Music Mondays

It’s been a while since we had a music Monday, but Thursday night this song caught my attention and I’ve been captivated by it since.

Zephaniah 3:17 says, “…He will take great delight in you.  He will quiet you with his love.  He will rejoice over you with singing.”

God singing at all – especially over me – was not something of which I was familiar.  So,  I asked God to show me a song that he sings.  I’m not sure if this is it, exactly, but knowing him, it probably sounds a lot like this:

My Beloved

You’re My Beloved
You’re My Bride
To sing over you is My delight
Come away with Me My love

You’re Beautiful to Me
So beautiful to Me

Under My mercy
Come and wait
Till we are standing face to face
I see no stain on you
My child

You’re Beautiful to Me
So Beautiful to Me

I sing over you My song of peace
Cast all your care down at My feet
Come and find your rest in Me

I’ll breathe My life inside of you
I’ll bear you up on eagle’s wings
And hide you in the shadow of My strength
I’ll take you to My quiet waters
I’ll restore your soul
Come rest in Me and be made whole

You’re My beloved
You’re My Bride
To sing over you is my delight
Come away with me my love

I am writing this post from my hotel in Arequipa, Peru. We just wrapped up five days of ministering to the Peruvian people, and my mind and soul are still trying to sort through all that I have seen and all that God has taught me on this trip.

Considering my present location, I couldn’t think of a more appropriate song for Music Monday than Follow You by Leeland. As you listen to the song and read the lyrics, let me challenge you with a question: where will you follow Him?

Follow You
You lived among the least of these
The weary and the weak
And it would be a tragedy for me to turn away
All my needs you have supplied.
When I was dead you gave me life.
How could I not give it away so freely?

And I’ll follow you into the homes that are broken.
Follow you into the world.
Meet the needs for the poor and the needy God.
Follow you into the World

Use my hands, use my feet
To make your kingdom come
Through the corners of the earth
Until your work is done
‘Cause Faith without works is dead
And on the cross your blood was she’d
So how could I not give it away so freely?

And I’ll follow you into the homes that are broken.
Follow you into the world.
Meet the needs for the poor and the needy God.
Follow you into the World.

I give all myself.
I give all myself
I give all myself… to you.

And I give all myself.
Yes, I give all myself.
And I give all myself… to you.

And I’ll follow you into the homes that are broken
Follow you into the world.
Meet the needs for the poor and the needy God.
Follow you into the World.

I had the sweetest time with Jesus last week. He showed me just how far He has brought me over the last two years, and I stood amazed at how beautiful, gentle and patient He really is with me. It makes me wonder why I resist Him; doubt Him; or question His goodness? I cannot capture into words the love that I have for Him but this song by Leeland does a pretty decent job.

My Jesus

Here on the bank I stand.
But in the water is the hope of man.
Unclean, I fall before You now.
Jesus, come wash me inside out.

I’m running to the water now.
I’m running to the water now.

And I’m lost in Your love and Your mercy.
Lord, Your beauty is so overwhelming.
I’m thankful for Your truth.
I’m so in love with You.
My Jesus, My Jesus.

Here on the bank I stand.
But in the water is the hope of man.
Unclean, I fall before You now.
Jesus, come wash me inside out.

I’m running to the water now, oh
I’m running to the water now.

And I’m lost in Your love and Your mercy.
Lord, Your beauty is so overwhelming.
I’m thankful for Your truth.
I’m so in love with You.
My Jesus, My Jesus.

All things are new again.
Covered in waters of love I stand.
All my chains are broken.

All things are new again.
Covered in waters of love I stand.
All my chains are broken.
‘Cause I’m washed inside Your ocean.

I’m running to the water now.
I’m running to the water now.

And I’m lost in Your love and Your mercy.
Lord, Your beauty is so overwhelming.
I’m thankful for Your truth.
I’m so in love with You.
My Jesus, My Jesus.

And I’m lost in Your love and Your mercy.
Lord, Your beauty is so overwhelming.
I’m thankful for Your truth.
I’m so in love with You.
My Jesus, Oh, My Jesus.

You make all things new.
You’re so good to me Lord
So thankful Lord, so thankful Lord.
I’m new creation, You make all things new oh Lord.
You are my salvation.
You are just so beautiful.
I’m a new creation, You make all things new. Oh, Lord.

We love You.
We love You.
So in love with You…

God is many things to me.  I know Him as Father, Counselor, and Friend, but the book of Hosea challenged me to see Him as Husband.  I struggled with this concept for one obvious reason:  I’m not married.

The story of Hosea goes something like this:  God tells him to marry a prostitute.  Now, speaking from a singleton’s standpoint, I’d have to say I’d be pretty disappointed if the husband God chose for me was a prostitute.  Not exactly what I have in mind for myself.  But God uses Hosea’s marriage to Gomer (unfortunate name, don’t you think?) to illustrate the unfaithfulness of His people and His undeserved, lavish love for His people.

But there is another thing that surprised me in this book:  God’s relentless pursuit of us despite our unfaithfulness.  We run from Him time and time again, but he pursues us patiently, purposefully, powerfully.

This story reminded me Brandon Heath’s song, “Stolen.”

Stolen
(Brandon Heath, Nate Campany, Dan Muckala)

I’m a fugitive
Running from the life that I was meant to live
Looking for somewhere that I can lay my head
I’m lucky if I make it through the night
But I can’t sleep
Knowing that You’re one more step ahead of me
I’m a fool for ever thinking You’d just let me go
That’s not the way it’s ever gone before
I’m Yours

You catch me like a thief in the night
You hold me when I put up a fight
You chase me when I run from Your light
Because You love, You won’t give up
‘Til my heart is stolen
‘Til my heart is stolen away

I’m trying to understand that life comes after dying
To embrace that I’m a slave until I’m captured
But You would never use a lock or a key
‘Cause I am free

You catch me like a thief in the night
You hold me when I put up a fight
You chase me when I run from Your light
Because You love, You won’t give up
‘Til my heart is stolen
‘Til my heart is stolen away

I could change my name, cover all my tracks
But I’m wrong to think I could lose the past
‘Cause You found me here and You took me back
Once a criminal, now a prodigal

© 2011 Sony/ATV Cross Keys Publishing / Big Skwawka Music (ASCAP) All rights on behalf of Sony/ATV Cross Keys Publishing and Big Skwawka Music admin. by Sony/ATV. / Dear Cleveland Publishing / Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. (BMI) / Wintergone Music (ASCAP) (admin. worldwide by Kobalt Music Publishing, LTD.)

Has a song ever made you squirm?  Audrey Assad’s song, “Known” did that to me.  The first time I heard this song, I found myself in uncharted territory:  somehow I felt exposed; naked.  From a song.  Weird.  It took me a while to figure out why, and once I figured it out, I began to love it.

This song speaks of how God knows us – intimately.  He sees us as we really are.  He sees past the make-up, the perfectly coifed hair (obviously, I’m not talking about my hair here), and the outer embellishments that we use to cover-up who we really are.

He sees us exactly the way we are.  He sees the truth that no garment can cover.  And He loves us anyway.

Known

As the dew falls on the blade
You have touched all this fragile frame
And as a mother knows her baby’s face
You know me, You know me

As the summer air within my chest
I have breathed You deep down into my breast
And as You know the hairs upon my head
Every thought and every word I’ve said
Every thought and every word I’ve said

Savior, You have known me as I am
Healer, You have known me as I was
As I will be in the morning, in the evening
You have known me, yeah, You know me

Oh, and as the exhilaration of autumn’s bite
Oh, You have brought these tired bones to brilliant life
And as the swallow knows, she knows the sky
This is how it is with You and I
Oh, this is how it is with You and I

Savior, You have known me as I am
Healer, You have known me as I was
As I will be in the morning, in the evening
You have known me, yeah, You know me

From the fall of my heart to the resurrection of my soul
You know me, God, and You know my ways
In my rising and my sitting down
You see me as I am, oh, see me as I am

And as a lover knows his beloved’s heart
All the shapes and curves of her even in the dark
Oh, You have formed one in my inward parts
And You know me, You know me, yes

Savior, You, You have known me as I am
Oh, healer, You have known me as I was
As I will be in the morning, in the evening
You have known

You have known me, in the morning, in the evening
You’ve known me, God
In the morning, in the evening You have known me
Yeah, You’ve know me

You have always known me
You know me, God, You have known me
You have always known my heart

Credits :
songwriters: assad, audrey; larue, phillip
© deeper still music publishing;my maxx songs;river oaks music company;songs of razor and tie

Many voices compete for our attention: co-workers, family, friends, bosses, children. Sometimes, they can all scream at once.

The same happens in the spiritual world (at least for me). I can feel God speak to me so clearly one minute, and then the next minute, I can hear Satan’s minions scream to the contrary.

There is a war that is raging all around us.

Being aware of the battle in the spiritual realm is something new to me, but I assure you, I have found it to be very real and very bloody.

God has asked me to believe some pretty crazy things over the last couple of years. Things that are completely impossible without His hand on the situation, and it has been a wild ride.

Satan likes to remind me that these situations are impossible. Many months ago, during one particularly brutal battle, this song played on my iPod and finally, though I had heard the song many times, I listened to the words. The words just happened to be what God had been whispering to my soul earlier in the day. I love when He does that!

Voice of Truth

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes to climb out of this boat I’m in
Onto the crashing waves

To step out of my comfort zone
To the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He’s holding out his hand

But the waves are calling out my name and they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times I’ve tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again. ‘Boy, you’ll never win!’
“You’ll never win”

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
And the voice of truth says “Do not be afraid!”
And the voice of truth says “This is for My glory”
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of strength it takes to stand before a giant
With just a sling and a stone
Surrounded by the sound of a thousand warriors
Shaking in their armor
Wishing they’d have had the strength to stand

But the giant’s calling out my name and he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times I’ve tried before and failed
The giant keeps on telling me
Time and time again “boy, you’ll never win!
“You’ll never win”

But the stone was just the right size
To put the giant on the ground
And the waves they don’t seem so high
From on top of them looking down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
When I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
Singing over me

I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth