I Can't Feel You
I may have said this before, but I am really affected by music ( is that the right word to use...you know like their, there, and they're?). Music can speak to me more than just about anything. For a while I confused music with worship, which is fairly easy to do, I think. I have that straight now, but I am still strongly pulled by a Christian song. If you listen carefully, it's not the music. It's the words that hold such meaning. There are some amazing poets writing Christian lyrics these days. Inspired by God as I am sure many are, each word becomes a message in itself.
I believe songs are one way God speaks to us. I remember one specific incident when I was having a hard time with various incidents in my life. I really wanted to talk to my friend and advisor. Couldn't get her on the phone, and was driving in Springfield feeling really sorry for myself. At that particular moment, "Words I Would Say" by Sidewalk Prophets comes on the radio. For you who are not familiar with that song, the chorus goes like this:
" Be strong in the Lord and never give up hope
you're gonna do great things, I already know.
God's got His hand on you so don't live life in fear
Forgive and forget, but don't forget why you're here
Take your time and pray
These are the words I would say"
I knew without a doubt those words are exactly what my friend would say to me and there was no doubt in my mind that God had sent me a bit of encouragement at that moment. My day, even my week, were completely turned around from then on.
Right now I am focused on one particular song byBarlowGirl entitled "Never Alone". The chorus goes like this:
" I cried out with no reply
And I can't feel You by my side
So I'll hold tight to what I know
You're here, and I'm never alone."
I know we have all had times like that. Times when we feel God isn't hearing anything we say, nor acting on our prayers, or even anywhere near us. That's why I love the last two lines of that song. At times like that, we have to hold on desperately to what we know in order to make it through those lonely, bitter times.
What we know. What we know? How do we know? Do we know by listening to a sermon
either in person or on the Internet? Do we know by watching Christian television? What about attending our own church for Bible study or small group? While all these are wonderful things to do, and things I do and look forward to every week, the easiest, most effective, and best way to KNOW is by reading God's Word. Consistently . Thoroughly. Every day.
I decided to do some research about Bible reading in America and by Christians in particular. Just curious. I found a lot of pretty dismal information. Many different studies, but most agreed that people, even professed born-again Christians, read very little of the Bible beyond what they read in
church on Sunday morning. One thing I read quoted Ron Rhodes, president of Reasoning from the Scriptures Ministries. He believes that American Christians are basically Bible illiterate.Another study says Bible reading has declined from 73% of people who read it in 1980 to 59% now . I could go on and on, but all the stats are pretty dismal.
My point is this: if we don't KNOW what the scriptures say, how can we hold tight to what we know? We can't. We just can't.
I can't tell you that I read the Bible as well as I should, but I will tell you that I do it a tremendous amount more than I used to. And it has given me peace beyond my wildest dreams. What about you? Do you KNOW?
I believe songs are one way God speaks to us. I remember one specific incident when I was having a hard time with various incidents in my life. I really wanted to talk to my friend and advisor. Couldn't get her on the phone, and was driving in Springfield feeling really sorry for myself. At that particular moment, "Words I Would Say" by Sidewalk Prophets comes on the radio. For you who are not familiar with that song, the chorus goes like this:
" Be strong in the Lord and never give up hope
you're gonna do great things, I already know.
God's got His hand on you so don't live life in fear
Forgive and forget, but don't forget why you're here
Take your time and pray
These are the words I would say"
I knew without a doubt those words are exactly what my friend would say to me and there was no doubt in my mind that God had sent me a bit of encouragement at that moment. My day, even my week, were completely turned around from then on.
Right now I am focused on one particular song byBarlowGirl entitled "Never Alone". The chorus goes like this:
" I cried out with no reply
And I can't feel You by my side
So I'll hold tight to what I know
You're here, and I'm never alone."
I know we have all had times like that. Times when we feel God isn't hearing anything we say, nor acting on our prayers, or even anywhere near us. That's why I love the last two lines of that song. At times like that, we have to hold on desperately to what we know in order to make it through those lonely, bitter times.
What we know. What we know? How do we know? Do we know by listening to a sermon
either in person or on the Internet? Do we know by watching Christian television? What about attending our own church for Bible study or small group? While all these are wonderful things to do, and things I do and look forward to every week, the easiest, most effective, and best way to KNOW is by reading God's Word. Consistently . Thoroughly. Every day.
I decided to do some research about Bible reading in America and by Christians in particular. Just curious. I found a lot of pretty dismal information. Many different studies, but most agreed that people, even professed born-again Christians, read very little of the Bible beyond what they read in
church on Sunday morning. One thing I read quoted Ron Rhodes, president of Reasoning from the Scriptures Ministries. He believes that American Christians are basically Bible illiterate.Another study says Bible reading has declined from 73% of people who read it in 1980 to 59% now . I could go on and on, but all the stats are pretty dismal.
My point is this: if we don't KNOW what the scriptures say, how can we hold tight to what we know? We can't. We just can't.
I can't tell you that I read the Bible as well as I should, but I will tell you that I do it a tremendous amount more than I used to. And it has given me peace beyond my wildest dreams. What about you? Do you KNOW?
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