Amazed

Amazed "to affect with great wonder, astonish."

God never ceases to amaze me. He gives me awesome things to look at because He knows how much I love beauty!  This amazing sunset last night before a good rainstorm was amazingly gorgeous.  Fall leaves and the process of all that....amazing.  Birth and the process involved in all that...amazing.  The way we bend to His will when we make ourselves available...amazing. The way He gives us exactly what we need exactly when we need it, even though we don't understand it...amazing.

He saves up a lot of amazing things for me every year when I attend Women of Faith in Minneapolis.  I have come to expect God's presence there and have gone with my heart on my sleeve and ready to accept whatever God wants me to learn that weekend.  He likes to amaze me not only with the Women of Faith venue, but in the good laughs with friends & in the quality time I get to spend with them.  This will be my last Women of Faith with my good friend, Laura.  Last year was my last one with my good friend, Tabitha.  But how amazing will the real deal be, ladies, when we have something like a Women of Faith weekend in Heaven!  WOO HOO!  Wow.  Talk about amazing.  God's saving up some amazing stuff for that one.  ;)

I've been listening to the Women of Faith music from last year and the song "Amazed" gets louder and louder on my dial every time I play it.  "You dance over me while I am unaware.  You sing all around, but I never hear the sound.  Lord, I'm amazed by you. How you love me."  I sometimes feel like God is trying to impress me with his creation.  Showing me...."look, Becky, I made this just for you!"  I've learned to see amazement in EVERYTHING!  I think it makes me look a bit calloused to friends at times, though.  I have a friend going through a really rough spot, but all I can see is the hand of God directing every step she's on.  I can see through the smoke and see that everything is going to be okay!!  I love her and feel for her pain, but I can also see the amazing love God has for her and how He's transforming her life and making all things new!

Open your eyes and see the amazement all around you.  See the dance that goes over you because God is delighted in YOU!  Picture a crazy parent running through the streets singing some loud song because they are so proud of YOU!  Embarrassing?  Maybe, but doesn't that make you feel special through the bright red blushing cheeks?  It's wide, deep, and so, so great.

What's in a name?

What does your name mean?  I had to look mine up because I'm not really sure.  Answers.com says that Becky means "beautiful, energetic, pretty, tom-boyish, and rich".  I'll take that.  I'm still waiting around on the rich part, but whatever.  Michael's name means "who is like the Lord".  I'll have to keep him humble with that as his name.

Names are important.  You kind of resemble your name to some degree.  Our daughter, Alexandria's name means "protector of men".  We named her that because we liked the name, but really she is what brought Michael around to the realization that he had a little life to protect and she made him the man he is today.  Evan's name means "God is good" and ain't that the truth?!  That little boy shows me God's goodness every single day!

Names are powerful.  But all other names pale in comparison to a certain Great Name!!  Many hymns and songs have been written about the name of Jesus.  About the amazing power in the name of Jesus.  Even typing it out here in this blog, I know the name will be offensive to some friends who read it.  Some of my friends have a hard time with religion, are atheists or agnostics.  The name of Jesus really is offensive to them.  But that name to me is LIFE!  That name to me is FREEDOM!  Everything is better when just simply the name "Jesus" is spoken!  Jesus means "salvation".  Salvation from anything and everything that is wrong.

This has been my most favorite song lately.  "Your Great Name" by Natalie Grant.  And I have the privilege of seeing Natalie Grant at Women of Faith in a few weeks.  Oh, I can hardly contain myself!  I will be transported to heaven and back.  Can you imagine 10,000 women singing along to this song?  WOW!  10,000 voices saying the name of Jesus.  Just a little teeny taste of heaven.  Homesick, I am.  Ready to be with the object of my desire!  Ready to physically crawl into my Savior's lap.  At the sound of His great name...