The God of this City

Day 2 of being melancholy, and I've found I've kind of enjoyed it.  As I got ready for my walk, I flicked through my songs on my Ipod until I found a good Adele song and cranked it up.  Midway, as I was feeling sorry for myself because life isn't perfect (as if I didn't already know this...), Helen came and walked with me.  We talked about work and vacation and Caleb and life in general, and then when I finished my walk up the Adele was off and Chris Tomlin was on.  Kind of hard to be melancholy when a song like "Our God" is on.

Then, just when I was starting to feel a little better, like maybe life wasn't as bad as I thought it was (and it never is, right?  Sometimes we just like to feel sorry for ourselves because noone else does...) "God of this City" came on.  As I listened to the lyrics, tears came into my eyes and my heart swelled in my chest (don't you just love that saying?  We all need some heart swelling sometimes). 

"You're the God of this City, You're the King of these people, You're the Lord of this nation
You are...You're the Light in this darkness, You're the Hope to the hopeless, You're the Peace to the restless, You are...There is no one like our God. There is no one like our God. For greater things have yet to come, And greater things are still to be done in this City..."

As I heard those words, I started thinking of our need as a nation for God to be the God of this City, nation, and people... but mostly how I needed Him to be MY God.  I was reminded of the verse, "You are the light of the world, a city on a hill can't be hidden"- Matt 5:14.  And as I was thinking of this, I thought... as I sometimes feel hopeless, as I'm in the darkness, as I crave peace because chaos surrounds me, is within me... greater things are still to come.  Greater things are still to be done... In me.  This city on a hill. 

Well Holy Ghost chills came on me as I walked.  And then, the Newsboys came on.  "Our God's Not Dead"  .  "Let hope arise and make the darkness hide... My faith is dead I need resurrection somehow Now I'm lost in Your freedom... And this world I'll overcome...My God's not dead... He's surely alive He's living on the inside."  Oh, hope arises... my faith isn't completely dead but it was definitely in need of resurrection. 

And that's how a melancholy day turns into... something so much more.  Because His grace is sufficient.