Singing...

 Those of you who know little ol' me know that I sing. I love it. I used to do a lot more of it, but now it is reserved only for those under the age of 7 and contains mostly silly songs, in addition to classic oldies but goodies - B-I-B-L-E, This Little Light of Mine, and Itsy Bitsy Spider.

Boy, do I miss singing.

And - whether I say it out loud each week, my favorite part of church is the singing. I like to listen to others sing; I enjoy dramas; choreography is okay; teaching and preaching - I soak it all in. But singing? I. Love. Singing.

All this to tell you a sweet story that I might be telling just to make sure I don't forget it.

I sing with my kidlets a lot. I'm sure all moms do. *shrug* Not sure it matters, but I do love to hear my littles sing.

Miss R is 2 and is all 2 at that. We have our roller coaster days with great sillies, funny moments, squealing, potty chairs, screaming, fit-throwing, snuggling, and lots of moments in between.

Tonight, as I was rocking her (she wouldn't let me do it when she was a baby but wants it now...I'll take it!), we were listening to her lullaby mix on the ipod. It plays over speakers in her room. {Both my kids have it - counselor has said it's very soothing for middle of the night issues for my older one - not to mention the calming effect quiet Jesus music has on any soul.}

A song came on that I love: "Hallelujah" by Heather Williams. I usually am humming or quietly singing along with the song. Sometimes Miss R will put her palm against my throat...she likes the vibration in my throat when I hum/sing. Tonight at the end, when there are quite a few long "hallelujahs," I was singing along, and to my utter delight - she did too.

She knew all the hallelujahs, when to take a deep breath to wail out the next part, and when she got loud and quiet.

All while having her whole palm - warm and gently pressed up against my throat.

That was fun. Being a mom is such a delight.

my kidlets...they're totally adorbs...am i right?!

Oh, and I miss singing. Did I mention that?

While I live...

They jump at me sometimes. Words. And today, it was no exception.

Sometimes it's clever and witty (like Jon Acuff) or poetic and lyrical (like Ann Voskamp).

Today, however, it was truth. Sweet, beautiful truth. It's not like this is new stuff, ya know? It's not like I probably haven't read it a dozen or 17 dozen times before.

Psalm 63:3-4 (NKJV) reads this: "Because your loving kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise you. Thus I will bless you while I live; I will lift up my hands in your name."

A handful of praise songs and hymns have adopted the lyrics of the third verse of this Psalm, but verse 4 is what popped out to me tonight. "I will praise you WHILE I live." While. I. Live.

Not while things are well.
Not when storms have passed.
Not when the chaos of all the details of every day life have calmed for a bit.
Not when kids are perfect.
Not when the house is clean and my space is clutter-free.
Not when I feel caught up at work.
Not when I have a great period of time in my marriage.
Not when I feel like I have a handful of great friends.
Not when I get it all checked off my list for the day.
Not when I *finally* see the positive stripe on the pregnancy test.
Not when I don't have any "issues" glaring at me in the mirror.
Not when my journal pages don't have tear stains.

While. I. Live.

While...meaning "during." Meaning that no matter what. No matter when. No matter how. Just during...."while."

While. I. Live.

In my own reality. In my own chaos. In the uncertainty of each tomorrow, I will bless you, Abba Father.

While. I. Live.

I'd love to share this image with you! Email with a request, and it's yours! {joskeathley[at]gmail.com}