Xapio's Xanga

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 14:26:04 GMT

Matt. 24: ⁴⁵ “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. ⁴⁶ If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. ⁴⁷ I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. ⁴⁸ But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ ⁴⁹ and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? ⁵⁰ The master will return unannounced and unexpected, ⁵¹ and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

~~~~

It's easy to think, "God will forgive me. I still love Him, even if I'm not quite obeying Him... all the time..." That thinking is so wrong. It's hypocritical. And when I employ it, I'm no better than the Pharisees Jesus so vitriolically condemned.

Matthew 23:27
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean.

Dear Father,
Enable me to always see things Your way. Grant me a completely pure heart - not just the desire to do right or the lip-service, but the actions that honor You and wait for Your good things in Your perfect timing.

Disaster Warning

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:30:08 GMT

John 12: ⁴⁴ Jesus shouted to the crowds, “If you trust me, you are trusting not only me, but also God who sent me. ⁴⁵ For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me. ⁴⁶ I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark. ⁴⁷ I will not judge those who hear me but don’t obey me, for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. ⁴⁸ But all who reject me and my message will be judged on the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken. ⁴⁹ I don’t speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it. ⁵⁰ And I know his commands lead to eternal life; so I say whatever the Father tells me to say.”

(from the New Living Translation of the Bible)
~~~~~~~

Friends, I can't get away from this truth, and I can't marginalize it by not sharing it! If you want to talk about this, I would love to talk with you, anytime.

Love,
Charis

"You Are Still Holy"

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:58:38 GMT

"You Are Still Holy" ~ Kim Hill

Holy, You are still holy
Even when the darkness surrounds my life
Sovereign, You are still sovereign
Even when confusion has blinded my eyes

Lord, I don't deserve Your kind affection
When my unbelief has kept me from Your touch
I want my life to be a pure reflection
Of Your love

And so I come into Your chamber
And I dance at Your feet, Lord
You are my Saviour
And I'm at Your mercy
All that has been in my life
Up 'til now
It belongs to You
You are still holy

Holy, You are still holy
Even though I don't understand Your ways
Sovereign, You will be sovereign
Even when my circumstances don't change

Lord, I don't deserve your tender patience
When my unbelief has kept me from Your truth
I want my life to be a sweet devotion
To You

And so I come into Your chamber
And I dance at Your feet, Lord
You are my Saviour
And I'm at Your mercy
All that has been in my life
Up 'til now
It belongs to You
I belong to You

And so I come into Your chamber
And I dance at Your feet
You are my Saviour
And I'm at Your mercy
All that has been in my life
Up 'til now
It belongs to You
I belong to You
You are still holy
You are still sovereign
You are still holy, Lord
You are still righteous
You are all-knowing
You are still holy

"Who But God"

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:07:40 GMT

"Who But God"

Words by Wes King & Michael Card

Music by Wes King & Phil Naish

Who but God

Would send His Son

To condescend

And make Himself the likes

Of a mere mortal man?

Who but God

Would not regard

Equality with God a precious thing

Not to be held onto?

Who but God?

Only God would condescend for us

And choose the weakness of the cross.

Who wept the tears that conquered sin

That we might laugh with Him?

Who but He who knew no sin

Would make Himself the very thing

He knew He could not look upon,

Endure the cross and scorn its shame

And choose the very weak things

Of this world to over come the strong?

Who but God?

Only God would send us His only Son

Obedient to death

Our spotless One

Servant, Savior so lowly now ~

Soon every knee shall bow.

Who but God

Would send His Son

To condescend

And make Himself the likes

Of a mere mortal man?

Who but God?

sacrifices

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:57:10 GMT

2 Samuel 24

¹⁸ On that day Gad went to David and said to him, "Go up and build an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite." ¹⁹ So David went up, as the LORD had commanded through Gad. ²⁰ When Araunah looked and saw the king and his men coming toward him, he went out and bowed down before the king with his face to the ground.

²¹ Araunah said, "Why has my lord the king come to his servant?"
"To buy your threshing floor," David answered, "so I can build an altar to the LORD, that the plague on the people may be stopped."

²² Araunah said to David, "Let my lord the king take whatever pleases him and offer it up. Here are oxen for the burnt offering, and here are threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood. ²³ O king, Araunah gives all this to the king." Araunah also said to him, "May the LORD your God accept you."

²⁴ But the king replied to Araunah, "No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing."
So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels ^[c] of silver for them. ²⁵ David built an altar to the LORD there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. ^[d] Then the LORD answered prayer in behalf of the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped.

Malachi 1
“Then you ask, ‘How have we defiled the sacrifices?^[c]’

“You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect. ⁸ When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong? And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased? Try giving gifts like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

⁹ “Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

Hebrews 10

¹¹Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. ¹²But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. ¹³Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, ¹⁴because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

¹⁵The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:
¹⁶"This is the covenant I will make with them
      after that time, says the Lord.
   I will put my laws in their hearts,
      and I will write them on their minds."^[b] ¹⁷Then he adds:
   "Their sins and lawless acts
      I will remember no more."^[c] ¹⁸And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin. ¹⁹Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, ²¹and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²²let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. ²³Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. ²⁵Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Father, show me what my sacrifice... what my heart... looks like to You...

The Unsung Influence of Esther and her God on Artaxerxes

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:43:41 GMT

Ezra 7

¹¹ King Artaxerxes had given a copy of the following letter to Ezra, the priest and scribe who studied and taught the commands and decrees of the Lord to Israel:

¹² ^[h]“From Artaxerxes, the king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the teacher of the law of the God of heaven. Greetings.
¹³ “I decree that any of the people of Israel in my kingdom, including the priests and Levites, may volunteer to return to Jerusalem with you. ¹⁴ I and my council of seven hereby instruct you to conduct an inquiry into the situation in Judah and Jerusalem, based on your God’s law, which is in your hand. ¹⁵ We also commission you to take with you silver and gold, which we are freely presenting as an offering to the God of Israel who lives in Jerusalem.
¹⁶ “Furthermore, you are to take any silver and gold that you may obtain from the province of Babylon, as well as the voluntary offerings of the people and the priests that are presented for the Temple of their God in Jerusalem. ¹⁷ These donations are to be used specifically for the purchase of bulls, rams, male lambs, and the appropriate grain offerings and liquid offerings, all of which will be offered on the altar of the Temple of your God in Jerusalem. ¹⁸ Any silver and gold that is left over may be used in whatever way you and your colleagues feel is the will of your God.
¹⁹ “But as for the cups we are entrusting to you for the service of the Temple of your God, deliver them all to the God of Jerusalem. ²⁰ If you need anything else for your God’s Temple or for any similar needs, you may take it from the royal treasury.
²¹ “I, Artaxerxes the king, hereby send this decree to all the treasurers in the province west of the Euphrates River^[i]: ‘You are to give Ezra, the priest and teacher of the law of the God of heaven, whatever he requests of you. ²² You are to give him up to 7,500 pounds^[j] of silver, 500 bushels^[k] of wheat, 550 gallons of wine, 550 gallons of olive oil,^[l] and an unlimited supply of salt. ²³ Be careful to provide whatever the God of heaven demands for his Temple, for why should we risk bringing God’s anger against the realm of the king and his sons? ²⁴ I also decree that no priest, Levite, singer, gatekeeper, Temple servant, or other worker in this Temple of God will be required to pay tribute, customs, or tolls of any kind.’
²⁵ “And you, Ezra, are to use the wisdom your God has given you to appoint magistrates and judges who know your God’s laws to govern all the people in the province west of the Euphrates River. Teach the law to anyone who does not know it. ²⁶ Anyone who refuses to obey the law of your God and the law of the king will be punished immediately, either by death, banishment, confiscation of goods, or imprisonment.”

Ezra Praises the Lord

²⁷ Praise the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who made the king want to beautify the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem! ²⁸ And praise him for demonstrating such unfailing love to me by honoring me before the king, his council, and all his mighty nobles! I felt encouraged because the gracious hand of the Lord my God was on me. And I gathered some of the leaders of Israel to return with me to Jerusalem.

The Responsibilty of Shepherd and Sheep AND God's Sovereignty, Holiness, and Mercy

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 16:14:52 GMT

Ezekiel 34

The Shepherds of Israel

¹ Then this message came to me from the Lord: ² “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds, the leaders of Israel. Give them this message from the Sovereign Lord: What sorrow awaits you shepherds who feed yourselves instead of your flocks. Shouldn’t shepherds feed their sheep? ³ You drink the milk, wear the wool, and butcher the best animals, but you let your flocks starve. ⁴ You have not taken care of the weak. You have not tended the sick or bound up the injured. You have not gone looking for those who have wandered away and are lost. Instead, you have ruled them with harshness and cruelty. ⁵ So my sheep have been scattered without a shepherd, and they are easy prey for any wild animal. ⁶ They have wandered through all the mountains and all the hills, across the face of the earth, yet no one has gone to search for them.

⁷ “Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: ⁸ As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, you abandoned my flock and left them to be attacked by every wild animal. And though you were my shepherds, you didn’t search for my sheep when they were lost. You took care of yourselves and left the sheep to starve. ⁹ Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. ¹⁰ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I now consider these shepherds my enemies, and I will hold them responsible for what has happened to my flock. I will take away their right to feed the flock, and I will stop them from feeding themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths; the sheep will no longer be their prey.

-----

[James 3

Taming the Tongue

¹Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.]

-----

The Good Shepherd

¹¹ “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search and find my sheep. ¹² I will be like a shepherd looking for his scattered flock. I will find my sheep and rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on that dark and cloudy day. ¹³ I will bring them back home to their own land of Israel from among the peoples and nations. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel and by the rivers and in all the places where people live. ¹⁴ Yes, I will give them good pastureland on the high hills of Israel. There they will lie down in pleasant places and feed in the lush pastures of the hills. ¹⁵ I myself will tend my sheep and give them a place to lie down in peace, says the Sovereign Lord. ¹⁶ I will search for my lost ones who strayed away, and I will bring them safely home again. I will bandage the injured and strengthen the weak. But I will destroy those who are fat and powerful. I will feed them, yes—feed them justice!

¹⁷ “And as for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to his people: I will judge between one animal of the flock and another, separating the sheep from the goats. ¹⁸ Isn’t it enough for you to keep the best of the pastures for yourselves? Must you also trample down the rest? Isn’t it enough for you to drink clear water for yourselves? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? ¹⁹ Why must my flock eat what you have trampled down and drink water you have fouled?

²⁰ “Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will surely judge between the fat sheep and the scrawny sheep. ²¹ For you fat sheep pushed and butted and crowded my sick and hungry flock until you scattered them to distant lands. ²² So I will rescue my flock, and they will no longer be abused. I will judge between one animal of the flock and another. ²³ And I will set over them one shepherd, my servant David. He will feed them and be a shepherd to them. ²⁴ And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David will be a prince among my people. I, the Lord, have spoken!

The Lord’s Covenant of Peace

²⁵ “I will make a covenant of peace with my people and drive away the dangerous animals from the land. Then they will be able to camp safely in the wildest places and sleep in the woods without fear. ²⁶ I will bless my people and their homes around my holy hill. And in the proper season I will send the showers they need. There will be showers of blessing. ²⁷ The orchards and fields of my people will yield bumper crops, and everyone will live in safety. When I have broken their chains of slavery and rescued them from those who enslaved them, then they will know that I am the Lord. ²⁸ They will no longer be prey for other nations, and wild animals will no longer devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will frighten them.

²⁹ “And I will make their land famous for its crops, so my people will never again suffer from famines or the insults of foreign nations. ³⁰ In this way, they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them. And they will know that they, the people of Israel, are my people, says the Sovereign Lord. ³¹ You are my flock, the sheep of my pasture. You are my people, and I am your God. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”

Ezekiel 36

Restoration for Israel

“Son of man, prophesy to Israel’s mountains. Give them this message: O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord! ² This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Your enemies have taunted you, saying, ‘Aha! Now the ancient heights belong to us!’ ³ Therefore, son of man, give the mountains of Israel this message from the Sovereign Lord: Your enemies have attacked you from all directions, making you the property of many nations and the object of much mocking and slander. ⁴ Therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Sovereign Lord. He speaks to the hills and mountains, ravines and valleys, and to ruined wastes and long-deserted cities that have been destroyed and mocked by the surrounding nations. ⁵ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My jealous anger burns against these nations, especially Edom, because they have shown utter contempt for me by gleefully taking my land for themselves as plunder.

⁶ “Therefore, prophesy to the hills and mountains, the ravines and valleys of Israel. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am furious that you have suffered shame before the surrounding nations. ⁷ Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I have taken a solemn oath that those nations will soon have their own shame to endure.

⁸ “But the mountains of Israel will produce heavy crops of fruit for my people—for they will be coming home again soon! ⁹ See, I care about you, and I will pay attention to you. Your ground will be plowed and your crops planted. ¹⁰ I will greatly increase the population of Israel, and the ruined cities will be rebuilt and filled with people. ¹¹ I will increase not only the people, but also your animals. O mountains of Israel, I will bring people to live on you once again. I will make you even more prosperous than you were before. Then you will know that I am the Lord. ¹² I will cause my people to walk on you once again, and you will be their territory. You will never again rob them of their children.

¹³ “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The other nations taunt you, saying, ‘Israel is a land that devours its own people and robs them of their children!’ ¹⁴ But you will never again devour your people or rob them of their children, says the Sovereign Lord. ¹⁵ I will not let you hear those other nations insult you, and you will no longer be mocked by them. You will not be a land that causes its nation to fall, says the Sovereign Lord.”

¹⁶ Then this further message came to me from the Lord: ¹⁷ “Son of man, when the people of Israel were living in their own land, they defiled it by the evil way they lived. To me their conduct was as unclean as a woman’s menstrual cloth. ¹⁸ They polluted the land with murder and the worship of idols,^[b] so I poured out my fury on them. ¹⁹ I scattered them to many lands to punish them for the evil way they had lived. ²⁰ But when they were scattered among the nations, they brought shame on my holy name. For the nations said, ‘These are the people of the Lord, but he couldn’t keep them safe in his own land!’ ²¹ Then I was concerned for my holy name, on which my people brought shame among the nations.

²² “Therefore, give the people of Israel this message from the Sovereign Lord: I am bringing you back, but not because you deserve it. I am doing it to protect my holy name, on which you brought shame while you were scattered among the nations. ²³ I will show how holy my great name is—the name on which you brought shame among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will know that I am the Lord. ²⁴ For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land.

²⁵ “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. ²⁶ And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.^[c] ²⁷ And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.

²⁸ “And you will live in Israel, the land I gave your ancestors long ago. You will be my people, and I will be your God. ²⁹ I will cleanse you of your filthy behavior. I will give you good crops of grain, and I will send no more famines on the land. ³⁰ I will give you great harvests from your fruit trees and fields, and never again will the surrounding nations be able to scoff at your land for its famines. ³¹ Then you will remember your past sins and despise yourselves for all the detestable things you did. ³² But remember, says the Sovereign Lord, I am not doing this because you deserve it. O my people of Israel, you should be utterly ashamed of all you have done!

³³ “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I cleanse you from your sins, I will repopulate your cities, and the ruins will be rebuilt. ³⁴ The fields that used to lie empty and desolate in plain view of everyone will again be farmed. ³⁵ And when I bring you back, people will say, ‘This former wasteland is now like the Garden of Eden! The abandoned and ruined cities now have strong walls and are filled with people!’ ³⁶ Then the surrounding nations that survive will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruins and replanted the wasteland. For I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do what I say.

³⁷ “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am ready to hear Israel’s prayers and to increase their numbers like a flock. ³⁸ They will be as numerous as the sacred flocks that fill Jerusalem’s streets at the time of her festivals. The ruined cities will be crowded with people once more, and everyone will know that I am the Lord.”

Ezekiel 37

A Valley of Dry Bones

¹ The Lord took hold of me, and I was carried away by the Spirit of the Lord to a valley filled with bones. ² He led me all around among the bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground and were completely dried out. ³ Then he asked me, “Son of man, can these bones become living people again?”

“O Sovereign Lord,” I replied, “you alone know the answer to that.”

⁴ Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord! ⁵ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! ⁶ I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

⁷ So I spoke this message, just as he told me. Suddenly as I spoke, there was a rattling noise all across the valley. The bones of each body came together and attached themselves as complete skeletons. ⁸ Then as I watched, muscles and flesh formed over the bones. Then skin formed to cover their bodies, but they still had no breath in them.

⁹ Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to the winds, son of man. Speak a prophetic message and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so they may live again.’”

¹⁰ So I spoke the message as he commanded me, and breath came into their bodies. They all came to life and stood up on their feet—a great army.

¹¹ Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones represent the people of Israel. They are saying, ‘We have become old, dry bones—all hope is gone. Our nation is finished.’ ¹² Therefore, prophesy to them and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O my people, I will open your graves of exile and cause you to rise again. Then I will bring you back to the land of Israel. ¹³ When this happens, O my people, you will know that I am the Lord. ¹⁴ I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live again and return home to your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken, and I have done what I said. Yes, the Lord has spoken!’”

Reunion of Israel and Judah

¹⁵ Again a message came to me from the Lord: ¹⁶ “Son of man, take a piece of wood and carve on it these words: ‘This represents Judah and its allied tribes.’ Then take another piece and carve these words on it: ‘This represents Ephraim and the northern tribes of Israel.’^[d] ¹⁷ Now hold them together in your hand as if they were one piece of wood. ¹⁸ When your people ask you what your actions mean, ¹⁹ say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will take Ephraim and the northern tribes and join them to Judah. I will make them one piece of wood in my hand.’

²⁰ “Then hold out the pieces of wood you have inscribed, so the people can see them. ²¹ And give them this message from the Sovereign Lord: I will gather the people of Israel from among the nations. I will bring them home to their own land from the places where they have been scattered. ²² I will unify them into one nation on the mountains of Israel. One king will rule them all; no longer will they be divided into two nations or into two kingdoms. ²³ They will never again pollute themselves with their idols^[e] and vile images and rebellion, for I will save them from their sinful backsliding. I will cleanse them. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God.

²⁴ “My servant David will be their king, and they will have only one shepherd. They will obey my regulations and be careful to keep my decrees. ²⁵ They will live in the land I gave my servant Jacob, the land where their ancestors lived. They and their children and their grandchildren after them will live there forever, generation after generation. And my servant David will be their prince forever. ²⁶ And I will make a covenant of peace with them, an everlasting covenant. I will give them their land and increase their numbers,^[f] and I will put my Temple among them forever. ²⁷ I will make my home among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. ²⁸ And when my Temple is among them forever, the nations will know that I am the Lord, who makes Israel holy.”

warning

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 14:58:48 GMT

Ezekiel 33

³⁰ “Son of man, your people talk about you in their houses and whisper about you at the doors. They say to each other, ‘Come on, let’s go hear the prophet tell us what the Lord is saying!’ ³¹ So my people come pretending to be sincere and sit before you. They listen to your words, but they have no intention of doing what you say. Their mouths are full of lustful words, and their hearts seek only after money. ³² You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays fine music on an instrument. They hear what you say, but they don’t act on it! ³³ But when all these terrible things happen to them—as they certainly will—then they will know a prophet has been among them.”

~~~~~

Lord, open our eyes to what You are saying to us and help us not to be like these that ignored You...

revisiting Les Mis

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 02:38:36 GMT

Cosette, Valjean, M - "In My Life"

(Cosette stands in her garden on Rue Plumet)

COSETTE
How strange
This feeling that my life's begun at last
This change,
Can people really fall in love so fast?
What's the matter with you, Cosette?
Have you been too much on your own?
So many things unclear
So many things unknown.

In my life
There are so many questions and answers
That somehow seem wrong
In my life
There are times when I catch in the silence
The sigh of a faraway song
And it sings
Of a world that I long to see
Out of reach
Just a whisper away
Waiting for me.

Does he know I'm alive?
Do I know if he's real?
Does he see what I saw?
Does he feel what I feel?

In my life
I'm no longer alone
Now the love in my life
Is so near
Find me now, find me here!

VALJEAN
Dear Cosette,
You're such a lonely child
How pensive, how sad you seem to me
Believe me, were it within my power
I'd fill each passing hour
How quiet it must be, I can see
With only me for company.

COSETTE
There's so little I know
That I'm longing to know
Of the child that I was
In a time long ago...
There's so little you say
Of the life you have known
Why you keep to yourself
Why we're always alone
So dark! So dark and deep...
The secrets that you keep!

In my life
I have all that I want
You are loving and gentle and good
But Papa, dear Papa,
In your eyes I am just like a child
Who is lost in a wood

VALJEAN
No more words
No more words. It's a time that is dead
There are words
That are better unheard,
Better unsaid.

COSETTE
In my life
I'm no longer a child and I yearn
For the truth that you know
Of the years... years ago!

VALJEAN
You will learn
Truth is given by God
To us all in our time
In our turn

(Valjean leaves the garden. Marius and Eponine arrive outside)

MARIUS
In my life
She has burst like the music of angels
The light of the sun
And my life seems to stop
As if something is over
And something has scarcely begun.
Eponine
You're the friend who has brought me here
Thanks to you I am one with the gods
And Heaven is near!
And I soar through a world that is new that is free

EPONINE(to herself)
Every word that he says is a dagger in me!
In my life
There's been no one like him anywhere
Anywhere, where he is...
If he asked... I'd be his

MARIUS & EPONINE
In my life
There is someone who touches my life

MARIUS
Waiting near

EPONINE
Waiting here

A Heart Full of Love

(Marius goes into the garden, leaving Eponine outside the gate)

MARIUS
A heart full of love
A heart full of song
I'm doing everything all wrong
Oh God, for shame
I do not even know your name
Dear Mad'moiselle
Won't you say?
Will you tell?

COSETTE
A heart full of love
No fear, no regret

M,ARIUS
My name is Marius Pontmercy

COSETTE
And mine's Cosette

MARIUS
Cosette, I don't know what to say

COSETTE
Then make no sound

MARIUS
I am lost

COSETTE
I am found!

MARIUS
A heart full of light

COSETTE
A night bright as day

MARIUS
And you must never go away
Cosette, Cosette

COSETTE
This is a chain we'll never break

MARIUS
Do I dream?

COSETTE
I'm awake!

MARIUS
A heart full of love

COSETTE
A heart full of you

MARIUS
A single look and then I knew

COSETTE
I knew it too

MARIUS
From today

COSETTE
Every day

COSETTE & MARIUS
For it isn't a dream
Not a dream after all.

EPONINE(Interjecting)
He was never mine to lose
Why regret what cannot be?
These are words he'll never say
Not to me...
Not to me...
Not to me...

His heart full of love
He will never feel this way...

(Marius and Cosette move away as Montparnasse enters furtively)

for my friend who just got back from a missions trip to Ecuador

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 02:49:45 GMT

These are for you, Pope! I so wish they were on Youtube so you could hear them!

Volcano Land ~ Caedmon's Call
Hola, me llamo Efrain
I was born among the agave
All I need is this transistor radio
I am in a band, it's a family band
With the brothers in the years above me
And now we have a song that we'd like to play you

He sang, "Volcano
We're living in the shade of the volcano
The Volcano
We're living in the shade of the volcano."

A bumpy ride on the bus to the amber hill
I was feeling like a hundred pesos
But something in my soul was certainly there to stay
And nothing on the hill goes on without
Their beloved mother's say-so
So everything is alright, everything is O.K.

She said, "Volcano
You're living in the shade of the volcano
The Volcano
El Señor es siempre bueno."

Home for me is beneath the pine trees
That grow to be about sixty feet tall
And on the back of the SUVs is a mustang sticker
And a feeling that never leaves you alone

Volcano
You're living in the shade of the volcano
The Volcano
You're living in the shade of the volcano
The Volcano
You're living in the shade of the volcano
The Volcano
El Señor es siempre bueno

~~~~
"The Roses" ~ Caedmon's Call
High above the valley of Quito
An old man and his bride grow roses
Red and yellow, white and golden,
To him they are precious as children
Their daughter, she moved to America
One more brick in the Tower of Babel
She has a son that they've never seen at all
They're praying that they raised her well

CHORUS
On the mountain high
They will live and die
As time just slips away
And the children grow
In the God they know
As time just slips away

A man, his bride, his children, and his roses
Planted in faith
And watered in tears
Honey, that's all they have
And they're happier here
Than any of my friends back home
They met Jesus and they really know Him

CHORUS

Now I'm back at home
All alone
And I'm trying to find my thoughts
Of that old man so inspiring
And the TV's always on
And the phone, it won't stop ringing
These bills, they keep on screaming
I'm paying for the things
We never really need

Wonder what he's doing right now?
Maybe walking through his simple field
Thinking about how
God has blessed him so

A man, his bride, his children, and his roses

CHORUS (2x)