Empty me....

There are days when I have no idea of what I will write. Sometimes I sit and stare at the computer screen. Other days, I start writing and end up with a few "drafts" that go nowhere but into a "drafts" folder. Other days, like today, I go on with life and see where it leads....

As I sat snuggling my daughter on my lap, a song came on her radio: "Empty Me". The chorus (below) is very similar to my Sunday morning prayer. As I kneel before the cross on the mornings when I will interpret, the same prayer comes off of my hands: "Open my heart. Take my Self out. You come in"

Today, I particularly like the phrase "And any foolish thing my heart holds to". As I see the signs I would use to interpret that phrase flash through my mind, I am brought to a song that I will interpret this week. "Take my Love"

In a nutshell, it's a song about trying to disconnect from the love of worldly things... or as stated in the song I heard while snuggling my girl, "any foolish thing my heart holds to".

Take my love away.... Empty me...

Open my heart, take my Self out, and You come in...


"Empty me of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition and the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me so I can be filled with you."

Naughty is the New Nice

In my afternoon out in the world, searching for the remaining bits and pieces to complete my Christmas Shopping. On a shelf in the store I spied a mug. On it the words: "Naughty is the new nice". I kind of chuckled to myself and thought back to a different lifetime of mine when I'd envisioned a line of T-shirts that said "Naughty IS nice"...

But, after the initial giggle I thought more about it. I asked myself, "would I use this?" (no). "would I give it as a gift?" (no). "Would I want to have to explain it to my children?" (Oh, God help me, no... not now!) "would I want it to become their motto?" (no, no, no!)


I realized it bothered me as much as the junior clothing label, "No Boundaries", does. Seriously. We wonder why the world is where it is today, and seems to be spinning farther and farther out of control.

It is a good reminder to be cautious of where we focus our attention - even in jest, and comes timely with this email that arrived to me today:

Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

Help me to find delight in You...