Speak to Me

Do you ever hear a song that just speaks to you or pulls at your heart? I love music, so this happens to me fairly frequently. Most recently, it has been this song by Casting Crowns. The song is called Praise You in This Storm. I think one of the reasons I like it is because the bridge is one of my favorite scriptures. Funny enough, the reason it's one of my favorites is because it's what the Mother Superior says to Maria in The Sound of Music, which I use to watch multiple times a day when I was 5 years old. It also happens to be my favorite movie of all time. Check out the song on itunes. Here are the lyrics that for whatever reason, have really affected me:

I was sure by now, God You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away, stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say "Amen" and it's still raining.

As the thunder rolls, I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you".
And as Your mercy falls, I raise my hands
And praise the God who gives, and takes away.

I'll praise You in this storm, and I will lift my hands.
You are who You are, no matter where I am.
And every tear I cry, You hold in Your hands.
You never left my side,
And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm.

I remember when, I stumbled in the wind.
You heard my cry to You and raised me up again.
But my strength is almost gone.
How can I carry on if I can't find You?

As the thunder rolls, I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you".
And as Your mercy falls, I raise my hands
And praise the God who gives, and takes away.

I'll praise You in this storm, and I will lift my hands.
You are who You are, no matter where I am.
And every tear I cry, You hold in Your hands.
You never left my side,
And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm.

I lift my eyes unto the hills, where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.

I'll praise You in this storm, and I will lift my hands.
You are who You are, no matter where I am.
And every tear I cry, You hold in Your hands.
You never left my side,
And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm.

Double Trouble

For the past week, we have been watching a 10 week old puppy for some
friends of ours while they were at summer camp. She is a yellow lab
too, so she and Clive look super cute together. Her name is Roy and she
is very fiesty. She and Clive had a grand old time running around the
house, tunneling under the house, and using the bathroom in the house
(okay the last one was just Roy). It was fun for Clive to have a
playmate for the week and it made us appreciate him being out of the
"puppy" phase. We managed to capture some sweet moments for your
enjoyment: