Just Me...

I figure I'd better define why these three C's are so relevant to my life. First and foremost is Christianity. I am a believer and follower of the risen Lord, Jesus Christ. I believe firmly that he died for our sins and that he will one day return to battle Satan and win to triumph over the evil of this world. I also believe that there are a lot of "Christians" who say, but don't do. Being and doing are two separate things and both are hard sometimes. For example, being a Christian in an environment of such hatred and anger is very hard. It makes it even harder to do what we need to do as Christ followers. It is hard to show love to all of our neighbors even when we don't agree with them and know that they themselves don't believe. Christ was not specific about who not to love, but rather said love your neighbor as yourself. Love and respect is not deserved by any human as we are all sinners, but to obey the laws of Christ we must love and respec

A new look for this site with a new vision on what to discuss. When I think about blogging I think about these three things....what direction do I want to go. Well, all three are important to me and they really are separate things, but they are what makes me...well, me. Anyhow, I hope that by encompassing these three things into one blog I'll be able to have more ideas to post and be able to become more active in the blogsphere. Thanks for visiting and be on the lookout for more to come... Ashli

This past week at church a group of men sang a fabulous rendition of Amazing Grace in a style I would describe as a southern quartet with instruments...It was truly amazing to see God's heart cry out to us through their song... (I guess it kind of reminded me of O Brother, Where Art Thou? even though I have never really seen the movie, just the style I guess.) This week, we focus on verse 3 of the original. Thro’ many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come; ’Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,. And grace will lead me home. Our pastor read from Psalm 31 tonight and reminded me that from the beginning of time, we have been faced with challenges, but that God has been there EVERY time....we are here, we are breathing and we each have our own unique ability to share this Good News with someone. The last line in the Message Paraphrase says: Be brave. Be strong. Don't give up. Expect God to get here soon. Do we remember to live with this expectation that the grace of Go

The Second Verse ’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, And grace my fears reliev’d; How precious did that grace appear, The hour I first believ’d! This verse brings back memories of the time I accepted Christ as my risen Lord and Savior. "The Hour I First Believed"... Sure I thought that I knew that there was God and there was Jesus, but I didn't know that I needed to decide to believe...to take the gift of grace already laid out for me. It was July (almost 3 years ago now) and we had been attending The PROMiSE for about a month when I was captivated by the songs and message of the day and knew in my heart that not only was The PROMiSE the church for me, but that God himself had been calling me here and that it was high time that I let him know I was listening. What a precious moment...and the effects were immediate. Sure, accepting Christ as my Lord and Savior has its earthly costs, but none of that matters under the protection of grace...if only I could remember tha

I apologize to those of you who are giving me a try and I haven't posted in a couple of weeks. This blogging thing is fun, but so is experiencing life in Christ's hands. On July 6th a friend and music teammate and myself will be singing Chris Tomlin's Amazing Grace, but I am going to spend the next several entries going over the different verses of the original Amazing Grace... The First Verse Amazing grace, how sweet the sound That sav’d a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found, Was blind, but now I see. As I read through these words I am reminded of the parables of the lost sheep, lost coin and lost son found in the Gospel of Luke Chapter 15 . 1. In what ways do you feel "lost"? 2. Think of the shepherd, the woman and the father, when we are lost, God looks for us just as hard as these examples...he pains for us and will do anything to get us back into his Kingdom. Have you ever lost something/someone? 3. As Christians, we talk about "loving

This week, based on a suggestion, I have chosen In Better Hands by Natalie Grant (listen on her My Space page here .) Natalie Grant - In Better Hands From the album Relentless It’s hard to stand On shifting sand It’s hard to shine In the shadows of the night You can’t be free If you don’t reach for help And you can’t love If you don’t love yourself But there is hope when my faith runs out… Casuse I’m in better hands now Chorus: It’s like the sun is shining When the rain is pouring down It’s like my soul is flying Though my feet are on the ground So take this heart of mine There’s no doubt I’m in better hands now I am strong All because of you I stand in awe of Every mountain that you move I am changed Yesterday is gone I am safe From this moment on… And there’s no fear when the night comes around I’m in better hands now Chorus It’s like the sun is shining When the rain is pouring down It’s like my soul is flying Though my feet are on the ground It’s like the world is silent Though I kn

For the first song of this blog, I have chosen I Belong by Kathryn Scott (listen on her My Space page here . Lyrics for "I Belong" I BELONG© Mildred Rainey & Kathryn Scott Not angels, nor demons, no power on earth or heaven Not distance, nor danger, no trouble now or ever Nothing can take me from your great love Forever this truth remains I belong, I belong to you Not hardship, nor hunger, no pain or depth of sorrow Not weakness, nor failure, no broken dream or promise See what Kathryn has to say about writing this song here . Relevant Bible Verses: John 14:6 - (NIV) - Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Romans 8:34-35 - (NIV) - Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword

Greetings from your Sister in Christ. I have started this blog to serve as a central meeting place for a study of Christian music. Songs can be contemporary, traditional, gospel, even mainline as long as there is an element of the worship of our Savior, Jesus Christ. For the inital format, I'll post a link where you can listen to the song along with the lyrics. I'll also post a couple of bible references and some questions to get us thinking about the song. Songs will be posted weekly on Sunday evenings. I welcome anyone to comment on the current or any previous post as long as your comments are in the positive light of Jesus Christ. Any comment that I deem inappropriate will be deleted. Thank you for visiting my blog and I hope that you find that the topics discussed here will help strengthen your faith in Jesus. Please feel free to send this link ( www.ashlimoore.blogspot.com ) to anyone you would like to share this study with. Also, if anyone has suggestions for a song