February 3, 2014
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So Easy to Sing
The other day a friend and I were talking about all the amazing songs of commitment and surrender which are being sung in churches. I still remember has a child in our little country church singing:
I surrender all.
I surrender all.
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.But really. Really? It is so easy, in the passion of the moment to sing it and think you mean it, isn't it? I surrender ALL? Everything? God is looking to see if we still mean it on Monday. If we only "feel it" on Sunday, and live any way we want to live the rest of the week, we cannot really say we have "surrendered all," can we? Could it be that we are singing LIES to GOD?
The Lord: I want you to teach the preteen Sunday School class.
Me: God, you know that age group scares me! And think how much earlier I would have to get up!Yeah..... I surrender ALL. It's hard.
When God made it clear that He was calling my husband and I to move to Denmark, I did NOT want to surrender AT ALL. Nope. No way. I loved my life. I loved my job. I loved my family, my nation and my current way of life. It was really hard. Quitting my job, packing up my life, saying good bye to family and friends.... I thought I was going to die. When I hugged my mom, I literally had to pry her fingers off me. She did not want to let go. It broke my heart. But.... in the midst of it all, there was another song that was going around and around in my head. It's an old one by a group called Anointed.
For the sake of the call, I am laying down my all
No turning back, moving straight ahead
I'm on the right track, and its all for the sake of the callIt was on a day like no other seeking Your face when I discovered
My life was no longer my own, but Yours
But then I heard you say Go and tell them. Open your heart
Let me in and I will supply your every needThen I cried, Lord, I dont know if I can do it
You will find your strength in Me, only believe
Then I said, What if I fail? I just couldnt take it
He said, I have given you My abilityFor the sake of the call, I am laying down my all
No turning back, moving straight ahead
Im on the right track, and its all for the sake of the callYou see, Jesus bought me with His own blood. Literally. So, it is not my life anymore. I don't get to decide everything. Yet, there are so many Christians who don't seem to get that. (Including me, sometimes!) You know, I didn't die. I have thrived. I have grown. It has been so exciting and rewarding! I am so glad I obeyed, even though I did drag my feet quite a lot!
How about this song:
I'm yours Lord! Everything I've got
Everything I am. Everything I'm not.
I'm yours Lord! Try me now and see
See if I can be completely yours.And God listens while we sing. God watches how we live.
This is the air I breathe
This is the air I breathe
Your holy presence living in meThis is my daily bread
This is my daily bread
Your very word, spoken to meAnd I... I'm desparate for you
And I... I'm lost without youIt is incredible how patient God is. It is also incredible how selfish, stubborn and UN-Christ like we, God's own people can be.
Saying no to God has a price. If you do that enough times, God will just stop asking. You will wonder why your relationship with Him has grown cold. Or... maybe you won't even notice.
God wants to be first in our lives. God wants us to BURN for Him. He wants us to love Him with such passion, that there is NOTHING we won't do, and no where we aren't willing to go if He asks. As Keith Green so aptly wrote in his song, To Obey is Better Than Sacrifice, "If you can't come to Him every day, then don't bother coming at all."
We wonder why the world is in such a mess. We "tut tut" at the sin and the scandals and the filth and the lies. Do we ever wonder WHY the world is going down? Do we ever ask why it is that sin abounds? Sorry, it is not the president's fault. It is not the fault of the porn industry or Hollywood. It is not the drug pushers or prostitutes that are responsible. It's only my humble opinion, but I think the problem is Christians who would rather sing about commitment than BE committed -- who would rather sing about serving and loving Him than really doing it. Christians who would rather be comfortable than obey God. Lukewarm Christians.
Please, don't be one.
Comments (5)
Ouch!!!!!!!!
This is something that I think we have to deal with all our lives. At least, I have had to, and I came to Jesus when I was 7, so that's almost 70 years ago. It's easy to be lazy and let ourselves drift downstream. There's a lot I can't do that I did when I was younger, but I can still pray.
Sigh ~ I am so afraid you have hit the nail on the head ~
you know how to make me feel guilty.
I did once while single taught the young girls class with another gal who was single and we really learned a lot and saw the little popular girls be amazed at some of the little not so cool girls as they knew how to sew,cook, milk cows, etc. We saw all the girls embraced each other and become one group at least while in our class.
My comments were taken by the three above, so I shall repeat what they said (in part, & with some editing):
Ouch!!!!!!!! This is something that I think we have to deal with all our lives. At least, I have had to, and I came to Jesus when I was 4, so that’s almost 57 years ago. It’s easy to be lazy and let ourselves drift downstream. There’s a lot I can’t do that I did when I was younger, but I can still pray.
Sigh ~ I am so afraid you have hit the nail on the head ~
You know how to make me feel guilty.
And my originality: Daily I have to confess, and to recommit myself to the Lord. (Sometimes more than once a day!)
one of the hardest things I've had to learn yet in my christian walk and I'm still in the process of learning it. Thank you for your encouragement..."further in and further up"...