Tropical storm “Juaning” (international code name: Nock-Ten) was wrecking havoc in northern Philippines when I wrote this post. I could see the heavy downpour and the effects of the strong winds from my window. I was just glad I did not have to travel today. But I thought of those who had to and prayed for their safety. Everything seemed gloomy so I headed to Vimeo to look for something to brighten my day. And I found the following video. It is full of sunshine and its music pushed the doldrums away from my room. It actually made me smile and think of blue skies, dusty roads and green plants. I particularly like the use of tilt-shift as it made the shots of the ordinary village extraordinary.
This week’s featured website is catholicmissionarygirl.com. The girl is a Couples for Christ (CFC) lay missionary whose passion to serve God brought her to Indonesia and East Timor. She confesses that she has put up her blog “as a channel to share about the crazily unbelievable things God has put me through as a missionary just to love me perfectly”.
This week’s featured short film is “Bruce”. It is a 2009 graduation film from the Royal College of Art. Bruce is an award winning animation that explores how advances in open-source synthetic biology allow a young man to grow his very own action hero.
The song “Savior, Please” by Josh Wilson is a prayer. At its core, the song centers on the idea that we cannot be without God. Some of us might think that we are strong enough but in the end we will come to realize that we cannot do anything without God’s grace. We are indeed nothing without God’s love.
Josh Wilson is a north American contemporary Christian singer. The song “Savior, Please” is from his 2008 album “Trying to Fit the Ocean In a Cup.”
Savior, Please
by Josh Wilson
Savior, please take my hand
I work so hard, I live so fast
This life begins, and then it ends
And I do the best that I can, but I don’t know how long I’ll last
I try to be so tough
But I’m just not strong enough
I can’t do this alone, God I need You to hold on to me
I try to be good enough
But I’m nothing without Your love
Savior, please keep saving me
Savior, please help me stand
I fall so hard, I fade so fast
Will You begin right where I end
And be the God of all I am because You’re all I have
Hallelujah
Everything You are to me
Is everything I’ll ever need
And I am learning to believe
That I don’t have to prove a thing
‘Cause You’re the one who’s saving me
This week’s featured website is mercygrass.com, the blog of April Frances “Sky” Asuncion Ortigas. This 28-year-old Couples for Christ (CFC) lay missionary is not only a prolific writer but also a web designer and a photographer. Aside from writing about her thoughts, experiences and reflections she also posts well-crafted photos. Definitely worth checking out are the coffeedevos and folio sections of her site.
This week’s featured short film is “Dragonboy”. A knight. A princess. A dragon. Three little kids. One school play. An epic battle for love and honor. Dragonboy is a collaborative thesis done by Lisa Allen, Bernie Warman and Shaofu Zhang at the Academy of Art University.
Our God is a forgiving Father. The whole purpose of giving us His only begotten Son is to facilitate forgiveness. The song “Forgiven” stresses that “I don’t have to carry the weight of who I’ve been, cause I’m forgiven.” God forgives us because we are a treasure in the arms of Christ.
Sanctus Real is a north American Christian rock band composed of Matt Hammitt (lead vocalist, guitar), Chris Rohman (lead guitar), Dan Gartley (bass), Pete Prevost (guitar), and Mark Graalman (drums). Since their formation in the year 1996, they have released eight albums (3 through an independent label and 5 through the Sparrow record label). The song “Forgiven” is from their latest album “Pieces of a Real Heart”.
Forgiven
by Sanctus Real
Well the past is playing with my head
And failure knocks me down again
I’m reminded of the wrong
That I have said and done
And that devil just wont let me forget
In this life
I know what I’ve been
But here in your arms
I know what I am
I’m forgiven
I’m forgiven
And I don’t have to carry
The weight of who I’ve been
Cause I’m forgiven
My mistakes are running through my mind
And I’ll relive my days, in the middle of the night
When I struggle with my pain, wrestle with my pride
Sometimes I feel alone, and I cry
In this life
I know what I’ve been
But here in your arms
I know what I am
When I don’t fit in and I don’t feel like I belong anywhere
When I don’t measure up to much in this life
Oh, I’m a treasure in the arms of Christ ‘cause
This week’s featured website is marriageuniqueforareason.org. The main purpose of the site is to provide catechetical and educational resources on sexual difference and complementarity. The resources include a video, a viewer’s guide and a resource booklet. The project is an initiative of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Ad Hoc Committee for the Defense of Marriage.
This week’s featured short film is “Your Secret”. This colorful and touching short is the work of Jean-Sebastien Monzani. It encourages viewers to do something beautiful, something that will have a positive impact on the self and on other people. It is a very creative piece of work.
This week’s featured website is GodBeat. The website was founded by Jeff Myers, a convicted drug user and a former producer of online pornography who decided to dedicate his life to Christ during his court trial and eventual yearlong imprisonment. After leaving prison, he founded GodBeat “to replace the garbage he was putting into millions of homes a year, with God message, through music or any means necessary.” Jeff is now a changed man and GodBeat is growing fast as a home to hundreds of Christian music videos.
This week’s featured short film is “Lightheaded“. Lightheaded is “a journey we take with temperature sensitive candle creatures who sacrifice what they know to become who they are.” This animated film was created by Mike Dacko. It has received numerous international awards.
No one else can ease our pain. No one else can lift us up when we’re down. No one else but God. The song “By Your Side” by Tenth Avenue North talks about just that. It speaks of God’s faithfulness and desire to be with us even during our darkest moments.
What’s so amazing about God’s grace is that we do not have to deserve it to receive it. God gives it to us freely and fully no matter what. We do not have to earn God’s love. God loves us not because we are worthy, but because He is loving.
Tenth Avenue North is a north American contemporary Christian music band. “By Your Side” is a track from their debut album “Over and Underneath”. The song won the 2010 Annual GMA Dove Award for Song of the Year.
By Your Side
by Tenth Avenue North
Why are you striving these days
Why are you trying to earn grace
Why are you crying
Let me lift up your face
Just don’t turn away
Why are you looking for love
Why are you still searching as if I’m not enough
To where will you go child
Tell me where will you run
To where will you run
And I’ll be by your side
Wherever you fall
In the dead of night
Whenever you call
And please don’t fight
These hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you
Look at these hands and my side
They swallowed the grave on that night
When I drank the world’s sin
So I could carry you in
And give you life
I want to give you life
Cause I, I love you
I want you to know
That I, I love you
I’ll never let you go
My bedroom is on the top floor of a six-storey building in Sta. Mesa, Manila. From my bedroom window I can see much of the Manila skyline. The sun was setting as I began writing this post and it filled my room with warmth and golden hues. And I found myself relishing the evening as I listened to TobyMac’s “City on Our Knees”. If you gotta start somewhere, I sang along with TobyMac, why not here. If you gotta start sometime why not now.
I stopped everything else I was doing, closed my eyes, listened intently, and let the words and melody sink in. It is so easy to love this song. It is sweet-sounding, catchy and meaningful.
TobyMac is a multi-awarded Christian recording artist, producer and songwriter. “City on Our Knees” is from his 2010 album “Tonight”. The song was awarded a Dove Award for Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year.
City on Our Knees
by TobyMac
If you gotta start somewhere why not here
If you gotta start sometime why not now
If we gotta start somewhere I say here
If we gotta start sometime I say now
Through the fog there is hope in the distance
From cathedrals to third world missions
Love will fall to the earth like a crashing wave
Tonight’s the night
For the sinners and the saints
Two worlds collide in a beautiful display
It’s all up tonight
When we step across the line
We can sail across the sea
To a city with one king
A city on our knees
A city on our knees
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
If you gotta start somewhere why not here
If you gotta start sometime why not now
If we gotta start somewhere I say here
If we gotta start sometime I say now
Through the fog there is hope in the distance
From cathedrals to third world missions
Love will fall to the earth like a crashing wave
Tonight’s the night
For the sinners and the saints
Two worlds collide in a beautiful display
It’s all love tonight
When we step across the line
We can sail across the sea
To a city with one king
A city on our knees
A city on our knees
Oh-oh-oh
Tonight could last forever
We are one choice from together
Tonight could last forever
Ooh
Tonight could last forever
We are one choice from together
As family
We’re family
Oh Tonight could last forever
We are one choice from together
You and me
Ya, you and me
Tonight’s the night
For the sinners and the saints
Two worlds collide
In a glorious display
Cuz its all love tonight
When we step across the line
We can sail across the sea
To a city with one king
A city on our knees
A city on our knees
Oh oh oh
A city on our knees
A city on our knees
Oh oh oh
If we gotta start somewhere why not here
If we gotta start sometime why not now
The most unforgettable moments in listening to music are when you come across something – an idea, a way of looking at the world, a prayer, a feeling – which expresses what you have always longed to say. The song “Two Hands” by Jars of Clay is one such piece of music. Its lyrics beautifully convey the idea that if there’s one thing our hands should do, it is to praise God. We need to lift our hands to give glory to God. And we need to use our two hands to help others.
Jars of Clay is an American Christian rock band. It consists of Dan Haseltine on vocals, Charlie Lowell on piano and keyboards, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars. “Two Hands” is from their 2009 album called “The Long Fall Back to Earth”.
Two Hands
by Jars of Clay
I’ve been living out of sanity
I’ve been splitting hairs and blurring lines
I am a house that is divided
In my heart and in my mind
I use one hand to pull you closer
The other to push you away
If I had two hands doing the same thing
Lifted high, lifted high
I have a broken disposition
I’m a liar who thirsts for the truth
And while I ache for faith to hold me
I need to feel the scars and see the proof
And if we just keep digging
We can reach the foundation of our souls
And if we just keep cutting all the chains from our hearts
We’ll lose control
And it feels like giving in
It feels like starting over
It feels like waking up, and you know it’s coming
It feels like a brand new day
Open your eyes
