Category: His Eye is on the Sparrow

Lion and the Lamb

The next entry for my Blog is Lion and the Lamb, which was written by Brenton Brown, Brian Mark Johnson, and Leeland Mooring.  It was first released March 25, 2016.  A link to Leeland Mooring singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Lion and the Lamb

He’s coming on the clouds

He’s coming on the clouds
Kings and kingdoms will bow down
And every chain will break
As broken hearts declare His praise
For who can stop the Lord Almighty

And our God is the lion
The Lion of Judah
He’s roaring with power
And fighting our battles
And every knee will bow before Him
Our God is the lamb
The lamb that was slain
For the sins of the world
His blood breaks the chains
And every knee will bow before the lion and the lamb
Every knee will bow before Him (yeah)

So, open up the gates

So, open up the gates
Make way before the King of Kings
The God who comes to save
Is here to set the captives free
For who can stop the Lord Almighty

Our God is the lion
The Lion of Judah
He’s roaring with power
And fighting our battles
And every knee will bow before Him
Our God is the lamb
The lamb that was slain
For the sin of the world
His blood breaks the chains
And every knee will bow before the lion and the lamb
Every knee will bow before Him

“How many here believe
Every knee will bow
Every tongue will confess
And then”

For who can stop the Lord Almighty
Who can stop the Lord Almighty
Who can stop the Lord Almighty
No one
Who can stop
Sing it over the battle

“Yeah, that’s it”

Who can stop the Lord Almighty
There is no one
Who can stop the Lord Almighty
Who can stop the Lord (yeah)

And our God is the lion
The Lion of Judah
He’s roaring with power
And fighting our battles
And every knee will bow before Him
Our God is the lamb
The lamb that was slain
For the sins of the world
His blood breaks the chains
And every knee will bow before the lion and the lamb
Every knee will bow before Him (yeah)

Every knee will bow
Tongue confess

Take a quick second to imagine hearing the sounds of rapidly forming throngs of people suddenly gathering outside where you are and the emergency alert system going off on your phone, your TV, and your radio.  You, like everyone else, run to your window or go outside to see what is causing this disturbance.  As you start looking around, you see everyone pointing their fingers into the sky.  Many are taking pictures and videos as quickly as they can.  You look up and immediately start falling to your knees as you quickly realize the son of God is descending from the sky.  The bible tells us in Revelation1:7, “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all peoples on earth will mourn because of him.  So shall it be! Amen.”  For those of us who have already accepted Christ as our personal savior, we will immediately be taken into heaven to begin our eternal life with God the father.  Those who have not accepted Jesus as their personal savior, will remain on earth regardless of who they are and the titles they hold.  All will bow down before him as he returns, some in awe, some in respect, and some in fear.  The poor, the rich, as well as world leaders will all bow down to the king of all kings.  The world, for those left behind, will be changed forever.  I can’t even begin to imagine how many people will be taken up with Christ and the impact on the entire world for those who are left behind.

Jesus, also known as the Lion of Judah in the bible, has come back with all of his power and glory.  Up until that time, people mostly remember Jesus hanging on the cross, or perhaps coming out of the tomb in sort of a quiet way.  While on the cross, Jesus was the sacrificial lamb, he was giving his life for us so that we could have eternal life.  Because of him, all of our sins had been forgiven as long as we accepted him as our sacrifice.  He has always been known as the son of God, but a lot of people really don’t think about the power he wields.  He has power greater than any of us can begin to imagine and he is returning to earth to take his believers to their final home in heaven.  He is known as the lion of Judah because he descended from the lineage of Judah and King David.  He comes back with the ferociousness and power of a lion to free us from our world of turmoil, destruction, war, and societal decay.  He comes to take us home as well as to fulfill the promise of his 2nd coming promised thousands of years ago.  Even the greatest despots and evil people in our world will bow before him.  They will not necessarily bow with adoration or acceptance, but they will see him wielding a power that they cannot control.  Philippians 2:10-11 tells us “That at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  Note this does not mean that everyone will accept Christ as their savior and be allowed to go to heaven, it merely means they recognize that he is a being of great power.  People do not get to heaven without accepting Christ as their personal savior.

All who have accepted him in the past, no longer have to fight the temptations of sin, every tear of earthly sadness will be wiped away, and they will feel a peace they have never felt before.  Every person on earth will finally realize that life is not all about them, it is about their relationship with Jesus.

So, if Jesus comes tomorrow, will you be rising up in the clouds with him and announcing to the world that nothing and no one can stop the Lord Almighty?

Click to Hear Leeland Mooring Sing Lion and the Lamb

Battle Belongs

The next entry for my Blog is Battle Belongs, which was written by Brian Johnson and Phil Wickham.  It was first released September 4, 2020.  A link to Phil Wickham singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Battle Belongs


When all I see is the battle, You see my victory
When all I see is the mountain, You see a mountain moved
And as I walk through the shadow, Your love surrounds me
There’s nothing to fear now for I am safe with You

So when I fight, I’ll fight on my knees
With my hands lifted high
Oh God, the battle belongs to You
And every fear I lay at Your feet
I’ll sing through the night
Oh God, the battle belongs to You

And if You are for me, who can be against me? Yeah
For Jesus, there’s nothing impossible for You
When all I see are the ashes, You see the beauty
Thank You God
When all I see is a cross, God, You see the empty tomb

So when I fight, I’ll fight on my knees
With my hands lifted high
Oh God, the battle belongs to You
And every fear I lay at Your feet
I’ll sing through the night
Oh God, the battle belongs to You

Almighty fortress, You go before us
Nothing can stand against the power of our God
You shine in the shadow, You win every battle
Nothing can stand against the power of our God

An almighty fortress, You go before us
Nothing can stand against the power of our God
You shine in the shadow, You win every battle
Nothing can stand against the power of our God

An almighty fortress, You go before us
Nothing can stand against the power of our God
You shine in the shadows, You win every battle
Nothing can stand against the power of our God

So when I fight, I’ll fight on my knees
With my hands lifted high
Oh God, the battle belongs to You
And every fear I lay at Your feet
I’ll sing through the night
Oh God, the battle belongs to You

Oh God, the battle belongs to You

Do you often have those days when you just want to pull the covers over your head and shut out the world?  I think most of us have this happen to us from time to time.  So many days, from the moment we open our eyes, we see the battles ahead and we are just not ready to engage.  It may be a daily battle or a seemingly forever battle, but either way; we are just weary of all of the challenges that life throws our way.  Instead of thinking about the upcoming challenges, how often do you wake up and the first thing you do is to thank God for giving you another day and ask him to walk with you every step of the day?  Think about the fact from the perspective that there are many people who never see tomorrow.  I believe that one of the biggest issues we face in life is we believe we are always fighting these battles alone; but that is where we are making our mistake.  God is always there to help us face the challenges in front of us and he has a very different view than we do, he already knows how today’s battle will end and he knows what lies before us.  We are too focused on the challenges of today, where we failed yesterday, and what we will face tomorrow.  Yes, there are daily battles, mountains to climb, and darkness that will overwhelm us; but our focus is to remember who holds the future and what the future holds for each of us.  We are told in II Corinthians 4:17-18, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.   So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 

The writer of this song has taken an approach that is drastically different from our normal way of doing things, he is telling us to fight from our knees.  Interestingly enough, this is the strongest position when preparing for battle or while we are in the midst of battle.  This is indeed a powerful challenge for us, and we wonder, how can this be possible?  We are so used to depending on ourselves to fight the battle that we forget about the presence of God.  In this song, the writer tells us to fall on our knees as we prepare to face the battle, raise up our hands, pray to our heavenly father and give the battle to him.  In 2 Chronicles 20:15, we find this promise from God, “Do not be afraid or discouraged… For the battle is not yours, but God’s.”  The most important battle, the fight for eternal life, has already been won for us.  Christ died on the cross for each of us so that we would never be alone, we would never fight our battles alone, and we would spend eternity with him.  Once we accept Christ as our personal savior, we are guaranteed that eternal life.  He is our fortress, his light destroys the darkness, he makes beauty from ashes, and where we see Jesus dying on the cross, he sees the empty tomb.

We serve an all-powerful invincible God who never leaves our side, why should we  ever be afraid?  The best way to feel the power, love, and support of God is to begin every day with prayer, pray whenever you can during the day, and end every day in prayer.  God is always watching us and wants to talk to us through prayer.  We are told in 1 Thessalonian 5:17, “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.”

It is time for each of us to learn this new way of fighting our battles, it is the only way we can win.

Click to Hear Phil Wickham Sing Battle Belongs

Glorious Day

The next entry for my Blog is Glorious Day, which was written by Jason Ingram, Jonathan Smith, Kristian Stanfill, and Sean Curran.  It was first released 2017.  A link to Passion singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Glorious Day


I was buried beneath my shame
Who could carry that kind of weight?
It was my tomb
‘Til I met You

I was breathing, but not alive
All my failures I tried to hide
It was my tomb
‘Til I met You

You called my name
Then I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness
Into Your glorious day
You called my name
And I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness
Into Your glorious day

Now Your mercy has saved my soul
Now Your freedom is all that I know
The old made new
Jesus, when I met You, whoa, what a day

When you called my name
And I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness
Into Your glorious day
You called my name
Then I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness
Into Your glorious day

I needed rescue
My sin was heavy
But chains break at the weight of Your glory
I needed shelter
I was an orphan
But You call me a citizen of Heaven
When I was broken
You were my healing
Now Your love is the air that I’m breathing
I have a future
My eyes are open

‘Cause when you called my name
I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness
Into Your glorious day
You called my name
And I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness
Into Your glorious day

Have you ever felt completely overwhelmed and ashamed of some of the things you have done?   Maybe you hurt a friend or a loved one, perhaps they forgave you; but the shame of the hurt you caused just seems to stay with you.  Perhaps you have a storied past due your poor decisions or involvement in activities you knew were wrong.  Some of these past actions may cross your mind as you first wake up and start your day; you think about what you did to others as well as what you have done to yourself.  Where can you run, hide, and just escape your past?  This entire scenario has become your tomb.  We know from the bible that Christ was in a tomb with a very large stone rolled across the opening so that no one could get in and it was thought he couldn’t get out especially with two Roman guards standing outside the tomb.  Maybe your guilt and your shame has become just like the tomb Christ was in.  One of the big differences is that Christ was dead and placed in his tomb, but you are alive and living in your own self-created tomb.  Everything that has happened to put you in this situation was caused by your actions.  Take a few minutes and think about that analogy.  Yours is a self-created tomb, and although you are breathing, you are not really alive; you are mentally locked up and have no way to move that massive stone in front of your tomb.  Then, something happened that changed your whole world, the stone began to roll away.

The something that happened is that you heard about the man called Jesus, the son of God.  You heard about how he forgave sins and gave people new life; even those locked up in their own self-made tombs.  Here are the words Jesus said about the burdens we carry that led us into our tomb, it is from Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”  Once you have accepted Jesus as your personal savior, he is there to take away your burdens.  Not only does he take them away, he forgives you from every wrong you have committed your entire life.  Once this happened, you ran out of your tomb and were able to face the world again.  You run out of that tomb as fast as you can into the waiting arms of Jesus.  You no longer have the darkness in your soul that light could never penetrate.  Jesus had been there all of the time, calling your name, and you finally heard him.  It is truly a glorious day as you feel the joy that only he can bring.

God could have let all of us live without the hope of salvation or spending eternity with him, but he loved us enough to send his only son to die for all of our wrongdoings.   Even as he knew his son was dying on the cross, he still loved us and was willing to forgive us for everything we had done wrong in our lives, as well as any transgressions we would commit in the future.  This is what mercy is all about.  He gave his only son to die so that we could have eternal life with him.  Jesus gave his physical life for us and all God asks of us is that we accept this offering of love so that we can spend eternity with him.   There is no greater gift than the gift of eternal life.  As the song says, we are now a brand-new person with a fresh start once we have Jesus.  We walk out of a world of despair into a world of hope and a life with a future.  I think the phrase in the song “whoa, what a day”, is such a simple way to describe what happens when Jesus enters our life; it is hard to put the emotion into words.

The first step in finding the light and love of Jesus is recognizing that you indeed need to be rescued; he can’t rescue us if we are not ready to be rescued.  The heavy chains of our sinful past get heavier and heavier every passing day, and we reach what we believe is the point of no return in our lives.  The chains have become too heavy to bear and we fall into a sense of hopelessness and despair. We finally reach out to Jesus and he frees us from our bondage and brings us into the light of his glory.  Maybe we felt as if we were alone during our misery and that we had no home and no family.  Jesus takes us in as part of his family and he introduces us to our eternal heavenly father.  He has healed our broken spirit, he has brought light into our world again, and you feel his love wrapped around you.  In addition to all of these amazing things he has done, he makes a promise/commitment to us, we find this in John 14:1-4; “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

As you stop and reflect on all of the above, I hope you have taken the opportunity to run out of that grave you have been living in and that you have begun rejoicing in that Glorious Day.  It is never too late.

Click to Hear Passion Sing Glorious Day

Red Letters

The next entry for my Blog is Red Letters, which was written by David Crowder and Ed Cash.  It was first released in September 19, 2018.  A link to Crowder singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Red Letters


There I was on death row
Guilty in the first degree
Son of God hanging on a hill
Hell was my destiny

The crowd was shouting crucify
Could’ve come from these lips of mine
The dirty shame was killing me
It would take a miracle to wash me clean

Then I read the red letters
And the ground began to shake
The prison walls started falling
And I became a free man that day

Felt like lightning hit my veins
My dead heart began to beat
Breath of God filled my lungs
And the Holy Ghost awakened me
Yeah, the Holy Ghost awakened me

When I read the red letters
And the ground began to shake
The prison walls started falling
And I became a free man that day

For God so loved the whole wide world
Sent His only Son to die for me
Arms spread wide for the whole wide world
His arms spread wide where mine should be
Jesus changed my destiny

Thank You, God, for red letters
When the ground began to shake
The grace of God started falling
And I became a free man that day
The prison walls started falling
And I am a free man today

The title of this song is kind of interesting, especially without context.  Probably most of the Christian bibles bought today have the standard black print, but there are bibles you can buy that show all of the words of Jesus in red. 

Have you ever thought about the fact that without Jesus coming and dying on the cross, it would be extremely difficult to get into heaven?  Before the coming of Christ and his death, people could still have the promise of heaven, but it required a lot more work and dedication.  The people had to make sacrifices on a regular basis; since there was no bible the people had to go to the temples just to hear God’s word and his promises that were made over the thousands of years since the time of creation.  So many people had no hope because they felt as if they had failed God and they did not know where to turn.  It is true there were great leaders and that God’s word and promises had been passed down for thousands of years; but that isn’t the same as hearing from those who saw and touched the hand of God’s only son.

All of the above is basically a lead into the song.  Imagine that you were sitting home reading your bible, even though you were not a Christian and dreamed you were teleported back in time; to the time of Jesus walking around the streets of Jerusalem.  As you look up on that mount called Calvary, you start to realize the things you had done wrong all your life.  You see the stories you had heard at church suddenly come true.  The savior, who you have maybe heard about in church or read about in your bible, is hanging on the cross.  You had heard about him and his teachings and you had heard people talking about how he was just another false prophet, but you suddenly realize you were one of them.  In the process, you have become yet another conspirator contributing to the death of God’s only son.  For this, you are guilty of murder and should be behind bars.  You were so caught up in the actions of the crowd that you may have been one of the ones yelling to crucify him.  Shame takes its toll on you and you begin to believe there is no hope for you; how could there be since your own rejection of Christ contributed to him dying on the cross.

As you take the time to reflect on the above, it starts to hurt deep inside when you begin to understand that you have rejected the love of Christ all of your life and perhaps led others to do the same.  Suddenly you come out of your nightmarish dream and your bible is still in your lap, but it suddenly has new meaning as you see the words of Christ written in red letters. It is almost as if the words are jumping off the page at you.  You are suddenly aware that you have been in a walled prison your entire life, constrained by your own words and actions.  As the reality of the life Christ is offering in those red letters sinks in, your world crumbles and you finally understand that Christ died for you so you could spend eternity with him.  There is no wall of sin separating you from him any longer and you are no longer burdened by your past.  You are finally a free man, your shackles of sin, guilt, and despair have been taken away.  As you begin to let the fact that Jesus erased all of your sins sink in, it is as if you have been given a brand new start in life.  It is true that the memories and pain of your past may never go away, but Jesus forgives all of our past and gives us a future.  Jesus never focuses on who we were, he only looks at who we will become.  All you had to do was accept him as your personal savior.  You have now taken your first breath of true freedom and clean slate in the eyes of Jesus.

John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  Can you imagine giving up your own son for a world full of sinners and unbelievers?  I agree that it should have been us stretching our arms and dying on that cross, we are the sinners; not Jesus.  But God loved us so much that he gave the only perfect being we will ever know to die in agony on the cross.  It took the perfect to die to enable the imperfect to gain eternal life.  With his death, our future can be changed forever; all we have to do is accept his sacrifice.   Thanks to God’s grace and his willingness to forgive every wrong we have committed or are yet to commit; we will spend eternity with Jesus.

Have you ever closely looked for the red letters, the words of Jesus in your bible?

Click to Hear Crowder Perform Red Letters

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I Stand Amazed in the Presence

The next entry for my Blog is I Stand Amazed in the Presence, which was written by Charles H. Gabriel in 1905.  It was first released in April 9, 2021.  A link to Extended Life Fellowship singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

I Stand Amazed in the Presence


I stand amazed in the presence
Of Jesus the Nazarene,
And wonder how He could love me,
A sinner, condemned, unclean.

Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be;
Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

For me it was in the garden
He prayed, “Not My will but Thine;”
He had no tears for His own griefs,
But sweat drops of blood for mine.

Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be;
Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

He took my sins and my sorrows,
He made them His very own;
He bore the burden on Calv’ry,
And suffered and died alone.

Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be;
Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

When with the ransomed in glory
His face I at last shall see,
‘Twill be my joy thro’ the ages
To sing of His love for me.

Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
And my song shall ever be;
Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!

There are a lot of songs which are focused on the trials we face in our lives and how God is there to lift us up and get our lives back on the right track.  This is a song about coming face to face with Jesus and what it might be like.  This hymn has been around for over 100 years, but the truth and hope still ring out with power and promise.  When we get our first chance to stand face to face with Jesus, I am thinking I will be completely awestruck and speechless.  Just imagine that feeling as you look into his eyes and see and feel an undying love for you.  It is so hard to understand why he would die for someone who is a sinner such as I.  We have all sinned, but Jesus forgave those sins when we accepted him as our personal savior.  Even though I am sinless in his eyes, I still have to wonder how he could love me unconditionally.  I was a sinner, I am a sinner, and will always be a sinner; but he no longer sees any of that.  I can’t help but believe that I will fall on my knees and weep uncontrollably since it was because of people like me that he had to die on the cross.

The chorus puts words into the feelings of our heart as we stand before our savior.  I believe this is the type of chorus that will be with us for eternity.  We will continue to offer up our praise to Jesus for the never-ending love he has for us.

The garden referenced in the lyrics is the Garden of Gethsemane in Israel.  This is a garden where Jesus went to pray the night of his betrayal.  We find this in Mark 14:32-36.  “They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, sit here while I pray.  He took Peter, James, and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled.  My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death, he said to them. Stay here and keep watch. Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that, if possible, the hour might pass from him.  Abba, Father, he said, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”  In another scripture passage in the book of Luke, we find that Jesus prayed so hard that he sweated drops of blood.  He knew what was coming, he knew he was going to be crucified.  The man in him asked God to not let this happen, but the faith he had through the love of his father allowed him to accept his fate.  He didn’t cry tears for his own fate, he knew he was going back home to heaven; but he cried the tears for us so we could also go to our heavenly home.  He was willing to die for us, regardless of the pain he would incur; he loved us so much that on the night he accepted his death as a trade for us getting eternal life.

Jesus knew what he was facing when he accepted God’s will for him.  He did not resist his arrest nor did he make any excuses for his message of salvation to everyone he encountered.  He had seen people hanging from crosses, since that was a common form of execution by the Romans.  He saw their pain, the blood flowing from their wounds, heard their screaming, and saw their tears; but he willingly accepted his fate knowing that he would soon be joining them.  Jesus knew he was bearing the sins of the world and that the burden he was carrying at this moment was greater than any of us can begin to fathom.  He also knew, that if he did not fulfill his mission, we would be unable to spend eternity in heaven and would end up in the fiery pit of hell.  Instead, our lives would end at the time of our physical death and the grave, there would be no eternal life in heaven.  As he was dying on that cross, he became encumbered with the sins of the world; and in that brief time he was separated from God the father by the sins he was now bearing.  Imagine being separated from your child or your father; then think about how you would feel if this separation was not your fault.  Jesus essentially died alone, due to the darkness of the sins he took upon himself.  The day he died on the cross on the mount called Calvary, was one of the worst physical days anyone could endure, but it was also the most wonderful day for all of us who have accepted him as the son of God.

For those of us who have accepted the sacrifice of Christ and for those who will accept him in the future, our eternal home is secured.  We are ransomed by his death on the cross, we are no longer prisoners of our sins.  What a joy that will be, to see the one who died so I could spend eternity with my family and friends who also accepted his sacrifice.  It will for sure be a time of singing, praise, and fellowship with the one who made this happen.  I know that I will stand amazed in the presence of Jesus.   This one man, who grew up in Nazareth, a town of under 500 people, gave hope to the entire world.

Keep this verse in your heart always, from John 3:16, “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.”

Click to Hear Extended Life Worship Sing I Stand Amazed in the Presence

Woman at the Well

The next entry for my Blog is Woman at the Well, which was written Jesse Reeves, Olivia Lane, and Steve Fee.  It was first released in April 9, 2021.  A link to Olivia Lane singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.   The link also includes a film clip from the TV Series “The Chosen.”

Woman at the Well

I heard a story from the Bible
When I was just a little girl
About a broken-hearted woman
Who met the Savior of the world

Thought it was just another story
One that the preacher man would read
But as I’m sitting here at home
Drinking red wine all alone
I think that woman might be me

‘Cause tonight I feel just like
The woman at the well
Wondering how someone could love me
When I can’t love myself
But You want me as I am and that sounds crazy
I guess maybe that’s why grace is so amazing

Staring at that empty bottle
I swear I caught a glimpse of Him
He met me right there at the bottom
And turned that wine to living water
And taught me how to love again

Yeah, tonight I feel just like
The woman at the well
Wondering how someone could love me
When I can’t love myself
But You want me as I am and that sounds crazy
I guess maybe that’s why grace is so amazing

It’s no longer just a story when I read it (when I read it)
‘Cause I’ve seen Him for myself and I believe it

‘Cause tonight I feel just like
The woman at the well
Wondering how someone could love me
When I can’t love myself
But You want me as I am and that sounds crazy
I guess maybe that’s why grace is so amazing

Just like the story from the Bible
I heard when I was just a girl
I’m the broken-hearted woman
Who met the Savior of the world

This is a song that brought tears of sadness and tears of joy in my heart as I recalled the story in the bible, then listened to the words of this song, and then saw it come to life on TV when I watched an episode of The Chosen.  It is amazing when you read the scripture, feel the pain of the woman at the well, the empathy of Jesus, followed by the great joy he has brought to this woman who has been living a life of hopelessness.

The bible has many passages that describe Jesus, the son of God and savior of the world, interacting with people and explaining who he is and his mission upon coming to earth.  One of these passages, which is in the book of Matthew chapter 9, tells us about Jesus meeting with a woman at the well.  This woman had a life that was in turmoil, she had already been through multiple marriages, and never seemed to find happiness.  When you sit in church and hear these stories, they don’t always seem real because they are not necessarily hitting close to home.  Even though the message is true, maybe it doesn’t seem to apply to us at the time and is someone else’s story, not yours or mine.  We hear the message, perhaps we retain it, and then we go on with our lives.

As we journey down the road in our lives, we perhaps start struggling with seemingly everything going on in our life, and gradually our world starts falling apart.  Maybe we are feeling alone and the deeper in despair we fall, we start believing there is no hope.  In this song, the individual is sitting home all alone, drinking some wine, and dwelling on all of the times she has failed in her life.  The realization comes that perhaps she is just like the woman at the well from the story she heard in church long ago; a totally messed up life with no escape in sight.  Maybe she hasn’t gone through the same type of travails as the woman, but she feels she has failed in her decisions and has lost all hope as her despair rages on.  She has trouble loving herself, so how could anyone else ever love her.  Perhaps she, just as the woman at the well, has gone through multiple relationships, marriages, or failures in life.  She feels as if she will never be loved again and that she is unworthy of love.

At just the right time, this example of Jesus’ love in the bible has finally grabbed the singer’s attention, she finally understands that Jesus accepts us just as we are.  All he asks is that we accept him and the eternal life he offers each of us.  He knows we will change once we accept him, but he doesn’t hold any of our past against us.  We are told about his grace and forgiveness in Romans 4:7. “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight.”  

As the singer sits there alone and looks down into the bottom of the empty wine bottle, she suddenly catches a fleeting glimpse of the face of Jesus.  It sounds sort of odd to catch a glimpse of our savior in the bottom of a wine bottle, but it is his way of saying I am with you wherever you go and ready to pull you up when you are ready to leave your misery.  It is so much easier when we finally understand that we don’t look up to find Jesus, we look beside us and to the outreached hand.  He is ready to give us eternal life, that living water, whenever we are ready to accept his hand. We find this passage in John 4:13-14, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.” 

I believe that all of us, at some point in our lives, have the hopeless feeling felt by the woman at the well.  Some of the mistakes we made were our own fault, and some were probably caused by others.  The woman at the well struggled with marriages and relationships, some of the issues were perhaps hers and some not.  Whatever the situation, Jesus is not concerned about who is at fault.  He doesn’t judge us by our past; his eyes are only focused on eternity.  I hope you have partaken of the holy water.

Click to Hear Olivia Lane Sing Woman at the Well, Includes Film Clip from the TV Series – The Chosen

I Wish We’d All Been Ready

The next entry for my Blog is I Wish We’d All Been Ready, which was written by Larry Norman.  The song was initially released May 6, 2019.  A link to DC Talk performing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

I Wish We’d All Been Ready

Life was filled with guns and war
And everyone got trampled on the floor
I wish we’d all been ready

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Children died, the days grew cold
A piece of bread could buy a bag of gold
I wish we’d all been ready

There’s no time to change your mind
The Son has come and you’ve been left behind

A man and wife asleep in bed
She hears a noise and turns her head
He’s gone
I wish we’d all been ready

Two men walking up a hill
One disappears and one’s left standing still
I wish we’d all been ready

There’s no time to change your mind
The Son has come and you’ve been left behind

Life was filled with guns and war
And everyone got trampled on the floor
I wish we’d all been ready

Children died, the days grew cold
A piece of bread could buy a bag of gold
I wish we’d all been ready

There’s no time to change your mind
How could you have been so blind?
The Father spoke, the demons dined
The Son has come and you’ve been left behind

You’ve been left behind
You’ve been left behind
You’ve been left behind
You’ve been left behind

This song is a little different from the ones I normally write about.  The song itself is a little slower, even though it was performed by a usually upbeat group.  As I perform my search for songs every week, I look for the one that really impacts me the most.  This song is a little out of character for me, but I believe it sends a powerful message that everyone needs to hear.

Are there times when you see things or hear things that are going on in the world that really bother or upset you?  I supposed this has happened to me a few times in my life, but as I get older; I seem to pay more attention to what is going on in the world around me.  It seems as if there are more wars going on all over the world.  There seem to be more starving people as well as more homeless people.  The churches around the world seem to be fighting more and more battles every day to keep the word of God alive.  Many people no longer go to church and don’t believe in God or his promises.  People continue to turn their back on God because they do not believe the bible and the fact that it is the word of God.

 I am a Christian and believe that I must accept Jesus Christ as my personal savior to have eternal life in heaven.  God’s promise was that he would send his son to die on the cross and that whoever accepted him as their personal savior would spend eternity with him.  Christ showed that we truly could rise from the dead since he himself died on the cross, then walked again on this earth, and then rose into heaven.  There were eyewitnesses to all of these events.  Christ also promised that he will come again and that every living person on earth who had accepted him and his promise, will go to heaven with him to begin their eternal life.  On the day Christ returns, people who are still alive, will ascend with him in the clouds; this event is called the rapture.  So far, all I have done is set the background for the song.

Now I will give you my analysis on the song, but I thought the background would be helpful since the lyrics jump right into the event.  As the wars go on around us, hunger keeps growing, and homelessness is taking over cities; people hear the story about this man coming down to earth from the heavens and taking people back with him spreads like wildfire.  I can just imagine people running all over each other to get outside and see what is happening.  Maybe to put into a perspective, imagine the issues if a massive sports stadium had to be suddenly evacuated; think of people getting crushed and even killed due to the mass of humanity running over them if they fell.  Those who had accepted Christ were ready and are ascending into the clouds, those who have not accepted Christ are those who are getting trampled or perhaps falling to the ground when they realize they are left behind.

As millions of people around the world rise up in the clouds, our earthly population diminishes.  The believers in Christ are gone and those left behind now have to determine how to keep food, supplies, medicine flowing since so many people will be gone in the blink of an eye.  Food dwindles since many of the farmers will be gone, many truckers who carry the food to market will be gone, grocery stores will keep running out of food.  Maybe people have money, but there is no food to buy. Children are dying perhaps because of not enough food, not enough medical care, and perhaps their parents are now gone and they are alone.  In cold weather climates, children and others, may freeze to death if there is no readily available heat or the ability to build fires for warmth.  I believe all young children will ascend into the clouds with Jesus, but those who were old enough to make a decision to accept Christ, yet rejected him, will be in the same situation as all of the rest of the people left behind.

How many times had many of these people heard the word of God and the promise of eternal life; but rejected the word.  It is now too late for these people; they have been left behind.  The song has been talking about generalities, but then it starts to give some examples of loss and heartbreak.  Image you are asleep in bed with your spouse and you hear a sudden noise.  You turn over to see if your spouse is ok, but your spouse is no longer there.  Your loved one had accepted Christ and you did not, now you have been left behind.  Maybe you were the one who refused to go to church because you didn’t believe in the word of God and his promises and your spouse went alone to church.  This is referenced in the book of Luke 17:34, “I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left.”  Another person mentioned is walking up a hill, perhaps with a friend, and he turns around and his friend is gone.   Maybe the friend who disappeared is the same one who used to try and tell you about Christ, but you never wanted to hear it.  Now you have been left behind.  In the book of Matthew 24:40-41, we are told “Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.”

You have probably had chances to hear about Christ your entire life and you ignored those chances.  Maybe you thought you were too busy, you were not willing to change your life, perhaps your friends would no longer accept you, or maybe you just thought the Bible and Christianity were nonsense.  So perhaps you are the one now thinking, how could I have been so blind?  The son of God has come and you have been left behind.  John 3:16 tells us what we need to do to ensure eternity in heaven, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

All of the above can be sort of depressing.  I am a very upbeat person, but I think it is important to share my opinions via these blogs and then you can draw your own conclusions.  I would not want to be a contributor to you being left behind, my hope would be that none of us get left.  The good news is that you can accept Christ up until the day you die, so it is never too late.  Maybe you miss the rapture and you don’t go to heaven right away, but Christ’s offer to accept him is always there; don’t run the risk of running out of time.

Are you ready?

Click to Hear DC Talk Sing I Wish We’d All Been Ready

Praise You in This Storm

The next entry for my Blog is Praise You in This Storm, which was written by Bernie Herms and John Mark Hall.  It was first released in August 30, 2005.  A link to the Casting Crowns singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Praise You in This Storm

I was sure by now
God, You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say, “Amen” and it’s still raining

Well, as the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I’ll raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

And I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
And every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to You
And raised me up again
But my strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can’t find You?

But as the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I’ll raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

And I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
And every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The maker of Heaven and Earth

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The maker of Heaven and Earth

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?

And I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

And though my heart is torn (though my heart is torn)
I’ll praise You in this storm (praise You in this storm)

I don’t know about you, but I love to sit on my porch and watch a thunderstorm roll in.  The thunder and the rain seem to bring a peace to my soul and also a new shade of green and color to all of the flowers and trees around me.  Everything looks so clean and fresh once the storm passes.  Unfortunately, most of us probably get caught up in the storms of life, which are not quite so pleasant.  The lightning, the pouring rain, and rumbling thunder seem to come into our lives for a season and disrupt our joy and happiness.  The time gradually comes when we are in the center of our storm and are not sure how much longer we can withstand the darkness that comes with the storm.  This song provides a good description of what we all endure, but it also tells us that God hasn’t deserted us; he is in the midst of the storm with us and is there to give us strength, hope, and comfort as the world crashes down around us.  Sometimes there are trials we have to face and challenges we have to overcome, but we must keep our faith in God.  We anxiously await him to step in and stop the storm, but there are things we have to sometimes endure in life that help us to become the people God wants us to be.  What is important is that we realize that God is always there and through it all, we must keep our eyes on God and thank for him for being with us during these troublesome storms.  As we struggle to keep our focus on God, we suddenly hear that quiet voice that tells us we are not alone.  He is there to remind us that no matter what we may have done to be in this storm; his mercy and his love will surround us.  We should thank God as we feel his presence and feel his arms wrap around us.

The chorus reminds us to praise God through the stormy days and the sunny days of our life.  God is the only being who can be with us wherever we go.  He knows every tear we have shed because he holds those tears in his hand, to show his love for us.  Although we may feel alone and deserted by everyone we know and our heart is breaking; God has never left us, nor will he.  So, no matter the power and darkness of the storm, he is there and should be praised for never leaving our side.

Have you ever been outside in a powerful wind and tried to walk into that wind?  You sort of struggle along just to get to your destination, but it takes away all of your energy.  We wonder if we can even make it to our destination.  As we fight through the headwinds in life, God is there to help pull us along and to pick us up when we stumble and cry out.  We can’t see God, but he is there even if we can’t see him.  As our strength gives way and the battle of life continues, he is there to carry us when we can no longer put one foot in front of another.  One of the greatest men in the Christian bible, David, often faced overwhelming challenges in his life.  He wrote this in Psalm 121, “I lift up my eyes to the mountains, where does my help come from?  My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.  He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber;  indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.  The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand;  the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.  The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life;  the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.”  This should be a great encouragement for all of us.  This is a promise that applies to all of those who believe in God and have accepted his son as their personal savior.  Perhaps the even better news is that God never sleeps and is with us every hour of every day.

As we are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:16, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  He alone deserves our faith, love, and trust.

Are you in the midst of a storm today and just struggling to find your way?  If so, have you reached out to the only one who can help you find light in your life again?

Click to Hear Casting Crowns Sing Praise You in this Storm

I Will Carry You

The next entry for my Blog is I Will Carry You, which was written by Benjamin Glover and Ellie Holcombe.  It was first released June 15, 2021.  A link to Ellie Holcombe singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog. 

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I Will Carry You

I know you’re tired, I see it in your eyes
All that anxiety that rules your mind
I’ll be your shield when you don’t feel like
You’ve got strength enough to fight
I’ll stand by your side

I will carry you
Through your darkest night
When you’re terrified
I will carry you
When the waters rise
When your hope runs dry
I will carry you

You are not the sum of your mistakes
You don’t have to hide the parts of you that ache
I choose you as you are a million times
‘Cause I am not ashamed of you
I won’t walk away from you

I will carry you
Through your darkest night
When you’re terrified
I will carry you
When the waters rise
When your hope runs dry
I will carry you

Up and over the mountains
Valley deep as the ocean
When you can’t keep going
I will shoulder your burdens
Up and over the mountains
Valley deep as the ocean
When you can’t keep going
I will shoulder your burdens

I will carry you
Through your darkest night
When you’re terrified
I will carry you (carry you)
When the waters rise
When your hope runs dry
I will carry you

I will carry you, carry you
Through the darkest night (you)
When you’re terrified
(I will shoulder your burdens)
I will carry you, carry you
When the waters rise (you)
I will carry you

I think we all go through times in our lives when we feel as if we just can’t take another step.  You have become so physically tired and emotionally drained that you just want to curl up in bed and stay there.  You have so much going on in your life that you can’t think straight and all of your strength has completely dissipated.  As you lay down and try to relax, your mind just keeps going as you try to resolve your problems, but there seems to be no off switch for your swirling thoughts.  Have you been in this situation before?  Perhaps you are now.  What is so easy to forget in all of this darkness is that we are never truly alone nor are we a lost cause in life.  God is there to stand with us, to lift us up, to carry us, and to help us fight the battle of life.  Psalm 16:8 reminds us of God’s diligence to each of us, “I know the LORD is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.” 

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The chorus of the song tells us that no matter how dark the world around us may become, God will walk with us.  When we are afraid, he is there to comfort us and help us to feel inner peace and strength that only he can give.  Even as we feel as if we are being swallowed or feel as if we have fallen under the raging storm of fear and guilt; he picks us up and carries us.  He is the only true hope for the hopeless, the only strength for the weak, and the only one who can bring sunshine to our personal world of darkness.  I believe this chorus does a wonderful job explaining how God is with us every step of the way and he will never leave our side.

I have heard people say that they are a complete failure.  They will also say they have never succeeded in any aspect of their life.  These people feel as if they are just one big mistake and have nothing to offer in life.  Perhaps we all feel this way at times, especially when we focus on the negatives of the past in lieu of the brightness of the future.  We look at others around us with their happy families, their high paying jobs, their nice homes; and we wonder what we did wrong that would keep us from having these same wonderful things.  We just keep believing it is because we are not good enough or we have just been a complete failure since the day we were born  God does not look at our life and keep score of positives and negatives, God only looks at what we can be.  The world judges us by our successes and failures, God measures us through the eyes of a father who knows that all of his children are special to him.  It is because of him that we even have a life, and he will never give up on us.  He also understands our fears and our failures, but his arms are always outstretched to hold us.  He is never ashamed of what we have done and will never turn his back on us.  He has a plan for each of us, it may not be a smooth journey; but his plan never fails.  We are told this in the book of Jeremiah 28:11-12, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.”  If we choose to take God’s son as our personal savior, God forgives and forgets all of the bad things we have done in our lives.  He is only focused on what’s ahead for all of eternity, he has forgiven and forgotten our past.  We are who we become, not who we were in the past.

God is with us always and walks with us every step in our journey through life.  He is there to hold our hand and guide us, to carry us when necessary, to encourage us, and bring us hope.  There is no mountain too high for him to climb, no valley too deep, and no sea bottom beyond his reach.  We are told this in the book of Romans 8:38-39, “ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[k] 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.”   What more can we ask for in our lives?  God has committed to being there for us and since he created the world, there is nothing that he can’t overcome.

If you are struggling with your past and worried about being all you can be in your future, I recommend listening to this song a few times.  I believe it will bring you hope and allow you to look to the future as you gradually walk away from your past.

God will carry you to where you need to be, if you only let him.

Click to Hear Ellie Holcombe Sing I Will Carry You

Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)

The next entry for my Blog is Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone), which was written by Giglio Louie.  It was first released in 2006.  A link to the Chris Tomlin singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.  The original version of Amazing Grace was written by John Newton in 1772.

Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)

Amazing grace how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I’m found
Was blind, but now I see

‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed

My chains are gone, I’ve been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love
Amazing grace

The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures

My chains are gone, I’ve been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love
Amazing grace

My chains are gone, I’ve been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love
Amazing grace

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God, who called me here below
Will be forever mine, will be forever mine
You are forever mine

Think of a word or phrase that carries the most powerful impact on someone’s life.  I know this might be a challenging request, since there are so many great words and phrases that positively impact us in a special or powerful way.  The title of this song doesn’t necessarily stand out as the answer to my request, but when you look at the true meaning of grace; you will hopefully agree that this is one of the most powerful songs ever written.  I believe that, deep inside, we all want to be better people.  We want to be better for ourselves as well as for others.  We want to be liked, loved, and embraced as we greet other people; but what happens when we do things wrong and people can’t seem to get past our mistakes and errors in judgement?  Depending on what we may have said or what we have done, people will not let us into or back into their lives nor will they forgive or forget what we have done.  We put ourselves in a situation where we live in regret and then start trying to avoid others.  We are seemingly stuck with our past and this guilt becomes the chains that hold us back.  We want to be free, but are unsure of how to break through our bondage and move forward in our lives.

Now, let’s look at the title of this song, the word to focus on is grace.  In looking at this through the lens of Christianity, grace is defined as the unmerited favor of God.  More simply put, it is a free gift of forgiveness and mercy regardless of what we have done in our lives.   All God asks of us is to accept his son Jesus Christ as our personal savior, we then receive God’s forgiveness for every mistake we have made in our lives; past, present, and future. God’s grace is immediate.  No matter what we have done in our life, God is willing to forgive us.  People may or may not forgive our flaws, but God is the one who controls our eternity and the one who should be the most important being in our lives.  We all make mistakes, some big and some small, and we may not be leading a good life.  Maybe we got off track with our lives a long time ago and perhaps we consider ourselves as being bad or even wretched, but he loves us anyway and is willing to wrap his arms around even the most evil among us; all he asks is to put our future in his hands.  As we accept God, we start seeing the life he wants us to lead and the person he wants us to become.  We are no longer oblivious to our own wrongs and the wrongs of others around us.  God instills in us the desire to be better and to see what needs to change in our lives.  As we feel his love and his strength, we no longer have the same fear regarding what lies ahead in our lives because we know he is there to lead us, to guide us, to love us, and to pick us up when we fall.

As the chorus tells us, we have been set free from our past and present and now have hope for our future.  We are no longer encumbered by the invisible chains that have held us back from who we can be.  We can now live, love, and dream knowing that we will never be alone again and that we have a guaranteed eternal home.  God sent his only son to die on the cross for us, so we could have the bondage of our past replaced by the promises of God!  It is amazing to me that God gave up his son so each of us could have an eternal life with him.  Jesus paid the price for us with his life, the ultimate sacrifice.  God’s mercy wiped the slate clean of all wrongdoings we have had in our lives and has made us a new creation, with his promise of never-ending love.  It may be a while before people we know overlook our past, but in God’s eyes we have no past, only a future.

God promises eternity for us and that we can have a rewarding life.  It doesn’t mean we will have a perfect life, but we can have a life filled with hope knowing that we ultimately have an eternal heavenly home.  In the book of John 14:1-3, we find this promise given by Jesus as he prepared to die on the cross for us, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” 

One day this world, as we know it, will be no more, the writer describes it as the earth melting away like snow.  The bible, in the book of Revelation, also tells us that the world will be replaced by a new world.  The good news is that God has already reserved our space in heaven, once we have accepted his son as our personal savior.  This is grace: the gift of eternal life.

Click to Hear Chris Tomlin Sing Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)