did a good job trying to find clips to go with the words.)
Radically Saved by ... you guessed it ... Carman (Remember this one, Older Christians! What fun!)
And In The Sky by Bob Carlisle and others (He's coming back soon! Be ready!)

And one that deserves to be played all year. It's so beautiful, it brings me to tears. And I imagine that this is how heaven will sound - Christmas Canon by Trans-Siberian Orchestra. (Or for the more rockin' version - Christmas Canon Rock. Oh my goodness, it makes my heart want to burst! Too much beauty!)

Oh, and I love, love, love this version of Broken Hallelujah: Hallelujah Christmas!

And here's a song that my sons and I are addicted to: Burn The Ships by For King and Country! (See my post on it here.)

And this song by Billy Boyd is amazing, from the Battle of the Five Armies (Lord of the Rings): The Last Goodbye. Always makes me cry!

And when it's time to stop crying, watch this version of Little Drummer Boy by For King and Country. It's incredible!

And here's an absolutely beautiful song - The Call by Regina Spektor. I'm not sure what the lyrics mean (and it's not necessarily a Christian song), but I think it can mean something for everyone.

Here's a song I've always loved from a singer whose voice I've always loved: Have a Little Faith in Me. (Not necessarily a Christian song but it works.)

(For more great songs, see this post.)

Some Encouraging Blogs I Like:

FYI -I tried to find blogs that are encouraging, easy to read, and peaceful to visit. But I haven't read everything on all of them (most are still new to me), so I can't say for sure that I agree with everything on them. But they all seem worth a visit. (I have recently gone through these and removed some that support yoga and Calvinism.)

http://annvoskamp.com (A Must-Visit Blog)

https://tonyevans.org/category/tony-evans-christian-blog/ (My favorite preacher!)

https://couragehopelove.com ("Encouragement in suffering. Growth in faith. Guidance in Godly living.")

http://www.embracingtheunexpected.com/ ("Embracing life in the midst of the unexpected.")

https://www.loisflowers.com/ ("Waxing Gibbous: Reflections on Faith and Life with Lois Flowers")

http://holleygerth.com/blog/

http://www.myinkdance.com/

https://tammykennington.com ("Mercy multiplied - Encouragement for your heart")

https://melodyhester.com/blog/ ("Life is a bowl of wedgies")

https://joyawilliams.com/ ("Sharing hope for the heart and joy to the soul.")

http://donnareidland.com/ ("Soul Survival: The Bible for real life.")

https://www.theresaboedeker.com/ ("Unwrapping life with words: find humor and remember what's important.")

http://joanneviola.com/

http://crystaltwaddell.com/ ("Cultivating a life of intention and a legacy of hope.")

http://www.staceypardoe.com/ ("Encountering God in the ordinary.")

https://laurarath.blogspot.com/ ("Journey in faith: encouraging women in their walk with Christ.")

http://www.estherdorotik.net/blog/ ("Chosen & Cherished: encouragement for living life abundantly.")

https://dianasdiaries.com/blog/ ("Christ-centered devotions - to remain deep-rooted in the WORD and not the world.")

http://diannethornton.com/blog-posts/ ("Sweeter than honey: tasting the goodness of the Lord.")

http://faithspillingover.com/ ("Getting God's Word in so we can live our faith out.")

http://nikihardy.com/blog/ ("Because life doesn't have to be pain-free to be full.")

http://carryonmyheart.com/ ("Choosing faith over fear in the everyday.")

https://activistmommy.com/ and https://www.dailywire.com/ (Not "encouraging," light-hearted blogs. But the information on these blogs are serious and seriously-needed. Because this is the kind of stuff that the liberal media won't report.)

http://www.rosilindjukic.com/ ("A little R&R. Encourage. Motivate. Inspire. Live.")

https://www.ibelieve.com

candidlychristian.com ("Real women. Real Life. Real faith.")

http://purposefulfaith.com ("'A cheerleader of faith' & friends")

http://embracing.life (check out her "praying Scripture" posts)

https://babylonbee.com (Christian satire)

And this one is for me, a couple live bird cams I like. I'm including links here to make it easier to find: Ontario Backyard Cam, Sapsucker Woods, Panama Fruit Feeders, Southwest Florida Eagle Cam.

Wednesday, August 2, 2017

What I've Learned About Trials