tracking the drift.

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

“These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng. Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”
Psalms 42:4-5

How does it happen? How do I consistently dedicate daily time with God – for months – YEARS – and then just . . . stop?

I don’t understand it.

But I do. The Bible is full of stories about people forgetting God. Elijah experienced discouragement. So did David. Story after story. My faith is no stronger than theirs.

It seems like it was a “single moment” kinda stop. I think. I’m not sure. Maybe it was gradual. I need clues. My prayer journal is my historical record. When did it happen? Working backwards, I see near daily journal entries for April, and for March 31st. The last entry before that? March 23. I didn’t write in my prayer journal for 7 days. That represents a week without dedicated time with God.

The March 31st entry begins with:

“Lord, I miss my time with you. It’s so easy to get distracted and allow my time and thoughts to be pre-occupied by what I believe to be the “demands” of the day.”

Please draw me back to you. Remind me till I see.“

Then I read the words that reveal I was smack in the middle of a spiritual desert on March 31st:

“Please bless me with an overwhelming awareness of your presence in my life, not in an abstract, general way, but in an intimate, detailed way. Help me to be aware – to STAY aware of you. Please don’t let me find myself going through the motions, doing what comes “next” without considering whether it should be done at all.

Please reach into my heart, past all the barriers and bring me back into intimate fellowship with you . . . Lord I miss the joy and peace I experience when I’m in close fellowship with you. I miss the recognition of you working in my life . . . Please encourage me today, please jolt me into a place of desperate desire for time with you, for the saturation of your Spirit in my every moment.“

The next day, April 1st, I took my first step back. I’m still finding my way, so I’m not ready to explore that part of my journey quite yet. I’m looking for a trigger. Wondering what I need to address before I can get completely clear of this desert. How did I get here?

Realistic or not, I’m also trying to avoid the next desert trip. I’m compelled to try and figure out what to do differently next time. Because I’m not so arrogant as to claim there won’t be a next time. I’ve still got one foot buried in the sand as it is.

What was I praying about in the days before I took a nose dive into a spiritual abyss? Or, as evidenced by the gaps in my prayer journal, what was I NOT praying about?

I have no idea if I’m going to be able to track back to a trigger. I’ve got some journal reading to do. I’m starting with March 23rd and working my way backwards.

Prayer in distress dredges the soul. It is a good thing to keep a note
of the things you prayed about when you were in distress. We remain ignorant
of ourselves because we do not keep a spiritual autobiography.

Oswald Chambers: The Best from All His Books
Oswald Chambers

four minutes with God: 1 Kings 19:10-15

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

whatareyoudoinghereelijaha Quote:
“Sometimes we experience a terrible dryness in our spiritual lives. We feel no desire to pray, don’t experience God’s presence, get bored with worship services, and even think that everything we ever believed about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit is little more than a childhood fairy tale.

Then it is important to realize that most of these feelings and thoughts are just feelings and thoughts, and that the Spirit of God dwells beyond our feelings and thoughts. It is a great grace to be able to experience God’s presence in our feelings and thoughts, but when we don’t, it does not mean that God is absent. It often means that God is calling us to a greater faithfulness. It is precisely in times of spiritual dryness that we must hold on to our spiritual discipline so that we can grow into new intimacy with God.” (emphasis added)

(from Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith and
The Only Necessary Thing: Living a Prayerful Life both by Henri Nouwen)

my Prayer:
Lord, I’m going to keep listening for your voice even when I think I can’t hear you.
I’m going to keep looking for you even when I think I can’t find you.
I’m going to keep talking to you even when I think I’m not making sense.
I’m going to keep reading your word even when I think I don’t understand it.
I’m going to keep serving you even when I’m not sure I’m doing any good at all.
I’m going to keep singing to you, knowing you can hear both my words and my heart.

Lord, I know these thoughts and feelings are lies. I’m so thankful that my faith isn’t grounded in them because they are temporary. You are eternal. And you are here with me, whether I can sense your presence or not. Thank you for that knowledge, it’s my rock.

the Word:
“He [Elijah] replied, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
The LORD said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram.”
1 Kings 19:14-15(NAS)

My Paraphrase:
Elijah: “wah, wah, wah, I just witnessed your unlimited power, but now I’m sad and I feel alone.”
God: “I am HERE. Why are you still here?”
Elijah: “wah, wah, wah, I just witnessed your unlimited power, but now I’m sad and I feel alone.”
God: “Go. You have work to do, and whining isn’t on your to-do list.”
1 Kings 19:10-15(NAS)

the lyric:
“This is my prayer in the desert, when all that’s within me feels dry. This is my prayer in my hunger and need, my God is the God who provides…I will rejoice, I will declare, God is my victory and He is here.”
from Desert Song by Hillsong

“Come Holy One, awaken me, to your design, from my sleep.”
from Your Name by Curtis Froisland

This was dual published on my Pragmatic Communion blog.

four minutes with God: Deuteronomy 16:17

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

a Quote:
“…understanding ownership was half of my lesson. If God was the owner, I was the manager. I needed to adopt a steward’s mentality toward the assets He had entrusted – not given – to me.

A steward manages assets for the owner’s benefit. The steward carries no sense of entitlement to the assets he manages. It’s his job to find out what the owner wants done with his assets, then carry out his will.”
(from The Treasure Principle: Unlocking the Secret of Joyful Giving by Randy Alcorn)

my Prayer:
Lord, scheduling tithe checks on bill pay is some serious fun! Thank you for the joy we feel in this obedience. THANK YOU for the provision of my husband’s bonus and THANK YOU for the opportunity to give even more than we normally do. The feeling that comes from giving back some of the money you’ve entrusted to us is like an adrenaline high! Thank you that we never regret it or begrudge it. Thank you for giving us an opportunity to serve you this way. We pray that we’ve interpreted your will correctly and sent your money where you wanted it to go. We pray that you will abundantly bless the efforts of those to whom you have sent it and we trust you to work all things for your good and your glory.

Our continuous prayer is that you help us to be good stewards of everything you entrust to us and to help us achieve our goal of becoming debt-free. Thank you for this answer to our prayer. Thank you for providing a means for more debt reduction. We profoundly understand what a blessing this job is and even more the blessing of this bonus. Thank you, Lord.

the Word:
“Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you.”
Deuteronomy 16:17 (NAS)

the lyric:
“Rich or poor God I want You more, than anything that glitters in this world. Be my all, all consuming fire.
You can have all my hands can hold, my heart, mind, strength and soul, Be my all, all consuming fire.
All we need, all we need, all we need is You.”
from All We Need (youtube link) by Charlie Hall (amazon link)

This was dual published on my Pragmatic Communion blog.

penalties or rewards, pleasure or pain.

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

“Everything you and I do, we do either out of our need to avoid pain or our desire to gain pleasure…

Why don’t you do some of the things you know you should do? After all, what is procrastination? It’s when you know you should do something, but you still don’t do it. Why not? The answer is simple: at some level you believe that taking action in this moment would be more painful than just putting it off…

Why is it that people can experience pain yet fail to change? They haven’t experienced enough pain yet…hit a level of pain you weren’t willing to settle for anymore. We’ve all experienced those times in our lives when we’ve said, I’ve had it – never again – this must change now. This is the magical moment when pain becomes our friend. It drives us to take new action and produce new results.”

Awaken the Giant Within : How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Destiny!
by Anthony Robbins

I hope that the negative consequences I just experienced will be motivating enough for me to never repeat the circumstances that led to them.

I skipped working out yesterday. According to my freakish self-commitment to be a good steward of this body God has blessed me with – which I was foolish smart enough to document on the internet – I had to make up what I skipped. Thank GOD I only skipped one day. I had to do double work today. If I had missed two days…

What happened yesterday that prevented me from working out?

nothing.

I have no excuse. I just procrastinated and then I got distracted and then I rationalized that I would just make it up tomorrow.

I should not have listened to me. I really, really hope I remember how difficult it is to do TWO 2 minute forearm planks, TWO 1 minute supermans and FORTY Bosu push-ups.

I’m going out of town with PinkGirl to chaperon a field trip on Thursday and Friday. Excuse me while I have a little talk with myself:

“Julie. There is absolutely NO reason you can’t do your plank, superman and regular push-ups on Thursday and Friday. Do you feel your arms right now? Do you really want to go through this again on Saturday? Do NOT wimp out. You WILL regret it if you do. It’s LESS than FIVE minutes a day, for cryin out loud! Don’t be a whiny butt. Just suck it up and get it DONE.”

That said, here’s where I am with regard to my fitness goals for the month of March:

8 two minute forearm planks (caught up)
8 one minute supermans (caught up)
130 BOSU push-ups (doubled my daily goal after 3 days, need to catch up to 160)
17.7 miles walked. (To meet my average of 2.3 per day, I should be at 18.4. Got some catching up to do – and I should try to get a head start on making up Thursday and Friday because I can’t leave my post as chaperon to get my walking in. I’ll try to remember to wear a pedometer during the day as we do field trip stuff)

How are you doing with YOUR fitness goals? If you’re a beginner, I’m challenging you to exercise for only ONE minute per day this month. In April, I’ll tell you why I’m saying only ONE minute.

I’m blogging my daily fitness updates in my exercise log, and posting my daily progress on my Facebook page and my Twitter account, so follow along any way you like:
1. Subscribe to the blog via email or RSS (there are widgets in the sidebar to subscribe)
2. “Like” my Facebook page to see the updates in your news feed or
3. Follow me on Twitter!

I would LOVE it if you would join me in fitness accountability by commenting and letting me know your progress too!

as Ernest would say: “ewwwww.”

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

I’ve been trying to write. I don’t mean blog, I mean write. Why is there such a significant difference? Blogging is easy.

Writing is paralyzing.

I’ve written and re-written a book outline no less than 10 times in the last two weeks and yesterday, with a rare day to myself, I took my husband’s advice and “just started writing already.”

I wrote 3367 words (6 and a half single spaced pages) and let me just say:

ewww.

When I was finished, reading it over, all I could think was “Who would EVER want to read THIS?”

not good. I was back to paralyzed.

So today, while avoiding writing altogether, I found myself in Goodwill, with my head tipped to my right shoulder, perusing book titles.

(ya know how your mother used to say if you made a certain face it was gonna stick that way? Well I’m waiting for my head to stick that way, as much as I book shop.)

Then a book title jumped out at me: “If You Can Talk You Can Write”

People, I can talk.

I glanced at the back and the first bulleted description read:

“Conquer the Killer Ps – Perfectionism, Paralysis and Procrastination”

I put the book in my basket immediately.

I couldn’t wait to get home. I’m anxious for the cure, the quick fix this book is sure to provide. (What? My expectations are too high? Unrealistic?) The boys are at a track meet somewhere about an hour and a half away, PinkGirl is singing in the shower at the top of her lungs and I cop a squat (I have such a way with words, it’s hard to believe I’m having trouble writing) on the back porch with my new book and a cup of coffee. Will I identify with this author? Can he help me? Let’s see:

“For some reason, everyone thinks, ‘I should know how to write.’ No one thinks, ‘I should know how to play the piano.’ But when it comes to writing, ‘I should know how to do it.’

What if I told you a story about a man who buys a piano, sits down to play for the very first time and is shocked when he doesn’t sound like Arthur Rubinstein?

‘I don’t understand,’ he complains, ‘I’ve listened to lots of music, I should know how to play the piano.’

Ridiculous you say? Yet there you are: Banging away at the typewriter, you’re mortified when your work isn’t as good as Ernest Hemingway’s. Hell, it isn’t even as good as Ernest Goes to Camp.”

that was unexpected. I actually laughed out loud.

Not as good as Ernest Goes to Camp. yes, I do believe I can identify with this author.

I’m also having lunch with my friend – a professional writer – tomorrow so I can beg her to cure my paralysis for some insight and advice.

therefore I quote: John Grisham

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

(It’s been a loooong time since I’ve published a “therefore I quote” post, I almost forgot the format…)

I read, therefore I quote: John Grisham.

I don’t read much fiction, but one fiction writer I usually try to keep up with is Grisham. (It must be all these years working with attorneys.) Somehow, I missed reading “The Last Juror” and it’s been a pleasant surprise. How have I been reading Grisham’s work all these years and not realized he is a Christian? Even FirstHusband knew.

I love the way Grisham’s faith is evidenced as he describes the scene in which the main character, a small town newspaper editor named Willie Traynor, has been invited to lunch at the home of a Christian southern black woman:

“I sat across from her and was ready to yank off the lids and dive headfirst into whatever I found when she took both my hands and lowered her head. She began to pray.

It would be a lengthy prayer. She thanked the Lord for everything good, including me, “her new friend.” She prayed for those who were sick and those who might become so. She prayed for rain and sun and health and humility and patience, and though I began to worry about the food getting cold, I was mesmerized by her voice. Her cadence was slow, with thought given to each word. her diction was perfect, every consonant treated equally, every comma and period honored. I had to peek to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. I had never heard such speech from a Southern black, or a Southern white for that matter.

I peeked again. She was talking to her Lord, and her face was perfectly content. For a few seconds, I actually forgot about the food. She squeezed my hands as she petitioned the Almighty with eloquence that came only from years of practice. She quoted Scripture, the King James Version for sure, and it was a bit odd to hear hear use words like “thou” and “thine” and “whither” and “goest.” But she knew precisely what she was doing. In the clutches of this very holy woman, I had never felt closer to God.

I’ve been repeatedly struck by the ease with which Mr. Grisham continuously incorporated his faith into the pages of this book and how succinctly he presented the gospel in a non-threatening and way. The path to Christ is clearly and fully laid out – by an educated, well liked, open-minded character who objectively considers the beliefs and doctrines of multiple factions of the Christian faith. Willie forms opinions about faith, religion, Christians and non-Christians. He agrees and disagrees with some aspects of each and allows himself to question and doubt. It’s been a springboard for my own opinions, questions and doubts and I realize I haven’t censored myself with subconscious self-judgment.

I know I’m late to the party because this book was published in 2004, but I’m praying that the Christians who read this book will be encouraged and strengthened in their faith and that Holy Spirit will use this book to draw non-Christians closer to a saving faith in Christ.

“. . . therefore I quote” If you have a quote to share from something you’ve read recently, feel free to comment and/or include a link to your own “quote” post.

Need help making your link look pretty in the comment? Copy and use this code.

four minutes with God: Proverbs 27:17

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

a Quote:
“We all need someone in our lives at times to coach us to greater and greater levels of excellence in our chosen areas of pursuit.”

“Come to the edge, He said. They said, We are afraid. Come to the edge, He said. They came. He pushed them . . . and they flew.” Guillaume Apollinaire

(from The Aladdin Factor by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen)

my Prayer:
Lord, please lead me to anyone who can honestly and objectively guide me to greater levels of excellence in my pursuits to nurture my family, serve in ministry and achieve competence in my career. Please help me to discern and listen to the voices that come from you and to discard the lies Satan tries to tell me in an effort to throw me off your path for my life. If you would strike Satan mute, that would be perfect, Lord. (sigh) But I know that’s not how you work, so please bless me with discernment.

Thank you for the determination to work harder when I come face to face with the reality that I’m not as good at something as I think I am. Please Lord, help me to acknowledge my strengths and to remember that when I discount them, I discount your blessings in my life. Please help me to be satisfied with my work when I do well, instead of constantly critiquing myself.

the Word:
As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
Proverbts 27:17 (NIV)

the lyric.
“But the voice of truth tells me a different story. The voice of truth says, ‘Do not be afraid!’ The voice of truth says, ‘This is for My glory.’ Out of all the voices calling out to me, I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth.”
Voice of Truth (youtube link) by Casting Crowns (amazon link)

This was dual published on my Pragmatic Communion blog.

“the man is the head, but the woman is the neck, and she can turn the head any way she wants.”

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

I love this scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Isn’t is cute how men think they’re in charge?

Now ladies, wield this power responsibly. Don’t take advantage.

Need a few more chuckles today? Check out Friday Funnies hosted by Homesteaders Heart!

If you’ve got time to hang out for a few minutes, check out what else makes me laugh: Pragmatic Compendium’s “laugh!” category.

let go of your darlings, John Piper

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

I watched a replay of John Piper’s message at Passion 2011 last week and he began by saying that he wanted to clarify a question he frequently asks:

“Do you feel more loved by God because he makes much of you? Or because He, through Christ, enables you to enjoy making much of Him forever?”

He explained that he’s asked that question “numerous times” and that it has lead to some “significant misunderstandings.” He even said, “I think I’ve misled.” The message he was bringing that day was “designed to bring clarity and precision” to that question. He acknowledged that many people don’t understand what he’s asking.

I admit. I don’t understand. Not because I don’t understand his question, because I get the point behind the question. I don’t understand why he continues to ask the question using language he knows is confusing. But before I get to his choice of language, I’m going to take my own shot at clarifying the question. I don’t have a Piper/Every Man dictionary, but I’m going to try and simplify it (maybe for some, to an unacceptable extreme) and explain it in a fraction of the time it takes him to attempt explain it.

“Do you feel more loved by God because he makes much of you?”
I’ll use the first line of the prayer of Jabez to give my interpretation. When I pray that prayer, I begin with “Lord bless me, indeed.” Years ago, when I first began praying the Prayer of Jabez, I prayed it with the mindset that Piper describes here. I prayed, “Lord bless me with success, with health, and with financial security. Please protect me and my family from harm. Please bless me with a beautiful home, filled with comforts. Bless me with sought after skills and competent abilities. Please bless me with reasonable family members, loyal friends and people who respect and admire me. Bless me with happiness. Please bless me by giving me the desires of my heart.” If God blessed me by giving me what I desired, I felt loved by Him.

Then, I lived about more 5 years, read countless books, had more than a few theological discussions with my husband, children, family and friends, filled 3 or 4 prayer journals while drinking my fair share of coffee and . . . my perspective changed. God used every circumstance in my life to change me and the way I view “the desires of my heart.”

Which leads me to part two of Piper’s question:

“or do you feel more loved by God because He, through Christ, enables you to enjoy making much of Him forever?”
When I pray the prayer of Jabez with the mindset that Piper is talking about now, I pray, “Lord, please bless me with wisdom. Please bless me with discernment. Bless me with compassion and empathy and patience. Show me opportunities to serve you, equip me for service, and bless me with the courage and motivation to be immediately obedient when I come face to face with those opportunities. Please bless me with ideas and inspiration and illuminate my next step as you guide me to follow your will. Please give me desires of my heart.” When God blesses me by giving me desires of my heart – not THE desires of my heart – but when he blesses me by placing HIS desires IN me I feel more loved by God.

In the first question, the desires are mine and God grants them. Like a genie in a lamp, God is the “go-to guy” for me to get what I want “in Jesus name.” In the second question, I ask God what I want and he fills me with that knowledge, thus “giving me desires,” not “giving me MY desires.”

get it?

I hope so, or this post is one of those “pot calling the kettle black” kind of things.

So back to the wording of “the question” that Piper has been asking so many years and spent most of his very limited time at Passion 2011 trying to explain. A few days ago one of my blog visitors, Lisa suggested that I discuss theological issues with my husband when I’m working through them (oh, Lisa, you have no idea what can of worms you opened there. But that’s another post.)

So. I ask FirstHusband. But I don’t just ask him the question. I ask him what he thinks about the question. He’s wary. (remember, he’s holding a can of worms) I tell him to go ahead, say whatever comes to mind, whether or not he thinks it might be condescending (that’s a peek inside the can of worms).

He said he was thinking of Mona Lisa Vito’s answer.

And THAT is why he is my density, because I immediately responded with “EXACTLY!” (and no, “density” is not a typo, the link will take you to every post in which I’ve said my husband is my density.)

For those of you who don’t understand this exchange, we’re both referring to a scene from the movie “My Cousin Vinnie.” I asked FirstHusband John Piper’s question and he heard:

“Now, uh, Ms. Vito, being an expert on general automotive knowledge, can you tell me… what would the correct ignition timing be on a 1955 Bel Air Chevrolet, with a 327 cubic-inch engine and a four-barrel carburetor?”

If you’re a My Cousin Vinnie fan, as we are, you know the answer:

“. . . because Chevy didn’t make a 327 in ’55, the 327 didn’t come out till ’62. And it wasn’t offered in the Bel Air with a four-barrel carb till ’64. However, in 1964, the correct ignition timing would be four degrees before top-dead-center.”

Well. That was her FINAL answer. FirstHusband was referring to her initial answer.

(And if you’re a My Cousin Vinnie fan, you know exactly what that was. If you’ve never seen the movie, I’m sorry. I can’t provide you with a youtube link, I looked. Suffice it to say, she didn’t think much of the question.)

So when I say “let go of your darlings, John Piper.” what do I mean? I’m referring to something brave writers do when they self-edit. (They usually use some harsher terminology, like “Kill your darlings.” or “Murder your darlings.”) I love the way it’s explained here:

“I should be taking a good, long look at my “darlings” and analyzing whether their presence . . . was the result of necessity or just my smug enjoyment of my own supposed brilliance.

If this is arguably the most painful lesson an author has to learn, it’s also arguably the most valuable. Self-editing is the keenest blade in a writer’s armory. Too often, we fall so much in love with . . . [our darlings] . . . that we miss the bigger picture. We fail to see that our darlings are actually stumbling blocks, both to our writing of the story and certainly to the reading of it.

K.M. Weiland at WordPlay-kmweiland.blogspot.com

One of the main points John Piper makes as he attempts to explain this question is that true conversion puts GOD at the bottom of your joy. Piper believes that within that conversion, God can “makes much of me.” His personal goal is that “He be made much of.” He even quotes scripture which he believes supports his premise. And here’s the thing:

I agree. I support his premise. I believe it’s critical and at the foundation of my personal, daily walk with the Lord.

It’s the PHRASING of his premise that is SERIOUSLY failing to help OTHER people understand what he is saying.

So I have a question for John Piper. What is more important to you – SENDING your message? Or making sure it is RECEIVED by doing the best you can to help people to understand what you are asking?

Let go of your darlings, John Piper, they do not serve you well and they are a stumbling block.

four minutes with God: 2nd Corinthians 3:4-5

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

a Quote:
“God can be our source of confidence because our adequacy is from Him.”
(from Thriving as an Artist in the Church by Rory Noland)

“As I go into the concert I have a pretty good feel for my ability – that is, I know the truth of who I am in the whole scheme of things. I may not be the best musician in the world, but neither am I the worst. What does it matter anyway, since whatever gifts I have were given to me in the first place and are really not mine. So I can’t lose. As I begin to play, my energy is not wasted on thinking of myself. The point of my playing is to present the message of the song, to “wash the feet” of the people or even God by faithfully playing my best with the ability I’ve been given. Now I become the beneficiary of another equation: to forget yourself equals the best possible performance.”
(quote by Michael Card in Roland’s book)

my Prayer:
Lord, as I go into the studio to record tonight, please bless me with your interpretation of Jesus Messiah. Please help me to sing it the way you want to hear it. Please lead me to put harmony where you find it beautiful. Please show me how to make the song pleasing to your ears, not my own.

Please bless my voice and tonight, through your Holy Spirit, please remove the limitations I’m experiencing because I’ve been sick this past week. Please equip me for service because without your help, my voice is even more inadequate than it usually is.

Please bless the studio session and make me aware of any opportunity to be used by you. Please make me sensitive to the individual needs of those who are there. I don’t know them Lord, but you do. I want to be available for your service, no matter that I’m there to get something done – for myself. Please help me to see with your eyes, my vision is weak and self-focused.

the Word:
Such confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.
2nd Corinthians 3:4-5 (NIV)

the lyric.
“Because You gladly lean to lead the humble, I shall gladly kneel to leave my pride. Oh God, You are my God, and I will ever praise You. Oh God, You are my God, and I will ever praise You.”
Like Incense (youtube link) by Hillsong Live (amazon link)

This was dual published on my Pragmatic Communion blog.