Prayer of a Music Teacher

Oh Dear Lord
With a song on my lips and a warmth in my heart, may my life be a sweet melody in your ears. As I teach these young musicians, may my life be a clear tone that resonates. I may not always hit the right notes and at times I may crescendo when I should rest, but even in my slip-ups You always direct my song. May I stand ready waiting on the raising of Your baton, so that on the down beat my life may praise Your name. These students I stand before, these kinds You let me teach, when they look at me may they not just see a teacher but a musician of the King. Thank You Lord for music, thank You for this chance, to take hold of young minds and teach them in this dance. So as I get ready to start this new day, there's a song in my heart and I pray it'll stay.
Amen

“Ode to my Grandmother”

Never has there been a more precious jewel,
Neither a Ruby or a Pearl.
The Weaver wove her with the upmost joy,
She was a tender girl.

She journeyed each day as a King’s Pilgrim,
That is how she lived her life.
A friend so cherished, A servant so true,
A sister, A mother, A wife.

She set her eyes on things of beauty,
Such as the birds and trees.
Watching the world change from the front porch,
Feeling the Autumn breeze.

Her hope was fixed in the Lord of Lord’s,
She had faith in His love.
Now she rests in the arms of His embrace,
For she has gone above.

Today we cry remembering our loss,
Oh we loved her so.
Yet we see her face in each grandchild
We get to watch them grow.

So now we come together as family,
And tightly hold each other.
She was kind, creative, wise, and loving,
She was my Grandmother!

I will be with you always

O LORD,
Soverign, Omnipresent, Omnipotent, Omnicient! LORD, these are just a few of the attributes that You carry with You. What is wind but Your coming and going? What is a storm other than that which rocks us to sleep? The threat lies not with the element but in our perception of the elements, and in our misunderstanding of who You are!

Somersaults

Rolling down the grassy hill,
jumping, sliding what a thrill.
Tumble, bumble havin fun,
Laughing, spinning, in the sun.
In the grass I finally stop,
upside down my feet on top.
Out of breath, my head still spinnin,
Loving life, my face is grinnin.
Laying there without a care,
me and God make quite a pair.
Now a race back up the slop,
jumping like and antelope.
Yay! to do it all once more,
On the hill my spirit soar!

Dark Night and Joyful Morning

Back & forth, up & down
Like a ship, tossed by a stormy sea.
My mind races & searches for a happy place.
Yet every island of joy is marred by the images in my head.

I seek a peace to this storm
but the waves keep raging.
"Help!" I cry. "I need Your help, Lord."
"Aren't You the One who calms the storm?"

Run, run, run. My mind is running from itself.
I'm my biggest enemy right now.
My mind betrays me,
But it can't help it. It's scared.

Lord, please pick me up & hold me tight.
Like a little baby in Your arms.
My eyes grow weary & they want to close.
May I lay my head on Your shoulder & rest awhile.

I'm so tired yet my eyes are afraid to close.
What lies in the dark is unknown, yet feared.
Lack of faith in You, Lord? I pray not.
For my faith in You is all I got.

Hold my hand & help me rest.
Give me strength to sleep.
This night is long, but part of the journey.
Tomorrow is a new day & joy will come in the morning.

"Whisper" (Word of God)

Whispering Whisper, so fragile and delicate.
Listening Listen, If I'm breathing I'll miss It.
Singing Sing, the song of a baby's sleep.
Whispering Whisper, still, calm, Dangerous!

The Brick Wall

I was walking down the street today, when I encountered a brick wall. There was nothing different about this brick wall and maybe that is why it stood out. No graffiti and no signs were seen, simply brick and mortar. The wall was tall, way above my head. Even if I jumped or climbed I could not have seen over the top. I stood there looking, just staring at this wall when all of a sudden a little boy came up and stood next to me.
At first I gave little thought to the boy because I was so engrossed with the wall but when he tugged at my pants leg and questioned what I was looking at, I told him, "I was just wondering what was on the other side of this wall." He studied the wall and then without missing a beat he exclaimed, "It's a park!" With that he ran on down the street and I was left with my thoughts about what this park was like. I could only imagine it was a park with a playground and children and a pond with ducks and fish. I began to smile as I envisioned mothers running after their kids as they chased the ducks. I could almost smell the mouth watering aroma of a picnic with fried chicken. The trees would be swaying in the wind and the sun was extra golden this day.
While I stood there beaming ear to ear with an array of thoughts of childhood memories, an elderly woman approached me. She was old and wrinkled; her back was bent from years of hard labor. She was not smiling in fact she looked almost to be frowning. Her eyes were dark and hollowing, looking her in the face almost made me shiver. "What are you looking at, young man?" she asked. Her voice was sharp and contained a strong accent. "I was just wondering what was on the other said of this wall," I said. She looked at the wall and then without missing a beat she exclaimed, "It reminds me of the wall around the concentration camp." With that she wondered out of sight and I was left to stare at the walk. The wall did have a menacing appearance about it. All of a sudden I was gripped by such a sorrow; the smell of smoke filled my nostrils. I could just envision Jews running here and there as the Nazi's pushed and shoved. I saw even little old lady's being forced to move heavy stones. A tear ran down my cheek as the sounds of machine guns filled my mind. Why did there have to be such hatred?
Time passed but I just stood there, my cheeks still wet with tears, when then I notice a business man stood near extending a handkerchief for me to dry to eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked. I simply told him, "I was just wondering what was on the other side of this wall." He looked at the wall and then with out missing a beat he exclaimed, "It's a bank." Looking at his watch he quickly walked off saying something about a meeting, and once again I was alone at the wall. In my mind I could just see the bank, it was big and tall. There was a clock on the front of the building right above the words, "First National Bank." People in suits kept running in and out. The sounds of their wing tipped shoes on the pavement filled my ears along with a ringing of a telephone. Everyone was moving so fast. I stood up straight and fixed my clothes. It is important to look ones best when going to the bank. I straightened my tie, though I was not wearing one, I even stuck out my hand as if to give a firm hand shake. As I did I was bumped into by a priest.

The priest was a man of average stature, his robe was black and a cross hung around his neck. What are you doing my child? he asked with such calmness of voice. “I was just wondering what was on the other side of this wall.” He looked at the wall and then glanced up toward Heaven, “It’s a church,” he exclaimed and then he moved on down the road. “A church,” I thought what a novel idea. No wonder this wall had caught my attention so. Beyond this brick was the glory of God Himself. The birds knew this, which was why they were chirping so beautifully. They were singing a song to our Heavenly King. I began to hum the tune, “Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me…” In my mind the choir echoed off the wall and the priest delivered a fiery message. I started to shout, “Halleluiah,” but then I came to. It was just me and the wall.

Time had passed and the sun was fleeting fast. But something inside of me was not satisfied. Something was not right. I no longer could imagine a park or a death camp or a bank or even a church. My mind began to wonder a much more simple thought. What if, on the other side of this wall was simply another person like me? Just wondering what lied mere feet away. We were so close yet we were worlds apart. I touched the wall, it was rough and gritty, and it was cool with the air of the evening. And then I wondered, if we would ever meet.

Love Letter

Dear Lord,

I talked to you last night as I fell asleep,
and You were my first thought as I woke up.
You make me smile!
Everywhere I go, You are there, stealing a glance.
When I go home, You are there,
When I go to school or work, You are there,
If I run away from You, You are there.
You're always there, waiting with arms wide open.
Waiting for an embrace.
Some days I'm so dirty. Covered head to toe with the filth of a sinful life,
But You are there. With arms wide open.
I find myself staring off in the distance thinking about You.
What did You ever see in me, that sparked such a love?
You're so great and I'm so small,
You're so Holy and I'm so weak,
You're so beautiful and I'm so full of death.
Yet You looked down and You chose me.
You chose to come to earth for me,
You chose to die on a cross for me,
You chose to raise from the dead and then go and prepare a place for me.
To be with me, that is Your heart, and I long to be with You.
I love You because You first loved me!
And now I want to tell the world! Shout it from the mountain tops!
You are my God, You are my King, You are my everything!
All creation sings Your praises.
The waves bow before You,
The trees stretch their branches up to You,
The flowers display their beauty before You.
But as for me...
I may not be as faithful as the waves to bow before You.
I may not be able to reach as high as the trees.
I may not be as beautiful as the flowers.
But with everything that is in me,
From the bottom of my heart,
I give You my life!
With all the thankfulness there is,
With all the talents I possess,
With all the time I have,
with all the passion within me,
And with all the love I have,
I say to You,
I am now and will forever be, Your's

Love Always,
Jason

Who's afraid of the Monster in the Closet?

One of my first memories as a child was all the way back when I slept in a crib. I remember a dream I had. In this dream I was in my room holding on to the edges of my crib. It was dark but I could still see around the room. This will sound crazy but while I was standing there looking around, there was a blue cow that came out of my closet! No lie! It wasn't like the four legged farm cow, it was a two legged cartoon cow, standing upright! He came walking out of my closet and the whole time he just stared at me. He never said anything or mooed at me, he just stared at me. FREAKY!!! So all I remember is that I screamed and Mom and Dad had to come in and look under my bed and in my closet. To this day I still get freaked out by the sight of a blue cow. That is the scariest monster of all!I can understand how a little child can be scared of something so irrational as a monster but what about an adult? If an adult finds themselves staying awake long hour because they are watching vigilantly for a blue cow, or a large man eating potatos (that's another blog for another time) then we may need to talk about what really is real. But sadly I talked to a young man the other day who has found himself in a sticky situation. Because of his explosive anger he is being threatened with getting kicked out of college. Here he is a second semester senior, only weeks from graduation but because of his temper he might not graduate. He looked me in the eyes and asked, "Am I a monster?" That question broke my heart because he was not afraid of something fake under the bed, he was scared of something real within himself. He was afraid that because he couldn't control his anger that God was revoking his salvation. I talked to him for a little bit and reassured him of God's love, then I finished by praying for him. When I said Amen, without blinking, he reached out his arms and hugged me! I was hugged by a monster, or was I hugged by a child of God? In all honesty I'm more afraid of blue cows than I am of hugging, repentant, angry, Christians! God has a plan for him!

John 8:36 "So if the son makes you free, you will be free indeed."

II Cor. 3:17 "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom."

II Cor. 5:17 "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."

Gal. 5:16 "But i say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh."

Dancing Bubbles

Dancing Bubbles in her dancing shoes,
The inocence of the moment is as beautiful as the light of the clouds,
Though her life is large, she's larger than life,
The Bubbles pop but the dance laughs on!