The Growing Season

Update and Thank You

2011-08-31T09:51:00.000-07:00

I have arrived home from the trip and I am feeling well. I am still waking up in the early morning hours but it has not been too hard to adjust to Texas life.

The trip this year was one of my favorites so far. I was able to speak into the lives of so many people. This year, for me, began with an powerful encounter with God at a conference that I attended in January. Since that time I have experienced a deeper call to ministering to the needs around me. this trip to Uganda was so full of those opportunities to speak into the lives of struggling orphans and adults of all ages. God is so good and faithful.

I deepened my relationships with the children and adults in Uganda in a way like never before. I also got the opportunity through your loving support to place a huge amount of cash in the hands of Pastor Dongo once again. This generous gift was from all of you that gave financially. I was able to tell him, "This is a gift from people that love you and believe in you and your ministry." Needless to say he was more than grateful and shared with me that he was "thankful for the blessing" as he turned over $100 bill after $100 bill after $100 bill etc...

I am so blessed to have had the chance to go to Uganda once again. Thank you for all of your support. Whether your support was financial or through prayer you helped meet needs and supported our team in an effort to make a huge difference in the lives of people a continent away. The people we came in contact with felt the love of Jesus in a very real and tangible way. You are the invisible champions that the Lord has promised to bless as a cheerful giver. If you haven't had an opportunity to check out some of the pictures you can see them here: http://on.fb.me/qYIaTt

Thank you for all of your support,
Barrett

"Listen."

2010-08-26T06:36:00.000-07:00

As I made the trip to Uganda this year I took along an expectation. I was almost certain that it was a mistake to do so, but never the less I did. As I was here last year I experienced and encountered God in a whole new way. I found myself on my knees in the middle of the camp in broad daylight trying to catch my breath as I sobbed. It was a breaking moment in my life. I believe that in that moment God broke off of me the orphan spirit I had been carrying around for 3 decades prior. He put his arms around me telling me I would be an orphan no more.

So this year I expected bigger and better. I spent the first days of this trip looking for anything that may propel me into "that moment" and the experience that would top the last. Needles to say, "that moment" has not come for me this year. Even though I took along the expectation of the bigger and better this year, I sensed that God had something different in store. He does. I have come to a place where I am waiting expectantly, and all I have heard from the Holy Spirit is, "listen."

I have some specific things that I am seeking the Lord to answer and give me direction about, and in all of these things I have found the answer that I looked for.

I am quiet, I am patient, I am praying, and I am "listening."

Bigger and better does not always look bigger or better.

Barrett

3rd Trip To Uganda

2010-07-09T10:00:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends and Family,
I was first introduced to Pastor Bethuel Dongo, a native of Uganda, more than 3 years ago while he was in the US to spread the word about Uganda Buyamba Outreach, a school and orphanage in the capital city Kampala. “Buyamba” in Lugandan, the native language of Uganda, literally means “help”. The orphanage was started to reach out to children who are impoverished, abused, and forgotten, as well as children who are victims of Africa’s AIDS pandemic. The orphan population in Uganda is growing at an alarming rate due to AIDS and neglect. Children, when left alone, turn to drugs, crime and prostitution in order to survive – we all know that is not the childhood we would want for our children. The mission of the outreach is to love and care for these children as young as 2 years old (like my youngest son, Harper) to high school aged and help them get an education so they can rise above their current circumstances. The daily care, support, love and education of these orphans is making a difference as these children experience the love of Christ.

I have had the extreme privilege and honor of serving Pastor Dongo and these amazing children since my first visit in 2007 where I first saw and experienced many things that have forever challenge my heart, attitude, and my “American Way” of thinking. I have learned a great deal about the power of love and determination through Pastor Dongo and his staff and what can be done if you have belief that Jesus cares about the condition of all humankind: schools can be built, children can be clothed and fed, and more importantly, children can be loved by the Lord through the care and support of others, even people they have never met and will never see. This can happen with your help. In a poor country like Uganda, a little can go a long way in changing the direction of a child’s life.

This year will mark my 3rd trip to Kampala, Uganda to serve and love on the children and staff and I have been very fortunate enough to have my trip paid for each time. Last year I set a goal to raise $1000 for my trip in order to purchase supplies in preparation, for expenses that arose en-route, and to be able to give where needs arose during the 2 weeks I spent there. One of the unexpected needs arose as we loaded the buses to take the kids to camp and had hundreds more children than expected. At the first evening meal, there was not enough food to serve many of the kids who had not yet been through the food line. An alternative plan went into action, using some of the rations for another meal to give those children something to eat for the night. As a group, we were able to collaborate funds to make sure that did not happen again. Many of you helped achieved that and more with your help last year and I was able to be the hands that linked your heart to theirs in meeting those needs. I was also able to make a cash donation to Pastor Dongo, telling him that “this gift was from people that loved him,” where he was able to make up for the sponsorships of some of the students so that the students could finish out their commitments. The appreciation that I saw in his eyes at that moment was one that I will never forget.

Want to know how you can help?

The first way is to commit to pray for me for my trip as well as my family who will be staying at home (my 5 year old, Whittaker, will start kindergarten a few days after my trip begins).
Another way is to gather any pillowcases, bias tape, or ribbon and send them to my home address listed below- my wife is helping with The Pillowcase Project started by one of our friends who traveled with our group last year. To learn more about The Pillowcase Project, visit the website at: http://www.thepillowcaseproject.blogspot.com
The third way is to donate financially. This year I have set a new goal to raise $2000, that is double what was raised last year. Many of you may never get the opportunity to go to Uganda, by donating, gathering & praying you play a huge part in changing the lives and stories of thousands of children by giving back out of what God has given to you. No gift is insignificant. If you find it in your heart to assist the God Cares orphanage with a financial donation, please make your donation payable to Barrett Snare and send it to:

Barrett Snare
2525 Florence
Keller, TX 76262

Or email me at barretts@crosstimberschurch.org for my home address.

I understand the responsibility I have been given to care for these children. These are difficult times for many people and I would like to kindly and humbly ask for your help for the program in any way you can, knowing that prayers for a safe journey and return are also very much appreciated. Any financial donations received will be used to purchase items from soccer balls, clothes, shoes, (a prized possession for these children) to books, games and other essential items. Additional funds will go to the Orphanage and be used to buy medical supplies, HIV testing kits and toward a new high school with boarding that they are currently building. Pastor Dongo is one of my heroes and I completely trust his management of the dollars you give. I have seen his faithfulness with donations and financial management and experienced his commitment to meeting the needs of orphan children over his own.

The dates for our trip this year are August 19-30th. I will be keeping a journal and taking photographs and video during our trip and those will be posted when I return on my blog and social media accounts. If you would like to be included in those communications, please ensure I have your correct contact information if you have a twitter, facebook, or vimeo account. Thank you so very much for your kind and generous heart. Please visit the website at http://www.ugandabuyamba.com

Since my trip in 2007, I have been documenting what I have experienced in Uganda which you can read and watch here:

http://growinginseason.blogspot.com/2009/09/things-i-learned-in-africa.html
http://snareshare.blogspot.com/2009/07/bless.html
http://vimeo.com/6611883
http://vimeo.com/6486308

Thank you for your help, time and prayerful consideration,
Barrett Snare
Worship Pastor
Cross Timbers Community Church
Keller TX

What does God think is beautiful?

2010-01-18T09:45:00.000-08:00

Great story from my friend.
Do you ever wonder what God thinks about you when you are thinking that HE is out on you? Read this:

Brennan Manning once told me an amazing story of a woman named Yolanda who lived in the only leper colony in America. Listen to his story:

“On one of my trips, I was met by the head nurse who asked, ‘Brennan, can you come quick and pray for Yolanda? She’s dying.’ I went into her room and sat on the edge of her bed. Before the leprosy, Yolanda was a beautiful 32 year-old woman. Five years later, her mouth was severely contorted, both ears distended. Her scarred face hideous to many. She had no fingers on either hand. When she was diagnosed, her husband divorced her and forbade their two sons from ever visiting their mother. It had been years since she’d seen them. In short, Yolanda was a dying, abandoned, insignificant woman. I anointed her with oil and prayed with her. Then, as I turned around to put the top back on the oil, the room was filled with a brilliant light. It had been raining when I came in. I didn’t even look up, but prayed, ‘Thanks, Abba, for the sunshine. I bet that will cheer her up.’ As I turned to look back at Yolanda, her face was like a sunburst over the mountains, like 1,000 sunbeams streaming out of her face, so bright I had to shield my face. I said, ‘Yolanda, you appear to be very happy. Will you tell me why you are so happy?’ ‘Yes, the Abba of Jesus just told me that He would take me home today.’ I asked her what the Abba said. Yolanda replied, ‘Come now, my love. My lovely one, come. For you, the winter has passed, the snows are over and gone, the flowers appear in the land, the seasons of joyful songs has come. The cooing of the turtle dove is heard in our land. Come now, my love. My Yolanda, come. Let me see your face. Let me hear your voice. For your voice is sweet and your face is beautiful. Come now, my love, my lovely one, come.’ Six hours later her little leprous body was swept up into the furious love of her Abba. Later that same day, I learned from the staff that Yolanda was illiterate. She had never read the Bible, or any book for that matter. I surely had never repeated those words to her in any of my visits. I was, as they say, ‘a man undone.’ You see, Yolanda had quoted the Song of Solomon 2:10-14 verbatim. Yolanda was not alone, her Abba, her Father in heaven had come to be with her . . . come to take her home.”

We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us! I Corinthians 13:12

Things I learned in Africa

2009-09-09T14:26:00.000-07:00

I wanted to take a few minutes to thank all of you for helping to support me in my recent trip to Uganda. It was a truly life changing trip to say the very least. I thought that I may be numb to some things that I had already had a chance to see 2 years ago when I went the first time, but God showed up in this trip too many times to count, and I ended up more broken and more affected than I could have imagined.
Thank you for helping me to change lives in a way that can never be reversed. Thank you for helping to change my life once again. I will be forever changed. As we speak I am burning DVD’s for all of you that include 2 mini movies of our trip. I will send them out to you or give them to you in person if I see you first.
I have finally recovered from all jet lag and living my life back in Texas knowing that I am a blessed man to have the family and friends that I have to support me. I heard a quote from a lady that went on the trip with us that struck me very deep. “Now that I have seen I am responsible.” That is how I feel now. There are so many tragic stories to be told along with the stories that make you truly see how a trust in Jesus can always transcend your circumstances. These kids have nothing yet they have everything through Jesus. He is their Faith, Hope, and Love. I felt so loved as I was there. I felt the freedom to provide for needs that I saw because of your dollars. If you would like to look into what is going on at Buyumba (God Cares) Orphanage or to sponsor a child for yourself you can follow the link below. Thank you so much again for partnering with me to help change lives forever, change some circumstances, give some smiles, some hugs, and a give love that asked nothing in return. Thank you for helping me and helping God change my heart all over again.

Below are just a few things that I wrote down as I experienced them day by day. Thank you again.

Blessed
Barrett Snare

Here are a few links:

http://www.ugandabuyamba.com

Here is the list:

-Shared my faith on the plane
-Paid for a couple of kids to go to camp that would have otherwise missed out due to the lack of money
-Paid for gas for Pastor Dongo the facilitator/Pastor of the orphanage
-Got to hug tons of kids at camp who may not have known what a hug feels like
-Taught some new songs to the kids
-Invested in some kids just by simply asking them about themselves and their dreams
-60+ kids asked Jesus to come into their heart
-Bought an new Cell phone for a guy in need
-Bought Drum sticks for Pastor Dongo’s band at church
-God showed me that it is not all about me. It is about serving others.
-Dongo being the first kids pastor that I have seen influence like this
-Taking things for granted back in the states is a choice
-Beautiful people in an awful place
-Got abducted by 20+ African children and almost stampeded for a camp game
-Quit caring if people are going to accept you and just love on people no matter what they think
-Don’t perform just worship
-Lead people in worship before you lead them in a “worship experience”
-They called me “the Glowing One” because I took my shirt off playing soccer
-Shot on goal in an African soccer match...shot high/middle over the crossbar
-Schooled some Africans on the soccer field
-Was asked in Lugandan (their native language) to give an 8 yr old a hug. His name was Ivan.
-Asked by tons of campers if I could pray with them
-Found out that on Thursday August 27th Mars was the closest it has been to earth in 500 years. I got to see the glowing red planet while in Africa.
-God is showing me that he is really developing my leadership
-Love is everything, work and play with a smile in your heart, and a smile that says that it is not about me, it is about sacrificing myself to put others and there desires first
-Serve at all costs
-Listen more and talk less even if you are just agreeing with something you can convey that with a gesture.
-Speak well of people no matter what
-Honor those who love you even when they are not around
-Broke down after the food serving line ended and cried like I hadn’t cried in years couldn’t catch my breath. It was like I had been punched in the stomach. I was officially broken
-Served in the kitchen
-Produced an amazing video
-Baptized 180+ kids with Jimmy K and witnessed lives change forever in front of my eyes
-Gave my possessions away
-Served my team the whole time
-Hung my laundry on a line outside
-Held another guys hand and felt totally cool with it
-Led worship with a good friend
-Developed relationships
-Bought Ice cream for the entire team except Vanessa who was sick and Terry who was helping her
-This trip has really changed my heart on some things
:my mentality on service, worship, performance, thankfulness and blessings
-Went to Jinja Uganda to see origin of the Nile River went shopping and then just happened upon “The Source Café” where Adam Langford, my best friend from high school worked before he died 3 years ago. Then ran into a guy that happened to know Ben Langford, Adam's brother, and called him up on the phone and I got to talk to him. This was such a God thing to organize that whole deal, a very intimate detail that I would have loved to orchestrate but there is no way that I could have. God is very concerned with the intimate details of my life.
-Got to hand Pastor Dongo a hand full of cash at the end of the trip as we were packing up to go to the airport and tell him that it was from people that loved him.
-I learned the value of secret giving
-The Lord spoke to me on August 30th while in church and he told me that I do not have to get it right all of the time. He will pick up where my strength leaves off. I also realized my need for Him in the fact that I am such a broken person and need so much help to be who He has called me to be. I really need him to be everything that that I fall short in including my actions, and my thoughts.
-Got to see a relationship come back together after 4 years of not talking to each other

New Stage design at Keller

2009-04-08T21:05:00.001-07:00

I hit my head on the cabinet two days ago

2009-02-27T10:20:00.000-08:00

You know how bad it hurts to hit your head when you have hair but when you don't have any hair the damage is greater and more noticeable.

Whittaker saw the scab on my head today from my "run in" with the corner of the cabinet and informed me:

"Daddy you had better go put your hair on."

Funny kid!

Whittaker is making great decisions!

2009-02-23T19:21:00.000-08:00

Tonight after I had gotten Whittaker into bed, I was up tweeting and I heard him walking down the hall. When he saw me he was surprised to see me and started to turn around to get into bed, but before he could I asked him to come into the living room to talk to me. As he got closer I asked him what he was doing out of his bed and this is what he said, "Sorry."
At that moment I realized that God is answering my prayers for my sons. I ask the Lord that he would help me to teach my boys from my mistakes, and I am being able to do that. When he simply said "Sorry" he made no excuses, no attempt to make up something that he had to do that was more important than being in bed, but he simply owned up to what he had done and genuinely apologized. Man what a great example to learn from. I am so proud of him for choosing to take responsibility for what he did, and I told him how proud that I was at that moment. I am so proud to write this now, and how much it must bless the Lords heart when we simply say "Sorry" and take responsibility for when we screw up some times. Thank you Lord for teaching me through my children.
B

My video testimony is playing next week

2009-02-22T19:58:00.000-08:00

Please pray for Melanie and I because I am just guessing that the enemy is going to come at us. But I will stand firm knowing that God is my strength and security. Thank you God for being so faithful in my life and throughout my story. I love you Lord! Check out the Cross Timbers podcast early next week to see my story and I will post it here after it broadcasts.
B

Vacation has been great!

2009-02-19T19:15:00.000-08:00

I caught a fish today and Whittaker was so excited. He got to release it after we took the pics. He held it by himself and everything. Here are some pictures.

How sweet it is!

2009-02-15T20:20:00.001-08:00

Whitty and me rocking a rehearsal for our student service.

You ever feel like this? Feeling like you are all alone wondering where your help is going to come from?

2009-01-25T20:06:00.000-08:00

I am sitting here trying to put into words what is going on with me and the thing that I know is that I am so spiritually dry! I have been pouring out and not been taking in anything in. I need to take responsibility for being dry because I have not been doing anything to get filled up. Not even spending time reading the Word that will speak the truth that God is not disappointed in me, and he has equipped me to lead in this position. I have been relying on my own "gusto" and abilities to "get er' done." Lately worship (in services/choosing songs) for me has become about what song works and how to get people involved that I have left worshiping myself so far behind. I have not led very well lately and to be honest I am hate to have to admit that. I am really so blessed to get to do what I have been chosen to do by God, but in this moment, I really covet your prayers for a renewal from the Lord. I know that he will say what I need to hear.
Please help me stay accountable in my pursuit of Christ.

B

Disappointing!...Well, wait let me process that.

2009-01-13T20:43:00.000-08:00

Why does it feel so bad to disappoint ourselves?.....And why don't we remember that feeling before we act selfishly on our own behalf.

I have become more and more in love with Melanie over the last few years and truly even more in the last few weeks. So much of that has been inspired by the devotion she has showed to me even in the hardest circumstances. But lately we have been relating on a different level very well. COMMUNICATION of all things! Melanie is able tell me not only what she is thinking but how she processes things. That is a huge deal! I learned that what I thought was the silent treatment, was really her process of thinking about what is going through her mind and separating truth from the lies BEFORE it comes out of her mouth. BRILLIANT!

I am a novice at processing to say the least but I do feel that I am working, and getting better at it. I grew up being good at talking my way out of things, or so I thought. But the last few days I have learned that I would try to talk my way out of things because I basically refused to process anything. I would deflect responsibility of anything that would make me believe the lie- that out of my poor choice I then had less value in the eyes of anyone around me or in my own eyes.

Here is what I learned out of the last time that I disappointed myself. The series of events that led me down the path of acting selfishly started the night before and had nothing to do with Melanie. I tried to make myself look good in the eyes of others and then when it blew up on me, I projected my own disappointment in myself on her. The fact is that I am learning that processing my individual thoughts and actions is very important not only for myself in that moment, but also for those around me in the moments to come.

"Dreams"

2008-10-22T07:14:00.000-07:00

Usually dreams and me are like ships passing in the night. Each of us knows that the other is there but as soon as we have passed we tend to forget about each other. That was until a few weeks ago. I kept having these vivid dreams that would not leave me alone in the morning. I would try and make sense of them but never could even though I knew something was different about them. Finally I started letting Melanie help me analyze them and we came to this conclusion...God was speaking! He was speaking to me in a way that I was not used to, and He was speaking LOUD!

I had been asking God to speak to me for a while but not with much vigor. One of those prayers that you kind of forget that you asked for, but a prayer none the less.

So here is a snip-it from my fantastic voyage:

I am running this health club facility and it is my job to show around all of the people coming in the doors, and basically direct everyone where they are supposed to be. Not really what I am used to doing. At the end of the night I go up to my bedroom which is upstairs and some of my extended family is in a bed that I am trying to go to sleep in but they will not move over! I am trying to squirm into my position on the bed but I definitely did not have a place. I eventually resigned to the fact that there was no place for me in that bed with my family. So I go downstairs and outside to a pond that a few people are sitting around. At that point I decide that I am going to do what anyone would do if they saw a lake...(yeah you guessed right) jump in and show everyone that I can pick tomatoes off of the vine with my toes.........What? Isn't that what you were thinking? Crazy I know! Anyway, that is about where the dream ends and I wake up and know exactly what it means...UMMMMM...not quite!

But as I am laying in bed trying to figure out what in the hell that all meant, I am overcome with a feeling that I had not felt in more than a decade. A felling of overwhelming fear and inadequacy. As a kid I was very thin to the point that you could actually see my heart beating on the outside of my chest after a good run to the top of the water slide at the local water park. Scary skinny! I remembered the feeling I had as a kid thinking that I was so frail and weak. I was constantly trying to prove that I could do anything someone else could do and even better. Not for the fun of competition but I believed that if I did do it better that had secured my value in the mind of others around me. It was to prove that I was not weak and I actually had value. Now, when I did not do whatever the task was better than others, I would have a complete melt down. I guess I believed that my failure meant that I had no worth at all. Messed up huh?

All of this was starting to making sense to me. "What?" "Really?" Here is what it lead me to believe: I needed to be baptized again. "Again?" you are asking. "Isn't once enough?" Well yes and no, at least for me. I will follow up in a few days and let you in on the next part of the story. Hence the title above..."Water"

30 years

2008-10-16T09:59:00.000-07:00

So I woke up on Tuesday, my first day of being 30. What a different birthday. I actually felt older. I guess I always thought that I would be twenty something. This birthday felt like I had arrived into my adult years. So here is the upside.

Over the last ten years I have been changed. I feel as if God has been arranging some details in my life in order for a new start at 30. I am no longer addicted to anything...Well except for Melanie. But seriously, I am no longer addicted to pornography. I am no longer addicted to masturbation. I am no longer addicted to dipping snuff. I am no longer a liar. I am seeing my self as I am and I am actually liking it. I am no longer hiding behind secrets that Melanie does not know. I am not hiding from the truth of who Christ is in my life and what he wants to do. I am ready to embrace the challenges that He has for me.

Some of you may be thinking "Whoa he just went there!" and yes I did. I am done hiding. I am ready to pursue the things I have not in the past. I will pursue God through Christ. I will pursue Melanie. I will pursue my children. I will press deeper into the challenges of this life knowing that I am fully loved and fully valued. Knowing that no matter what I do or do not, my worth does not change. Knowing that the struggles do not define me, nor do the victories. I will fail and fall short, but I will get up and finish well, running towards the God who loves me. This next ten years will be different!

"Solo Mio"

2008-10-08T22:25:00.000-07:00

Tonight as I led for the United students at Keller a peculiar thing happened...well a few things. In rehearsal my amp went out and I came to find out I had blown a fuse. No problem...I put in a new fuse and started playing again. The fun had just begun...

As the service started I cranked up my electric rig and went to work. I got about 1/4 of the way through the first song and I blew another fuse. No problem though, right. I have my acoustic just in case as a backup. So as Erik addresses the students at the welcome I transitioned to my acoustic and all was well. Well, so I thought...

We started into the second song and I broke a string on my acoustic. So I am thinking OK now what do I do? I really only had a few choices:

1.) Continue playing like nothing happened and endure the sound of a guitar that is completely out of tune...OK that option was out.

2.) Stop singing all together shut down the song, re-tune the guitar, and play it minus one string. But if you have ever tried to do that you know it is very strange to play without 1 string that is normally there. You end up focusing on the missing string more than anything else. So much for that option...

3.) The last option for me, and I mean the LAST....put the guitar down all together, grab the mic and try to dazzle the students with my ability to work the mic. For those of you who know me well, you may have overheard me busting on guys who work the mic. First of all I think it is gay! There is just something about doing that that just repulses me. Second of all I have NEVER done it before.

So there I was about to face one of the things that I HAVE FEARED MOST with no other options to save me. What happened next I am not so sure of. While I new where I was, and what I was doing, there was a sense of terror I have been able to avoid until tonight. Although I will say this...it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Aside from from looking a little like Ricky Bobby in that unforgettable interview not knowing what to do with his hands, I had a great time. With that being said I do not think I will be doing that voluntarily any time soon.

It is amazing to me that a few pieces of wood, some glue, and some wound metal can make you feel more secure in front of people as a musician.

What are some things that make you feel secure? That if they were taken from you, would make you very uncomfortable? And if they have been removed how has that changed your attitude about the things you have faced and feared most.

Will God share His heart, speak His feelings, His desires with me?

2008-10-06T23:33:00.001-07:00

Is it possible for God to share his infinite wisdom with me? So much of the time I trivialize God thinking that this Being of all greatness has better things to do than to talk to me about what He wants to share through me and to me. The question becomes "Am I asking Him what he wants for me, through me, or even what He wants to do to me just for me and for no one else?"

Psalms 86:11 "Knit my heart to You that I may fear Your name."

"If fearing God is knowing Him, loving Him, and letting Him have your heart, then I was committed to (praying) this prayer. I would pray the simple prayer consistently, that my heart would be knit to God's infinite and intimate heart. What an explosion it is when God shares His heart, feelings, and desires, with the human heart. The idea of sharing His heart is wonderful and powerful, but the concept of knitting and sewing something together with the work of needles, can be a process that comes through difficult life experiences. Whether beautiful or difficult, it is worth the result of knowing your heart is connected with the majestic, compassionate God."
-Charlie Hall

So God my Sustainer, Author of my life, my Hope....give me the heart to ask for Your life to become my life, my heart to become Your heart. Knit me together with You and through Your power speak into my soul, my deepest parts, my innermost fibers, what You have to say through me.
Remake me into what You had intended from the beginning. Build me from the ground up and speak the truth that I missed and still today so desperately seek. Share Your heart, Your feelings with me!

Let's start at the beginning...

2008-10-02T09:22:00.000-07:00

Oct. 2 (Psalms 1)
God blessed people who refuse evil advice and won't follow sinners in sneering at God. Instead God's word makes them happy and they think about it all of the time. They are like trees GROWING beside a stream that produce fruit IN A SEASON and always have leaves.
THOSE PEOPLE SUCCEED IN EVERYTHING THEY DO.

This seems great...I mean if you read the word and you are happy about it, you begin to start loving it and missing it when you don't...you start to think about it all the time...and you begin to grow.
Then this is some thing that I have never seen before...trees that produce fruit IN A SEASON, but they always have leaves. What are the leaves about? Is it for protection? For warmth, comfort?
Then here is the best part: Those people succeed in all they do! I want that, I need that!

God as I look to you not for the answer but as the answer hear the prayer in my heart that I would begin to fall more in love with you. That I would begin to feast on You..be happy in that alone...and begin to succeed in all I do.

SO HOW IS YOUR TREE?