unconditional love – Song Dive

Me on Your Mind

The next entry for my Blog is Me on Your Mind, which was written by Matthew West, Jeff Pardo, and Anne Wilson. It was first released February 18, 2022. A link to Matthew West singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

I’ve read the words in red
How You leave the 99
To find the one missing
Feels like that was written
With me on Your mind

And the prodigal son who ran, leaving his home behind
The part where the father came running to meet him
Did You say that with me on Your mind?

Who am I that the King of the world
Would give one single thought about my broken heart?
Who am I that the God of all grace
Wipes the tears from my face and says, “Come as you are”?
You paid the price, You took the cross
You gave Your life and You did it all with me on Your mind (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Me on Your mind (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)

Just knowing You’re mindful of me
Just knowing You call me Your child
It’s flooding my soul with unspeakable hope
Thank You, Lord, that it’s me on Your mind

I’ve read the words in red of a heavenly home on high
You’re preparing a place where the sorrow’s erased
And when I stand before You, I’ll find
All along, it was me on Your mind

Who am I that the King of the world
Would give one single thought about my broken heart?
And who am I that the God of all grace
Wipes the tears from my face and says, “Come as you are”?
You paid the price, You took the cross
You gave Your life and You did it all with me on Your mind (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
With me on Your mind (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)

Woah (oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
It was me on Your mind

I believe we all have times in our life when we feel all alone and we often get down and out and feeling sorry for ourselves. Unfortunately, many people have this feeling way too many times and they lead very sad lives. Maybe our friends and our families try to encourage us, but they really don’t understand. The words of encouragement and friendly hugs and prayers may be there, but your heart is still hurting and sad. Some people, such as our Christian friends, may encourage us to read our bibles and read about the promises of God in hopes that it brings us out of our depression. Have you ever been in this situation before? If so; didn’t you feel completely hopeless? It seems even more distressing when you are in a group of people and everything in life seems perfect with them.

The writers of the song refer to the text in the bible that is written in red. These red letters are words that came from Jesus, the son of the almighty God. Not every bible has these letters, but the red-letter editions always put the words of Jesus in red. There is a story in the bible that Jesus shared in the book of Matthew 18:12-14, which tells us just how much Jesus loves us and views each of us as his children. “If a shepherd has a hundred sheep and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.” We are the lost sheep until we acknowledge Jesus as our savior and God as our father. No matter how far we wander away from God, he will be there with us. Yes, the 99 sheep are still as important to him as they have always been, but for that moment in time; he is focused on getting us into the flock and becoming part of his eternal family. When I reflect on the scripture above, it does seem as if I was the lost sheep Jesus came after and the red letters I had been reading were referring to me. It is so important to know that none of us are ever alone and we can never hide from the eyes of God.

The writers of the song also tell us about a family member who ran away from home with the dreams of getting everything he wanted in life. His father gave him his share of the inheritance and he went and squandered it all within a short time. This parable is found in the book of Luke 15:11-22, “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. None of us are perfect, we all make mistakes every single day. We say things we don’t mean and do things we don’t really mean to do. God loves me when I hold him close to my heart and God still loves me when I wander away. So maybe this story fits all of us in some way.

The chorus of the song is so powerful as it describes how the king of this entire world with its billions of people, still loves me and watches out for me every single day. Why am I so special that he wipes the tears from my eyes, heals the hurts in my heart, and loves me unconditionally? It is because each of us are his children and no matter how bad we act, he loves us unconditionally. He allowed his only son to suffer a brutal death on the cross, so that we could spend eternity with him. He wants us to come to him as we are and find comfort in his love. I don’t know if I will ever be able to comprehend the depth of God’s love, but I do know he always has me on his mind and in his heart. One day I will join him in the heavenly home he has prepared just for me and he has a special home for everyone who accepts him as their father and Jesus as their savior. The day Jesus died, you and I were on his mind.

Click to Hear Matthew West Sing Me on Your Mind

That’s Enough

The next entry for my Blog is That’s Enough, which was written by Brandon Heath, Mallary Hope, and Molly Reed. It was first released April 22, 2022. A link to Brandon Heath singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

That’s Enough

Mind if I tell you a secret
A few simple truths about me
Might be hard to believe
Guess I’m just trying to come clean

Sometimes I don’t know where I’m going
It’s hard to admit where I’ve been
When I come to the end of myself
This is where I begin, again

I am here
I am loved
God is good
And that’s enough

I don’t know your situation
What kind of story you’re in
If you’re high on that mountain
Or down in the valley again

You might be holding your baby
You might be holding a drink
You might be holding a secret
That’s getting harder to keep

But you are here
You are loved
God is good
And that’s enough

And I am here
I am loved
God is good
And that’s enough

It’s okay if I don’t have the answers
It’s okay to be right where you are
It was patience and kindness and love
That got us this far

You are here
And you are loved
God is good

And I am here
I am loved
God is good
And that’s enough

He is here
He is love
God is good
And that’s enough

How many of us have secrets? My guess is that all of us have something deep inside of us that we have never shared or have only shared with a select few people. Sometimes, we just need to share one or more of these closely guarded secrets because they are tearing us apart inside. People who are close to us and people who are casual acquaintances may know us only by our exterior persona, but they have no idea what we may be struggling with deep inside. My wife accuses me of hiding things in various vaults in my head, where they can never be found. With all of this being said, most of us reach a time where we just need to bare our soul regarding some of the things going on in our lives and our past that we have been reluctant to share.

In this song, I believe the singer has reached the point where he just has to talk to someone, because it is tearing him up on the inside and has been hidden by that façade we many times hide behind. I believe all of us are in this situation and the time comes where we just need to come clean. Maybe you invite someone or a few friends to grab a cup or coffee or a drink with you. As you sit there, you start to explain how you are not the person you appear to be. The person or people you are talking to have always viewed you as someone who has it all together. Perhaps you are the one seemingly always loving life, with everything going your way. Perhaps it is your demeanor, maybe it is how many friends you have, your successful career, how much money you appear to have, or perhaps your perfect family. As you start to tell your true story, the people with you become speechless as they hear what has really been going on inside of you. They start to understand that maybe your entire life has been a trainwreck and you have kept it hidden behind a well-developed façade. Your best friends start hearing about your childhood as part of a broken family, how your marriages have failed, how you are deep in debt, and that your entire life has been a failure. For you, success has been temporary and fleeting as your inner secrets continue to take over your mind and distract from the life you want to live. It is almost as if you have been hanging off of a cliff, were able to pull yourself back up; and then start hanging off a different cliff as life beats you down again. I realize I have painted a picture of gloom and doom, but I truly believe there is a little bit of this in all of us and a lot of this in many of us. I believe that the people who just heard you bear your soul were handpicked by God for this point of time in your life.

It is in our weakest moments when we turn to the only place where we have unconditional love and this is from God and his son Jesus; he never leaves our side. In our darkest moments as we reach out to him, he is with us. He tells us this in Matthew 28:20, “And lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” As the singer of this song tells his sad sad story, God stops him and says “I am here”, you are never alone. Note that God does not say he is there for a period of time, he says he will be there always. The bible also tells in the book of John 3:16, “that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son to die for us.” How much more can someone love you, than to give up their only child for you? Yes, God is good and he has made sacrifices for us and promises to us that will last for eternity. God has to remind us sometimes that he is here, that he loves us, and that we will care for us. With God saying he is with us always and then he gave the life of his son for us, I say that’s enough.

We never know or even completely understand someone else’s story or situation, but I believe everyone has their own personal challenges in life. All of us probably get on that mountain top from time to time, only to slide back down into the valley; but God is always there with his hand out ready to pick us up yet one more time. We all have something to hide, maybe it is something associated with your family, maybe you have a problem with drinking or drugs, you can never keep a job, or maybe you just feel as if your entire life is coming unraveled and your secrets are becoming more and more difficult to keep within your façade. The real question the song seems to ask, is where does God fit into your life? The answer is to let him into your heart, he is waiting for you to invite him in. Once you allow God into your life, you start to put your trust in him since you should know that he holds the future. We don’t have to always understand why things have happened to us, but God only focuses on our future; he is not concerned about our past. Once we accept his son Jesus as our personal savior, our past is forgotten and we become white as snow on the inside. We may never understand why we have had these challenges in our life, but it is important to understand that God puts the right people by our side at various stages in our life for a purpose. These are people we can talk to about our burdens and maybe help us to find our way out of the darkness. He is simply waiting for us to reach out our hand and place it into his and feel his power, his glory, and peace that only he can bring.

It is really ok not to know all of the answers and God will be with us regardless of where we go in our lives. The song says it is God’s patience, kindness, and love that has gotten us this far. God is good, God is here, and that is enough.

Click to Hear Brandon Heath Sing That’s Enough

Thank God I Do

The next entry for my Blog is Thank God I Do, which was written by Alecia B. Moore, Jason David Ingram, Jeffrey Bhasker, Lauren Ashley Daigle, and Nathaniel Ruess. The song was initially released March 8, 2023. A link to Lauren Daigle performing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Thank God I Do

I’ve seen love come and I’ve seen love walk away
So many questions, will anybody stay?
It’s been a hard year, so many nights in tears
All of the darkness, tryin’ to fight my fears

Alone
So long alone

I don’t know who I’d be if I didn’t know You
I’d probably fall off the edge
I don’t know where I’d go if You ever let go
So keep me held in Your hands

I’ve started breathing, the weight is lifted here
With you it’s easy, my head is finally clear
There’s nothin’ missing when You are by my side
I took the long road, but now I realize

I’m home
With You, I’m home

I don’t know who I’d be if I didn’t know You
I’d probably fall off the edge
I don’t know where I’d go if You ever let go
So keep me held in Your hands
I don’t know who I’d be if I didn’t know You
I’d probably fall off the edge
I don’t know where I’d go if You ever let go
So keep me held in Your hands

You’re my safe place, my hideaway
You’re my anchor, my saving grace
You’re my constant, my steadiness
You’re my shelter, my oxygen

I don’t know who I’d be if I didn’t know You
Thank God I do

Have you been in love before and believed that the relationship you were in was going to last forever? If/When our first love doesn’t work out, we are just devastated and initially think we will never love again and may never feel loved again. Maybe we go through this cycle multiple times in our lives and start to wonder, will I ever find that right one? How many times will my heart be broken? People that enter this seemingly endless and vicious cycle just want to give up; they just can’t imagine living through yet another broken relationship. Every night becomes a sad night, a night of sadness, and a night of tears. Have you been there and felt this intense loneliness and heartbreak that just sucks the life out of you? Even worse is you feel as if you are all alone and every minute of feeling this way seems like an eternity.

The good news is that love, hope, and warmth can be found through faith, faith in Jesus Christ as our lord and savior. He will never leave us and we are told this in the book of Deuteronomy 31:8, “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” All we need to do is reach out our hearts and our hands to Christ and he will wrap his arms around us and fill us with hope and love. So many people try to find their own way and their way leads them to drugs, to alcohol, false hopes, and into despair and they may ultimately fall over the edge that is referenced by the song. The weight of our sorrow and loneliness is so great that we struggle to breathe, to survive, and just to take another step. The words of the song encourage us to keep holding the hand of God and he will keep us from falling into the pit of despair and from falling over the proverbial edge.

As we start to realize that we are never alone and that we have the power of God supporting us, we start feeling a glimmer of hope. We can start to live again and dream about a new beginning of hope, the sun is finally lighting up the sky as the clouds of despair disappear. We can finally take those deep breaths and feel our lungs fill with the air of relief as opposed to the shortness of breath we felt during our despair. At the same time, we start to realize that we are never alone and will never be alone again. It doesn’t mean that our path will always be smooth and that every dream will come true, but we will never be alone and there will always be hope through God and his son. The sad part is that so many of us get lost and struggle for so long before we ever bring God into our lives. We traveled through the valley of despair and darkness for a long time before we asked for help from the only source that can hold us, love us, and guide us. The path to this realization can be a very long one, but God’s response is immediate once we turn it all over to him.

Once we feel the presence of the hand of God, we realize we will never be alone and that at long last, we are home and in the company of someone who truly loves us, who will never reject us, and will never let go. He becomes our safe place, a place where we can escape from the world and find peace. We may have friends or family that change and move on with their lives and leave us alone, but the bible tells that Jesus never changes, which means his love for us is forever and that his commitment to us is unwavering. Hebrews 13:8 tells us that “Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” You may turn your back on Jesus, the son of God, who should be your best friend, but he will never turn his back on you. When you are looking for that hand to lift you up, his hand is already extended to you, all you have to do is grab his hand then feel the peace that only he can bring.

Notice in the song where the writer describes God as being a safe place, a hideaway, an anchor, a saving grace, a constant, a source of stability, a shelter, and a fresh breath. Aren’t these things we look for in a best friend? Don’t we all desire a best friend or even a group of friends who can provide all of this to us? Isn’t it true that although we expect all of this from our best friends, they can never meet every one of our needs? We all need good friends to turn to, but the only friend we have who can meet our every need is Jesus. Jesus is the only constant we will ever have in our lives. Isn’t it a good feeling to know that even though you feel as if you are on the edge of the precipice of life, there is someone ready to pull you back and give you unconditional love?

Thank God I do.

Click to Hear Lauren Daigle Perform Thank God I Do

Flawless

The next song for my Blog is a contemporary song released in April 2015. It was written by Barry Graul, Bart Millard, Ben Glover, David Garcia, Michael Scheuchzer, Nathan Cochran, Robby Shaffer, and Solomon Olds. A link to MercyMe performing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry.

Flawless

There’s got to be more
Than going back and forth
From doing right to doing wrong
‘Cause we were taught that’s who we are
Come on get in line right behind me
You along with everybody
Thinking there’s worth in what you do

Then like a hero who takes the stage when
We’re on the edge of our seats saying it’s too late
Well let me introduce you to amazing grace

No matter the bumps
No matter the bruises
No matter the scars
Still the truth is
The cross has made
The cross has made you flawless
No matter the hurt
Or how deep the wound is
No matter the pain
Still the truth is
The cross has made
The cross has made you flawless

Could it possibly be
That we simply can’t believe
That this unconditional
Kind of love would be enough
To take a filthy wretch like this
And wrap him up in righteousness
But that’s exactly what He did

No matter the bumps
No matter the bruises
No matter the scars
Still the truth is
The cross has made
The cross has made you flawless
No matter the hurt
Or how deep the wound is
No matter the pain
Still the truth is
The cross has made
The cross has made you flawless

Take a breath smile and say
Right here right now I’m ok because
The cross was enough

Then like a hero who takes the stage when
We’re on the edge of our seats saying it’s too late
Well let me introduce you to grace grace
God’s grace

He made you flawless
He made you flawless

No matter the bumps
No matter the bruises
No matter the scars
Still the truth is
The cross has made
The cross has made you flawless

You ever feel as if you are the proverbial hamster on the wheel? Maybe you have had a hamster or a mouse in a cage with a wheel and they can seemingly run on these wheels for hours. Obviously, they are getting some good exercise, but once they get off the wheel; they are right back at the place they started and are probably exhausted. If you think about it, this does bear some resemblance to our lives. Some times in our life, we seem to making great progress in a lot of areas and other times we feel as if we are going backwards. I think this also applies to what we accomplish as Christians, sometimes we are on fire for the Lord and feel so close to him; but other times we are not so committed and seem to distance ourselves from him. We just keep going back and forth and people tell us that is just the normal nature of life and that we just need to get used to it. In other words, we are just like everyone else riding the human version of the hamster wheel and we sort of get used to it. We realize along the way that life has got to be more than this and that we are becoming more immersed in the sinful world instead of being transformed from this world. We also come to the realization that we need help to get off the wheel of sin and on the right path.

At some point, from out of nowhere, someone comes forward and helps set us on the right track again. The writer calls this the hero who comes to our rescue after we have given up hope and accepted our lot in life. For all of us, this hero can only be Jesus since he is the only one who can give us amazing grace. Grace is when God gives us what we don’t deserve and we certainly don’t deserve his love and his forgiveness; but he gives both to us freely. He is only one who can save us from the hamster wheel of sin and hopelessness and assure us that we have an eternity of heavenly peace ahead of us.

It doesn’t matter to him how or why we got our physical and emotional scars, bumps, heartaches, and bruises in life; all he asks us to do is accept his son as our personal savior and all of our sins of the past, present, and future are forgiven. When Jesus died on the cross, our sins went away. We became flawless forever. Take a few minutes and just dwell on that thought, we are completely freed from the bondage of sin. It doesn’t mean we won’t have any more pain or heartache; but it does mean these will all go away and not go with us to our heavenly home. In Hebrews 10:11-14 is the promise that all of our sins are taken away forever. ¹¹All Jewish religious leaders stand every day killing animals and giving gifts on the altar. They give the same gifts over and over again. These gifts cannot take away sins. ¹²But Christ gave Himself once for sins and that is good forever. After that He sat down at the right side of God. ¹³He is waiting there for God to make of those who have hated Him a place to rest His feet. ¹⁴And by one gift He has made perfect forever all those who are being set apart for God-like living.

The difficult part to digest is the fact that no matter how bad we have been or what sins we have committed, the unconditional love of Christ allows him to forgive and forget all of our sins. Maybe we as humans rank sins and believe some people are worse than others and from our human perspective this is probably true, but in God’s eyes, a sin is a sin. God is willing to forgive us of all sins, no matter how bad they are. He sent Jesus as the atonement for all of our sins and this atonement is for all of us; all we have to do is accept Christ as our Lord and savior. Keep in mind that he doesn’t rank sins, he only sees us as his creations who are imperfect in an imperfect world. As we accept Christ, we are wrapped in his arm of righteousness for eternity. We probably all ask the question, how can Jesus love me after everything I did; but as the writer states; we can just take a deep breath, smile, and say thank you with all of our heart because the cross was enough.

It is awesome that God sees us as his children and gives each of us his unconditional love. Isn’t that what being a father is all about?

Click Here to See MercyMe Performing Flawless