Stanley Simpson

Make Me a Servant

The next song for my Blog is a song that was written in 1982 by Kelly Willard. A link to the Maranatha Singers performing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry.

Make Me a Servant

Make me a servant,
Humble and meek,
Lord, let me lift up those who are weak,
And may the prayer of my heart always be
Make me a servant,
Make me a servant,
Make me a servant, today

This is basically a simple chorus, but I believe the words of this song get lost in today’s world, even in our churches. It seems as if every time I turn on the TV, go to the internet, or go to social media; I am overwhelmed with the news of athletes and entertainers seeking more money than they will ever need or politicians fighting for personal gain instead of truly supporting the needs of the country. I hear of people who do whatever it takes to become the best, or perhaps spend their entire lives focusing on the next higher position in their job. I suppose it all boils down to, it is the “all about me” attitude. Don’t get me wrong, I think everyone should always do the best they can and that we should do what is necessary to support our families, our friends, and others that have needs.

The question I have for you today is, are you a servant, or are you the one who has to always be in control of everything? Being a servant of God basically means you are willing to do whatever he asks of you. It is always putting others first instead of yourself. In Philippians 2:6-8, we find out how Jesus was a servant for us, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death even death on a cross.”

Just imagine, the very son of God became a man and became a servant to all of us. He carried the power of his father, but he willingly gave up everything for us. He obeyed his father because of his love for him and for us. Jesus came to earth to save us, to meet our needs, heal our sickness, give us hope, encourage us, to let us know we are never alone, to be a leader for us, and the list goes on. He wants us to do the same thing for others in need. We need to be meek, mild, respectful, humble, and encouraging to others. He expects us to be there for others as they need help; to take off the “me” hat and put others first. Many believe meek to mean someone who can be taken advantage of or run over, but it incorporates the attributes mentioned above as well as teachable, patient under suffering, and willing to share the gospel as directed by Christ. This doesn’t mean we are weak or unwilling to fight for what is right, it merely means we have the desire to do what God has told us to do in his word. The song spells out the qualities of a servant and also asks that God make us a servant. Perhaps the greatest thing we can ever become is a true servant to God and others. As a servant, we lift up others and make them strong

We find another example of Jesus being a servant in John 13:12-17, these are the verses that Jesus delivers his message of being a servant after he washes the feet of his disciples, When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”

In the above scripture, we are shown that we can be both a leader and a servant. The key attribute of the leader Jesus describes is that the leader leads based on the needs of the followers and not to be in the role for self-edification, power, or control. The best leader is going to be one who has the qualities of a servant and who wants to lead others based on direction from God. Imagine the King of Kings on his hands and knees washing your filthy feet that have been in sandals walking on dirt streets all day. Yet he did this cleansing without complaint and to show that even he was not too good to be the servant that God expects all of us to be.

Have you ever asked God to make you a servant and meant it with all of your heart?

Click to Hear Kelly Willard and The Maranatha Singers Perform Make Me a Servant

This is Amazing Grace

The next song for my Blog was written by Jeremy Riddle, Josh Farro, and Phil Wickham and first released in 2013. A link to Phil Wickham performing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry.

This Is Amazing Grace

Who breaks the power of sin and darkness
Whose love is mighty and so much stronger
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Who shakes the whole earth with holy thunder
And leaves us breathless in awe and wonder
The King of Glory, the King above all kings

This is amazing grace
This is unfailing love
That You would take my place
That You would bear my cross
You lay down Your life
That I would be set free
Oh, Jesus, I sing for
All that You’ve done for me

Who brings our chaos back into order
Who makes the orphan a son and daughter
The King of Glory, the King of Glory
Who rules the nations with truth and justice
Shines like the sun in all of its brilliance
The King of Glory, the King above all kings

Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy, worthy, worthy

Have you ever had the power go out in your home and end up in a room that is just pitch black? I sometimes think this is what our world would look like if we could see the darkness created by all of us sinners. It is awesome to know that our God, alone, is the only one who can overcome this darkness and squelch the grip that sin has over us. He loves us so much that he refused to let us stay in this darkness and he brought the light to us through his son. His love for us brought a light so bright that the darkness in our lives disappeared once we accepted God’s gift. There have been many many kings during the time the earth has been around and many of them were powerful and ruled large portions of the world, but our king is the king of all kings since he has the power to rule the entire planet and overcome every obstacle/temptation Satan puts in front of us. Our God is the King of Glory, meaning he alone is worthy of our praise; there is no other person or being who deserves this honor and distinction.

I like how the song refers to the power of God through thunder. A lot of times we may be having a major thunder storm and some of the thunder seems to shake the house. This shows the power of God and his unseen hand and how our strength pales in comparison to his. Not only do we see the power of storms, we also see the incredible beauty of sunrises and sunsets that leaves us in awe of everything God does. He wants us to understand his love, his power, and enjoy the majesty of all of his creations. I can’t even imagine how beautiful heaven must be, but I am sure it will even more amazing than the most incredible sunsets and sunrises we have ever seen.

He made getting to heaven easy for us since he forgave us of all of our wrongs. His gift of eternal life through grace is something we never could have earned. His grace is an amazing gift that allows us to spend eternity with him. He has never left us and he has always loved us, no matter how we treated him or how often we ignored him. God was even willing to send his only son to die for us just so we could spend eternity with him. He didn’t ask us to die on the cross for our own sins and he didn’t tell us we are not good enough. He had his only son take our place. Take some time just to think about the depth of God’s love for us. All of this happened so we could be set free of sin, become children of God, and know that he has already prepared our eternal homes for us. This is definitely something to talk about, sing about, and share with others so they can have this same promise.

Part of the challenge of every day is just getting our arms around everything we need to do, and this is seldom easy to do. So many things pop up that just turn our plans for the day upside down. Only God can give us the peace we need and help turn our daily chaos into order. Through prayer and leaning on him, we can make it through each day as we let him guide us. I know it is hard to let go and let God lead, but that is the only path through the challenges and darkness we face.

So many times we feel alone and perhaps even unloved or unwanted. Maybe we don’t have any family around anymore, perhaps no close friends who are like family, maybe we don’t have a significant other, or maybe we truly are an orphan. The good news is that God loves us as his children and we are therefore, never unloved at any time nor are we ever an orphan. 1 Corinthians 6:18 tells us we are part of the family of God, “And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the Lord Almighty.” Each of us has become part of the family of God. Our God and father watches over us, meets all of our needs, and rules the world with absolute truth and justice. It is true that Satan is here and tries to control every aspect of this world, but he is only here because our father allowed him to be here. Satan is still under the control of God our father and the day will come when Satan is locked away. It is awesome knowing that God loves us unconditionally and that he has accepted us as his children. We can never be separated from his love. Romans 8:38-39 confirms this, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

We are not worthy of his love, but his worth to us is more than we can even imagine. He is worthy because he sent his son to die for us instead of us having to pay the price for our own sins and he is worthy because he let his son rise from the dead to come back to heaven and prepare a home for us.

We are free because of God’s gift of amazing grace. We will all be singing about his amazing grace.

Click to Hear This is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham

Who You Say I Am

The next song for my Blog was written by Ben Fielding and Rueben Morgan and released in 2018. A link to Hillsong singing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry.

Who You Say I Am

Who am I that the highest King
Would welcome me
I was lost but He brought me in
Oh His love for me
Oh His love for me

Who the Son sets free
Oh is free indeed
I’m a child of God
Yes I am

Free at last
He has ransomed me
His grace runs deep
While I was a slave to sin
Jesus died for me
Yes He died for me

Who the Son sets free
Oh is free indeed
I’m a child of God
Yes I am
In my Father’s house
There’s a place for me
I’m a child of God
Yes I am

I am chosen
Not forsaken
I am who You say I am
You are for me
Not against me
I am who You say I am

I think all of us have been in a situation where we feel as if we do not belong. We have such feelings as we are under dressed, over dressed, not good enough, not of the right social class, or just a general feeling that we shouldn’t be wherever we are. Imagine, that despite who we were, who we are, or where we come from; we are always welcome to be with the greatest king of all; our God. He doesn’t care about our past, but only who we have become. We are welcome in his kingdom at any time. When we were lost and wondering what the future held for us and sometimes were lost in the quagmire of life, he invited us, through his son, to join him for eternity. The only thing our king asked was that we accept his only son as our lord and savior. We can’t even begin to understand the depth of his love for us or even why he should believe we are even worthy of his love.

We have been set free of all of our transgressions, our mistakes, and our lack of obedience to God, all because the Son of God died on the cross so that all of these sins would simply disappear. The really good news is that everything we have done wrong and will do wrong, is eternally dismissed; we are truly free of our past. For sure we will have memories and scars from our past, but God wants us to look to him and to the future and to not dwell on the past since we are finally absolved of all guilt. We have become a child of God, yes we are! John 8:34-36 delivers this message to us: Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Whether you accepted Christ as a child or as an adult, you became free for the first time in your life with a guarantee that you are free for eternity. Christ paid the debt, just like the old hymn Jesus Paid it All tells us;
‘Cause Jesus paid it all
All to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
The ransom/debt was paid in full so we could be completely free. It is by his grace, which means that God loves us even though we don’t deserve it. Sin owns us throughout our life until we decide to become a child of God. Jesus died for me and for all of us, and through his death; sin and Satan lost their power over us. I can honestly say that Christ died for me and you can say he died for you, isn’t it amazing that we can have a personal relationship with the son of God? Each of us can claim him as our own, just he claims each of us as his own. We are told in John 14:2 that when Jesus returned to heaven that he was preparing our eternal home for us, In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. So not only has God promised an eternity with him, he has already prepared our new homes in heaven. We may ask, who does this type of thing? The only answer is the King of everything.

We, who have accepted his son, are his chosen people. He could have easily walked away from us because of the way we have turned our backs on him, but he refused to forsake us, He promised us eternity and that he would never leave us. Yes, I am a child of God, I am who you say I am!!

Click to Hear Hillsong Perform Who You Say I Am

As the Deer Panteth for the Water

This hymn was written by Martin J Nystrom in 1984 and is based on Psalm 42:1. A link to Hillsong performing the song is at the end of this blog entry.

As the Deer Panteth for the Water, So My Soul

As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after Thee
You alone are my heart’s desire
And I long to worship Thee

You alone are my strength my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart’s desire
And I long to worship Thee

You’re my friend
And You are my brother
Even though You are a King
I love You more than any other
So much more than anything

Chorus

I want You more than gold
Or silver
Only You can satisfy
You alone are the real joygiver
And the apple of my eye

Chorus

Have you ever been really thirsty or hungry? Perhaps your thirst/hunger is a longing for something you are missing in your life. Whether the emptiness is due to a physical need or an emotional need, we are constantly struggling to feel well and whole again. This song starts out referring to a deer that is actually panting for water, its life is truly in danger; without finding water, it’s life may soon be over.

Some of us may have been starving before or maybe almost dying from thirst; but most of us have probably never come close to physically dying of thirst or starvation. There are times when although our life supporting needs are met, we still have an emptiness that seems to gnaw at us. We know something is missing, but no matter where we turn; we can’t find peace. I believe this is a time where we have wandered away from God and the holy spirit within us is trying to bring us back to that comfort that only God can give us. Our soul is reminding us that our one desire should be our relationship with the father, this is more important than anything this world of Satan can offer us. Matthew 16:26 reminds us of what is most important, And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Just as the song tells us, just as the deer needs the water to survive, we need the relationship with Christ to survive. Though the water will only keep the deer alive for its allotted number of years, our relationship with Christ will give us eternal life. Our time should be spent seeking and worshipping God and making that the mission of our heart.

Though we are not worthy of being in the presence of Christ, he is still our friend, a family member, and a confidant. He is a king who has accepted us as being just like him in that we are all the children of God. He loves us just like we love our families and friends. We should return his love with all of our heart, our soul, and all of our being. He gave his life for us so we could spend eternity with him, the least we could do is give him all of our love and all of our attention and seek his will every day of our lives. What in your life is more important than Christ and what benefit does it give you over and above what Christ has committed to us?

It is true that we want nice things in our lives and most of those things require money. We work hard to not only support our family, but to also have enough money to enjoy life. Sometimes this causes us to get so focused on our jobs and our wants that we forget what is most important. There is nothing more important than having Christ in our lives. We may ask, but how do I provide for my family if I am not working hard at my job? Christ doesn’t tell us that we shouldn’t work, he is simply saying that we should not be focused on how much we make, that he will make sure we have what we need. It is challenging to have that much faith in Christ meeting our every need; but we must seek his guidance on every need we have; including financial.
We see God’s promise of meeting our needs in Matthew 6:25-34, 25 Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment? 26 Behold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit unto [a]the measure of his life? 28 And why are ye anxious concerning raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God doth so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Be not therefore anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 For after all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Be not therefore anxious for the morrow: for the morrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

It is only after we hand everything over to Christ that we can experience true joy and freedom. The song says he should be the apple of our eye, in other words; the person/thing we cherish about all else. He alone is our strength, our shield, our constant source of joy, and the only one who can give us eternal life.

What is your heart’s desire?

Click to Hear Hillsong Perform as the Deer

Fill My Cup Lord

This next song was written by Richard Blanchard and released in 1964. A link to CRC performing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry.

Fill My Cup Lord

Like the woman at the well I was seeking
For things that could not satisfy:
And then I heard my Savior speaking:
Draw from my well that never shall run dry

Fill my cup Lord, I lift it up, Lord!
Come and quench this thirsting of my soul;
Bread of heaven, Feed me till I want no more–
Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole

So, my brother, if the things this world gave you
Leave hungers that won’t pass away,
My blessed Lord will come and save you,
If you kneel to Him and humbly pray

Fill my cup Lord, I lift it up, Lord!
Come and quench this thirsting of my soul;
Bread of heaven, Feed me till I want no more–
Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole

What makes you happy? Maybe it is a relationship, an awesome vacation, a new car, a new house, a baby? When you do obtain what makes you happy, how long does the happiness last? As the happiness starts to wane, we typically start looking for the next fad for happiness. I believe the above is the cycle for most people. Basically we have difficulty settling in with what we have and who we are and we therefore spend a life in pursuit of happiness. This becomes an ongoing activity throughout our lives.

We are very much like the woman at the well described in John 4:4-42. I am only extracting verses 13-15 for purposes of this entry, but encourage you to look at the entire passage: Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” Everyday this woman comes to the well to get fresh water because she is thirsty and needs this water to meet her everyday needs. Jesus was obviously speaking from a spiritual perspective and she was initially thinking from a physical perspective.

As the life of the woman unfolded, I believe she is somewhat like all of us in that she could never find true permanent happiness. Jesus is the only one who can give that happiness and it is a joy that is in the soul. The soul is eternal, therefore isn’t it better to focus on eternal joy as opposed to temporary joy? Jesus is the only one who can bring this type of joy, the joy that only comes with a cup that is always overflowing with his love and promise of eternity. Yes, it is great to have that new home, that new car, a wonderful vacation and I hope you have them all; but these things only help us to live for the moment. As we lift up our cup and give our lives to Christ, we experience joy and peace as we have never known and our cup will always be running over.

We will go through life wanting excitement, new things, and fun and this is ok; but is it enough? The world will bring us a lot of good things and a lot of bad and we will sort of be living on a rollercoaster as we look for that one thing that brings us joy. The only way to get the real peace and joy is to give ourselves completely to Christ. We each need to fall on our knees and ask him to come into our hearts and dictate our lives instead of us being in the driver’s seat. Once we do this, we can have that permanent peace inside of us. It is true that we will still enjoy things in our lives, but we will also realize that the only permanent joy comes from Christ and dwells within us at all times. The good news is we can also start getting the joy of sharing this love with others, just as Jesus did with the woman at the well. We can become a blessing to others while living the life Christ expects of us while enjoying the things he puts before us each day.

How will your cup be filled and who or what will be the one filling it?

Click to Hear Fill My Cup Lord

Shout to the Lord

This next song was written by Darlene Zschech in 1983. It was first released in 1994 by Hillsong Worship. A link to Hillsong performing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry.

Shout to the Lord

My Jesus, my Savior
Lord there is none like You
All of my days I want to praise
The wonders of Your mighty love

My comfort, my shelter
Tower of refuge and strength
Let every breath, all that I am
Never cease to worship You

Shout to the Lord all the Earth, let us sing
Power and majesty, praise to the King
Mountains bow down and the seas will roar
At the sound of Your name

I sing for joy at the work of Your hand
Forever I’ll love You, forever I’ll stand
Nothing compares to the promise I have
In You

My Jesus, my Savior
Lord there is none like You
All of my days I want to praise
The wonders of Your mighty love

You’re my comfort
And my shelter
You’re my tower of refuge and strength
Let every breath, all that I am
Never cease…

Most if not all of the people reading this Blog have probably heard of Jesus, know a lot about Jesus, and have maybe even come to know Jesus in your heart. The beginning of this song puts the love of Jesus into a better perspective. He is not just the son of God and the one who died for our sins, he is a personal savior for each of us. All of us can have a personal relationship with Jesus. When we accept him as Lord and savior, he becomes your Jesus; the one person who really knows your heart. Each of us can say ‘My Jesus’ and not be selfish. John 10:14-15 reminds us of how the shepherd knows his sheep and Jesus says, I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. Jesus should be thought of not just as the son of God, but a personal savior and the closest friend we could ever have. Why wouldn’t we want to sing our praises to him as long as we live? There is no greater love and no greater friend than Jesus our savior.

Not only has he prepared a place for us in heaven by giving his life for us, he is the only person who we confess to and not be judged for our mistakes. He died for those mistakes, but is always there to let us fully open our hearts to him. His door is always open to us to give us the comfort we need in times of trials and suffering; as well as being the strength we need to overcome whatever the world throws at us. Because of what Christ does for us and has done for us, we should worship him with everything we have and fall on our knees before him. Some seem to believe they only need to do this on the day(s) they go to church, but isn’t he worth much more than this?

All of us should carry the message of Jesus to the world. The world can be your home, your neighborhood, your town, your country, or all of the globe. Note that the song says shout to the Lord. I believe this means to speak openly and not be ashamed of the message of Christ. There is no greater power than God and all of creation is the work of his hands alone. There would be no mountains without him, no powerful and beautiful seas, and no gorgeous sunsets.

The song references many times that we should sing the praises. Perhaps this is because we are more likely to sing from the heart and talk from the head. I also believe that even though we may not memorize scripture as we should, we may know a lot of songs that share the message of Christ. It is true that many of us can hardly carry a tune, but God is hearing what is coming from our heart, not the sound coming from our throats. Our songs should be songs of joy, praise, and thankfulness since no one or no thing can even come close to matching the promise of eternal life.

Click to See Hillsong Perform Shout to the Lord

No Matter What You’ve Done

This next song was written by Ryan Stevenson, Bryan Fowler, and Jonathan Smith. It was first released in 2018. A link to Ryan Stevenson performing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry. Bart Millard of Mercy Me is on background vocals.

No Matter What

A lot of us grew up believing
At any moment we could lose it all
And at the drop of a hat
God might turn His back and move on
A lot of us feel like we blew it
Thinking that we’re just too far gone
But I want you to know
There’s still a hope for you now

No matter what you’ve done
You can’t erase His love
Nothing can change it
You’re not separated
No matter what

There’s never been a better time to get honest
There’s never been a better time to get clean
So come as you are
Run to the cross and be free
Oh, be free

No matter what you’ve done
You can’t erase His love
Nothing can change it
You’re not separated
No matter where you run
He’s always holding on
You’re still a daughter, you’re still a son
No matter what

I don’t know what you’ve been taught
Don’t know what you’ve been told
All I know is my God
Will never let go of you, no
And I don’t know what you’ve seen
Don’t know what you’ve been through
All I know is my God
Will never let go of you
He’ll never let go!
He’ll never, never, never let you go

You’re still a daughter, you’re still a son!
No matter what

As children and perhaps in our adult years, many of us may believe or have believed that if we were not good enough, we would not go to heaven. We have always heard that all of the bad people go to hell and good people go to heaven. This could create a lot of anxiety for us and I know that I did something bad every day of my life. Some wonder if the bad things they did could keep them from heaven. One could also wonder if there are maybe degrees of bad and that some bad acts might still allow us to barely make it through the pearly gates and others would find out they would not make it in at all. Just how much tolerance does God have for us and at what point have we missed the opportunity to spend eternity with him. How many excuses does he allow from us? There are many people who give up on God and many do so because they believe he has given up on them. The good news is there is still hope for everyone.

John 3:16 tells us: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. This verse is essentially telling us that God was willing to send his only son to die for us so we could still come to heaven. God knows we are not perfect and that each of us has done bad things in our lives, all he asks of us is that we accept Jesus as our Lord and savior and we are guaranteed to spend eternity with him. In addition to this verse, we are told in Ephesians 2:8, For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. With these two promises, we are told it is never too late to turn to Jesus and it doesn’t matter what we have done. Isn’t this an awesome opportunity for each of us? We have the promise of eternal life with Jesus if we only accept and believe in him as our savior. Once we do this, all of our sins are forgiven and erased forever; God will never turn his back on us.

It is always difficult to admit the mistakes we have made; we are worried about what others will think about us. If God is forgiving us for everything we have done, don’t you think it would be a great feeling of relief to just confess all of the bad things we have done in our lives to him? He already knows everything we have done, but by confessing; we become free of the burden of carrying those mistakes. The mistakes, or sins, died on the cross with Jesus; so, turn now to God and completely open your hearts to him. Feel the love and the freedom that only he has the power to give. Think about how great it would feel to be truly free, and the fact that you will never be separated from God again. The battles ahead and the regrets of the past will still be there, but now you can know you are not alone and that your future home is there waiting for you. We become his sons and his daughters for eternity. Wow!

We have all had different experiences in our lives and we have been taught many different things through our interactions with others. We come from different backgrounds and have walked different paths, but the one thing we have in common is that we have a God who loves us, is committed to us, and will never ever let us go once we have given ourselves to him. His love for us will never change even though we will continue to change every day of our lives. He will be with us on every path we take for the remainder of our days. We will always be his sons and daughters.

No matter where you stand in your relationship with God, it is never to late to turn to him and accept his unfailing love and his forgiveness.

Click to Hear Ryan Stevenson Sing No Matter What You’ve Done

He’s Everything to Me

The next entry for my Blog is He’s Everything to Me, written in 1964, and started appearing in some hymnals in the early 1970s. The original lyrics were written by Ralph Carmichael. There is a link to the song at the bottom of the Blog.

He’s Everything to Me

In the stars His handiwork I see,
On the wind He speaks with majesty,
Though He ruleth over land and sea,
What is that to me?
I will celebrate Nativity,
For it has a place in history,
Sure, He came to set His people free,
What is that to me?

Till by faith I met Him face to face,
and I felt the wonder of His grace,
Then I knew that He was more than just a
God who didn’t care,
That lived a way out there and

Now He walks beside me day by day,
Ever watching o’er me lest I stray,
Helping me to find the narrow way,
He’s Everything to me.

One thing a lot of us miss seeing are the beautiful bright stars in a dark night sky. In our towns and cities, it is often difficult to see anything in the sky because of all of the street lights, neon signs, lights on billboards, and basically anything that has lights clouds our vision of the sky. Have you ever been out at night in the open countryside or open sea and just looked up and saw all of the twinkling stars just light up the sky? Maybe you see the Little Dipper, Big Dipper, Orion’s belt, or some other constellation, but most of us probably just enjoy the view. What we are seeing is just another masterpiece created by God.

Many of us may have experienced tornadoes, hurricanes, or very strong gusty winds. We may get anxious or scared on these days, start looking for somewhere to hide, and wonder why God even allows this to happen. I am not sure of the purpose for these heavy winds, but the bible tells us about a mighty wind that scared the followers of Jesus. In Acts 2:2 we are told: Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. In looking at this passage we almost feel the power and majesty of God as he fills each person there with the Holy Spirit. He got their attention with the sound of the mighty wind and then filled them with his love and our comforter and his message.

We also know that God rules over both the land and the sea, but for others there is an attitude of so what; someone or something has to do it, or maybe a series of gods do it via their own magical powers. Many people just shrug their shoulders, and ask, how does this impact me and why do I care? People carry on with their lives without focusing too much on God’s power and love. Perhaps most of these same people celebrate Christmas and hear the message of God’s son, but do it out of obligation since that is what thers have done seemingly forever. These same people may even show up for an Easter service and hear the message about Jesus dying on the cross just so we could all have eternal life, but then shift their attention and focus to candy, eggs, and a special meal. The real question everyone should be asking about all of these things is, what does all of this really mean to me.

We may hear the message of Christ in church, we may hear the message from friends, and we may hear a lot of criticism of the message via the media and people who really don’t want to hear the message. The day that we stop and listen and internalize the message is the day we understand what the message means to us. This is the day we realize who God is and what he has really done for us. It is the time we understand the real meanings of mercy and grace and how Jesus sacrificed his all to give us all we need to spend eternity with him. We finally comprehend that God is not just out there, he is here with us, and in us.

Jesus came to walk among us when he came to the earth. He wanted people to realize that he truly understands what their lives are all about and to also realize what he was going to do for them and everyone from that day forward when he died on the cross. He left us with the Holy Spirit, who is a part of him, to walk with us every day and everywhere we go. So, he really is walking with us day by day. As we veer from the path God has chosen for us, the Holy Spirit is there to remind us that we have gotten off the chosen path and into the weeds. We have to walk a narrow path through the darkness of the world, but we are never alone.

Yes, he is everything to me.

Click to Hear He’s Everything to Me

Here I Am To Worship

The next entry for my Blog is Here I Am To Worship and was first released in 2001. The original lyrics were written by Tim Hughes. A link to Chris Tomlin performing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Here I Am to Worship

Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes, let me see
Beauty that made this heart adore You
Hope of a life spent with You

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You’re my God

You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

King of all days
Oh so highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above
Humbly You came to the earth You created
All for love’s sake became poor

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You’re my God

You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

Well, I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Have you ever stopped for a while and just thought about all of the things going on around you, across the country, and around the world? It is sort of scary living in a world that puts “ME” first. It is almost as if people are shifting from a focus on family and others to an “It’s all about me” mentality. The more we adopt this philosophy, the farther we get from God, what he wants and expects from us, and the blessings only he can provide; the darker the world becomes. There is no true happiness in a dark world without the light and love of Jesus.

He showed us that light some 2000 years ago, when he humbly set foot on this earth and let us see him, touch him, and feel the light and love that no one else can offer. Jesus gave up the perfect peace of heaven to come to this dark and troubled world. Imagine the shock if you had to give up everything and then sacrifice yourself for those who might even hate you. He came as a simple man and walked in our sinful world and the people did not realize his true power until he arose from the grave and then ascended into heaven. For those who believed then and believe now, we have his love and his promises inside us; we just have to reach out to him for peace. Jesus is the only one who can show us the real beauty of what life can be and how he wanted it to be. He only asks that we accept him as our Lord and Savior and he committed to giving us eternal life. We just have to survive our few short years on earth to live an eternity with him.

With the above two paragraphs in mind, it is obvious that our priorities as a civilization are all out of whack. The chorus of the song basically screams what we need to do. We need to stop living the ways of the world and start worshipping our God again; make him first instead of an afterthought. Our heads should be bowing in worship as we cry out to God for help, guidance, and forgiveness. He is the only one who is worthy of our worship and he is the only one we can depend on every day of our lives. No one else or anything else is worthy of our praise. Philippians 2:9-11 delivers this message to us: Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Do we spend more time focused on the events of the world than on the expectations of God? In other words, who or what is your true god and can that god bring you the happiness you want? The answer is we are all guilty of putting other things/gods before the one God. We eventually lose our hope in the midst of the noise of the world around us and forget about the only God who loves us and can bring us light.

He is the owner and master of every day of our lives, and has been that way since the day he created us. He is the almighty God that rules the universe, he is not limited to just our world. The good news is that he is still in control, we just need to get onboard. Now and forever is the time to worship, to honor his glory and to him above all else. He doesn’t fit in an “It’s all about me” world.

We will never clearly understand the suffering and separation that Christ endured while on the cross; he never wants us to endure what he did and that is why he paid the price. Where is your focus today, is it where it should be? How long has it been since you have broken down in prayer while asking for forgiveness or for change in your world? Take time to stop and sing this chorus with feeling and power and I believe you will understand. Now is the time to worship, now is the time to bow down, and now is the time to tell God how much you love him and want to do what he has commanded.

Click to Hear Chris Tomlin Perform Here I am to Worship.

The Power of Your Love

The next entry for my Blog is The Power of Your Love by Hillsong and first released in 1992. The original lyrics were written by Geoff Bullock. A link to Hillsong performing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

The Power of Your Love

Lord I come to You
Let my heart be changed, renewed
Flowing from the grace
That I’ve found in You
Lord I’ve come to know
The weaknesses I see in me
Will be stripped away
By the power of Your love

Hold me close
Let Your love surround me
Bring me near
Draw me to Your side
And as I wait
I’ll rise up like the eagle
And I will soar with You
Your Spirit leads me on
In the power of Your love

Lord unveil my eyes
Let me see You face to face
The knowledge of Your love
As You live in me
Lord renew my mind
As Your will unfolds in my life
In living every day
By the power of Your love

Chorus

And I will soar with You
Your Spirit leads me on
In the power of Your love
And I will soar with You
Your Spirit leads me on
In the power of Your love

It seems as if people have been writing books forever on the topic of how to improve their lives. There are videos, books, seminars, and more internet links than you could probably research in a lifetime; and there is probably some merit in all of these. The disappointment comes when, no matter how much we research and learn, we still have a hole in our heart, a gap in our knowledge, and realize we haven’t gotten the answer we needed. Some people look for this silver bullet their entire lives.

The answer we are seeking can only be found in Christ. This song tells us exactly what we need to do to find the answer we seek. The steps we need to take are the ones that take us to the love of Jesus. He alone can change our lives into a life of promises that will come true. He doesn’t work from the outside in but from the inside out. Our hearts become full and change as the love of Jesus indwells us. We are no longer the same and have become new people with a renewed perspective. He takes away our guilt, our heartaches, and our burdens through his grace. His grace is an all-encompassing love that forgives every mistake we have ever made or will make. The great news is he doesn’t ask anything of us but to accept his love and the salvation he is offering. All of our weaknesses are gone, we now have a strength within us that can conquer every challenge and this strength comes from the power of the love of Jesus. It is so hard to understand how he loves us so much, no matter how long we have failed him or rejected him.

All we need to do is fall into the arms of Jesus. He is always standing there with his arms open wide, just waiting for us to come to him. As his arms wrap around us, we feel a love and peace greater than we could have ever imagined. His spirit radiates love and acceptance and has a power that nothing can overwhelm. It is very challenging to put this feeling and experience into words. The writer of this song compares this feeling to soaring like an eagle. An eagle is such a majestic bird that looks so beautiful as it soars effortlessly across the sky. The power of the love of Jesus can take us to a spiritual high and give us a peace that we never thought was possible. Isaiah 40:31 tells us the power that Jesus give us: “but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

As part of opening our heart and our lives to the power of the love of Jesus, we must focus on him and block out all distractions as much as possible. We need to see clearly from our heart through our eyes; we need to see Jesus in the way he wants us to see him. We will see him in others, we will sense his presence, we will feel his love; all of this is a part of truly seeing. When Jesus departed for his home in heaven, he left the Holy Spirit with those who accept him as their personal savior. The Holy Spirit dwells in us and through the spirit, we feel the love of Jesus and know that all the knowledge we need to gain peace is actually deep within us. As we continue to draw closer to Christ, we become more focused on doing his will and living the life he commanded. As Jesus told Peter in John 14:15, “If you love me, keep my commandments.”

Every morning before we crawl out of bed, we need to thank Jesus for the power of his love and the comforter he has left with us. With him by our side, we are now ready to face the day knowing we can overcome anything the world throws at us!

Click to Hear Hillsong Sing The Power of Your Love