outWORD by Matte Downey

Last night I spoke at church - well, anyone can speak up, but I was the one guiding the discussion. It turned out to be an exercise in encouragement for me. You see, I tend to see where I (and others) fall short and I can be too quick to point it out. When I asked God what he wanted to say to this particular group of people that night, two words very plainly rang in my head, "Well done." And I had to fight to keep the talk from becoming a lesson in how to do better and correct our mistakes and try harder and use our talents more effectively, for I knew all God really wanted to do was encourage and let people feel his pleasure. So I tried to do that and at the end of the evening sang this song that I had jotted down just before the meeting: Well done, my friend Good and faithful and true Well done, well done The servant of God is alive in you, yes the servant of God is alive and well in you. For every time you wanted to give up and didn't - well done For leaving the past b...

I tried something. I did it as best I could. I thought I was done. Then I saw it in the light and it was obvious that I did not do a very good job. So I read instructions. I got better tools. I got more materials. I will try again tomorrow. Thank God for do overs. This is a photo taken on a sunny autumn day in September 2006.

I don't understand how you are - how you intertwine yourself with me How being together becomes one and one becomes many Explosions and kisses Solitude and big worlds crammed with souls Near and far Rest and work It is all the same where you are You come to me and I go to you These hands of yours are bigger than I ever imagined Can we be friends for a very long time? Your company never gets old I still have to much to learn and so much to tell you Let everyday be a day with you That would be enough to last forever Photo taken in New Brunswick a few years ago in November.

Don't stand still. Keep on moving. Let HIM move you. Don't be a stick in the mud. Unfurl your sail. Let HIM move you. Open wide. Spread your wings. Let HIM move you. Be deeply moved, be stirred, let your heart be touched, let stone become warm flesh. Let HIM move you. He is unshakeable, unmoveable, unchanging. He is a rock of depth and a point of navigation. Let HIM move you. Raise your hands and feet and mind and heart and time in surrender and let HIM move you.

Mon amour s'appelle le soleil Il a chaud Il est brillant Il allume ma vie Mon amour s'appelle la nuit Elle est mystérieuse et se cache Elle est mon repos et silence Elle couvre mes secrets Mon amour s'appelle le vent Il me chatouille Il me donne un petit coup de coude Il me touche sans dérangement Son souffle est toujours près moi, chuchotant mon nom Mon amour s'appelle la nourriture de mon âme And a little picture to go with the romantic mood...a doorway in San Francisco, January, 2007.