originally published on 09.11.15
”Singing His Grace” was the original name of this blog. This is the story behind it.
For those of you who also have blogs, or have had a xanga in the past [flashback! anyone?], you know that picking a name is one of the most crucial things in the world. This is what will define your blog.
Okay, maybe it's not that big of a deal. But I really wanted to think through what I wanted this blog to be, and I'm still exploring that.
As someone who plays music, has been involved with worship leading, and who simply appreciates a good lyric that gets to the core of my soul, I figured that should play a role in my blog. I've discovered throughout the last few years that Come Thou Fount is one of my favorite songs/hymns. Knowing that now, you may recall the line tune my heart to sing Thy grace.
That's the short explanation.
There was a moment when I was listening to this song and started looking at it in a new way. We all get caught up in listening to songs just because we've known them for so long, but we may have never really taken the time to listen to the lyrics and pick them apart a little. I remember it distinctly. I was walking near my apartment during a fairly cold evening, and the song came on in my earbuds. For the first time I really thought about what I was hearing. It became relatable and real.
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace.
When I play my guitar, on any occasion, I want it to be in tune. Otherwise it's not going to accomplish the task I desire for it; it's not going to sound like the song I have in mind. The problem, though, is that thing is always getting out of tune all on its own. I never purposely make it that way. I'm consistently having to tune the strings that are a little too flat or a little too sharp so they can accomplish what they were created to do.
On its own, my heart is always getting "out of tune." It's easy to know the right thing to do and yet desire to do something else. The fight that Paul describes in Romans 7:14-25 is a very regular occurence in all of our lives:
"For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing." (v.18-19)
Sanctification - The process by which God aligns our actions to what He has already declared us: righteous.
Sanctification is hard. Painful even. It's not pleasant. There are always going to be areas of our lives that need to be exposed to the light - areas that need necessary fine-tuning. Jesus has given us a new position in Him because of what He accomplished through His death and resurrection. That's something that can't be taken away. But the Bible prompts us to not simply stay as we are. "This is just how I am" can't be an excuse in our lives. There are always going to be struggles - some may be consistent and others may be vastly differet at each stage in our lives - but we must rely on the Holy Spirit to convict us in areas that need more of Jesus.
The Gospel-Centered Life shows what this process should look like:
"...when the Gospel is functioning correctly in our lives, our awareness of God's holy character is constantly growing. We realize in fuller and deeper ways the weight of God's glorious perfections. Likewise ... when the Gospel is functioning correctly in our lies, our awareness of our own sinfulness is consistently growing." [add more]
I definitely recommend reading more about Shrinking the Cross.
So with all of that said, this is my vision for this blog. I'd love to share the ways the Lord is consistently tuning my heart. Without Him and the work He's doing in my life, I would never be able to truly sing His grace. My prayer is that each of us would more accurately sing His grace and make much of Jesus as we continue to fall more in love with Him. My hope is that you as a reader would be encouraged by His goodness that I attempt to communicate through these posts.