"Building Blocks"

I see each day building on the last
Some things that took me so long are now coming so fast
And some days I kick the tower of blocks over and have to start again
But it's easier to build it back when you know where to begin

And in all this progress
It's never flawless
The cities rise and fall
The face of the earth matures
Only one day to dissolve

And where do I fit
In all of it
Every day I wake up with a clean slate
Just to make a mess of it
And where do I stand
In all of this sand
That's making me and buildings up
That lets me see the sunrise one more time

I wake each day with breath inside
Before the foundations were laid You knew my life
Each step I'd take and every time I'd turn away
I have to believe that I'm still here for something

And in all this progress
It's never flawless
The cities rise and fall
The face of the earth matures
Only one day to dissolve

And where do I fit
In all of it
Every day I wake up with a clean slate
Just to make a mess of it
And where do I stand
In all of this sand
That's making me and buildings up
That lets me see the sunrise one more time

And it's a step
In the right direction I bet
To go back to the point you fell
And redirect

Redirect
Me to the Architect

"Sparks"

Like flint to the stone
A brief flash of emotion
Sparks thrown and exploding
Before the dark consumes them

In the present alive
Just long enough to survive
Burning so brightly
But a glint in my eye

Let it catch fire
That spark that we are
Don't let it subside
Don't let your capacity be that
Of a firefly

Warm me to the bone
You alone the transition
Without You I'm alone to burst
Without hope of ignition

Let it catch fire
That spark that we are
Don't let it subside
Don't let your capacity be that
Of a firefly

I stray so far away
Into the darkest places
Far away from the fire
From the Flame that creates us, gives us life
I want to stay close to those fire places, keeping me alive

"Finding Heaven"

Heaven is a place I've heard
I've searched with eyes averted
Found a temporary haven
In the foundations of the earth
Cause I can see the clouds on high
When I look out upon the sky
Why can't sitting here instead
Be heaven

Making heaven
As it isn't intended
Something invented
Hand-crafted in my mind
But that isn't heaven
It can't be imagined
I still try to bend it
To fit to my design
I'm finding

Twisted up in sin and self
A higher call avoided
In my blindness I say
I'm fine with this, dismissing help
But I know there's something more to find
I'm pining every day
For some great purpose above this surface
To carry me away

Making heaven
As it isn't intended
Something invented
Hand-crafted in my mind
But that isn't heaven
It can't be imagined
I still try to bend it
To fit to my design
I'm finding
Heaven at the doors of hell
Heaven pent up in myself
My own desires distort it well
But none on earth could ever tell
What waits for us up there

"Misplaced"

Depression
I don't know if you led me through
Or led me to it
I cite you as a guiding light
But might have been misled

Because the years make clear
What the past has blurred
I recall what's true
Over what was seen or heard

Have I misplaced my hope again
And placed it in an open grave instead
Cause I've been lost and I've been dead
But an empty tomb is where my hope, it rests

Depression
I don't have an answer to
The how or why I can't undo it
I find me at the heart of it
Holding parts but can't get started

Because the years make clear
What the past has blurred
I recall where I fell
Over what I felt occurred

Have I misplaced my hope again
And placed it in an open grave instead
Cause I've been lost and I've been dead
But an empty tomb is where my hope, it rests

"Lapis Lazuli"

The sky tonight
The darkest blue
The deepest hue
I'm used to being greeted by the void
But this is new
This vibrant view
Forever in my sight

I step outside
The quiet air
And there I stare
A stirring and a stilling in my soul
If I could pair
That shade up there
With my heart inside

Like a royal accenting
Like the wind that's ascending
To the sheet of blue
On high
Like a color anointed
The fabric that's painted
By the evening sky
For you

The sky tonight
So curious
Mysterious
I'm lost in gazing deep into its depth
Veiling stars
Concealed they are
By this might

Like a royal accenting
Like the wind that's ascending
To the sheet of blue
On high
Like a color anointed
The fabric that's painted
By the evening sky
For you
For you

"Fire Choir"

Burn fire in my lungs
The gasoline I've sung
Is long overdue to all-consume
This flesh and tongue

Don't let me get away
Grant me no fire escape
Neverending all-condeming
Human fate

The heat of your breath
Can melt all of this death
Swallowing in endless seas
Of endless depth

Singing, calling
Out of the ashes falling
Around me all this dead
You're glowing red

That white-hot light
Can show me right
Once was burning turned to yearning
Purified

The cinders settle in the hearth
My heart is still so far
From ever changing, ever-changing shades of dark
But burn me down to the foundation
If burning is what it takes to stand apart

"Church History"

We all have a history of hurts
Broken bonds of brotherhood
And what's worse
Is we were promised penitence
And left there in a hearse
Better off not going in the first

Standing, sitting
Kneeling, singing hymns
Praying, staying
In the same place that we've been
Standing, sitting
Kneeling, singing hymns
Has it ever been for Him?

We all have a history with church
Either seeing or receiving
Face to face or in a blur
And we've heard of the hypocrisies
We've lived them out as well
We've felt hell while skies are winding in reverse

Standing, sitting
Kneeling, singing hymns
Praying, staying
In the same place that we've been
Standing, sitting
Kneeling, singing hymns
Has it ever been for Him?

Our devices desecrate it all
There's no sanctuary
When there's demons in the walls
So lift your hands
And cleanse your palms
From the past
And every pastor who was false
The Good Shepherd knows your heart