left my fear by the side of the road
hear you speak and won't let go
fall to my knees as i lift my hands to pray
got every reason to be here again
the Father's love draws me in
and all my eyes wanna see is a glimpse of You.


all i need is You
all i need is You, Lord
is You, Lord

one more day and it's not the same
Your spirit calls my heart to sing
drawn to the voice of my Saviour once again
where'd my soul be without Your Son
gave His life to save the earth
rest in the thought that You're watching over me

all i need is You
all i need is You, Lord
is You, Lord
all i need is You
all i need is You, Lord
is You

You hold the universe
You hold everyone on earth
You hold the universe
You hold, yeah You hold

-------

That sums it all up, my hearts cry. Whenever i feel my focus start to slip away, the Father's love draws me in. The past couple days have been fun, and God is showing me that his plans are not always my plans and his ways are not my ways. Even though it may be a while before things turn out like i hope they will (and that may never happen), I know that God is moving and alive here and speaking into our hearts through it all...and in the end thats what matters...him being glorified above all. Above the plans and the issues and the emotions, that everything points back to him. And it does, and it feels right.

we have been officially moved into the lodge (that's what our house was called) for almost a week now, and it is really awesome. everyone needs to come by and check it out sometime or come to one of the many cookouts that we will be having in the future. we just got our internet a couple days ago, and i have no idea what i did in life without internet...i just know i was really bored this past week.

several people came over tonight and we grilled some hamburgers and played sorry (the board game) until about 8 and then we went to see finding steve cunningham, which they were really good. i hadn't been to a show in a really really long time, and they rocked it hard (they still need to find a singer though).

anyways, everyone needs to go see my new favorite band hillsong united play next week (16th) at rocketown. it's free and is really cool worship stuff. let me know if there is anything i can be praying for you guys about.

"you are the way, the truth, and the life, I'll live by faith and not by sight for you...we're living all for you"
-"One Way" Hillsong United

In my heart, in my heart, there's a fire burning
A passion deep within my soul
Not slowing down, not growing cold
An unquenchable flame that keeps burning brighter
A love that's blazing like the sun
For who You are and what You've done

And as the fire is raging on
So Your praise becomes my song

The whole earth
Is filled with Your glory, Lord
Angels and men adore
Creation longs for what's in store
(Mountains bow and oceans roar)
May You be
Honored and glorified
Exalted and lifted high
Here at Your feet I lay my life

From the ends of the earth
To the heights of Heaven
Your glory, Lord, is far and wide
Through history You reign on high

From the depths of the sea
To the mountain's summit
Your power, Lord, it knows no bounds
A higher love cannot be found

So let the universe proclaim
Your great power and Your great name

don't wanna stand here and shout your praise
and walk away and forget your name
i stand for you if it's all i do
cause there is nothing compared to you
cause all i want in this lifetime is you
and all i want in this whole world is you

tell the world that Jesus lives
tell the world that...tell the world that
tell the world that He died for them
tell the world that He lives again

no longer i but Christ in me
cause it's the truth that set me free
how could this world be a better place
but by Thy mercy,by Thy grace

cause all i want in this lifetime is You...and all i want in this whole world is You

tell the world that Jesus lives
tell the world that...tell the world that
tell the world that He died for them
tell the world that He lives again

Come on, come on, we'll tell the world about you

we are heading to 722 tomorrow, which we have been planning for a while now. rachel, justin, amy, becca, and monica are all accompanying me, and it should be a blast. my car is finally fixed, and i will be picking that up tomorrow as well. they ended up having to put in a whole new AC system, so yeah, a lot of cash, but God is good and he always provides. seek rest in Him.

more quotes from willy wonka:

"i'm eatable, but that my children is called cannibalism and is in fact frown upon in most societies"

"and here is our puppet burn center...it's kind of a recent addition."

"i always thought a veruca was a wart you got on the bottom of your foot"

"don't touch that squirrel's nuts, it's makes him crazy"

"the best kind of prize is a SURprise!"

I have had such a good time hanging out with my friends lately, fun times.

"goodmorning starshine, the earth says hello!"
-Willy Wonka

last night was amazing. i went to see charlie and the chocolate factory at midnight with justin, rachel, monica, and jonathan. we ended up seeing at the imax, and let me just tell you something. i LOVE that movie. it was so good, i could not stop laughing the whole time...and david crowder would like that movie too because there are lots of squirrels. the movie is completely different from the first one and more like the book, so you have to go in expecting that, but everyone needs to go see it...i am definitely going again.

photo from rachael

i guess to explain my last entry, for those of you who are not following the tour, Lance took back the yellow jersey and got second place for the stage. he was 2:38 behind the leader (Voigt) today and he actually beat Voigt by 30 minutes. He is 0:38 up on Rasmussen. Lance should be up near the front for the next 3 or 4 days because they are all mountain stages and thats where he excels.

the past week has held some bank account scares, hanging out with friends, and going to auburntown...which Rachel and i decided was scary at night because of the possibilities of serial killers lurking in the shadows of the wooden ship. we really are city people.

Lance + Alps = wow

last night went really well. God is so good and he works through the most chaotic circumstances to calm my heart and speak into my life. around 12, i came home and ian told me that he couldn't play because he had to work, so i had to change our set list (3 times) and i didn't feel right about anything until i got to church and things just fell together. our monitors also didn't work at first, but ben was awesome and rewired everything so we could have it. i am really excited about being able to journey with these students and see lifechange as we create an environment for God to move freely. everyday i stand in awe of Jesus and all he can do through a broken vessel like me.

i love cycling. i have for the past couple of years. i don't know why, but i am addicted to anything having to do with it...strategy, equipment, riders specs, crew leaders instructions. i love to read up on it and watch anything that i can about it. there is something cool about a sport in which 9 guys act cooperatively, sacrificing their strength and bodies for the team leader to win. it's not an individual sport as so many of us think, because all we hear about is Lance Armstrong, but what you don't hear about are the George Hincapies, Jose Azavedos, and last year the Floyd Landis', but we would not know who Lance was if it wasn't for these people and the others who make up his team. it is these guys who take the wind in the face and let Lance draft off of them. i just love that. i get so selfish sometimes, but what would happen if this became a part of my everyday life. laying down my strength and time so that someone else might succeed. that no one would hear my name, and yet there is still such pride in someone else succeeding. i want to lift Jesus high all day every day, lay my pride and self aside so that he might be glorified. if i am good, it is only because he is great. he is so beautiful.

ps...you know what i am going to be watching for the next three weeks. OLN every night. and bytheway, lance took over the yellow jersey today. rock on discovery channel team.

i ended up returning my phone today and getting the same model that i had because i wanted to have a flip phone still. it cost like 70 bucks more, but it is well worth it.

ok, enough of this phone chatter. i had a meeting with clint and chris on friday and i am now going to be leading worship for the youth on wednesdays on top of my ao responsibilities. we will probably end up doing a trio or a four piece and just try to be really creative instead of rocking it out the whole time. i am really excited about it. i am going to be really busy for sure, but it is something i enjoy so it can't be that bad. youth starts at 6:30 and college starts at 7:45, so it should be ok. i do need to change my monday wednesday class that ends at 5:35...there is no way i could do that. i have been writing alot of music lately, which has been fun and hopefully i can finish some songs and samples soon so that i can start incorporating them.

i always feel wierd writing about myself and about what i am doing. i think its funny to go back and count how many freakin times i say "i" in a post. i feel selfish. but really it is all about me. seriously. the world revolves around my actions. i rule the universe...wow, that sounds really blasphemous...maybe i will write about someone elses day instead, that could be fun. i am really tired, so this probably won't make any sense when i am coherent.

i got a new phone today, and i had to pay full price. no fun. but i did buy the new hillsong united cd, and it is really good.

i like rain. i really do. it is calming. but rain has not treated me kindly the past couple of days. i got a new cell phone 3 weeks ago and it is now ruined because it was in my pocket when i was caught in a sudden rainstorm. and when i say sudden, i mean it came out of nowhere. sun to downpour in 2 seconds flat. oh well, its just a phone...(i am trying to keep perspective).

i am heading to atlanta this afternoon to partake in the ribs and wings of nana. i have no idea why i am talking like this...ha

so supposedly i went from hating someone to being madly in love with them over the space of like 3 hours...hmmm

ok, so does having 5 restraunts all in the nashville area count as a chain, because when i think of a chain, i think national or regional. i don't know...would we count la siesta as a chain because there are 4 of them or whatever? just wondering

nothing much to report on the homefront...other than the fact that i am exhausted and can't wake myself up at all. i did have a fun time hanging out with becca last night. i like non-chain restraunts...murfreesboro needs more of them. we went to calypso cafe. very fun indeed. and jeff and i finally finished fight club after falling asleep about halfway through on friday night. yeah...i'm going to bed...i need to get my crazy back

i finally finished a freaking song!!! i technically have had the song for about 9 months now, but i changed the chorus and added a bridge because i was never happy with the flow of the first one...anyways i like it and will probably be playing it a lot now. yeah...i know you have no idea what i am talking about

i went to a breakout session at thirsty '04 that talked about finding the fingerprints of God in our popular culture. finding phrases in songs, lines in movies, or images in art that point to our creator. i really like this whole "into the west" series that speilberg directed. there is just something about it...the freshness and wildness of the exploration that just sits well with me. i think the same things ring true in my heart about church. we are so used to what we have always done that we lose the adventure of exploring the heart of God. every day is the name and our hearts grow stale as our worship becomes older. i love the unbridled heart of worship. one that seeks to find new ways of glorifying God for all that he is. if you have a chance, go back and watch the first and second ones because there are a lot of things that point to God, either intentionally or unintentionally.