"Give Me Your Eyes"

By Brandon Heath

Looked down from a broken sky,

Traced out by the city lights.

My world from a mile high,

Best seat in the house tonight.

Touched down on the cold black tile,

Hold on for the sudden stop.

Breath in the familiar shock

Of confusion and chaos.

All those people going somewhere?

Why have I never cared?

Chorus: Give me your eyes for just one second,

Give me your eyes so I can see

Everything that I keep missing

Give me your love for humanity.

Give me your arms for the broken hearted,

The ones that are far beyond my reach.

Give me your heart for the once forgotten

Give my your eyes so I can see.

yeah yeah

yeah yeah

Step out on a busy street,

See a girl and our eyes meet.

Does her best to smile at me,

To hide whats underneath.

There's a man just to her right,

Black suit and a bright red tie

Too ashamed to tell his wife

He's out of work,

He's buying time.

All those people going somewhere?

Why have I never cared?

Chorus: Give me your eyes for just one second,

Give me your eyes so I can see

Everything that I keep missing.

Give me your love for humanity.

Give me your arms for the broken hearted,

The ones that are far beyond my reach.

Give me your heart for the once forgotten,

Give me your eyes so I can see.

yeah yeah

yeah yeah

I've Been there a million times

A couple of million eyes

just move and pass me by

I swear I never thought that I was wrong

Well I want a second glance

So give me a second chance

To see the way you see the people all alone

Chorus: Give me your eyes for just one second,

Give me your eyes so I can see,

Everything that I keep missing,

Give me your love for humanity.

Give me your arms for the brokenhearted,

the ones that are far beyond my reach,

Give me your eyes for the once forgotten,

Give me your eyes so I can see.

yeah yeah

yeah yeah

So I'm Going To College...

I found this video through the Rebelution. It's very challenging...

A Witnessing Opportunity

I have a paper due tomorrow! And guess what...you'll get to see it before my professor does! :-) Our assignment was to write a dialogue in which we "engrafted" Scripture into a Gospel presentation. In other words, we're supposed to quote Scripture without directly quoting it. I based my dialogue on an experience that I had about a year and a half ago, when I was working at my dad's sports camp. I was talking to one of the junior counselors about music, and about why I only listened to Christian music. This boy was not a believer, and he thought I was really weird.... :-)

Anyway, I responded to his questioning with some lame answer like, "Well, I have my taste in music and you have yours!" Afterwards, Mom and I talked about how I could have responded by sharing specifically why I listen to Christian music...because I am a Christian!!

So anyway, I based my paper on that experience; I kind of wrote down how I wished the scenario had turned out! :-)

A Witnessing Opportunity

“Why on earth do you listen to so much Christian music? Don’t you ever listen to secular music?”
I turned to face the teenage boy who was speaking and grinned at his incredulous expression. “Lord, this kid thinks I’m a nut!” I thought. Then out loud I replied, “Not usually, Jay. I really appreciate the lyrics of most Christian music, and so I usually prefer it over most secular stuff.” I knew this reply would not satisfy Jay. Even though he was a fellow counselor at the local Christian day camp where I was working, his attitudes, actions, and words made it clear that he was quite clueless about Christianity.
"Yeah, well you obviously have no clue about all of the quality music that’s out there!” Jay’s demeanor grew more and more sarcastic. “Be honest, Bri, you probably just listen to Christian music because your parents won’t let you listen to anything else. Why don’t you try branching out and having a mind of your own? ”
“Actually, I do listen to some secular music, Jay. I’m not sheltered, I just don’t like the fact that so much music brings the listener down, both mentally and emotionally. Seriously, think about the messages that many song lyrics send. They talk about sex, drugs, alcohol, bad attitudes...it’s not information that I want to feed into my brain!”
"Oh, come on, Bri! They’re just songs! You won’t become a drug addict if you listen to one song about drugs!” “Maybe not, but, Jay, I’m a Christian.”
“Oh, so it’s your religion then. You just follow a bunch of rules, and you believe that if you listen to Christian music, you’ll impress God!”
“Nope…that’s not it at all. Actually, God comes right out and says that no one is perfect. It’s impossible for us to impress Him or to live up to His standards because we’re such bums!”
Jay’s look morphed from one of sarcasm to one of total confusion. “Well then what is the point of even trying to please your God if it’s so impossible?”
"The point? Well, I guess the point is that I’m so grateful to Him for all He’s done for me that I try to please Him every chance I get.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean that He’s so awesome and merciful, that I try to thank Him for His love by honoring Him and by feeding my mind with good information that encourages me to obey Him. He loves me so much, Jay! Even though He knows I mess up all the time, He still wants to be my friend! He’s done everything He can to make it possible for me to have fellowship with Him. He loved me first, and so I love Him back.”
“Oh yeah?” I was surprised at the interest in Jay’s tone. “Well, what specifically did He do to make you fall all over yourself trying to please Him?”
“Well, since He knew that there was no possible way for me to fellowship with Him
because of my sin, and because He loved the world so much, He gave up His only Son, Jesus. Jesus, who was completely perfect, came to earth and became sin for me. He took all of my punishment and died on the cross so that God could forgive me and cover me with His own perfection.”
I could tell Jay was listening intently, and I was sure I saw some comprehension creep into his face.
“Well, that’s really nice and everything, but what’s the point of trying to please someone who’s dead?”
“Well, actually, He’s not dead. After three days under ground, God raised Him from the dead because death was not strong enough to hold Him down! He conquered death, and that means that we can enjoy eternal life and complete fellowship with God!” “Eternal life? That sounds a little over the top, Bri.”
“I know it does, but it’s true. God says that if we believe in Jesus and in the fact that God raised Him from the dead, and if we admit that Jesus is our all-powerful Lord, we will be rescued from death.”
“That’s all there is to it? Just believing? Man, it sounds so simple! But what about after you believe? What if you really mess up? Does God get mad and disown you?”
“Nope! God actually says that when we believe in Him, He seals us with His Spirit! His Spirit is a permanent guarantee that our salvation will last forever! Isn’t that amazing?” Just talking about the Gospel and meditating on His mercy was stirring up great excitement in my heart. “Lord,” I prayed, “please touch Jay and draw Him to Yourself! Help him to understand!”
Since the beginning of our conversation, Jay’s attitude had undergone a complete change from one of mocking confusion to one of intent interest. Now he seemed to snap back to his original indifference.
“Ok, well, uh, I gotta start setting up lunch now.” He started to walk away, but then suddenly stopped and turned back to face me. “Hey, could I talk to you about this again?”
I was excited by the genuineness of this request. “That’d be awesome! Maybe after lunch…?”
He nodded and walked away, and I quietly thanked God for giving me the right words to say and for revealing to me how to clearly and tactfully communicate the appropriate Scriptures. God was working in Jay’s heart, and in mine!

Please Pray...

Yesterday, the following e-mail was sent out to the faculty and staff at the college/seminary where my dad works and where I attend:

"Please join us in prayer. We just received news that our co-worker and brother Anthony E...(...Staff, Adjunct...Faculty, [Seminary]Student) passed away and is now with his Lord. We are not sure of the details. Please be in prayer for his wife Kristi (...Alumna) and for his brother-in-law Bernt K...(...Staff,...Alumnus) and Anthony’s family as they grieve his loss.

We will be breaking from classes at 6:45 p.m. tonight to inform our students. Please join us at this time if you are available. Please be in prayer for our campus community."

It took a matter of minutes for the news to spread to the student body. PLEASE pray for our campus; Anthony's death was completely unexpected and sudden, and many students/faculty are taking it hard. Anthony and Kristi had only been married for 1 1/2 years. He was an awesome person; he was so funny and always friendly and welcoming. Everyone will miss him greatly.

Cougar Volleyball

Last weekend my volleyball team took a long, LONG road trip...to Kentucky! We left on Thursday and came home on Sunday; we played 4 matches in one weekend! Needless to say, it was quite a tiring experience! Despite the exhaustion, it was a lot of fun, as well as a great learning experience. I'm so grateful for the opportunity God has given me to play on this specific volleyball team...I have enjoyed myself greatly, and I have also been stretched physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Here are some awesome pics from the KY trip, courtesy of Kathryn (one of our assistant coaches/team photographer).

Go Cougar Volleyball!!

One cool team... :-)

I'll tell you what, Tabitha can KILL that ball...

...seriously...

you don't want to stand in that ball's way!! :-)

Me passing!!

Me serving!!

"Calling all team captains..."

Team huddle

We played well..had fun...and we got to eat Dairy Queen ice cream! How much better can it get!?!?! :-)

Please continue to pray for me as I am still adjusting to the college work load...I'm TIRED!!!

Love you guys!

God-vision

The other day in class, one of my professors repeated a quote he had heard once; it is so challenging and goes against everything my flesh desires. The quote was,

Don't sacrifice the ultimate on the altar of the immediate.

He also warned that "it's really easy to give up the potential of tomorrow for the glory of today."
Wow!
This professor was talking about the importance of vision in the Christian life. And no...he was NOT talking about the stereotypical "vision" that so many people, believers and nobelievers alike, strive for...you know...the "follow-your-heart-and-do-what-you-want-to-do" kind of vision. No, he was talking about "seeing beyond today"...realizing that, most of the time, following fleshly impulses is a dangerous thing.
My professor went on to say that the Christian also needs "Clear and convicted decisions." They must know "where they're going," and they must be determined that they are "not going to sell out to anyone but Jesus Christ." Amen Professor Leigh!

Dear Lord,

Help me to stay focused on You.

It's so hard sometimes; hundreds of different things

divert my attention from You and Your truth every day.

So often I give into my flesh,

dwelling on those subjects that are either impure and foolish,

or unnecessary and unimportant.

Help me to stay focused on YOUR TRUTH.

Help me to have God-vision:

vision that is zeroed in on living for and selling out to You ALONE.

Help me to "Do Hard Things,"

and to never "sacrifice the ultimate on the altar of the immediate."

Thank You so much for Your incredible and unending

patience.

Amen.

Super Secret Angels

I should have written this much, much sooner...
September 6 is the deadline to apply to be a "Super Secret Angel"!! The last session was a lot of fun and I encourage you to think about submitting an application form...just check out the Super Secret Angel blog!

Oh yeah...BLOGGING....

Remember me?!?!?! I'm that person who used to post 2-3 times a week...I'm very sorry that I haven't posted in so long!

I have several good excuses for why I haven't been consistently posting and several not so good ones...the good ones are 1) our Internet has been down for several days and just started working today, and 2) COLLEGE involves a lot of WORK!

Wow...novel concept... :-)

I'd like to share several prayer requests along with several praises to God. I'll PTL first...

1) I love my Bible classes. I am taking two this semester, and both of them are challenging me spiritually. They "force" me to study God's Word regularly and from a different perspective than I have had in the past.

2) My music classes are definitely stretching me mentally; that's a good thing. I have two of these classes, and, well, let's just say that I'm honestly astounded that people actually sit down and think up all of this theory stuff!!! I'm also experiencing what it's like to be in a choir (GO ALTOS!) . I've never been a choir member before, and so far it's been challenging and fun.

3) I'm greatly enjoying my experience on the volleyball team thus far. We had our first game yesterday afternoon; we played in NC and were gone from 7am-12am!! **HUGE SKULL BUSTING YAWN** We lost, but we had a BLAST!! :-) We also played pretty well, considering it was our first game...

4) I am SOOO thankful that I am able to live at home during college! My parents are so helpful, and I honestly don't know what I'd do without them.

Now for some prayer requests.

1) Please pray that I will learn to use my time wisely and efficiently. I always get my work done on time, but I tend to procrastinate as much as possible. I also need to plan out my day so that I have time for QT...which I know is vital as I strive to grow in my spiritual walk.

2) Pray that I'd learn to control my emotions. I STRESS over a lot of stuff--everything from homework to volleyball to friendships--and I know that I MUST bring my emotions under Christ's control if I want to glorify God throughout these years in college (not to mention the rest of my life).

3) Please pray that I would be bold and that I would be sensitive to the Holy Spirit as I experience situations which challenge me to stand alone. It is so hard!!! I think college is going to stretch me mentally, physically, and spiritually; it will force me to make choices between doing the "easy thing" and doing the "Hard Thing."

4) Please pray that I would have the attitude of John the Baptist: "He must increase and I must decrease." I am constantly tempted to zero in on myself and to forget that there are others around me who need encouragement and love. I have a responsibility to build up my brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter how I feel at any given point in time.

Thanks for being patient with me as try to fit blogging into my schedule. Hopefully I'll be able to post at least twice a week; however, it may be a week or two before I get into "the groove." Just know that I am NOT dumping this blog or the blogs of my friends...I love you guys and I love blogging...