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"No matter where I am, your teachings fill me with songs." - Psalm 119:54 (CEV)

Saturday, February 23, 2013

All Gain


She wonders what to do for her class project,

The VOSOT project,

A voice-over - her voice,

Explaining the sound on tape - a recording of some kind -

Sort of like a news report,

The reporter explaining the story,

The story played in between the reporter's explanations.

She says she just did a project based on news reports,

Doesn't want to do another one.

I tell her she could do an interview,

Tell her she could interview me,

That I could put it up on Soundcloud,

People could listen.

I say she can do whatever she wants,

It's just an idea,

But I'll take all the publicity that I can get.


She can't come up with any other ideas,

So, Wednesday, I find myself standing in the school's audio studio

In front of a big microphone and a Mackie board.

She's written out and recorded her voice-over,

Said what she wants me to talk about.

She's recorded three of the songs from my new CD to the computer,

More SOTs to use in the background.

All that's left is me.

She leaves the room to call family,

Leaves me to my thoughts,

Leaves me to hit the "record" button myself.

So, Wednesday, I find myself stumbling over phrases,

A little nervous,

Hands waving wildly,

Trying to tell the microphone how an album came about,

And, really, how do you explain that there wasn't that much thought,

That a lot of it kind of just happened?


It doesn't take long before I'm glad there's a "delete" button,

And I do make some use of it,

Stuttering here and there,

Realizing that what I said wasn't quite what I meant.

In the end, though, it was never going to be perfect,

And I tell her I'm done,

Still worrying that it was too long,

And maybe someone will hear and misinterpret?

Especially the theology?

I know it was right in the sense that I meant it,

But words are just so imprecise.


Late Wednesday night -

I mean, very early Thursday morning -

She's working on it,

Listening in her earbuds to my stumbling,

My grasping,

These attempts to explain what even I don't totally understand.

She says it sounds "professional"

And I ask, really, what is professional?

Aren't we all struggling to explain?

When you brush up against the Holy

And it makes your heart burst forth with song,

How do you put it into words?

These songs,

They come from the learning,

From glimpses of wonder,

Hints of truth,

A drop of the Infinite,

And there's infinitely more where that came from,

And I'm still straining to comprehend this one drop.

There's only so much of it I can explain,

And words are totally inadequate for the depths of it all -

Such grace in the revelation,

The writing,

The releasing.

Don't the professionals feel just as unprofessional as I do?


She finishes, and I listen hard.

She did a wonderful job.

Her work sounds amazing.

She kindly copies the files to my flash drive.

Friday, I sit down after class and upload it to Soundcloud,

Post on Facebook,

In case anyone might want to hear?

And isn't all art a risk,

Imperfections put out in the open,

Soul laying bare for all to see?

It's a little scary sometimes,

But always worth it,

This constant reminder that I'm not enough

And He is

And I just

Need

To trust.

And, really, when I do that,

What risk is it, after all?

It's all gain.

All gain. 


If you'd like to listen?

(And, if you'd like, feel free to comment.

Soundcloud allows you to share your thoughts at any time during the audio file,

Post a comment right there in the widget.

Your words are always such grace to me!)



Reasons 3131-3218 today, 

Trusting who He is,

And treasuring.

Counting:

  1. His people rely on Him from birth (Psalm 71:6)
  2. He brings people forth from their mothers' wombs (Psalm 71:6)
  3. His people will ever praise Him (Psalm 71:6)
  4. He is His people's strong refuge (Psalm 71:7)
  5. His people's mouths are filled with His praise (Psalm 71:8)
  6. His people's mouths are filled with His praise, declaring His splendor all day long (Psalm 71:8)
  7. His people will always have hope (Psalm 71:14)
  8. His people will praise Him more and more (Psalm 71:14)
  9. His people's mouths will tell of His righteous deeds (Psalm 71:15)
  10. His deeds are righteous (Psalm 71:15)
  11. His people's mouths will tell of His saving acts all day long (Psalm 71:15)
  12. His acts are saving (Psalm 71:15)
  13. His people's mouths will tell of His righteous deeds, though they do not know how to relate them all (Psalm 71:15)
  14. His people's mouths will tell of His saving acts all day long, though they do not know how to relate them all (Psalm 71:15)
  15. His people will come and proclaim His mighty acts (Psalm 71:16)
  16. His acts are mighty (Psalm 71:16)
  17. He is the Sovereign LORD (Psalm 71:16)
  18. His people will proclaim His righteous deeds (Psalm 71:16)
  19. His people will proclaim His righteous deeds, His alone (Psalm 71:16)
  20. He teaches His people (Psalm 71:17)
  21. He teaches His people since their youth (Psalm 71:17)
  22. His people declare His marvelous deeds (Psalm 71:17)
  23. His deeds are marvelous (Psalm 71:17)
  24. His people declare His power to the next generation (Psalm 71:18)
  25. His people declare His mighty acts to all who are to come (Psalm 71:18)
  26. His righteousness reaches to the heavens (Psalm 71:19)
  27. He has done great things (Psalm 71:19)
  28. No one is like Him (Psalm 71:19)
  29. Though He makes His people see troubles, many and bitter, He will restore their lives again (Psalm 71:20)
  30. From the depths of the earth, He will again bring His people up (Psalm 71:20)
  31. He will increase His people's honor (Psalm 71:21)
  32. He will comfort His people once more (Psalm 71:21)
  33. His people praise Him with the harp (Psalm 71:22)
  34. His people praise Him with the harp for His faithfulness (Psalm 71:22)
  35. His people sing praise to Him with the lyre (Psalm 71:22)
  36. His people's lips shout for joy when they sing praises to Him (Psalm 71:23)
  37. He has delivered His people (Psalm 71:23)
  38. His people's tongues will tell of His righteous acts all day long (Psalm 71:24)
  39. His acts are righteous (Psalm 71:24)
  40. His people's tongues will tell of His righteous acts all day long, for those who wanted to harm them have been put to shame and confusion (Psalm 71:24)
  41. He will deliver (Psalm 72:12)
  42. He will deliver the needy (Psalm 72:12)
  43. He will deliver the needy who cry out (Psalm 72:12)
  44. He will deliver the afflicted (Psalm 72:12)
  45. He will deliver the afflicted who have no one to help (Psalm 72:12)
  46. He will take pity (Psalm 72:13)
  47. He will take pity on the weak (Psalm 72:13)
  48. He will take pity on the needy (Psalm 72:13)
  49. He will save (Psalm 72:13)
  50. He will save the needy from death (Psalm 72:13)
  51. He will rescue (Psalm 72:14)
  52. He will rescue from oppression (Psalm 72:14)
  53. He will rescue from violence (Psalm 72:14)
  54. He will rescue the needy (Psalm 72:12-14)
  55. He will rescue the afflicted (Psalm 72:12-14)
  56. He will rescue the weak (Psalm 72:13-14)
  57. He will rescue the needy from oppression (Psalm 72:12-14)
  58. He will rescue the afflicted from oppression (Psalm 72:12-14)
  59. He will rescue the weak from oppression (Psalm 72:13-14)
  60. He will rescue the needy from violence (Psalm 72:12-14)
  61. He will rescue the afflicted from violence (Psalm 72:12-14)
  62. He will rescue the weak from violence (Psalm 72:13-14)
  63. He will rescue the needy from oppression, for precious is their blood in His sight (Psalm 72:12-14)
  64. He will rescue the afflicted from oppression, for precious is their blood in His sight (Psalm 72:12-14)
  65. He will rescue the weak from oppression, for precious is their blood in His sight (Psalm 72:13-14)
  66. He will rescue the needy from violence, for precious is their blood in His sight (Psalm 72:12-14)
  67. He will rescue the afflicted from violence, for precious is their blood in His sight (Psalm 72:12-14)
  68. He will rescue the weak from violence, for precious is their blood in His sight (Psalm 72:13-14)
  69. All nations will be blessed through Him (Psalm 72:17)
  70. All nations will be call Him blessed (Psalm 72:17)
  71. He alone does marvelous deeds (Psalm 72:18)
  72. He is good to Israel (Psalm 73:1)
  73. He is good to those who are pure in heart (Psalm 73:1)
  74. He places the wicked on slippery ground (Psalm 73:18)
  75. He casts the wicked down to ruin (Psalm 73:18)
  76. When He arises, He will despise the wicked as fantasies (Psalm 73:20)
  77. He is always with His people (Psalm 73:23)
  78. He holds His people by their right hand (Psalm 73:23)
  79. He guides His people with counsel (Psalm 73:24)
  80. He takes His people into glory (Psalm 73:24)
  81. His people have no one in heaven besides Him (Psalm 73:25)
  82. His people desire nothing on earth besides Him (Psalm 73:25)
  83. He is the strength of His people's hearts (Psalm 73:26)
  84. He is His people's portion forever (Psalm 73:26)
  85. Those who are far from Him will perish (Psalm 73:27)
  86. He destroys all who are unfaithful to Him (Psalm 73:28)
  87. His people have made Him their refuge (Psalm 73:28)
  88. His people tell of all His deeds (Psalm 73:28)


(Sylvia's already made it to - past - 10,000!  So amazing to think of who He is like this!)

<a href="http://maryschieferstein.blogspot.com/search/label/10000%20Reasons" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitidrfBKBWTHSBiWyh3WMRKjHFgYKk-RxjYB9-uePQb1-uI3t3bjysPnR65zloJJ0LgTqhT5kW70Rk8VOC2utXFUWhGRPIxNCqzZ_9YQryYPMJdj2XpiX0oawLUiMnmxFOeMkmjk3IIA/s320/10000ReasonsButton.jpg" /></a>

Counting in community:




2 comments:

Kelli Woodford said...

Aren't we all struggling to explain?

When you brush up against the Holy

And it makes your heart burst forth with song,

How do you put it into words?


yes to this. and to the risk of all artistic pursuits being made public. it's a vulnerable place to be. but you are wrestling with it well, friend. love your heart.

Mary said...

Oh, thank you, Kelli. Yes, it is vulnerable, but so necessary, and so worth it. Thank you for your words, friend, and for your heart, as well.

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