Lauren Sparks

The Sparks Notes

I’ve Got Tears in My Ears (and Other Funny Titles)

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I've got tears in my ears, funny country song titles

Monday is Quirky Country Music Song Titles Day!  I promise I’m not making that up.  But I am all about helping you celebrate!

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A couple of years ago I published a pair of posts on misheard song lyrics.  I’m not sure I have laughed that hard since.  So when I saw this obscure “holiday”, I decided some more laughs were in order.  Especially since my Papa often serenaded his daughters with a couple of doozies, the first of which was “I’ve Got Tears in My Ears”! The memories of my silly singing Papa brought me joy.  And you know I’m all about that!

 

So for your reading pleasure (and maybe listening if you choose to go down that rabbit hole),  I present my choices for:

Quirkiest Country Music Songs

 

  1. I’VE GOT TEARS IN MY EARS (FROM LYIN’ ON MY BACK IN MY BED WHILE I CRY OVER YOU) sung by Homer and Jethro.  The first two spots in my list have to go to the ones my Papa sang.
  2. (YOU DUN STOMPED) MY HEART  by John Denver.  How can you not laugh with lyrics like, “You dun stomped on my heart and you mashed that sucker flat. You just sorta stomped on my aorta”?
  3. FLUSHED FROM THE BATHROOM OF YOUR HEART by Johnny Cash.  Was there a push to bring some levity to break-up songs?
  4. IF I DON’T LOVE YOU (GRITS AIN’T GROCERIES) by George Jones.  I guess he loves her!
  5. YOU CAN’T ROLLER SKATE IN A BUFFALO HERD by Roger Miller.  Do yourself a favor and click the link to hear the song and read the list of other things you can’t do!
  6. PROP ME UP BESIDE THE JUKEBOX (IF I DIE) by Joe Diffie.  He doesn’t even want to leave the honky tonk after he’s dead!
  7. I’M GONNA HIRE A WINO TO DECORATE OUR HOME by David Frizzell.  It’s not a break-up song, but it’s still a humorous spin on a sad situation.
  8. HOW COME YOUR DOG DON’T BITE NOBODY BUT ME by Webb Pierce
  9. I KEEP FORGETTIN’ THAT I FORGOT ABOUT YOU by Wynn Stewart.  Sounds like my memory these days!
  10. MAY THE BIRD OF PARADISE (FLY UP YOUR NOSE) by “Little” Jimmy Dickens.  If you don’t know this song then you don’t know how to creatively curse someone.
  11. THE MISSISSIPPI SQUIRREL REVIVAL by Ray Stevens.  All you need to know is that this squirrel went berserk!
  12. ME NEITHER by Brad Paisley.  Mr. Paisley has written and sung many funny songs.  But this older one is my favorite.  The title itself may not be that funny, but this picture of a rejected guy and his dignity makes me giggle every time.

 

Your Turn

Well, that’s my list!  Do you have a favorite silly song? One that’s sillier than “I’ve Got Tears in My Ears”?  If so, let us know in the comments and we can keep the laughs going.

 

And now for this week’s featured post from the link up.

 

Even though I practice the discipline of biblical fasting, I learned a lot from Donna’s Nurture Humility Through Alternative Fasting Tips.  I pray you do as well!

 

The Link Up

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LAUREN SPARKS
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LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
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TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

 Now Let’s Link Up!

 

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If you liked this post, then do me the huge honor of using the buttons below to share it to your favorite social media accounts. Also, if you want to get these essays emailed to you once a week, subscribe!  Lastly, my posts may contain affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy anything from one of these links, I will receive a few pennies to help offset the cost of this website at no additional charge to you. So thank you in advance for your help.

Verse Mapping Joy!

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Last month I shared with you the 13 verses on joy that I am attempting to memorize/focus on this year.  (Joy is my word for 2023.)  I am also verse mapping all 13 verses to help me continue to engage my word, and to bring deeper understanding or new insight into the scriptures.

 

I wrote about verse mapping a couple of years ago when I reviewed Kristy Cambron’s NIV Verse Mapping Bible and Verse Mapping Bible Study Journal.  The journal, in particular, is an extremely helpful tool for me to dig deeper into verses or passages of scripture.  So I decided to share my map for one of my “joy” scriptures and explain the processes so that you can verse map too, whether you buy the journal or not.

 

First of all, I’m going to share pictures of my journal pages so you can see what it looks like.  But because I don’t expect you to read my messy, yet colorful scribble, I’ll break it down for you as well.

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Step One

 

Look up and record the verse or passage in multiple translations.  I usually aim for four different ones, and not necessarily the same ones every time.  Biblegateway.org is a quick and easy way to pick out some different versions.  Then note (underline, circle, box, whatever) the key phrases or words that are consistent across translations.  I chose to mark these in different colors.  And I have actually combined step one and step two for my purposes.  No one says I have to follow the instructions exactly!

 

On this day I analyzed Psalm 5:11 “But rejoice, all who take refuge in You, sing for joy forever!  And may You shelter them, that those who love your name may rejoice in You.”  

 

Step Two

 

Look up the Hebrew (for Old Testament) or Greek (for New Testament) meaning for the underlined words or phrases.  My favorite tool for this is Blue Letter Bible.  You can access it via the link I shared on desk top or by the app.  I don’t write down every single possible definition.  I would quickly run out of paper.  Instead, I look for the most appropriate or sometimes the most surprising meanings for the verse.  Then I go through and underline the possible meanings that are interesting (read different) to me.

 

For “rejoice/ be glad” I underlined the phrase “to brighten up”.  For “who take refuge”, the idea of putting trust in God or “to confide in” stood out to me.  And one of the meanings of “sing for joy” was “to creak”!  Now that I can relate to.  “May you shelter” took on new meaning with “defendest” and “shut up”.  “Your name” can be translated “renown, fame, or reputation”.  And finally, I love the picture of triumph and jumping for joy when we “rejoice/exult”.  

 

Step Three

 

Look at the verse or passage in context.  What is happening in the story?  I sometimes use a commentary in addition to reading the passage.  Straight from my page I wrote:  A flute accompanied Psalm of David and prayer for protection from the wicked.  An imprecatory Psalm (a spoken curse).  David was in the wilderness when Absalom’s forces sought to destroy him.  

 

Step 4

 

Applying what I’ve learned.  For this I have chosen to rewrite the passage using some of the alternate words or phrases found in the original language definitions.  I feel this gives me a fresh perspective and, at times, deeper insight into the verses.

 

We can be glad glad (I almost forgot to mention that the “But” and “rejoice” at the beginning of the verse come from the same Hebrew word.  That’s double emphasis!) when we put our trust and confidence in You.  You brighten up our lives.  I am overcome by You and sing for joy, which sounds like creaks in my case.  You defend us and shut up our enemies.  We jump for joy at your renown and glory.  

 

There are many, many ways to study the bible.  Verse mapping is a method I’m enjoying right now.  I hope you found this helpful or at least interesting!  If you decide to give it a try, I would love to hear how it went for you.  And if you have a study method that is giving you life right now, share it in the comments with us.

 

And now for this week’s featured post from the link up!

 

I couldn’t choose just one post this week, so I’m breaking the rules.  I love poetry and was so charmed by Lory’s Advent/Lent:  A Poem.  And I loved Grace and Truth’s own Maree Dee’s The Best Thing to Do When Life is Difficult.  She gave us a strategy that you won’t want to miss.  I’m adopting it immediately.

The Link Up

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LAUREN SPARKS
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

 Now Let’s Link Up!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

If you liked this post, do me the huge honor of using the buttons below to share it to your favorite social media accounts. And if you want to get these essays emailed to you once a week, subscribe!  Lastly, my posts may contain affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy anything from one of these links, I will receive a few pennies to help offset the cost of this website at no additional charge to you. Thank you in advance for your help.

 

 

Grace Upon Grace

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“For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my iniquity, for it is great.”  Psalm 25:11 NASB

 

Have you ever felt like your sin was so huge and hideous that God could not easily forget it?  King David did.  He’s one of my favorite personalities in the Bible.  So full of fervor and triumph and failures and foibles.  Just like me.  In Psalm 25, he praises God and asks for His forgiveness in the same breath.  David says that his sin is “great” and feels the guilt and remorse of his actions.  Yet, in the very next chapter, David prays, “Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have led a blameless life; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.”  He asks God to test him and says, “I walk continually in your truth.” and “I wash my hands in innocence.”

 

Has David forgotten his “great” sin?  No.  David is not claiming perfection, but rather that he has sincerity of purpose and single-hearted devotion.  He had a good understanding of God’s nature and the grace and forgiveness he affords His children.  Because of that forgiveness, we can go boldly and confidently before the Lord (no matter what we’ve done), just as David did – who was an adulterer and murderer by the way.

 

Upon Grace

 

In the book Why Do Mullets Jump?:  And Other Puzzles and Possibilities of God’s Creation, Gene Zimmerman describes this attribute of God.  “…most of us are poorly equipped for perfection.  We come closer to understanding ourselves when we can see and accept some of our human limitations.  This isn’t an invitation to pass off every failure by claiming imperfection or to avoid trying; but rather it is advice that we need to accept some imperfection and acknowledge that we can’t do it all right all the time.  The encouraging thing about this reality is that God loves us and meets us at these places of imperfection with grace and strength.”

 

There is a difference between accepting that we will sin and choosing to pitch our tent in the middle of sin and live there. “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase?  Far from it! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” Romans 6:1-2  NASB 

The good news?  Grace doesn’t just cover our past mistakes.  It also keeps us from stepping into new ones, if we let it. 

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“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously, and in a godly manner in the present age,”  Titus 2:11-12 NASB   I don’t think good news describes this appropriately.  This is great news! (John 1:16)

 

And now for this week’s featured post from the link up!

 

As I am observing lent myself, Thoughts on Lent from instaencouragements.com was so informative and beneficial to me.  Thank you, Elisabeth!

 

The Link Up

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LAUREN SPARKS
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

 Now Let’s Link Up!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

If you liked this post, do me the huge honor of using the buttons below to share it to your favorite social media accounts. And if you want to get these essays emailed to you once a week, subscribe!  Lastly, my posts may contain affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy anything from one of these links, I will receive a few pennies to help offset the cost of this website at no additional charge to you. Thank you in advance for your help.

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