son of God – Song Dive

Goodness of God

The next entry for my Blog is Goodness of God, which was written by Ben Fielding, Brian Johnson, Edward Martin Cash, Jason Ingram, and Jenn Johnson. It was first released January 4, 2019. A link to CeCe Winans singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

I love You, Lord
For Your mercy never fails me
All my days, I’ve been held in Your hands
From the moment that I wake up
Until I lay my head
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God

‘Cause all my life You have been faithful
And all my life You have been so, so good
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God

I love Your voice
You have led me through the fire
In darkest night You are close like no other
I’ve known You as a Father
I’ve known You as a Friend
And I have lived in the goodness of God, yeah

‘Cause all my life You have been faithful, oh yes You have
And all my life You have been so, so good
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God

Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me
Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me

With my life laid down, I surrendered now
I give You everything, oh Lord
Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me
Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me (oh yeah, oh yeah)
Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me
With my life laid down, I surrendered now
I give You everything
Your goodness is running after, it keeps running after meAnd all my life You have been faithful
And all my life You have been so, so good
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I’m gonna sing of the goodness of God
I’m gonna sing

All my life You have been faithful
(All of my life You’ve been faithful)
All my life You have been so, so good
(So good with every breath)
every breath that I am able
(Every breath I’m able)
I will sing (I’m gonna sing)
Of the goodness (of the goodness of God, yes I am)
I’m gonna sing of the goodness of God
Oh, I’m gonna sing of the goodness of God

I would like for you to stop for a minute and think about the very first line in this song, “I love you Lord.” Have you really taken time to tell God how much you love him and thank him for all he has done for you, your family, and your friends? I strongly believe most of us spend a lot more time asking things of God as opposed to thanking him for every blessing of every day. I would like for you to take some time right now to think about why you love someone and make sure that God gets that same amount love if not more.

Love is such a powerful word, but we don’t always stop to think about what it means. This song does a great job telling us what God is doing every day in our lives and how he runs after us because he loves us and never gives up on us. Wherever we go, he is there with us. Whenever we try to run from him, he runs beside us. Whenever we try to hide, he finds us. Whenever we feel like we cannot fight any longer and fall to our knees in despair, he is there to join us in the battles of life. When we are lonely and feel unloved, his arms are wrapped around us. As you think about these things and remember how he kept you safe, how can you not love God? God’s mercy, his unending forgiveness, is there to bring us peace; regardless of the mistakes we have made in our lives or the times we have ignored him.

Not only is God with us at all times, his hand is always extended to us so we never have to walk alone, no matter the challenges we are facing. It doesn’t matter where we are, where we have been, or where we are going; his love surrounds us. Think about all of the challenges in life you have faced. Now, think about how you survived those challenges. You survived because God was there with you the entire time and had his arms wrapped around you, you just didn’t realize it. In our greatest moments of hopelessness, despair, and darkness; God was always there to lead us back into the light. The song writers state how they love the voice of God. Some may say I have never heard the voice of God. Is his voice a booming sound that wakes us up and brings us back to reality? In our times of despair, we may feel as if we need a loud voice to bring us out of our despair. The reality is that if we have accepted God’s son Jesus as our personal savior, the holy spirit dwells within us and is our internal communication link with God, we find this in the book of John 14:26, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” All we have to do is open our hearts and minds to God and we will be able to hear that still small voice. It is that voice that helps to calm the storms of life we face, and bring us an inner peace as we fight our battles. The Holy Spirit is with us from the day we accept Jesus until the day our life on earth is no more. This is what the goodness of God is all about, he loves us unconditionally and sees no fault in any of us who have accepted him and his son.

I love the line in the song, “your goodness is running after, it’s running after me.” Most of us probably have the tendency to believe that we have to reach out to God and get his attention before he can help us. The reality is he is trying to get our attention to keep us out of the situations we get into, but we tend to ignore him until we are in complete desperation. In effect, he is trying to head off the issues ahead of us, but we don’t take the time to ask for or listen to his guidance. We seem to prefer to proceed with doing things we shouldn’t do instead of listening to that still small voice that is reaching out to us. He is always faithful to us, even when we are unfaithful to him. In some ways it is like parenting. As a parent, I want to watch out for my children and try to keep them out of trouble, but there is only so much I can do when my children don’t listen. Even when my children disobey me and choose their own paths, I still love them as much as I always have. We find commitments of God’s eternal faithfulness to us throughout the bible and here are just a couple of the many passages of scripture. Psalm 108:4 “For Your mercy is great above the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.” Psalm 117:2 “For His merciful kindness is great toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.”

Since God has been there with us every step of every day, isn’t it time for us to praise him with every breath we take and time to sing of his mercy and his grace? It is time to stop running away from God, it is time to fall into the security of his promises and his love. Are you one of the people who have continued to run from God? If so, isn’t it time for you to quit running away and accept his son as your savior?

Select to hear CeCe Winans Sing the Goodness of God

One Small Child

The next entry for my Blog is One Small Child, which was written by David Meece. It was first released in 1977. A link to Evie singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

One small child in a land of a thousand
One small dream of a savior tonight
One small hand reaching out to the starlight
One small savior of life, ooh

One king bringing his gold and riches
One king ruling an army of might
One king kneeling with incense and candlelight
One king bringing us life, ooh

See him lying a cradle beneath him
See him smiling in the stall
See his mother praising his father
See his tiny eyelids fall

See the shepherds kneeling before him
See the kings on bended knee
Oh, see the mother praising the father
See the blessed infant sleep

One small child in a land of a thousand
One small dream of a savior tonight
One small hand reaching out to the starlight
One small savior of life, ooh

This post is being written during the Christmas season since I believe it carries the true meaning of Christmas. During the Christmas season and perhaps other holiday seasons, the true message of the song is lost amongst the glitz and glitter of the ongoing celebrations. It is easy to enjoy singing along with these wonderful celebratory songs since they usually make us happy and think about holidays of the past. I believe this song brings us back to the reality of what Christmas is truly all about, which is celebrating the birth of Christ.

On that very special night long ago, the son of God was born. He was only one of thousands of children being born that same night, so he wasn’t anything special to those outside of his mom and dad. The fact that he was born and was lying in a manger diminished his perceived worth to the world even more. Think about the people who were staying at the inn where there was no room for Jesus, what was their initial impression of the baby lying in the manger which normally held food for the livestock? They probably thought that this child had no hope in life and would probably end up a beggar in the streets, just as so many of the poor they saw in the city streets every day. The tiny infant raises its hands to the stars, maybe to reach out to Mary his mother, or perhaps to his father in heaven. Little did anyone know that this little baby would be the savior of the world. It is true that the angel told Mary about her son before he was born, but taking that head and heart knowledge and applying it to this little baby had to be a difficult task.

After a period of time the wisemen/kings arrived from the far east. To get there while the baby was still there meant the kings had been notified of the birth perhaps many months earlier since they came from far away. There are songs about the three kings/wisemen and the gifts they brought to the son of God. They brought gold, incense, myrrh, and also brought the power they represented. Just imagine how Mary the mother of Jesus and Joseph his earthly father felt when the kings arrived. They may have never been really close to a king and the king they did know was not necessarily a kind one. They are probably in awe of the kings and then overwhelmed when the kings knelt before this tiny little baby. Who is he that would be worshipped and revered by powerful kings? As I mentioned above, even though Mary was told her child would the son of God and a savior to the world, it still had to be a very humbling experience.

I can just imagine this tiny infant, the savior of the world, looking up at the kings hovering above him and giving them a smile of joy. Sometimes a simple smile can tell more than words can ever express. Mary is watching all of this in awe. She sees her son, the son of God, lying there with a beautiful smile on his face; all she can do is look to his heavenly father and let her heart relay her joy and amazement. She knew that words could never express what her heart felt as she looked up to the heavens. As she looked back down to the new born king, she saw his eyes slowly closing. Just think about how she must have felt knowing that the God of all creation had given her the most precious gift imaginable.

The song now reminds us that the shepherds were already there since they were the first to be notified of the birth of Christ. In the book of Luke chapter 2, we find that the shepherds were notified of the birth by angels, “There were shepherds taking care of their flocks at night. An angel appeared to them and told them not to be afraid as he brought good news, “This very day in David’s town your savior was born – Christ the Lord!” They would find the baby wrapped in cloth, lying in a manger.” They were viewed as some of the lowliest people by others, but God knew their true worth and let them be the first people to visit his son. As a result, some of the most powerful people were joined by some of the lowliest people to be the first to see our savior. I think it sends the message that Jesus was born for everyone; the poor, the lowly, the powerful, the humble, and the outcasts. All are represented and kneeling before their savior, our savior as Mary is praising God. What a way for God to start the life of his son, a loving family and all walks of life bowing before him.

What do you think about at Christmas? I know that being with family is important and I know that all of us like gifts; but are you taking the time to think about the true meaning of Christmas and give Jesus his time? When Christmas if over, does Jesus get boxed up and put away with the Christmas decorations, or does he stay in your life and your heart all year long? All I ask is that you take a little time and consider the question I posed.

Click to Hear Evie Sing One Small Child

Make Room in Your Heart

The next entry for my Blog is Make Room in Your Heart, which was written by John Mark Hall and Matt Maher. It was first released in 2017. A link to Matt Mayer and Casting Crowns singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

A family hiding from the storm
Found no place at the keeper’s door
It was for this a Child was born
To save a world so cold and hollow

The sleeping town, they did not know
That lying in a manger low
A Savior King who had no home
Has come to heal our sorrows

Is there room in your heart?
Is there room in your heart?
Is there room in your heart
For God to write His story?

Shepherds counting sheep at night
Do not fear the glory light
You are precious in His sight
God has come to raise the lowly

Is there room in your heart?
Is there room in your heart?
Is there room in your heart
For God to write His story?

You can come as you are
But it may set you apart
When you make room in your heart
And trade your dreams for His glory
Make room in your heart
Make room in your heart

Mother holds the promise tight
Every wrong will be made right
The road is straight, the burden’s light
For in His hands, He holds tomorrow

Is there room in your heart?
Is there room in your heart?
Is there room in your heart
For God to write His story?

You can come as you are
But it may set you apart
When you make room in your heart
And trade your dreams for His glory
Make room in your heart
Make room in your heart

Make room in your heart
Make room in your heart

This song asks a challenging question, one that all of us should take the time to consider how we would respond. The core of the story comes from the bible and is found in the book of Luke chapter 2. As the holy family sought shelter from the storms of life and the threat of losing their yet to be born son, they found no place for him to be born. The only place available for him to be born was in a manger filled with hay, basically it was a feeding trough for horses and cattle. This is where our savior, Jesus, the Son of God was born. It is hard to imagine that the son of God, the one person who had come to save the world, would be born in this way. The keeper of the inn nor the people of the local town of Bethlehem had any idea of what was transpiring nor how the world would be changed forever. We are also told in Luke 2, that the shepherds were the first to visit Jesus. They were told about the birth by angels who directed them to Bethlehem. Just imagine the shock they experienced when angels appeared to them to deliver the message! I guess it was only fitting that the shepherds were some of the first ones to see Jesus since they spend their lives out in the fields and away from other people and the tents they had were perhaps their only home. The good news is that this was all part of God’s plan, his son was perfect in every way, and it only seems right for him to be born away from all of the sin in the cold hard world that he was coming into to offer salvation.

Jesus came to offer the gift of eternal life to everyone, not just a single group of people, not to just one country, but to the entire world. His color, his birthplace, his language were irrelevant; only his message and his sacrifice should be the focus for all of us. The chorus of this song asks the question that we must all take time to address, “Is there room in your heart for God to write his story?” I think most of us would answer with, “well of course there is.” Now I would like for you to take a few minutes and let the question really sink in before you respond. I understand that you carry love in your heart for your family and your friends, hopefully this is true for all of us. What about your passions outside of your family and friends, what dominates your thoughts and what is on your mind most often? You may spend more time thinking about your job, your next vacation, a sporting event, etc. than you do about your faith. Assuming everything you think about is what you really carry in your heart, is there truly room for God and his story? I am not suggesting you stop thinking about the other things in your life, I think the song is asking whether or not you are willing to give God equal time in your heart. God wants you to always keep his son and his sacrifice in your hearts. All of these things can coexist in your heart, but something has to have a priority. Shouldn’t that priority be God since he is the one offering you eternal life by accepting his son? Nothing else in your heart can offer you eternal life. I am not suggesting in any way that the other things in your heart are wrong, I am only saying that God should always be first in your heart as well and get the attention he deserves. We all make our choices as to what our priorities in life are and what we want to keep in our heart, but God can help us to keep our priorities in order. We find this promise in Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

It is great to want a family, to do well in your career, and to enjoy life; there is nothing wrong with these dreams and aspirations. As you take a moment to reflect on who you hope to be and your personal goals, are you merely thinking about the time you have on this earth? Maybe you will have a long life, or you could pass away tomorrow; none of us have that answer. Do you ever take the time to think about an eternal life, the one that Jesus came to offer to us? He gives us hope of being reunited with our loved ones who also accepted him, once our earthly life is over. Maybe you need to take time to focus on your dreams and determine what your dreams coming to fruition would mean to you, and then compare your earthly dreams coming true to the gift of eternal life. Yes, you can still have a wonderful family, you can still have professional ambitions, and you can still enjoy other things in life; but if you want eternal life; you must make room in your heart for God to write his story.

If you have not done so already, please take the time to make sure you have room in your heart for God and then accept his promise of eternal life by accepting his sacrifice of his son so you can have eternal life.

Click to Hear Matt Maher and Casting Crowns Sing Make Room

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)

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 2^nd 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

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

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

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

How Great Thou Art

The next entry for my Blog is How Great Thou Art, which was written by Karl Gustav Boberg and was modified by Stuart Hine. The song was initially released Mar 13, 1886. A link to Carrie Underwood performing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

How Great Thou Art

Oh Lord, my God
When I, in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder
Thy power throughout the universe displayed

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing
He bled and died to take away my sin

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art

When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart
Then I shall bow, in humble adoration
And then proclaim, my God, how great Thou art

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art
How great Thou art, how great Thou art

Well, I have finally selected a song that has been on my heart for a very long time. I have always been hesitant to take on this song since it is so powerful and so well known.

I believe that most of us have at sometime in our life, stopped to admire a stunning sunset, a stream gurgling its way through the woods, and maybe a glorious sunrise as we awaken to a new day. Unfortunately, we rarely take the time to take in everything that has happened in our lives and how we have been positively impacted by others. How many times have you stopped and just thanked God for everything he has done? Many times, we think about family, friends, possessions, and maybe places we have been; but we don’t take the time to thank God for all he has done for us. In this song, I believe the writer has taken the time to think about all that God has done and he is blown away. He is not just thinking about what is going on around him, but all of creation and how God created the entire universe, the stars, the planets and even the sheer power of a thunderstorm. All of this created by the hand of God!

As the writer thinks about this great power, he starts singing from deep inside. He is not talking about singing along with others in church or singing along with the radio, but it is a voice from deep within; a voice from his very soul that is worshipping our Lord and Savior. Such a powerful and moving chorus. It is as if he is finally realizing how great and powerful our God is and that nothing is impossible for him. This powerful refrain occurs three times in the song and it seems as if it builds in strength and power throughout the song.

God created this world for mankind and it was a perfect world with everything we could ever need. Unfortunately, mankind started listening to the temptations offered by the devil and lost their perfect place on earth. They traded their perfect lives for an imperfect world that was overcome with sin. Many people totally turned their backs on God and lost their relationship with him. Over time, as God watched his creation continue to wander away from him, he knew it was time to take action to bring his people back. He wanted us to sense his presence always, no matter where we were or what we had done. To accomplish this objective, God sent a piece of himself, his only son, to come to earth. This son, named Jesus, came to show God’s love; and then had to suffer and die on the cross so that all of us could restore our relationship with God. Jesus was nailed to the cross as the ultimate sacrifice for all of our sins; and this was done just so we could once again have a harmonious relationship with God. This is the real definition of true love. The only action required of us to rebuild our relationship with God and secure eternal life with him in heaven, is to accept Jesus as our personal savior and recognize that his earthly death secured our eternal life in heaven. God loved us enough to give us his only son so that all of our wrongdoings would be erased for eternity. John 3:16 tells us of God’s love; “For this is how God loved the world, He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

The even better news is that the story has not ended, we are still waiting for God’s next step; which he has promised. Jesus, the son of God, who died on the cross for our wrongdoings; is coming back one more time! We are told that the trumpets will sound as Jesus and the angels come back to earth. Everyone alive who has yet to accept Jesus as their personal savior will get one more chance for eternal life and a reunion with friends and family who are already in heaven. We find this in 1 Thes 4:16-17: “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” I can’t even imagine what that moment will be like for those who are alive when it happens. I envision everyone who accepts Jesus at this time, will be falling to their knees in adoration and wonder and then be swept away into heaven with him.

My God, how great thou art!