Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders. Let me walk upon the waters—wherever you will call me.

So, the other day (yesterday), I heard God speak to me quite clearly. Now, for some people this might be normal, and for me it has been at times. However, over the past few weeks, I’ve been in a bit of a funk. I’ve felt a bit distant from God and, as I realized yesterday, it’s been of my own doing. Now, because of this, hearing from God has been a bit lacking for me. Surprisingly though, I was driving home from a meeting yesterday, and made a comment to myself…(in my mind, I think)…and I heard God clearly respond to me. The topic of the conversation is irrelevant to this discussion here today, but I felt such a warmth and I was quite stunned when I heard His voice yesterday. For weeks, or months (they’ve all been a bit of a blur), I’ve been procrastinating with God and basically ignoring Him. So this little conversation basically blew my mind. Alright, let’s go. I’m excited.

(For a better understanding of this post, please reference Isaiah 40:9-21.)

As someone who has been raised on the Bible, and thus fairly well versed in it, I have known this passage for as long as I can remember. In fact, I’m sure most Christians have at least heard the more popular sections of it.

…they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles… (v. 31)

or 

To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with Him? (v. 18)

However, I don’t feel like Christians completely grasp it. I know I haven’t, and even though this blog installment is a product of a recent revelation, I still don’t completely grasp the concept. After all, it is a passage about the greatness of God and nobody can fully understand that. Nonetheless, I am attempting to share with you and still grasp for myself how to better understand God.

In some ways, using parts of Bible verses as worship songs has injured our understanding of the intention of the verses, as well as the meaning behind them. Of course it is all well and good that we will have renewed strength if we wait on the Lord, but if we just focus on that part of the verse, we skip to the ending of a really good story. Why will we have renewed strength? Why should we wait upon the Lord if we don’t quite understand what qualifies Him to be waited upon? The importance of asking these simple questions is supported by one of my favorite verses.

…but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you…. (1 Peter 3:15)

The truths of who God is should be our first line of defense against any spiritual attacks. Who God is must be the foundation for any amount of faith we have. 

The fact is, we can never fully understand God, which should immensely humble us. That a God “who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand and marked off the heavens with a span” (v12) wants to gather us up in His arms and press us to his chest.

I realize that this seems a bit scattered and short but I am in quite a bit of awe and I have been quite humbled over the past few days. All that I can really say here is already in the verse, so if you haven’t read it yet, please go examine this verse with God and allow Him to examine your heart as to whether or not you really know the details of who He is. It has greatly impacted my reasons for my faith and I am absolutely sure it will do the same for you.

I’m so sorry I have not been able to follow through on my promise of our song being posted. I would love to promise that it will be up tomorrow night, but again, due to the past two days, that might not hold true. Here is a 45 second demo for your troubles.

I have come to the conclusion that since music is such a huge part of my life, I’m going to start doing blogs about certain lyrics that resonate with the depths of my soul. Starting this weekend (hopefully on a consistent basis), I will do just that. Keep an eye out for the first installment and once that is posted, let me know what you think and if there are lyrics that you would like me to listen to and possibly write about.

Much love,

Chris

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. Prov 27:17

Oh, the joys of brotherhood. Today has been the long awaited summation of this summer’s journeys in brotherhood immersion. Over the past few weeks I have seen a strong bond created between myself and the men of our City Church small group. The growth that has occurred among all of us has been greatly humbling and very much exciting. No matter how tired we’ve been for a certain week, our time together has never failed to lift our downtrodden spirits. Even outside of small groups, I have seen great growth in one of my best friends’ life. Our bond has become that of one brother to another, and we are always encouraged by the words given or progress seen in the other.

One question that was recently presented to me was “What is one of the biggest struggles you see in our generation.” The very first thing that came to mind was apathy. Sure, we could say our generation is struggling with vanity, selfishness, porn, lust, greed, etc., but what it really comes down to is a lack of action. Passivity. There seems to be this huge desire to be “chill” and to just go with the flow, being agreeable and likable by everybody. Now, this may seem “cool” on the surface, but it slowly (or quickly) transfers to every aspect of your life. This is what the Bible calls lukewarm and Jesus is not gonna worry about being agreeable when He spews it out of His mouth. As a matter of fact, the Bible covers this topic quite well. The whole of Matthew 25 touches on this quite bluntly. In the parable of the virgins, those who did not actively fill the oil in their lamps were left out of the wedding party. In the parable of the talents, the one who buried his money and did not do with it responsibly was disowned. And in the parable of the sheep and the goats, the goats did not tend to “the least of these” and were cast into the outer darkness. The Bible is very specific and ruthless when it comes to passivity. 

This is why things like vanity, greed, and porn are so predominant. There is a lack of action, of taking charge of our lust for these things, of desiring after God, of staying in His word and speaking His truths against our struggles, of living out our faith. We aren’t actively pursuing and supporting our brothers and sisters in their faith and consequently, when we approach our problems, our walls are not easily felled because of the lack of trust and support amongst the body of Christ. At what point have we left behind the passion and drive for God and for each other? At what point have we become so passive and disconnected that we become uncomfortable with a conversation that goes beyond “life” and into life?

Please, receive this call to action with great conviction. I know I definitely have, and I am acting upon the conviction to pass this on to whoever will take the time to read it, as I hope you will, because that is the action we are called to.

And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 1 Thess 5:14

Unfashionable, Irrational - Dear Chandelier

This is an amazing band I discovered a few days ago. They have absolutely blown my mind with their uniqueness and originality. It would definitely be worth your time to check them out. Tell them Chris Bundra sent you.

http://www.purevolume.com/dearchandelier

Anonymous asked: This isn't a question, but more like a word of encouragement. I am really amazed with the person that God has made you to be and who you are continuing to become. I wanted to let you know I think about you often and always hope/am curious of what God is doing in your life. You were such a blessing to me, and I am so thankful God used you the way that He did. Brother, I love you. I look forward to your new posts and updates because... well, quite frankly this is my closest interaction with you. Miss you and continue to hold tightly to Him.

Thank you so much! I firmly believe our lives should reflect the glory of God and when I hear that it’s actually happening in my life, it’s always a great encouragement! It’s one thing to actually see God working in my life just through the time I spend alone with Him, but it’s another to see that He’s impacting others through my walk with Him. It is ridiculously humbling! 

A word of encouragement for you (everyone who reads my blog). God wants to do the same in your life, if He hasn’t already. Stay grounded in the Word and walk with Him; don’t let my blog also be the closest interaction you have with Jesus. Make sure you are getting your life straight from the Source. I love you all as well. Continue to hold tightly to Him.   

-Soli Deo Gloria

The three core beliefs that I possess about worship are as follows. First, worship is a necessary part of our walk with God. Worship not only offers adoration to an incomparable God, but also should invite a response of brokenness in which we recognize that there is absolutely no way we can ever deserve God’s love or salvation. Second, worship is a constant practice. Worship is not simply singing before and after a sermon. Worship is acting upon the adoration we sing about by bringing glory to Jesus with our lives (Rom. 12:1). It is obedience based upon love and a constant surrender to God’s desire for our lives. Finally, it is an activity essential to spiritual community. It creates a vulnerability among believers that allows for the strengthening of relationships through mutual reverence and humility in light of God’s greatness. Any type of pride or differentiation of skills is made worthless in view of God’s glory.

If I had to choose one word that I would want to encapsulate my life, worship would very likely be my first choice. Not saying that is what my life is a perfect description of, but rather that for which I’m striving. 

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Rom. 12:1-2

The preparation for worship band auditions has been as crazy as it has been a huge blessing. Our band went through about five people before settling on the current lineup. Even our current lineup wasn’t set until after our applications were completed and turned in. It wasn’t quite expected that we, as a band, would bond as quickly as we did, to say the least.

The first thing we did, before playing a single note, was spend time in prayer. This was our first act of worship: presenting ourselves before God in complete surrender to His guidance and will. Every practice we had from there became a worship time for us. Even in our mistakes, our fixing of those mistakes, and our debates of whether the chorus would repeat a third time, we were able to feel free and just rest in God and the way He was guiding us. As I mentioned before, I feel that worshiping as a community creates a vulnerability and strengthens relationships in light of God’s greatness. We found this to be very evident in our practice. Prior to this we had been good friends, maybe even more toward the decent side of good friends. However, even as we continue to build our friendships, I can honestly say that we have become great friends. By just worshiping together, even in practice, we have been able to discover each other’s hearts and true passion for God. Our bond has become that of love rather than of similarities. 

So I encourage you, if you want to get to know someone on a deeper level, worship with them. It is uncanny how much of a bond is created when each individual is completely surrendered to God and His will. And if you’re at odds with someone, worship with them. I can trust that if both are willing to let God work, God will heal and strengthen your relationship.

Most of all, let your life be a living sacrifice to Him. Be striving for His will and His work in your life, fully surrendered to Him. Even in the past few weeks it has been life changing for me and I promise that it will be life changing for you as well.

I have recently deleted my facebook. For the sake of no misunderstanding, I did not delete you, I deleted myself. Now, this isn’t how it is for everyone, but I was really just getting sick of the whole thing. For me, it was simply a site that bred superficial relationships. I want deeper friendships that consist of me telling you, in person, when my birthday is, or where I work, or what I’m listening to most recently. I want that privilege of sharing my heart with you…even if it is little bits at a time. I know many people who hate “small talk.” They feel it’s superficial. I’ve heard it said, “why should I ask them how their day is going if I’m not really all that interested in the answer?”

So, is it more superficial to ask someone how their day went and not care, or find out how their day went by viewing a page with their information on it? Or do we not care about how that person’s day went because we can find out by viewing a page with their information on it? There are people who I know about, their birthday, their dinner from last night, but I didn’t hear about it from them. I found out through facebook. That’s where we become so detached from each other that we don’t want to hear personally from someone’s lips how their day went. We want to find out and get out. We don’t want the commitment of actually having to care…of actually rejoicing with them over good things in their day, or crying with them over hardships. We are actually just a little bit nosy and, quite frankly, creepy. Out of this we end up making hasty judgments of people based upon their age, a status, or a particular photo. I’ve been guilty of this plenty of times. What needs to happen though, is a reconciliation of curiosity and genuine care. Genuine interest. I want to ask someone how their day went, not just as a courtesy but actually wanting to hear. I want to say to someone, “I’ll pray for you.” and actually pray for them.

So, I’ve decided I need to get out more. I want to develop deeper relationships with the people God created me to relate to and interact with. I want to make friendships that count, that don’t consist of me knowing all about you but never actually speaking to you. I want to start spending time with you. Yeah, you three that actually keep up with me. So, please, contact me. Let’s get lunch. I want to hear about how God’s been working in your life. If you see me on campus, strike up a conversation, because I do care about how your day is going. I would like to know since I can’t find out through facebook anymore. Even if I could, I’d still want to hear it from your lips.

Please. Don’t just read this and dismiss it because that’s exactly the problem I’m talking about. Don’t just read what I’m thinking and not do anything about it. It’s your choice, but I’m here for you and I want to get to know you.