Psalms!

Today at church we had Sons of Korah lead worship. Pretty amazing, haven't a clue how we managed to arrange that. The above video is just the most beautiful song. Sons of Korah sing a musical journey through the psalms in a variety of styles - which of course the Psalms are - they represent a variety of moods and situations. There's something there for whatever we are going through.

Psalm 91 (above live clip) is Little Miss August 2009's special scripture. All of it! It was so special to us in the months before she was born, very appropriate and encouraging. Well today it was that again. If we had a day when we needed Psalm 91 - today's been the nearest for a while. And I can't think of a more beautiful way to enjoy it.

In church this morning they began leading our worship- usual songs led a little differently (!) and then went into what I imagine is a much abridged version of their live concert. They finished with Psalm 91 but earlier in the service they sang this:



Like I said - a variety of styles! Undoubtedly talented and Spirit inspired. We kept the children in the service this morning instead of sending them to Sunday School, and I am glad we did. We thought we might have fun experimenting with putting some Psalms to music with them in the coming weeks. They love the Psalms, it is often their 'book of choice' for our Bible time in the week. We have bought a few CDs so we can use them for meditation / reading the Psalms in a different  way. All of their songs are lifted straight from the text - a challenge if you've ever done that like we have - and only the occasional change to help the words fit around the setting.

I came home so grateful we can bring the Psalms alive like this in church - having "grown up" with the Oxford Psalter and plainsong chant (good for memorising scripture but I am not sure at the time we were singing them it meant a great deal to anyone certainly the 'usefulness' is limited). I feel like now I have found something that expresses far more what the original intention of the Psalms was. Some are dances, praise, joyful - others laments or balads. All expressing the heart of the writer. Will take that idea with the boys and talk about it some more. I'll also have it in mind as I try to use the Psalms more myself - something I've done far more of in the past year - praying the Psalms is amazing.

A new habit begun this Lent...

I am using Lent in an unconventional way  I suppose, and I don't really want it compared to New Year Resolutions but in a way it's kind of that sort of idea. But the sacrifice of course is the difference - the focus of Lent being sacrifice and fasting, and I am doing both of those things in trying to be positive and fast negativity (almost got the better of me today but the sacrifice required from my bad day with sick children was overwhelming and the death of self was pretty much decided for me).

In addition, I've just been lost in a blog for ages trying to find a fantastic (I thought) post on this subject that I read last week, and have been inspired to "do different" ever since.

Have a look at this post: The one parenting habit that changes everything
It speaks for itself but I have several themes going on at once this Lent and one of them is reading more of the Bible, with the children, putting God right at the top of our list in a way we haven't done either before, or for a long time. So when I read this I was inspired to make a change, and do something after every meal that we have previously done only randomly, albeit quite often sometimes.

It comes on the back of the sermon series we've had at church recently, about God's word being our Spiritual food, and this post really takes that analogy again quite far.

One thing I also wanted to mention was that our pastor compared the price of a good Bible (life application or equivalent) with a new pan or piece of kitchen equipment. We'll spend on a new casserole dish or something similar, but we think a Bible, giving us Spiritual food is expensive... Just food for thought...

Anyway, last night I got a daily reading plan at a meeting I went to at church and the boys have been leading the way today reading and ticking off today's reading, and reminded me after dinner that we couldn't get down from the table till we'd read the Bible. Starting a reading plan in the middle of a month is a bit random but actually today's readings (a chapter from 1 Cor, and two from Deuteronomy) were brilliant and we all got something out of it.

I plan to equip the youngest 2 with pen and paper while the others of us share the reading, as I sometimes read to them in snack time in our school day. So tomorrow I will try that as well.

Amidst the baby with shingles, the broken things, the chaos of tripping over unpacked moving boxes, I feel we are finally getting a spiritual grip again. But wow it's hard work at the moment.

Blessings all mine and ten thousand besides!

I just have to share this, I am sure someone will find this as exciting as me.

Every new year, Matthew and I count our blessings of the year we are leaving / have left behind. This began one year when we felt so despondent about the year we had left behind - bad things had happened in that year. I had the God inspired (I believe) idea to count our blessings from that year, to overwrite the muscle memory of it having been a bad year.

That was a number of years ago now, and wasn't intended to be a tradition, but actually New Year is a time I can find myself lonely, a little lost, and sometimes discontent. But we enjoyed the list so much that year - and it definitely defied our muscle memory - it had actually been a very blessed year. :) We kept the list and have done it ever since.

I caught myself allowing discontent to move in today, actually. Just some stuff I saw on the internet, brought back memories of university, acquaitances gone by, and somehow a regret that my life had not been priviledged in the way others' lives were - those I was 'friends' with, studied with, knew vaguely... and looking in the mirror I just saw someone who had taken a completely different life course and had never had such a 'good' start. But this is where God put me... before I let the thoughts set in (and I'd like to say I had a spiritual moment and took those thoughts captive) I saw one or other (or maybe all) of the Little H's and realised that if I wasn't where I am, I wouldn't have them, and I am incredibly rich and blessed in far better ways than the superficial stuff that got my attention (and threatened my peace) temporarily. Maybe I did take the thoughts captive. But actually I just think the sight of real blessings was a stronger influence.

I had been surfing, anyway, for ideas for Lent. Want to make a Lenten lapbook of some sort, get some good H homeschooly activities underway to observe Lent and give us a kickstart back into how I like our homeschool to look. The Lent work isn't really fixed yet. I will have to do some more work tonight online for that. I have something at least I can do with them tomorrow.

For now, I have come across One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp. It is very much like the New Year idea. Except it has a nice cover and a lot of followers!!!! ;)

Here are 2 you tube links of an interview with Ann Voskamp that is really inspiring and encouraging. Time to begin counting our blessings and getting to a thousand. To begin with...

Anway, our plans for Lent won't be that ambitious. But this morning I was going to read the scripture for the day from our calendar, and it was from 2 Corinthians. Little H#1 saw I was going to read from Corinthians and asked for the passage about Love. So I thought it was very appropriate, and changed readings.

My biggest fast for Lent (and something I don't intend to welcome back at the end of the Lenten period) is fasting negativity. Negative thoughts, and words. So appropriate today for that to have come from Little H#1's chosen reading. I will not keep a record of wrongs. This will be a bigger contribution to our family life than many other things I can think of for Lent.

So I will keep a record of Blessings instead. I feel happier calling them blessings rather than Gifts, though maybe they amount to one and the same.

I will attempt to do one with the children too. Maybe they will have a joint list, so that they have a sense of achievement instead of daunting thoughts about a thousand being too many! I think LittleH#1 may well managed doing it by himself in his journal though so I will see how that goes.

Encouraging.

Just a little encouragement for me, today, when I need it.

Verse for the day on Bible Gateway just now as I have logged in is:

"I have chosen the way of truth. I have set my heart on your
laws."
Ps 119:30.

I suppose its my signature verse. Maybe a life verse. A personal one, rather than the ones we have for ourselves as a family.

Encouraging to see it today, on a day where I have really just felt like I need more from God, some sort of break through in my spiritual life; a kick start. Its a gentle encouragement and reminder to me. Maybe God is whispering to me. Not speaking loudly, or being 'obvious'. I need to sit still and hear the whisper. Good. I'll try that - less striving, more listening.