Pilgrims in Another Country

“We are aliens, foreigners, strangers in this world…Here you have no continuing city, but are like the tent-dwelling Patriarchs, who, by their very abodes, Confessed that they looked for a possession yet to be given them…You know that you are emigrants to the land of the unsetting sun and these lands are but traversed on the road to your eternal heritage…Our citizenship rights and civic privileges connect us with a city whose jeweled walls and shining streets are waiting for our coming! Our Captain cries to us, “Forward.” Beyond the river our possessions lie. In another land is our everlasting country, passing through this world to an inheritance beyond…Not how to stay here in comfort, but how to pass through the land in holiness is our great question.” Charles Spurgeon

I am a Singing Pilgrim. May the Holy Spirit guide my steps; may He lead me through this land in holiness. Beyond the river is where my heart lies…my eternal Home.

The Company We Keep

Before I traveled to Ireland last year I decided to practice posting photos from my iphone so I would know how to do it for the trip. I took a photo of “My Traveling Companions” during our last meeting before we boarded the plane and then posted it to Facebook. I was so proud of myself (technology has always been a bit of a challenge for me). ☺

Because that trip came up so suddenly we didn’t have time to plan our itinerary–which was a good thing, because we were determined to let this be a “Holy Spirit led” trip. We had a few ideas of places we might visit, but we really wanted to put into practice all that we were learning about submitting to His will on a moment-by-moment basis. Because of this commitment, the trip was life-changing for each one of us.

Now, this Singing Pilgrim is embarking on a new journey. I’m striking out in a new direction and once again God has provided me with a tiny group of traveling companions. We feel so blessed to have each other, so excited to begin walking forward on this path and (again) committed to allowing the Holy Spirit Wind to blow us whereever He wishes. We have all remarked how liberating it feels to trust Him for the direction we will go.

Some time ago I attended a C.S. Lewis Conference in Texas and author Diana Pavlac Glyer had much to share about the topic of traveling companions. She has written a wonderful book called “The Company We Keep” about C.S. Lewis and the group of men known as “The Inklings,” who encouraged each other in their writing efforts. Below are some of the choice nuggets I gleaned from Diana’s lectures:

* C.S. Lewis knew how to connect and as a result God used him to accomplish a lasting legacy. He was gifted but used extraordinarily because he knew how to connect with God and others.

* Throughout Scripture we are called to connect.

* Tolkein said if not for the encouragement of C.S. Lewis, he would never have finished “Lord of the Rings.”

* Praise is not encouragement and vice-versa. Encouragement is to the person, their gifts and their calling. It’s easy to brush off praise but not encouragement. It is not “Pollyanna-ish.” It’s not necessarily about being nice or gentle. It is the ferocious side of “love thy neighbor.” Praise has surprising little benefit. Encouragement knows me–calls me to live beyond what I’m doing.

* If we really want to use our gift to make a difference then we must let iron sharpen iron, sparks and all.

* You will be influenced by the company you keep.

*Plant yourself in a tall forest if you want to leave a lasting legacy in the world. Tips for saplings: There is value in starting small. Grow slow–you need deep roots to bear fruit.

* Cherish differences. Have a passion about the same things but come at it from a different point of view. You need variety to challenge, support, correct and fulfill one another. Cherish the differences.

So, my Traveling Companions, off we go! Forward!

That “In-between” Place

Well, it has been a good long time since I posted, and this is my attempt to get started again. No promises, though.

The photo above was taken when I was in Ireland last year, and it seemed to depict quite well where I’ve been during the past months. I feel as if I’ve been in that “in-between” place where God sometimes sets you down beside the still waters for a place of rest. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve kept myself plenty busy at this “in-between” place, but it’s been a time of tending the garden of my soul. I’ve been allowing the Holy Spirit to plow in the places He chooses, to prepare the soil and plant the seeds that I pray will one day produce rich fruits of the Spirit. He has also had me gleaning in the rich fields of His Word, gathering seeds to sow on my journey further down the road.

Very soon, it will be time to start the journey again, sow those seeds and move a little further down that road.

I’m ready, Lord. Just waiting on Your Word…

Yadah Blog

Hi all,

I’m hoping that things have calmed down enough in my life to be posting more regularly here now. I have lots to share about this Singing Pilgrim’s journey so hope to get it down in writing soon.

For now, though, let me direct you to a blog that I recently set up for the Yadah Worship Community. The link and the web address is below (should you have problems with the link–it doesn’t seem to be showing up in my window):

http://yadahworship.wordpress.com/

At times I will post the same entry on both blogs. For sure, all of the Sign Language Worship Videos will be posted there.

More later!
Jeanne

It’s Christmas!

Roses on my walk this morning...

It’s Christmas! Every day! I remember waking up in the wee hours of the morning, while the whole house was still dark, to sneak a peek at the Christmas tree, and more important to a child, to get a glimpse of what was under the tree. Who doesn’t love to open presents?

This morning God woke me up at 3am in the wee hours of the morning, while the whole house was still dark, and He gave me a gift. Just as the bright, shiny wrapping paper conceals what is hidden within, the light that shines from His Word is beautiful to behold. As I make my way through His Word, though, I find that concealed within, there is always some precious gem tucked away that is just for me on this specific day. I delight in it when I find it and marvel at how my Father could have known to pick just that scripture for me, the one that speaks deep truths to my heart because of the circumstance I find myself in.

It is like Christmas every day as I read His precious Word and find all the treasures He has stored there for me. As I started my journey today with a morning walk, He continued to bless me with a chorus of birds chirping, bouquets of roses sprouting from bushes along my path (and yes, I stopped to smell them), the glorious sun peaking over the crest of the mountain top, and the thick scent of honeysuckle trickling over the wall beside me. All along my path were strewn gifts from my Abba Father.

I was moved with gratitude and praise. Charles Spurgeon said, “Come ye children of God, and bless his dear name; for doth not all nature around you sing? If you were silent, you would be an exception to the universe. Doth not the thunder praise him as it rolls like drums in the march of the God of armies? Doth not the ocean praise him as it claps its thousand hands? Doth not the sea roar, and the fulness thereof? Do not the mountains praise him when the shaggy woods upon their summits wave in adoration? Do not the lightnings write his name in letters of fire upon the midnight darkness? Doth not this world, in its unceasing revolutions, perpetually roll forth his praise? Hath not the whole earth a voice, and shall we be silent? Shall man, for whom the world was made, and suns and stars were created,–shall he be dumb? No, let him lead the strain. Let him be the world’s high priest, and while the world shall be as the sacrifice, let him add his heart thereto, and thus supply the fire of love which shall make that sacrifice smoke towards heaven.”

Every day, all day is like Christmas with SO much to praise Him for. O Father, may my heart sing joyful songs of praise, a continuous, unending outpouring of love for You and gratitude for the gifts you give your children.

Jeanne

YADAH

The Hebrew word “Yadah” is one of several used in the Old Testament that means “to give thanks,” “to laud,” “to celebrate,” “to praise,” “to profess,” “to confess,” and “to praise the name of Jehovah.”

The word also means “to throw, shoot, or cast,” “to shoot (arrows),” “to show or point out with the hand extended, from the idea of the hand being cast forth.” This is not a surprise since the ancient pictograph of the first letter in this word, “Yod,” is the picture of a hand.

Since this word means to praise the name of Jehovah, and the idea of extending the hand is embedded in the word, I chose to use it as the name of this new worship community. We pray that “Yadah” will be a worship community that meets on a regular basis to minister to God through prayer and praise,  and we will incorporate American Sign Language (ASL) versions in our worship expression. We will move forward with this ministry with a ‘pioneer mentality’, meaning that we will, on occasion, take our small community out into the larger community. This is a lesson that our core group learned during our recent trip to Ireland–the power of taking worship out into surrounding areas and proclaiming, like Deborah in the book of Judges, “Hear this, you Kings. Listen you rulers. I will sing to the Lord, I will sing! I will make music to the God of Israel!”

So here are the details. We hope to begin “Yadah” on either Saturday, May 28th, or Saturday, June 4th (I’m waiting to hear from some folks on availability). We will meet at my home at 1pm for a one-hour workshop where we will learn ASL versions of worship songs. Some of you know that I have a Bachelor’s Degree is in Sign Language Interpreting through the Sign Language Interpreting program at the University of New Mexico, and also taught in the program for years. My daughter, Laurel, is a graduate from that program and has gone on to become a Certified Interpreter. The two of us will work to create interpretations that are conceptually accurate and that incorporate many of the grammatical structures of ASL, but will still flow smoothly with the singing in English. So, while we will be learning much about ASL , it’s structure and vocabulary, these workshops will not be focused on conversational ASL. The primary goal is to create an expression of worship that both Deaf and hearing people can participate in together in unity.

Our community time of worship together will begin at 2pm (for those who choose to participate in the worship, but not the ASL workshop). We encourage all musicians to bring your instruments as this will be more like a “worship jam session” in that everyone who wants to participate instrumentally is welcome to. If you are not one who plays by ear, we encourage you to request an advance copy of the worship songs with chord progressions (emailed in PDF format so you can print them out for your own use). The goal is to have enough structure for us to participate together, yet at the same time submit freely to the moving of the Holy Spirit.

If you are interested in participating in this Yadah community, please contact me by email, (or through Facebook) to be added to a newsletter list for more specific details. Readers of this blog can contact me at seeds2sow2@gmail.com .

The Bread and the Wine

Last night our Home Fellowship family celebrated a Passover Seder dinner. Throughout the evening we reminded ourselves of what the experience might have been like if we were sitting at the Last Supper with Jesus.

After supper, just as Jesus did, we took the Afikomen, the broken bread, the “Bread of Affliction” with it’s bruises and piercings and we read His Words in Matthew, “Take this…and eat it.” Together we ate. We then poured “The Third Cup,” of wine, the “Cup of Redemption” and again read His Words, “Take this…and drink it.” Together we drank.

He said to do this in memory of Him. We often take communion and are reminded that He suffered and died on the cross to pay the price for our sins and to REDEEM us. But we don’t often remember that it was not only the supreme act of sacrifice, but also, the example to us of the supreme act of worship.

Like Mary poured expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet, Jesus poured out His life at His Father’s feet as an act of ultimate worship–a sweet fragrance of obedient sacrifice, given freely.

When we eat His body and drink His blood, we are in communion with Him, ready to partake of the bread of affliction and the wine of sacrifice–not in payment for our sins–for that work was completed on the Cross. But as a free will offering of obedient WORSHIP.

Do we really understand the depth of our commitment when we take communion? Are we willing to pour out our lives in the supreme act of worship to our God?

Make my heart ready to do so, Yeshua. May I be a true disciple, following you in obedience everywhere, even to places of affliction, suffering and sacrifice. Give me a heart to pour myself out at Your feet, to worship You in completeness.

Blessings,

Jeanne