...

I have been thinking...maybe I should blog more??? what do you think? hmm

It's off to CAMP I go....

This Monday I will be leaving for the summer for camp. I AM SO EXCITED!!! I will be working at Camp La Vida as a Cabin Leader/Worship Leader! I am so excited to be able to spend my summer with young girls 24/7 and getting to experience and know their hearts. I have a huge passion for the hearts of young teenage girls and I know that this is going to be a wonderful summer. I can't wait to use my creativity and excitement with my girls this summer. I can't wait to have fun and laugh and just love and teach Jesus everyday. I can't wait to make relationships with these girls and not only have them share their hearts but get to share my story with them!!!!

I do ask that you might take the time and pray for this Camp and all that is about. It is a missions based camp and just pray for the hearts of the girls that will be coming into my cabin and the ones in others. Pray that their hearts are opened to what the Lord has to say to them and that He will show up so vividly that they fall to their knees. Also that the staff will just have a good attitude at all times even in the heat and when we are tired and pray that they continue at all times to shine Jesus EVER so brightly. Also that everyone that comes into this camp will have their worlds rocked my Jesus Christ and leave being excited for Him and continue to always live their lives on FIRE for Him. That He will be glorified in every message this summer and in every worship service... every activity...every conversation...every laugh...every cry...every meal ... basically that the Lord will be glorified by this Camp and that He will be praised and smile down.

I am so excited about what the Lord as in store for me and for others this summer and it makes me jump out of my skin with excitement. I CAN'T WAIT TO RETURN AND SHARE ALL OF MINE AND THEIR STORIES!!

LOVE YOU ALL!!!

SEE Y'ALL IN 2 MONTHS :)

My Mother

I would like to take sometime and share a few things that I love and admire about my mom! My mom has been a single mom since I was 5 years old! My mom is the most determined and independant woman i know. She has spent her life raising and loving me and my sister. She has filled our home with love and encouragement and fun and laughter. She has been the admiring example of a godly woman. My mom has been through a lot in her life but she is the best thing the Lord has ever given me in this lifetime. My mom brought music in my life. My mom is my biggest fan! She is fun and exciting she is loving and caring and compassionate and passionate and genuine and real. She lives life to her fullest and she is my favorite. my mom works multiple jobs to take care of her family and she is my biggest encourager. she is someone i admire and love and want to be like. She never meets a stranger. She is a WONDERFUL MOTHER, SISTER, DAUGHTER, NANA AND PERSON! I thank Jesus for my mother everyday because without her my life would not be the same. my mother raised me and my sister to be the best and no other mom could warm my heart and bless it as much as mine! I love my mommmy!`

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO THE BEST MOM!

I LOVE YOU

His Children

I Just wanted to share some pictures that I am able to get on to my computer of the children who have I have not only gotten to know but who have touched and blessed my life as well.

We Are His Hands & His Feet

"If You say go

We will go

If you say wait

We will wait

If You say step out on the water

And they say it can't be done

We'll will fix my eyes on You

And we will come

Your way are higher than our ways

And the plans that You have made are good and true

If you call us to the fire

You alone withdraw Your hand

We'll gaze into the flames

And look for You" -Rita Springer-

The words above are what my heart cries out everyday and is completely what the Lord is doing with and in my life. I have never been this at peace with my life and with what the Lord has in store for it. You have heard or read actually that I have wanted to be a teacher since I was in the 1st grade. It has all I have ever wanted to be. I started my first year of college this past fall and majoring in early childhood education. But for the past 4 months I have had the most insetting feeling in the pit of my stomach about my major. I have gone from wanting to go to elementary education to music education and have never gotten rid of the uncertainty. I have traveled to many different places all over the world where I have been blessed to come face to face with some of the Lord's beautiful children. Every child that I have met or have watched or seen stay in my heart forever. I forget a lot of things ( ask my mother lol ) but I have never forgotten a smile from one of His little ones. The Lord has made me different than most people. I honesty believe that Lord equipped me with the ability to understand and love unconditionally every child in this world. When I hear a child laugh my ears are filled with Joy. All I want to do in my life is make a difference for my Savior who made a difference for me on the Cross. I have always known that I have wanted to work with children. I went to Venezuela on a Mission trip in 2005 and I still today have the bracelet and letter that a little girl named Graciela she was the youngest of 7 children and her mother did not work and her father was a factory worker. They lived in a house that was the size of my closet and bathroom combined. The last day that I left she took off her bracelet and said "Ami this is for you to remember me until we meet again with Jesus" my heart melted and I just fell on my face at the moment for the Lord. She also wrote me a letter that from memory I remember it saying "you are now my sister Ami and you will always have a home here in my heart" I have countless stories that I can sit here today and type out for you. But to get to the point of my blog today I went on a Mission Trip over Spring Break to Delaware. It was not the normal kind of work that I normally do because we did mostly labor work in a homeless shelter and worked with the BSM from the University of Delaware. But on the Sunday we were there Stan (who is the pastor we helped) took us to a park inside of the city of Wilmington which is one of the biggest in Delaware. He sat us down at a table and just had us look out on the city and he wanted us to express some ideas that we had that his church and ministry could do for this city and this park. While he was talking and everyone else was expressing their ideas I could not help but not pay attention to what they were saying because all I could do was lookout on the playground on every child's face and just wonder what their story is and what the Lord has in store and planned for them. He came to me and asked me what I thought and all I could say was "all i have been thinking about is that little boy who shoes are untied and how I have wanted to get up the past 20 minutes to tie them. And how there is a little girl in the sandbox who keeps trying to make a castle but she is just not strong enough to lift up the bucket full of sand and I just want to go over there and tip for her and just give her a smile. I wanted to help a little girl who had skates on that her mom put on her and her mom then ignored her while her daughter was falling. I wanted to help her and show her how to skate." It was at that moment that I knew that the Lord has not had my life planned out to be a normal life. And I don't want a normal life for the Lord. I don't want to live my life day to day from 8-3 inside of a classroom and be a puppet doll being pulled by strings on what I can and cannot say about my Savior. I don't want to spend my life grading papers and giving out tests. I am called to be a teacher but Jesus has now told my heart that I am called to be one of His teachers. I want to glove every cold handed child. I wanted to hug the hug less and I want to tickle the sad. I want to rock the sleepless. I want to be the Jesus light to the children of the world that have been forgotten about and show them that their Father is still with them and share and show His love for them. I teach them how to use their gifts and talents that are ignored my the world but that were given to them by the Lord. I want to play games with them I want to hug and kiss them. I want to make the smile and laugh all day long. I want to be encourager. I want to share Jesus with them and I want to read them stories of Jesus and I want them to discover His love and His meaning. I want to spend my life doing the Lords work and the Lord's teachings. I want to be His teacher and I want to spread His name all over the world to every child. I want to meet my little brothers and sisters and tell them that I love them because He first loved me. I could go on and on for days and months on the passion the Lord has placed in my heart for His children. I love my Jesus more passionately that ever before and the past 6 months have been the best 6months of my life with the Lord. I have come to know the Lord intimately and He is my daddy. He is who I want to work for. He has showed me so much of who I really am and some parts have been hard to listen to and to come to realize but He has broken me of my past and He has brought me back up new and fresh and covered in the love and the sea of His all loving and covering Grace. He has ransomed me from my sins. He Heals all of my sinful ways and with that He blesses me with His presence. So to get to the point I have changed my major to intercultural studies...and i have never been more at peace with it. If you are drawing a ? at what my major now is all about Missions. I have been called to be a missionary for the Lord. I have to come to an understanding of the challenges I am going to face academically with this major and the struggles with His word and the curiosity and how He is going to consume my whole heart and I am PERFECTLY alright with that. I have more to share on this story but I am going to with frame assuming that you have read this whole thing and give your eyes a break from the computer screen :). And I am always willing to wholeheartedly open up my heart with you if you ever ask. I want to leave you today though with song that is like the one above that is my heart but this song is exactly what the Lord is doing with me starting today. I want to be His hands and His feet. I want to travel to orphanages and love I want to start orphanages if I could I would adopt every child. As well as the song that will be posted below I do want to say this to my mother. She has been my backhand my whole life and she has been and is my inspiration. She is the strongest woman that I know. She is a beautiful example and showing of a woman and a mother of God. She has played multiple rolls in my house growing up. She doesn't just love her children but she loves me and my sister with her whole heart unconditionally. She would give her life for her daughters and she would do it unashamedly and without second thought. She has taught me how to love and she is a big reason why I want to be a mom to so many children. My mom always hugged always kissed. She always said I love you even in the middle of a fight. My mom is beautiful from the inside out and it is because of my mama that i was shown my talents and my passions. She has never told me that I can not achieve anything and she is my biggest fan. I love my mother :)

Free To Change The World

-Casey Darnell-

A million cries are never heard

A million voices calling out to life and love

And if I belong to You

What will I choose

We are Your hands and feet

We are free to change the world

Reaching out to the unseen

To those who haven't heard

We are free to change the world

For ever heart who longs to know

For every hand that's reaching out for someone to hold

for every step they take alone

let justice be much more than a song

We are Your hands and feet

We are free change the world

Reaching out to the unseen

To those who haven't heard

We are free to change the world

Chosen by Your word

To bring hope to the unknown

So that they all will know

They are not alone

Orphan ones will have a home

If we will go

We are Your hands and feet

We are free to change the world

Reaching out to unseen

Your hands and feet

We are free to change the world

Reaching out to the unseen

We are free to change the world

We ARE FREE, WE ARE FREE, WE ARE FREE

To change the world

So that they ALL will know they are not alone

We are free to change the world

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7QOgIoANAs

Oh How He Loves

Words cannot describe how brilliant, majestic, creative, magnificent my Lord is and this morning He painted the most beautiful sunrise in the sky. The Lord is my favorite artist and He is the ultimate artist. What amazes me is that you can get up every morning and sit in the same place at the same time and watch the Lord bring in a new day and never once will you watch the same sunrise painted across the sky again. It amazes me that my creator is so creative that He never has to repeat His creativity. That He is so brilliant that everything in His creations are different. Not one is exactly the same and to me that blows my mind. This morning I fell even more in Love with my Savior as He brought light back into the night sky to bring in another day so that He could be praised. I am so overwhelmed with words to say about what the Lord showed me and brought to me this morning that I can't even begin to tell. I took some pictures of my Lord this morning and just being there in person brought me to my knees. These paintings are priceless and no one can created such art as HE!!!!

HE IS....

He is my God, He gives me peace, He is my King of Kings, He is my Prince of Peace, He is my SAVIOR, He is the Resurrection, He is my soul, He is the Son of God, He is the Great I am, He is Worthy, He is Holy, He is magnificent, He is awe Powerful, He is indescribable, He is Sovereign, He is Loving, He IS Love, He is my Passion, He is my Desire, He is my Purpose, He is my Painter, He is my Maker, He is my hands, He is my Counselor, He is my Joy, He is Melody, He is my Harmony, He is my scale, He is my Creator, He is every Color, He is Brilliant, He is Wonderful, He is all deserving, He is trusting, He is Pure, He is my Obsession, He knows my future, He forgives my past, He is my Partner, He is my light, He is my Flame, He is my Meaning, He is Real, He is my Virtue, He is my Freedom, He is my fulfillment, He is my strength, He is my cup, He is my blessing, He gives me Grace, He gives me Hugs, He gives me courage, He gives me guidance, He is my Hope, He is my unfailing God, He is the Lamb, He is the root to my tree, he holds every key to my heart, He is my everything God, HE IS MY HEART, I am His Daughter, I am His Candle, He is Honoring, He is Glorifying, He deserves my Praise, He deserves my worship, He is the God of the Universe, He is GOOD, Lord of all the Nations, He is the light in the darkness, He is the peace to the restless, He is one of a kind, He is my Passion, He is the ultimate Passion, He is my Daddy, He is my everlasting Love, He is the wind that brushes through my hair, He is my thoughts, He is the ultimate encouragement, He is my Home and He is home, He is perfection because He is perfect, He is Glorious, He is all deserving, He is praised, He is true worship, He is my only worship, He is my heart, He is my life, He is my Savior My God my friend, He is my comfort, He is my shield, He is my protector, He is my biggest fan, He is my King, He is the reason for my smile, He is beautiful, He is magical, He is supernatural, He is a forgiving God, He is the ONLY God, He keeps the rhythm to my soul and He is my Lord



What is He to you?

Let my heart break for what breaks His...

So I know that I have not blogged in a while and I have been boycotting my blog for a while for certain reasons. But I am back!! I know I know you are all excited. I can totally tell that I have been missed by my loyal readers out there. HA! Anyways...




The meaning for this blog today is to show that everyone has secrets and there is no one in this world that is perfect. The only perfect one who has walked on the this sinful ground called earth is the Lord Jesus Christ. He has this Love for us that is rare and so deep and so basically the the only true love. He longs to have us in His arms. You see He never takes His arms off of you but when you are alone you don't feel Him the thing is He is still there you are just choosing to not feel Him. When you are lonely and scared and you just wonder what your purpose is in the world and what He planned for you and you can't seem to figure it out because all you can hear are the lies of Satan remember that truth lies in the same room as you are. He is always and will always be there. He doesn't live us, we leave Him and that is what we forget constantly. He is jealous and He deserves ALL of our praise and our worship and service and our Love and ALL of our hearts. We doesn't deserve for us to hold anything back from Him. He doesn't keep things from us we just choose not to hear Him. There is something in all of our lives that we hold on to and that we find satisfaction in that is not glorifying to the Lord. Some of ours are big and some are small things but that is in our minds but in His all of those things are the same. His arms are always stretched out wide open and He will always welcome you into His arms. Just let yourself go and feel Him and go inside. You can hide from other people and you can lie to yourself and you can pretend like nothing is wrong but you can't do those things with Him. Let Him be your hiding place because it is the safest and most peaceful place you can go. There are so many times that I hold things back from the Lord. Ask Him to open up your eyes so you can see, to open up your ears so you can hear Him and open up your mind so you can know and most importantly open up your hear so you can love Him more. Cause if you want to serve Him and give Him everything you can't do that when you have baggage that you are not fully giving to Him. Because I know I want to serve my God and my King with all that is within me. Let Him make you new and make you true so that you can be more like Him. Let Him love you because no matter what you say He does always love you. To grow and to know Him you have to be broken. You have to see what is wrong and what is right. You have to not allow Satan to win the battles of your mind and of your soul. Ask yourself that question. Who controls your mind? And if the answer is the wrong one then only you know what you need to do. I ask myself that question daily. I struggle with allowing Satan to control my mind. I allow Him to get to me when I look in the mirror and I forget that what is true is my beauty that the Lord finds beautiful. I allow Him to get to me when I worry about things in life and others. I am huge worrier. I am a control freak I like things done my way and that is a struggle with me because that means I don't always give my all to the Lord because I want to handle the situation. And I come to realize that I do that. The point to blog today is that we all have pain in life and we struggle with many different things. We handle them in all different kinds of ways. We judge others. We get mad at friends who are just doing what they feel is right in their hearts. We walk around and pretend like things are okay when they are not. We please others when what we are pleasing them with is wrong. We love conditionallly. We are selfish. We live by our will not His. We do things that the Lord despises and what I am trying to say is that when you are hurt imagine how your God feels. He created you and He feels your pain because every sin is another nail in His hand. We cause Him the greatest pain and suffering and that is shows me that my God loves me Amy Richardson because I am His daughter just striving to be better and to grow stronger and deeper and fuller in Him and His heart. When I feel Him I feel my heart beat faster.





Listen to this song and truly listen to the words because they are true among us all. Because think about it. If what breaks His heart doesn't break yours then I ask you to go to Him and fix that...





the song that i am posting the lyrics for is the song that made me think of the words to my blog today but the second song just listen it because it says more than words to my heart and i pray if does and speaks to you as well...





So hard to fathom the pain in your eyes


as you walked in your children doing what you despise


In pursuit of our own


we just go round and round


another nail to our cause


we continue to pound


what are you, man, if you do not learn love


what are you, man if you do not learn love


It's so hard to fatham,oh, the feeling inside


As you're watching your people choosing to die


You called out a warning


To all that would hear


Saying come to me, come to me


I must learn love


learn love


learn love


learn love





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irDoNv5oEKY





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3CZIoJZ56Y

Oh How He Loves

Have you ever stopped and thought about what life would be like if God were not who He is? What if God's love was not unconditional? What if God only loved the clever, the beautiful, the rich and the famous? What if God was completely indifferent to us and didn't care if we lived or died? What if He didn't care whether we laughed or cried? What if God loved to lie to His people and was ready to pounce on us for all of our wrongs? What if He didn't give second, third, fourth...so on chances? What if He ignored us? What if He mocked us? What if He didn't send His one and only son to this earth to die so that we might live for eternity with Him?

Think about these questions...add some if you would like. I got an e-mail from a friend who is serving in South Asia and she was telling me about how when she went to visit the temples she talked to a woman. She was telling her about how she gives the gods sweets because she wants kindness from them and she gives them money when she has financial problems. When I read that all I could think was WOW. My Jesus sure is a gracious and unconditional God. How lucky I am to serve Him and to be His daughter. I take advantage of His love everyday and every second. He welcomes me into His arms and His church without anything. All He asks is that we worship and praise Him. Love Him and honor Him. I don't have to bake Him cookies for His kindness. I can turn away and He would and will still love me. He is my savior and my Lord. He created us all different and He loves the difference in us all. I could talk on this subject for hours and days but I just wanted to leave you with this to think about. And realize how lucky we truly are to know THE God that loves His children ALWAYS and FOREVER.

Reign In Me

This past Friday I went to a service at New Spring Church that was 2 hours of just worship and reading of His word. All I have to say is that Jesus is the only one that can truly silence me. Worship to me is my life cup. The past couple of months my cup has been almost empty to about dried out. I have needed to be refreshed with His mercy and His grace. I love to worship with the people that I love and I love to watch them sing and give praises to the mighty one and it was awesome to get to experience and be next to a friend that the Lord has blessed me with. For the first time in I don't even know how long I become completely vulnerable with Him and let Him take control of my body and my soul. He blessed me while I was praising Him. I was at lost for words. The Lord knows the ways of my heart more and deeper than anyone or anything. He is my purpose and my desire. I have been desperate for His touch. I have wanted nothing more than to feel His love and glory around all of me. Jesus rocks my world. He shakes everything inside of me and He fulfills the desires and the wants and needs of my heart. Through out the time of worship there were times of reading in the word and prayer. The Lord brought me to tears and on my knees for the ones in my life that I love and the ones that I want to be next to me in Heaven. He humbled me with His grace. He poured out over me and He showed me His face. I am just in the mood to have an outburst and say that I JUST LOVE JESUS WITH ALL THAT IS IN ME!!! I want nothing but serve His heart and that salvation will flow as His people pray and sing praises to Him. He completely to hold of my whole heart and He covered it with his bandages of grace and then He sealed it back with His love and mercy. I don't even know how to explain how freaking AWESOME that is to me. He is a God who saves and He reigns now and forever. I have been battling with the Lord in ways of just wanting to be in His presence in song again. My soul cries out for and longs for His praises. I have been starving myself for true worship and He fed me. Man did He feed me. I can't even explain the feeling that I had and that I have. He gave me chills, His beauty led me to weep, His glory made me lose control of my body and I jumped for my God. He is the rhythm of my beating heart. My heart beats to the rhythm of His will. I honestly can't remember anything that was going on around me and that is the best thing because I was completely focused on Him. He had my attention. He cleansed my broken heart and He gave me clean and pure hands and washed away all my sins. He renewed my hope. He put His image in my heart. He showed me that I am beautiful because I am made in Him. The lies that I have been wrapping myself with are gone and i am set free. So many times I forget what He did for me. I complain about the problems in my life but I really? I complain when my Savior carried a cross that was so heavy and had all of its weight in our sins and He died so that i could be set free in Him. There is no greater love than in my father. He showed me that no one else has the power in this world to speak louder than Him. And I choose Him and only Him. My desire is to be in love with what He loves and become more than satisfied in Him. Because I want it to be made known right here for everyone to see and read and for anyone who doesn't know Him that He is something greater than what the mind can fathom. He is the ultimate healer and He is the only one who can bring you true loving peace. He died so that you may live. So today I am going to scream out say that that I AM MADLY AND DEEPLY IN LOVE WITH MY LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST. He showed me so much within those two hours. When it was over all I could do was sit down in my seat in silence and think its not over because worship with my God will never be over. I will be worshiping Him now and for eternity. That makes my heart jump with so much joy. I get to sing praises to my Lord for the rest of my life and for all eternity with Him.



I want to leave you today with two songs that really just...I can't even explain the greatness that they do to my heart but just remember if you love Him you should sing praises to Him because it says in His words in Zephaniah 3:17 that "He takes great delight in you and He will quiet you with His love, and He will rejoice over you with singing." so bow before His presence and sing to Him. He is high and lifted up. And let your soul sing hallelujah to the lamb of God. Worship Him and adore Him. If you truly desire to know His heart don't let any moment pass you by and just praise Him with song, praise Him with your actions, Praise Him with your words, Praise Him with your prayers, Praise Him through admiring His paintings and creations, Praise Him with your body. JUST PRAISE HIM.



Came to my Rescue: Hillsong United

Falling on my knees in worship

Giving all that I am to seek your face

Lord all I am is yours

My whole life I have placed in your hands

God of mercy humbled I bow down

In your presence at your throne

I call you answered

And you came to RESCUE and i

I want to be where you are

My whole life Ive placed in your hands

God of mercy humbled i bow down

In your presence at your throne

I call you answered

And you came to rescue and I

I want to be where you are

In my life be lifted High

In our world be lifted high

In our love be lifted high

In my life be lifted high

In our world be lifted high

IN MY LOVE BE LIFTED HIGH

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAMbEPZfWCY



Reign in us: Starfield

You thought of us before the world began to breathe

You knew our names before we came to be

You saw the very day we fall away from you

And how desperately we need to be redeemed

Lord Jesus come lead us, we're desperate for your touch

Oh great and mighty one

With one desire we come

That you would reign, that you would reign in us

We're offering up our lives

A living sacrifice

That you would reign in us

Spirit of the living God fall fresh again

Come search our hearts and purify our lives

We need your perfect love we need your discipline

We're lost unless you guide us with your light Lord Jesus come lead us

We're desperate for your touch

Oh great and mighty one with one desire we come

That you would reign that you would reign in us

We're offering up our lives a living sacrifice

That you would reign that you would reign in us

We're offering up our lives a living sacrifice

That you would reign that you would reign in us

We cry out for your life to revive us cry out

For your love defines us

For your mercy to keep us Blameless until you return

Oh great and mighty one with one desire we come

That you would reign in us

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dohj2QAdzs

Give It All To Him

The Lord has really been messing with me lately. I am in a weird part of my life right now and sometimes it hard to really know what the Lord wants me to do. I struggle daily with being the woman that He created me to be. I went to the Clemson vs. Carolina football game yesterday. If you know me you know that I LOVE FOOTBALL and that the Lord will bless me with a husband who loves it just as much as I do. I love the excitement and the thrill of the game and the suspense of every play once the ball it hiked. It was also cold and rainy and I have lost a good bit of my voice. Anyways after the game we were walking back to our tailgate and I just heard Clemson fans screaming in unison the classic cheer of "C-L-E-M-S-O-N T-I-G-E-R-S FIGHT TIGERS FIGHT TIGERS FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT" They were all coming together to celebrate a victory over their biggest rival. Now here is where the weird part of me kicks in. As I listened I started to think about how excited these people including me were excited to watch the team they cheer for a dedicate a lot of their time to have a great win. Then I started to think about christians and the Victory that Christ will always have over Satan. I then started to realize how much we have lost excitement for the strength and the power of the God that we serve. I just started really pondering how we scream and yell out our lungs for the team but how we don't do it for Him. Why is this? It's screwed up if you ask me. He deserves the best and ultimate praise from His people. I have more thoughts on this subject but I am going to leave you with this to think about. what are you giving your true worship and praide to instead of to the God you claim to Love and serve. And I am not saying that you should not go to these games and enjoy yourself but just don't praise them more than you praise Him.

I mean our God is Victorious and there will NEVER be a battle or a game that He cannot conquer. He is most high and He the blessed Savior. I also really just love time with football because people are just so friendly with one another. You know to an extent there are times of fighting and anger but really when your team scores a touch down and have excitement even if you don't know the person beside you, you still turn to them and smile and highfive and sometime hug. Just think how awesome it would be if His people would come together and just love every person that they saw and just together as one body of believers and worshiped Him and praised Him with all that they have. So that they will lose their voices in the presence of their Lord. I just love the picture above because it shows unity and it is what I pray that the church and the body of believers one day might have.

(this blog is a little confusing I am sorry)

Draw Me Closer

These words were given to me and I heard them today...

For your nearness Lord I hunger
For your nearness Lord I will
hold me ever closer father
Such a love I cant escape
For your nearness I am hoping
For your nearness lord I long
I have no need of any other
I have found where i belong
Draw me nearer Lord
Never let me go
Closer to your heart
Draw me nearer Lord
In your nearness there is healing
What was broken now Whole
Restoration in its fullness
Lasting hope to all who come
In your nearness I take shelter
Where you are is where I am home
I have need of only one thing
To be here before your throne
Draw me nearer
Never let go
Closer to your heart
Draw me nearer Lord
And keep me here
Keep me here
There is no where else I would rather be
So keep me here
There is no where else i would rather be
So draw me nearer Lord
Never let me go
Closer to your heart
Draw me nearer Lord
Draw me nearer Lord

I Will Worship

I will worship the one who threw to stars to the night and i will worship the one that tells the sun to shine and I will worship you Lord. My hands I lift you, My voice I lift to you, my heart I lift to you hallelujah. I will worship the one who calmed the raging sea and I will worship the one who hushed the rage in me and i will worship you lord. My hands my I lift to you, my voice I lift to you, my heart I lift to you hallelujah. Prince of Peace ,Almighty God, Counselor, Holy One, Son of Man Resurrection and the Life, king of kinds Jesus Christ. You are faithful, I will praise you all my days. For your glory I offer you every that I am and have. I will follow you all the way. God of all creation you are awesome and you are magnificent. I will rejoice in your name oh Lord. When I see the morning rise over the mountains I see your mercy and your mighty hand. Only you can satisfy me and turn my sorrow to the sea. I was made to worship you!!! He have filled my heart with wonder and you bring to know i am forgiven and free and I will worship all of my days.

So that we will arise and worship

My only words for you today is what is said in this song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qfLsi8qWK4

You Alone I Live For

"When everything feels like it could be falling apart and it's all you can do to fight tears, Worship Him. When things are great, worship. When you just feel stuck, worship Him." -AR-

Today I want to encourage you to sit and stop and worship Him. Everyone has their own form of worship. Some would say just getting lost in His word or just looking out on His creations. Some would even say it was to sit with others and give words of encouragement. If you feel lead to worship Him through prayer then pray. I want to leave you with a song that is the worship of my heart. (of course it is a song) If you decide to listen to it today I just want to ask one thing of you. Stop what you are doing and put all the work in your hands down, set aside the thoughts in your head for the 5 minutes and really experience the Lord. Let Him talk to you and let Him tell you the ways of His heart and let Him be your fulfillment. This world and today's people have truly lost what it means to "be still" we live these lives that are so busy and are so full of sin and finding joy material enjoyments that we feel the inconvenience sometimes of God. HE SHOULD NEVER BE AN INCONVENIENCE OR A SECOND THOUGHT! He should be your first and only thought. I struggle with this everyday and I am not going to sit here and tell you to do something that I am not trying myself. Everyday I struggle with striving to live a life glorifying to Him. I am in love with my Savior but I still have times where I have doubt, where I have so many questions, I have feelings brokenness, hate, healing, hurt, hunger, confusion, chaos, pain, loveless, emptiness. Today I just sat and just responded to Him today. I tried to write down everything that came to my mind when I was listening to this song. I am so grateful to serve such a forgiving and gracious God.

I put my i-tunes of shuffle this morning and this was the first song and is the song I am going to share. I know most people who read my blog that I know of, know this song verily well. But really just listen to not just the words but what the Lord is saying with the music and what is being said between the lines. I am going to post two songs today. I encourage you to listen to listen to them both. If you have not checked out or have listened to Chris Tomlin's new CD "Hello Love" I HIGHLY recommend and it and I guarantee it will change your life. It is absolutely amazing and is so powerful. It is praise Jesus for real all the time. But the 2Nd song is a song that I have had for a while and it comes back to me at various times in my life.

The first song is God of this City...Really listen to this song and let Him speak. Shut-up for one moment and give your thoughts to Him for a change. I have had to learn to do this as well. If this doesn't speak to you then I think you need to be thinking about other things you need to get right with Him because He should always be your excitement. (even if you know these songs still just listen, this is my favorite version)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGkEE5dwmdY

This song is just my heart and really just brings me to a new place with Him every time I listen to it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BL29sBMyjs

To end my blog today and I am impressed if you lasted this long and read all of this. I wanted to share what came to me this morning with my time with the Lord...

My God you are my God...You give me peace in times of destruction. You the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Prince of Peace, Almighty God. You are mighty to save. You are the resurrection. You fill my soul and you are my soul. You're my only purpose. You are sovereign. You are loving. You are Love. You give me courage. You are my Hands and you are my one pure and holy passion. You are my desire. You are the most majestic painter. You are creative God. You are my Maker. You are my Creator. You are my counselor. You are Brilliant. You are all deserving. You are my Joy. You give me hope. You are my Melody. You are my song. you are trusting. you are my obsession. You are worthy of all things. You are pure. You are partner. You are my Father. You are my Flame. You are my blessing. You are my only meaning. You are Real. You are my virtue. You are my freedom. You are my strength. You are my encouragements. You are my heart. I am your daughter. I am made in your image. You are all honoring. You are Good. You are unfailing. You are Emmanuel. You bring light to darkness. You are my voice. You are my joy. You the whispers of my heart. You are Grace. You are my Victory and You are victorious. You are my Risen Savior. My Jesus Christ. I am your and you are mine. You know far better than I and if destruction is what I need then I will receive it Lord from thee. I need you like burning flame. You the eye the storm watching over and its the eye in the storm only wanting good for me. All my plans fail with I see your glory. Who am I to plan and decide of my desires because you alone I live for. I am a sinner found in your presence. You are exalted and your glory surrounds you. Holy Holy is you Lord God Almighty. You reign over me and over these nations. You are the center of my life. You are Holy God over us. Once died to be my Savior. I can not understand your mysteries and that brings me excitement to search more into your heart Lord. I stand in wonder of my you my Savior. You died to save and with you Jesus you filled the hole in heart with the nails of your hands. You love and you forgive. "My Savior Loves, My Savior Lives, My Savior is always there for me, My God He was My God is always gonna be." I sit here God awaiting your guidance. I'm wanting only your voice to be heard.

The Melodies That Touch The Soul

Music is a sensation; it's a form of expression. It releases stress. It is some people's way of communicating the love language of the heart. And it is form of art and it has multiple elements or rythm, melody, harmony, and my favorite color. Just hearing the sweet, pleasing, or harmonious sounds of a song can change my whole attitude. I have had a lost of stress lately with life and a dear friend who is a blessing to my soul showed me to what is now my favorite place on this campus. It is now the home to my sould and it brings me to some of my most vulnerable moments. I love to get away from people and just be with the Lord and I have been brought to a piano. It really brings me to my face with the Lord. It allows me to have wordless converations with the Lord. He can read my heart and I can play the melodies and the harmonies of my soul through hurt, sadness, anger and happiness. It is my form of expression and praise to God my father. The Lord gave me my ear for the piano and I am so greatful. I truly believe that when I sit down at the piano and just give myself unto the Lord that He brings out my songs and HE is my melody. ( i love that). Yesterday I completely lost myself in the music and just played. He gave me the sweetest melody of His heart. This place is now my getaway and it describes His love for me, and His willingness to hold my world all together. I have come to love the piano more than ever and I love just sitting there and playing with the keys and chords. I recorded a video because I can't always remember what I play and it is dark because it is late at night and it was in the chapel and I don't know how to turn the big lights on. But I hope you enjoy this and I am a little vulnerable to share becaue I normally keep this to myself even from family. But the Lord layed it on my heart this evening to share a hidden side of my heart. The only way I could take it off of my cyberlink cam is to upload it youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3oIVdXGAxE

You're Not Alone

This song just spoke to me. It is just so true for my life and for the Love that is given by Him. I don't have many words for you today. All I ask is that you will listen to this song and let the Lord do the talking.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rgz_GI7h_U8

My Prayer
Heavenly Father,
I live for the fulfillment of you my Lord Jesus Christ. I want nothing more than to please you father and complete the duties of your will for my life. I am woman who has been broken but everyday I am learning that because of my brokenness I am bringing glue into someones life. Thank you Lord for Life, Thank you Lord for the gifts of your creation. Thank you for you, thank you for right now. Thank you for this day and the opportunity to know you and serve you. Thank you for your presence always. Thank you for your unconditional love and forgiveness. Help me to open my heart and know your unconditional love and forgiveness and extend it outward and to open my eye and see your light in all who cross my path today in loving, unattached service to your will. My gracious Lord I place my future in your hands and choose to experience peace within your grace, feeling joined and connected with you who have been always and will be always, and with all those who have, who do, and who will cross my path, seeing their light, being a love finder and a love giver opening my heart to know your unconditional love and forgiveness and extending it outward. Praise the father praise the son praise the spirit three in one. Hallelujah. My hope is found in you, I hold on tightly you will never let me go. Jesus you will never fail. Mercy has found a way for me Jesus you are all WE need. What a Savior you are, you were crucified and now you are alive. Your Grace has made a way to the cross. Thank you for loving me. Amen

Your Daughter,

Amy Richardson



Today I lost a good friend of mine due to a drunk driver driving into her lane. I have experienced death in my life before and I have lost friends in the past. But what is different about this specific friend is that I did not think anything out of the ordinary in our friendship. We sat near one another in choir my freshman year in High School. Yes, she was a little different of a person but I always found her to be hilarious and she just had so much joy. We never hung out, outside of school but when we were able to talk in school I had some of the most fascinating conversations. At the end of senior year she wrote in my yearbook "Thank you for never once judging me and just loving me for who I am. You have shown me a light Amy Richardson. Thank you for never throwing your beliefs in my face but allowing me to see them just by your spirit..." I wish that I could know that she has seen the light to Jesus Christ and is now in the arms of her maker but all I can do is pray that she is.. My heart is broken for her family and my heart hurts because of a loss to a good friend. I pray that I was the light that she needed to see.

KNOWLEDGE + POWER = GODLINESS

Will you obey Him when He speaks to you? That is the question that I have been struggling with and pondering over the past couple of days. Sometimes I wonder if without even knowing it have I not opened my ears to what the Lord has called me to do and I have done my own thing without having Him be the center of my decision making. I have been given a couple of opportunities to take part in this coming summer. Last summer I got the opportunity to go on a mission trip to Calgary, Canada for 8 days last July. It it was a completely different experience because I was no longer a youth on a youth mission trip where you had the mommy's and daddy's to take care of your stuff during travel and they made sure you ate and got sleep. This trip was with 4 awesome other individuals with my church and I was responsible for myself but anyways that is beside the point. I have been on many trips across the seas and within the United States and I have always left with a heart just wanting to stay and be with them. But when I left Canada I left with a heart that was not finished. I left my heart in the country and in that city. It is the most beautiful and the most majestic place that I have been. The people there are just so full of spirit and just are extremely friendly. They live in 700,000 to 1 million dollar houses, drive nice cars, wear the lastest brand of clothing and most have both parents living in the home. The crazy thing about it, is it is such a dark place spiritually. There are 1 million people in the city of Calgary and 900,000 people do not know the Lord. It amazed me because it was not poverty that kept them from knowing the Lord. They live fine lives and some live materially better lives then I but they are just so dark. I led a soccer camp the week I was there and I became close with my 4Th and 5Th graders. Especially on little girl named Brooklyn. I pray for this little girl and her family everyday. She is an amazing little girl and has some mad skills with a soccer ball. she started out in the beginning of the week quiet but as I got to know her she would not stop talking. Brooklyn is from a Mormon family. That just broke my heart because when we would have a devotion at the end of every day's camp she would say that what "our" Bible said was different than hers and was not true. When I got back in the car to head to lunch that day I could not help myself but to cry. I specifically prayed for her all week. And on the last day she invited me to walk her home (and in Canada you don't automatically have trust you have to earn it and getting invited and welcomed into someones home is a BIG deal). I felt so honored to be able to walk her home and she invited me into her home to show me her room. I was then able to meet her mom and what her mom said to me I will never forget. She said thank you because Brooklyn came home from camp everyday talking about me and that she has seen something in me and in the other leaders she has never seen in anyone else. That blessed my heart because it showed me that I was doing what I was supposed to be doing and that is shining the light of Jesus Christ. God is so powerful and so strong and it amazes me how He shows himself. I left Canada with a feeling like I had forgotten something and when I finally returned to my home I realized that was my heart. I have fallen in love with this country and it's people. These kids left an impression on my heart that will never fade. God did not only use me to teach them something but He used them to show me how much I forget how Good He really is and His Glory is so strong. I have had spiritual highs before but they have all faded down when the returning to home but it is 5 months later and I am still excited about this ministry and of Southwinds church and I pray for the missionaries there everyday. They had there first Baptism last month and I praise God for that. But now for the meaning of this post and it is because I have been offered to spend 3 months as the summer missionary there this summer working on a youth ministry. I have been praying for a long time that the Lord would show himself in this situation and in my decision making. I also might have the opportunity to work at a summer camp. I have always wanted to work for a camp and I have heard that it is an experience of a lifetime. This morning in my quiet time with the Lord I opened my Bible to Jeremiah 6:16 and it says " This is what the Lord says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the eternal path, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls" This verse really gave me a reassurance that if I truly trust in the Lord in the decisions that I make then they will be made in His will. I have a heart for both things that I am given a chance to be a part of but I am only worried that I drain out the voice of my God and fill my head with the voice of my own wants and desires. Maybe it is not my time to return to Canada just yet and the Lord wants me to experience a new setting and work at a summer camp which is where my heart was until I was offered the opportunity to return to Canada so soon. As I read this verse as I ponder every angle of it. "Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ETERNAL path - where the good way is and you will find rest in your souls." God is showing me that when He calls me to live for Him, He will bring to places- crossroads in my life- and they may not make sense to me. They may see like a foolish choice. Yet, He wants me to look at this crossroad in terms of its ETERNAL value. Sometimes that means that He will ask me to make a decision that will not seem to be the best in regarding finances, or safety or whatever. Others may think I'm foolish to follow that path BUT when I am sure of what God is asking, we need to remember Peter in Luke 5:1-11. Jesus knows the beginning from the end. I need to trust HIM. I need to follow the path that HE is asking me to walk not the path I find more comfortable or know the best. Jeremiah ends this verse with REST with my soul. That to me is a beautiful payment. No matter what success I might have had apart from Christ, there will not be that SOUL rest. So now I wait and call on the paths of the Lord whether it is to work serving Him in Canada or work serving Him at a summer camp. If you have time today or sometime this week and if you remember please pray for His people in Canada. There are a lot of needs and I pray that Jesus will be there sunshine and they will see that they are given such blessed lives and have these talents and they will come to know there creator and the God who gave them all that they have. And also pray for SouthWinds church as it reaches out to lost people and still encourages new believers. Also pray that the Lord will keep them secure with all financial needs. Here are a few pictures that just remind me of how brilliant our Lord God is and He is good to His people even when we forsake Him. Also just pray that will seek to know His will for my life and that the decision I come to make is His choice not mine.

Wonders of the World

Yesterday, I was on my way back to school after waiting in line and voting like the true American I am but anyways I spotted the most beautiful rainbow that I have ever seen. After a few moments of looking out on the rainbow I spotted how spectacular this time of year is and how we forget how beautiful this world truly is, and how brilliant the creator is. God is most creative and has the most majestic paintings. He is the artist of all artist. His painting in the sky yesterday absolutely took my breath away. The Lord created a beautiful day yesterday you saw every inch of His beautiful wonders and that I am thankful. You know it amazes me that the sunset is never the same. You will never find the sky the exact way as the day before. It is so awesome to think that God's creativity and LOVE never runs dry. I just absolutely adore and love the colors of the leaves around my school. I love to just sit outside and do my work because the scenary is absolutely gorgeous. I just wanted to share a few pictures that truly captures the greatness of God.