Chosen

As we move closer and closer to Christmas, I have been contemplating the concept of being God's chosen. To be chosen of God...Yes, God chooses, designates people to be His messengers of truth throughout the world, we all can come to a consensus on this. But, what exactly does that entail? How does being chosen affect us in our daily lives? What are the physical and tangible outworkings of such a concept? One of the best examples of being chosen by God is the Hebrew people. However, they faltered, as man will in a sinful, fallen world, and turned away from the laws of the Lord. As a result, as Christmas has drawn near, the most prominent example has emerged, quietly, yet forcefully; humbly, yet persuasively. The Theotokus, the Virgin Mary is the consummate example of one who is chosen, one who is set aside, set apart for the will and purposes for the Lord. She humbly and willingly accepted one of the greatest responsibilities in the course of entire human history. She accepts with praise and joy...

My soul magnifies the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
And holy is His name.
And His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
In remembrance of His mercy,
As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and to his seed forever.

The Virgin Mary, the ultimate chosen, the ultimate example to us all of answering the Lord's call. Though earthly ridicule, shame, or abuse may be at hand, we are but here for a fleeting moment. Our temporary home, prior to an eternal glory.


Heed His call.

Theotokus, Virgin Mother,
Sacred Choice of Heaven's will.
Sweet submission to God's purpose,
Eternal admonition to fulfill.
Blessed God-bearer, Theotokus,
Within your virgin womb you sheltered,
God's sacred Pearl and Love's Great Treasure,
Come to earth Man's sin to rid.
God's Holy Spirit overshadowing,
Eternal seed breathes life within.
Tiny Sovereign sent from Heaven
Revealing God's Kingdom to Hearts of Men.
At your breast the Christ-child nursing,
Peace asleep upon your chest.
Jewish maiden, cradles the Savior,
In tender arms He sweetly rests.
-Brianna Bleymaier, 2002

Hope and the world hopes with you...

Well, the blogging world has flown by me, while I have been amiss in keeping up to speed. The past few months have been marked by quite a few distractions that have kept me from staying on top of this; however, beginning with this blog, I will renew my regular updating. Anyway, on that note, one overlying theme, looking at hte past four months, is one of hope. As a result, here are some others thoughts on the subject...quotes that have sparked my thoughts the past few weeks...Enjoy!

Hope has two beautiful daughters.
Their names are anger and courage;
anger at the way things are,
and courage to see that they do not remain that way.
- St. Augustine of Hippo


Be careful not to be frightened. Don't be surprised when cannonballs start falling, but stand valiantly as a soldier of Christ, as a practised combatant, as a brave warrior. For this present life here is a battlefield.
Repose will be in that life there.
Here is exile; there is our true homeland.

-Joseph the Hesychast


Hope is the thing with feathers,
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without words,
And never stops at all.
-Emily Dickinson


All human wisdom is summed up in two words: wait and hope.
-Alexandre Dumas


True hope is swift, and flies with swallow's wings.
-Shakespeare


Dum spiro, spero.
While I breathe, I hope.
-Latin Proverb

Comfortable With the Common

In a world bombarded by the urgent. In our lives so shaped by the pressing, the now, the "should-have-been-done-yesterdays." We often live from event to event. We spend our time searching for the next big thing to landmark our existence. As soon as we can just get that new job, that new relationship, that new success, that new goal, that new achivement...then our lives will really begin...In doing this, however we have missed the point, the point of living. The primary and principle function of our existence...to live our daily lives out, glorifying our Creator...being molded and shaped, being crafted and hewn into a vessel worthy of praising His name...this is carried out in the ordinary...the living, the breathing, the fellowship with those around you, the small actions in life, exquisite and mundane, glorious and ordinary...and yet often that which is most ordinary, is that which matters most, and in it's own right the most beautiful expression of God's love, mercy, and grace...


Thus, these words captured perfectly what is on my heart...


The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.
-Robert Louis Stevenson


Be awed by the ordinary.

Lamp of the Lord

Over the past few weeks one thing has come around time and again in my reading the Bible. I have found myself reading Scriptures that I have read probably hundreds of times in various forms, and yet, they seem brand new, and I find something else every time I return. One Scripture that I have been reading the past few weeks is Proverbs 20:27, "The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all His innermost parts." Ok fair enough...but consider...in the Hebrew spirit is literally breath. So, "The breath of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all His innermost parts." That presents a very real picture. To think that the every time we take a breath, the Lord is searching our hearts, our thoughts...and yet it is so true. Our breath is constant, it is our source of life...God knows our every innermost thought, constantly. He is always with us, always by our side, we can do nothing apart from Him. He is the Source and Giver of life, He is our All.


"Divine omniscience affords no comfort to the ungodly mind, but to the child of God it overflows with consolation. God is always thinking upon us, never turns aside His mind from us, has us always before His eyes; and this is precisely as we would have it, for it would be dreadul to exist for a moment beyond the observation of our heavenly Father. His thoughts are always tender, loving, wise, prudent, far-reaching, and they bring us countless benefits: hence it is a choice delight to remember them. The Lord always did think upon His people: hence their election and the covenant of grace by which their slavation is secured; He always will think upon them: hence their final perseverance by which they shall be brought safely to their final rest. In all our wanderings the watchful glance of the Eternal Watcher is evermore fixed upon us - we never roam beyond the Shepherd's eye. In our sorrows He observes us incessantly, and not a pang escapes Him; in our toils He marks all our weariness, and writes in His book all the struggles of His faithful ones. These thoughts of the Lord encompass us in all our paths, and penetrate the innermost region of our being. Not a nerve or tissue, valve or vessel, of our bodily organisation is uncared for; all the littles of our little world are thought upon by the great God. Dear reader, is this precious to you? Then hold to it. Never be led astray by those philosophic fools who preach up an impersonal God, and talk of self-existent, self-governing matter. The Lord liveth and thinketh upon us, this is a truth far too precious for us to be lightly robbed of it. The notice of a nobleman is valued so highly that he who has it counts his fortune made; but what is it to be thought of by the King of kings! If the Lord thinketh upon us, all is well, and we may rejoice evermore."
-Charles Hadden Spurgeon

A Purposeful God

Well, it has been way too long since I have updated. As most of you know I have begun my freshman year at Gardner-Webb University and it has definetly been a roller coaster ride the past few weeks. I am overcome by the grace and mercy of God at every corner and at every turn. As I look around, God's hand is evident in every aspect, and I feel so blessed that He has lead me to this place. I couldn't have asked for anything more.


One thing that has really struck me the most as I come into my first month here at school is an acute realization in the purposefulness and Sovereignty of God. From 7th. grade through my senior year, I was taught many lessons, big ideas, the "so what" answers to everything, and though I heard them, learned them, and was awed by them, those lessons were not necessarily a real part of my life. Now, I can honestly say that the past few weeks have been the most intense experience of those lessons being fleshed out in the day to day. Day by day, I am able to draw upon those lessons that I learned, helping me stay focused in my walk with God. One of the main things that I am thankful for is the idea that was over every aspect of my education...that God is a purposeful God, He is Sovereign, He sits on the throne, He rules in the affairs of men and nations, He is Lord over ALL! Over these past weeks, I have found myself connecting ideas and drawing from my six years in school, realizing that those years have truly ruined me, transformed me, and shaken my world forever. I can no longer look at history without searching for God's purpose. I can no longer look at my life and not see His hand working, molding, and shaping me with His mercy, grace, and lovingkindness. At school we were expected to think, to take the ideas that were given us and to measure, decipher, and wrestle them into our belief system. We toiled long hours over thesis papers and projects, shedding blood, sweat, and tears...yet at that moment, though we could not see the great work that was being done in our lives, through accomplishing those tasks, through reaching those standards, through wrestling those ideas, we were becoming the people that God has created us to be. As youth, we were thought of as strange by our peers and others, we were thought of as different, and what I have realized is that we were different, very different, because we had an intense realization of God's Hand across time. In being different, we are called to draw others to be distinctive, to be peculiar, to look beyond life's present circumstances to realize the greater purpose of life, it is our destiny, it is our calling. We are creatures, created to worship and glorify our Creator. Whether we do this in our home, in our community, or at larger scale out in the world, the praising of His Name is our sole purpose and calling. Through the trials and tribulations, through the joyful celebrations, whatever the circumstances, may we glorify the Lord above all.


Take joy, take faith, and take hope, He is a purposeful God.

Change...

Anatole France once said, "All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy..." How true this statement seems to me. As you can well see I have not posted in quite a while. Life has been in a rush, a blur, a surreal swirl of events over the past week or so. I leave for my freshman year of University today, one of the biggest steps one takes in their lifetime. This step, however, arises feelings of both joy and sobriety, happiness and melancholy. When I was younger, and even up until about 2 years ago, I was ready to venture out and go, go, go. I was ready to embark on this next step, to leave home, to go to a college far away, to begin again. Of course, to certain degrees these types of feelings aren't necessarily negative, but not all positive. However, over the past year, in my last year of Franklin Classical, I have experienced an overwhelming sense of community, to a degree that I have never felt before. In our little community I go to school and church with the same people, I hang out and go on trips with the same people. I am a part of a community that love and care for me, that are interested in my life and the things that I do. I am a part of a community where, not only do people love, but I have a chance to return that love, to do my part, to pray for and stand by the people that I have come to know and love so well. A community is a true picture of God's grace. We all have our foibles and our quirks, and yet we are to be accepted, despite our differences and our flaws. That is what I have had the absolute joy of experiencing this past year. As a result, I have definetly experienced some reservations in leaving, but I know that God has a wonderful plan for my epxeriences at University that will enable me to return to this community better equipped. I thank God for the blessings that He has placed in my life with the communities at Franklin Classical, Christ Community, my swim team, and elsewhere. Thank you to all of you who have been a part of my life, you have blessed me in so many inexplicable ways. You have strengthened and encouraged me, giving me the ability to look forward to this next step with resolution and strength. Thank you.


Thus, I leave today to begin a new step. I will probably not be able to post for a while again, because of Orientation and the beginning of classes, but I will return again soon.
My new e-mail is bbleymai@gardner-webb.edu

"There is nothing wrong with change, if it is in the right direction."
-Winston Churchill

The Joy of Books

Historian Thomas Macaulay once said, "I would rather be poor in a cottage of books than a king without the desire to read." Amen! What would our lives be without books? Especially for those of us who have been instilled with a wrestless passion, a zealous abandon, an earnest hungering for the knowledge concealed between those pages. Oh the wonderful feeling when a good book is discovered! that moment of realization when you realize that this is the stuff of wonder and magnificence. You begin to feel that yearning, that pull, that tug, as the author begins to draw you into the world of their mind. The author entices the mind and ignites the senses, luring you in, deeper and farther...stretching the mind and fueling the imagination, daring you to identify with characters, to see a little bit of yourself in the people, and perhaps letting your mind wander and attempt, what by your physical mind is deemed impossible, through those characters. Good books are magnificence, brilliance, and wonder embodied; beauty, goodness, and truth, between two pieces of wood (the really good ones :); our past, present, future, in one moment; the story of life, love, and the pursuit of happiness in the palm of your hand...


Unfortunately, in our day and age a book of such description is hard to find, thus worth the time if found. Voltaire once made a statement that can echo forward into our time, "I keep to old books, for they teach me something; from the new I learn very little." Thankfully, there are those faithful few of the modern age that cling to the traditions of old by writing substantive material, but I pray that many more will come as well. Until that time, however, we cling to those today that make the effort, and we hold onto the classics, which oftens results in digging through old bookshops in foreign countries, bartering with little old men over their earth-shattering prices...our backs suffer, knees suffer, and our checkbooks certainly feel the pain, but the knowledge contained within is priceless. Thus, if we actually followed John Ruskin's charge of, "A book worth reading is a book worth buying." The most well-read man by classic standards will most likely man be one of the poorest in material wealth, but oh the wealth of his mind! As a result, we press on searching and foraging throughout the world in back alleys and beaten up book stands, living by the motto, "Wear the old coat, buy the new book!"


Thus, a tradition that I shall begin with my blog is a library entry. Each time I buy a new book, I will post it, thus officially starting my library. Now I have a little backtracking from England to do, but for now I shall begin with a recent purchase...

Library Entry:

Book: The Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets With Critical Observations on their Works. Vols. 1-4.
Author: Samuel Johnson
Date: 1819
Appearance: beautiful leather binding, a little worse for wear in a few areas, but overall in pretty good condition.
Location Found: Discovered by a friend, who found them in New York.
Price: $20 :)


My library has officially begun. The motto is by Sir Thomas Aquinas, "Beware the man of one book."

Grace For All

"The Jews would not willingly tread upon the smallest piece of paper in their way, but took it up; for possibly, said they, the name of God may be upon it. Though there was little superstition in this, yet truly there is nothing but good religion in it, if we apply it to man. Trample not on any; there may be some work of grace there, that thou knowest not of. The name of God may be written upon that soul thou treadest on: it may be a soul that Christ thought so much of as to give His precious blood for it; therefore, despise it not."

-Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Coleridge captures in this statement the very essence of God's view of the value of every human being. When we come into contact with another human being, as God's children, we are to take into account that God's sacrifice for us was a sacrifice for all men, for all humanity. He died so that we may be saved, and He lives so that might be free from the snare of the enemy. No man is exempt from God's grace and mercy should He seek it with a humble heart. We have all fallen short of the Kingdom of God, we are all sinners, yet we have a Savior, a loving Father who sent His only Son to die on the cross so that all may know Him. Thus, if He died for all, He values all. If He values all, since we are His children our time on earth is to be spent taking on the mind of Christ, being so overcome by His love so that we become more and more like Him. If this is all true, which according to His word it is, we are to exclude no one, to not bar, in our own prejudice, any one person from the Kingdom of God. We live in an imperfect world, one that is overcome by every sin and result of sin, thus its inhabitants are not perfect. As Christians, we can exclude no one on account of their sin, because we are sinners as well. God is the ultimate Judge, the only ruler in the case of man's heart, only He can determine the condition and situation of a man's soul. So we, God's people are simply here to be an extension of God's grace and love. To show the world the same love that God has showed us. He is the reason we are here, He is the reason we have hope and a future, He is the reason for it all, so our responsibility is to show that to all...the whole world, no exceptions.

New Beginning

Well, as you can see I have had a blog for quite a while, yet I have been lax in its upkeep. And so today marks a day of new beginning, a new look, new posts, new posts on a regular basis :)...So the regularity will begin again soon.

"You are not here to verify,

Instruct yourself, or inform curiosity

Or carry report. You are here to kneel

Where prayer has been valid. And prayer is more

Than an order of words, the conscious occupation

Of the praying mind, or the sound of the voice praying."

-T.S. Eliot

Small blessings...

So I haven't posted in a while, but today I have something special to talk about. Something that has always been close to my heart, but has grown even closer and may even prove to be a calling in the future. Children...

Now, I come from a long line of teachers. My mum, my grandfather, all the way back, I don't know how far. My mum always talked about teaching and I always wrinkled my nose, so she eventually broadened her discussions to just "working with children," which I wasn't terribly excited about, but I was a lot more inclined to consider than teaching...At that point, I was thinking down the psychology route. Well, much to my dismay, that which I swore against has become a reality. In the fall of 2003 I began to teaching dance to students of all ages, but mainly between the ages of 4 & 8...yes, my future was beginning to unfold, strongly against my will and I was becoming what my mother said I would become...Then this past fall the "so-called" nightmare was all but completed, when a close friend of mine, a Physical Education teacher here, asked me to assist her. So, I began what I presume will be a long journey in my educational career. I am now assisting once a week (sometimes twice) at a wonderful Christian Classical School, called New Hope Academy. The school teaches grades Pre-K through 6th. and I teach 1st. - 6th. New Hope is an incredible private school that was established as a means for low-income, inter-racial families to experience a Christian and classical education. However, now, the school has children of all social classes, races, and upbringings. 70% of the children are from single-parent situations, and those children are in the same classroom with children of some of the most prominent music producers in Nashville and in the country. From children of pastors to children who have a parent in jail or don't know where or even who, one of their parents is, at New Hope they all come together for a common goal - to have a place of academic excellence, under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, becoming a true picture of the Kingdom of God.

Although I teach these children once or twice week how to play games and how to keep their bodies healthy, they have ministered to me so much more. Adults could learn a thing or two if they just looked at the lives of their children - in the ways they interact, in the ways they relate to each other, children have a clearer understanding of the Kingdom of God than we do. That is why God calls us to be like children - pure and innocent, virtually untainted by the sin that wrecks havoc in our world. It is only when we become like children before our Father, will we truly understand His love, His grace, and His mercy, and in turn only then will we inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. It is like the story of the little girl, who after hearing her mother had finally given birth after a long labor, quickly rushed into see her new little sibling and exclaimed, "Quick, tell me what God is like before you forget!" It is true, as children we are closer to God, living in that somewhat innocent stage of life, untainted by pride, power, prejudice, money, and the other sins of the world. In those years as children we exhibit a faith that is hard to retrieve as we become adults, but one that we should always seek to return to, for that is what God calls us to. That is why He said, "Let the children come unto Me!"

And so, as I have been impacted by each and everyone of these children, so has God revealed to me, my passion for teaching...I do not know if that will take place in the traditional "school" sense, but I know, for a fact, that in some way, shape, or form in my life, I am called to educate, and educate children, or adults for that matter, in the Truth and Hope of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, whether that be in the academic realm or elsewhere...these few kids at New Hope Academy have helped me find my destiny...

"You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth." -Gibran

Below are some pictures of a day at New Hope...enjoy!

More smiles! 

Smiles! 

Stretching before we play! 

More friends and more smiles. 

Some little friends. 

Abigail 

Getting ready to play! 

Long Time No Write...

Ok, I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to post, anyway ok, I still don't have much time so I'm going to post a piece of poetry I wrote for school.


The Woes of Insolence


O Lord, once praised as Giver of all life,
The Lord of all that lives in land or sea,
The one who molded Adam and Eve his wife,
Former of the stars that shine so brightly.

Praise to the One who gives the blind their sight,
Praise to the God who opens deaf men’s ears,
Praise Light of Lights, disperser of the night,
Praise Love, who swallows up our deepest fears.

You gave us life and ransomed us from hell.
O Breath of Life You placed us on this earth.
O Lord, You seek our body, mind, and soul,
A small gift since you’ve been with us since birth.

Lost, lost, O sense of faith once held so dear,
Where once you made your home now doubt abides,
Once peace and hope and love and joy so near,
Now pride and fear and sin consume men’s hearts.

Now children that you loved, O Great Helper,
By offering your life upon a tree,
You saved them from the pit of all despair,
How can they draw their love and faith from thee?

Upon his own power and might man’s leaned.
Man has removed all trust and faith from thee.
Instead of God, humanity has placed,
Their pride and hubris for the world to see.

O man of clay aspiring to be God,
All Babel-like your deeds cry out your part.
Your haughty eyes stare down the eyes of God.
Pride’s whistling spear cuts air to pierce the heart.

Time’s hallway strut by arrogance and pride,
As judgment’s chariot rides at steady pace.
God’s righteous plan shall never be denied.
The Lord demands account before His face.

O Lord save us from sin that we create,
By placing our ambitions above all.
You called humanity degenerate.
With loving arms you summon big and small.

The still, small voice cries out to deaf men’s ears.
The beacon light from Calvary’s hill still shines.
Hope breathes beyond the veil of sinner’s tears.
Obedient hearts in God their peace do find.

God offers his forgiveness for our sin.
He will redeem man from the pit of hell.
The Lord brings peace and comfort to all men.
He is the Lord and Holy one of all.

Rise up, O men, and serve your Sovereign All!
Your faith sustains all men and brings true light.
Rise to the charge and heed your Master’s call.
Bring light and truth and faith in time of night.

A Prayer

God Almighty...
I praise you this day for Your marvelous works. The work of Your hands amazes me every day. The sky, the grass, the trees, the mountains, the oceans, Lord, You made them all, You are awesome.
You speak and mountains move, You call out and oceans split in two, You whisper and a mighty, rushing wind ensues.
Your works are marvelous, O Lord God Almighty!

My God the Healer...

O Lord, you are the Great Physician, emotionally, spiritually, and physically, you are the one who has all the answers to my illnesses.
You are the great Physician, the one who heals affliction, commands sickness to be gone with a whisper...
You are the great Comforter, the One who heals the broken hearts, mends the wounded spirits, restores bruised souls, You are the Great Counselor...

My Father God...
Abba, help me to receive your grace, your forgiveness, your love. Help me to rest in your loving arms.
Help me to know that You are all I need, You are all-sufficient. For every problem I have, every hurt I have sustained, every load that I carry, no matter how seemingly large or small, like a little child I run to You...with my arms outstretched, reaching out for Your arms to hold me, love me, comfort me, wipe the tears from my eyes...
You are my Abba Father, You will always be with me, You will never forsake me...

Yeshua, My Savior...
You are my Redeemer...you saved me from my sin...you paid the price, the ultimate price, so that I might spend forever with You in eternity! O God My Savior, how can I ever thank you enough for dying, dying so that I might live...

Majestic and humble, awesome and loving, wonderful and amazing, Savior and friend...My words will never suffice, will never express the wonder of God...And so I join the heavenly hosts in an everlasting song...

Holy! Holy! Holy! Is the Lord God Almighty! Who was and is, and is to come!