In the Garden

One of my favorite hymns. Dwell on it for a while and let it soak in.

In the Garden

I come to the garden alone

When the dew is still on the roses

And the voice I hear falling on my ear

The Son of God discloses

(Refrain)

And He walks with me and He talks with me,

And He tells me I'm His own;

And the joy we share as we tarry there,

None other has ever known.

He speaks and the sound of His voice,

Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,

And the melody that He gave to me

Within my heart is ringing

Refrain

I'd stay in the garden with Him

Thought the night around me be falling,

But He bids me go, through the voice of woe

His voice to me is calling.

Refrain

coram Deo

So you might have noticed the changes on/with my blog. The name change is probably most apparent, considering it changed languages. I've been wondering about changing it for a while, but could never settle on a new title. While "Chasing" was a great title to start my blog a couple years ago, it's time to move on along with all the other changes taking place in my life. "Coram Deo," a Latin term, has hit me in the face the past couple weeks and it has hit me so hard that I'm even considering getting it tattooed (kidding?).

"Coram Deo" means, in simple terms, before the face of God. It is to live one's entire life in the presence of God, under the authority of God, to the glory of God. It sounds like the essence of the Christian life to me. This blog post that I stumbled across does a wonderful job of explaining what living coram Deo might entail.

To many, the Christian life might seem complicated and governed by rules and do this and do that. It's not the case at all. The Christian life is a very simple life, but we make it complicated. When I hear coram Deo, I hear simple. All of life flows out of knowing Him and seeking Him. It's when our eyes are on Him that we live in His presence and find it to be our greatest joy. It's when our eyes are on Him that we sit at His feet and just watch Him carry out His plan in the ways that only He can do. It's when our eyes are on Him that our greatest concern is His glory and His universal praise. When our eyes are on Him, everything else is a mere trifle.

Our true lives flow out of His presence overflowing in us.

"But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere." -2 Corinthians 2:14