Behold, the Lamb of God

Behold, the lamb of God

Who takes away our sin
Behold the lamb of God
The life and light of men
Behold the lamb of God
Who died and rose again
Behold the lamb of God who comes
To take away our sin

Broken hearts--behold our broken hearts
Fallen far--we need you
Behold the lamb of God

Son of God--emmanuel
Son of man--we need you
Behold the lamb
The hope of man
Behold the lamb of God

-Andrew Peterson

Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year my friends! 

I pray your Christmas week is a joyous celebration of Emmanuel; God with us.  May this coming year be filled with the peace of resting in the blood of His cross and may we each rise up with renewed fervency to serve our King as humble servants.  May we proclaim to the world with our mouth, hands and feet: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing." Revelation 5:12

May Christ be constantly in our vision; the lamb of God, the life and light of men.

A Baby Born to Die

I love Christmas time.  Ask anyone who knows me only a little and they will tell you that it is my favorite time of the year.  Everything about it brings me great joy; the beautiful decorations, the happy cheer in stores, the ringing of bells, the yummy treats, the elegant colors, the many surprises, the expectancy of family all being together.  While schedules are always so busy during the holidays, the air seems to be filled with such peace and joy.  I love it. 

But as I sit in my room tonight by the twinkling lights around my window, I have on my mind something which makes all the delights of Christmas become as dust in comparison; my Lord Jesus Christ.  The Savior who came as a babe.  This year I have been dwelling on Him much more than any other Christmas.  I can't get my mind off one incredible fact... this Baby was born to die.  The sole purpose of His coming was to die, to hang on that cross for our sins.  He came ultimately to suffer and die, to face the Father's wrath in our place.  This is reality, this is truth, this is the beauty of the Savior.  And this is Christmas, we would have no reason to celebrate the birth of this baby if He did not die.

One of my favorite Christmas songs is Bebo Norman's "Born to Die".  The last verse so beautifully portrays the depth of what Jesus' death has done for us; depraved sinners.


"And the angles filled the sky
All of heaven wondered why
Why their King would choose to be
Be a baby born to die
...
To break the chains
Of guilt and sin
To find us here, to pull us in
So we can join in Heaven's song
And with one voice around the throne"

Because of His death we are free, the chains of sin are broken.  And because we are covered in His blood we will come before the throne of God with no guilt or shame.  All praise and glory to Jesus, our intercessor - the baby born to die. 

"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the worst... Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever.  Amen."  I Timothy 1:15, 17

And so as you and I enjoy the delights and blessings of Christmas, may He remain our North Star.  May the incredible beauty of our Jesus be fervently pressed on our hearts and minds.  May we die to self so that Christ may more fully live in us.  May our celebration be worship to the King of Kings, the Savior who was born to die

The words of C.T. Studd

He has shackled my shame...

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to attend a Shane and Shane concert.  Which was so exciting and such an amazing evening!  I am so blessed by Shane and Shane, a band who does not seek worldly acceptance but sings for the glory of our great God.  Their lyrics are filled with truth and continually set my eyes on the glorious work of the cross.  Sadly, this is a great rarity among Christian bands.
I've always enjoyed the Shane's music but it wan't until this summer at Ellerslie that I really came to love their songs.  We sang their songs all the time for our worship and often discussed the lyrics.  I love when I know a song so well from singing it that I'm not just listening to recordings for my entertainment but actually hearing the words and worshipping God. (in the car by myself is the best place for this... :-)

Children  from "His Little Feet", an orphan choir. 

So because of having recently gone to the concert, I've been listening to Shane and Shane all week.  Loving the old songs and finding new ones.  I have had so many songs I want to post but I can't decide which one.  But the lyrics of "Liberty" keep running through my mind.  And as I reread through the song this morning I decided to post it.  This is truth; there IS liberty in Christ, He has WON and shackled our shame!  Oh what unspeakable joy and peace there is resting in the work of our Jesus!

The Lord is the Spirit
Where the Spirit of the Lord is, now
There is liberty
And the Spirit lives inside of me
Where the Spirit of the Lord is, now
There is liberty, there is liberty,
There is liberty

For freedom You set me free
And yes, I am free indeed
You rewrote my name
And shackled my shame
You opened my eyes to see
I am free

When the spirit of the world
Comes to kill me and enslave me I will say
There is liberty
For the chains of sin that once entangled me
Have been broken, now I'm singing 'cause I'm free
There is liberty, there is liberty,
There is liberty

The storm rolled in
It was dark in the land
As the Son of Man
Was crucified
You don't take his life
He laid it down
He paid the price
And shed His blood

It is done!
The veil is torn
He has won
And I am free

For freedom You set me free
And yes, I am free indeed
You rewrote my name
And shackled my shame
You opened my eyes to see

I am free

-"Liberty" by Shane and Shane from the album "The One You Need"

Peace through the blood of His cross

--I am in no way any sort of Bible scholar or educated writer.  This is simply my feeble attempt of putting to words what God revealed to me this morning and the extraordinary beauty that I am seeing the Gospel is.--


"All things were created through Him and for Him." Colossians 1:16b

This verse began my morning bible time today.  Such a simple passage yet do I fully comprehend it's depth?  ALL things exist for Him.  You and I exist for Him.  The reason we were created by Him is for Him!  For His glory alone.


"For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross." Colossians 1:19,20

It was that last sentence that stopped me.  How often have I read through these verses and never seen, or rather understood, this statement of the cross.  Christ has made peace through the blood of His cross.  As the following verses say, that through His death we are presented holy and blameless in His sight.  This is the peace of His blood on the cross.  Do we live in this peace, confident and firm in having been reconciled to Him?

"And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight..."  Colossians 1:21,22

It is this that fills me with complete awe and leaves me speechless at what Christ accomplished on the Cross.  I, a depraved, wicked, sinner have been made presentable and blameless unto God!  The King of Kings!  No matter how hard I try, how good I am or how much I desire to glorify God, I can not even be presented to Him without having been made blameless through Christ's blood.  This is the abundant peace Christ has offered us through His blood.  But we must continue on to the following verse:

"...if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard." Colossians 1:23

We must continue in unbending faith to grasp hold of this peace.  Stand firm in this truth that He has reconciled us through His death and be grounded in the hope of the gospel.

I praise God for revealing to me at a deeper level the power and peace of the blood of the cross.  It amazes me that the clearer I understand the Gospel, the more overwhelming and vast becomes.  Oh what a God we serve; mighty, powerful and glorious beyond our imaginations!
May you have peace and joy resting in Jesus today.

My prayer to be a decision woman

“Father, make of me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me.” 

~Jim Eliott

~

Jesus, I am Resting

This summer at Ellerslie was full of worship, true worship to our King.  It is an incredibly beautiful thing to witness Biblical worship.  Worship is not just singing as we so often label it, but a way of life.  We are to worship God by the way we live, bringing glory to His name by serving, loving, living & dying for Him.  The root of worship to God is obeying Him, obeying His commands out of love and trust.  There is much more to be said about worship, these are just brief thoughts I wanted to preface this post with.

I was so blessed by the many times worshiping God in song this summer.  I was introduced to many new songs and hymns during these times.  They have become very dear to me as they enunciate so clearly the truths I now understand and desire.  These songs are filled with rich exclamations of God and bring great glory to the King of Kings.

One particular hymn has been running through my mind these past couple days.  May you be blessed as you behold the attributes of Jesus in this song.  Oh what peace and joy there is resting in our dear Lord Jesus!


Jesus, I am Resting

Jesus I am resting resting
In the joy of what Thou art
I am finding out the greatness
Of Thy loving heart
Thou hast bid me gaze upon Thee
And Thy beauty fills my soul
For by Thy transforming power
Thou hast made me whole

Jesus I am resting resting
In the joy of what Thou art
I am finding out the greatness
Of Thy loving heart 

Oh how great Thy loving kindness
Vaster broader than the sea
Oh how marvelous Thy goodness
Lavished all on me
Yes I rest in Thee Beloved
Know what wealth of grace is Thine
Know Thy certainty of promise
And have made it mine

Simply trusting Thee Lord Jesus
I behold Thee as Thou art
And Thy love so pure so changeless
Satisfies my heart
Satisfies its deepest longings
Meets supplies its ev'ry need
Compasseth me 'round with blessings
Thine is love indeed

Ever lift Thy face upon me
As I work and wait for Thee
Resting 'neath Thy smile Lord Jesus
Earth's dark shadows flee
Brightness of my Father's glory
Sunshine of my Father's face
Keep me ever trusting resting
Fill me with Thy grace

--I'm very excited to have found a recording of this song, listen here!

It's been a while...

-The Ellerslie Summer 2011 "Delta" Semester-

Well well, I have been so terrible at blogging this summer and I am so sorry for that!  I finally start a blog with the intention of sharing my summer with you all and then blog only once while at Ellerslie... the summer was just far to full!  But I am now back home in Texas and I plan to regularly blog (but I must not make any promises :).

Ellerslie Leadership Training was amazing, but the summer was not about Ellerslie and learning.  It was all about Jesus.  More and more Jesus.  I love Him like never before and desire to continually press deeper in knowing Him and thus living a life poured out for His glory.  Every day I was challenged to die to my self and live entirely for the almighty King and His Kingdom.  I understand more fully the beauty and peace of depending completely on God in every area of life.
It is very hard to know where to even begin with sharing all that I experienced and learned this summer, but I look forward to sharing bits and pieces in the following days on this blog.

 An incredible sunset after a day of prayer, the colors are real!

My last sunrise at Ellerslie included gorgeous fog over the fields.

For now I must end because I am about to head out on a beach vacation with my family!  But be expecting more posts, including a post with lots of pictures!!

To God alone be the glory,
Lydia

Colorado, Jesus and Sunrises

So I have been here in Windsor, CO at Ellerslie for 2 weeks already.  The days are long but weeks are short.  And I am sitting here trying to think of adequate words to describe these past days.  I am seeing my Savior as I never have before.  Each class, devotion and meeting turns me to His word like never before.  I am just filled with even more expectancy as I look forward the coming 7 weeks.

I wish I had more time to write in detail but I figured a short post is better than nothing.  And a short post with pictures is even better! :D

 First sunset over the Ellerslie lake.  I have so many pictures of this

view but each one is different with the amazing clouds and sun!

 The sky is huge here! 

 An encouraging and fun afternoon on the lawn with dear girls.

An afternoon at Lily Lake in Estes Park.  It could not have been more beautiful!

And the view out my dorm window every morning.  

I have grown to love early mornings and sunrises! 

So there is a peak at my Ellerslie summer so far. 

Blessings in Christ alone my friends!

"I seek not a long life, but a full one like you Lord Jesus." - Jim Elliot

Expectancy

So, I have hardly even began to blog and I am already a terrible blogger!  But, I have a decent excuse.  And it is a very exciting excuse. . .

I am preparing and packing to leave for Ellerslie Leadership Training!!!  I can hardly believe it is finally here.  I have been praying, pursuing and planning for Ellerslie for so long, and it is about to become reality.  God has guided me to this next step and I am so blessed for this opportunity.

-Lake at Ellerslie, taken last Fall at a weekend conference-

Ellerslie is founded and taught by Eric and Leslie Ludy.  This first semester I am attending is 10 weeks long and the school is located in beautiful Windsor, CO.   This will be a summer away from the busy life to focus on Christ, grow both spiritually and knowledgeably in the Word of God, and cultivate the desire to live for the glory of God alone.  I would like to explain it more, but I leave tomorrow to begin my travels to Colorado!  Such joy, excitement and expectancy I am filled with.

The following video was put together by some of the past students who attempt to explain their Ellerslie experience. Not only is it about Ellerslie but filled with truth and passion for our Lord.  I highly recommend taking the time to watch, listen and ponder.

I greatly look forward to updating this blog throughout this summer as I learn, grow and experience new things.  I will covet your prayers for my travels and throughout the summer that my heart will be open and willing to grow in any way.



"...according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.  For to me to life is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:20-21

Follower Gadget

(Edit... it appears to now be back it working order!  So feel free to become a follower :)

So, it appears that just when I finally start my blog, blogspot has a minor issue...  The follower button in my side bar is not working, which is making it not possible to quickly follow my blog through your Google account.  It appears that this is an issue many other blogs are having and blogspot is working to fix it.  The joys of technology.  Hopefully it will be fixed soon so you can easily follow Noble and Free!
If any of my blogger friends have been able to fix this, do let me know!

Sorry for the inconvenience!

And so this begins.

Hello friends, old and new.

Welcome to the first official post of Noble and Free.

I have considered starting a blog for such a long time, going back and forth on the necessity of it.  The blog world is so vast and many are filled with such unnecessary information.  I have no desire to simply add to the pointless and endless internet resources.

But, I have a desire to share, to connect and to prayerfully encourage.  God has blessed me beyond words and revealed Himself in such amazing ways, though I know it is just a small step in this endless journey.  And so, through this blog I plan to share both the joys and struggles of my life, and the beauty in the simple things of life.  I also will be posting my "finds": quotes, stories, pictures, videos and whatever else might inspire me.
I am just a normal girl who, through Christ, has a been made new and is being refined daily.  He has put the desire in me to document and share it through this blog.  I will seek to be real, honest and authentic in my sharing.  I pray this blog is not about me, but only a vessel of God's glory.

I am planning posts for the near future; the reason behind my blog name, my new adventure {Ellerslie Leadership Training} which is about to start (and which pushed me to finally begin this blog!), and more.  This blog design is just a first draft, so things will likely be changed around, including a real header :).  So be expecting more soon!

I'm excited to begin sharing!
Blessings in Christ Alone.


~Lydia Frances

(and... I will love any feedback and thoughts from my readers ;-)

Test

Test post :)