This week I'm going back in time a little bit to one of my favorite songs from a few years ago. At a Women of Faith Conference in Rochester, New York, I had the joy of meeting Nicole C. Mullen, an artist whose music I had heard before but I had never known her name. This woman is an amazing performer and I still would love to have the opportunity to see her perform again. At that conference, after seeing her perform I bought all of her albums and fell in love with a song called "Convinced" from the 2007 Album Sharecropper's Seed.
For me, this song is about how much God loves you and nothing can separate us from that love. There is nothing we can do to make him love us less. That is such a powerful statement...there's no other love like that, and for many it's hard to believe. How can he love me with all the things that I've done wrong, all my failures, all my sins? This song is a reminder to all of us, an affirmation that we will always be loved by Him, no matter what.
Listen to the link below...
It wasn't until just a few weeks ago that I realized where in the Bible some of the words in this song come from. In a Bible Study with friends from church, we were reading Romans Chapter 8, which I've noticed seems to have lots of inspiring words for songwriters. Romans Chapter 8, Verse 38 says:
For I am convinced that neither death
nor life, neither angels nor demons,
neither the present nor the future,
nor any powers, neither height nor depth,
nor anything else in al creation,
will be able to separate us from the love
of God that is Christ Jesus our Lord.
Nicole takes this passage a step further in her song by sharing her love for God in the same way. Not only can nothing separate her from His Love, she sings that nothing can separate Him from her love. That's quite a commitment. She will always love Him, even during those times when she is in pain....she will love him. When she is disappointed and frustrated with the course of life...she will still love him. I pray that my faith and love for Him will be strong during the struggles of life as well.
The wind will blow on everybody
And rain will fall on us all
And if the, weather of my life
Is not like I want it, still
I'll survive through the storm
'Cuz I'm convinced, I'm persuaded
I will not be separated
From the love
I have in You
Neither death or life coud sever
Neither height or depth could measure
The love You have
And my love for You.
I hope this song and these words are encouraging to you this week. No matter how disappointed you are in yourself, no matter what challenges you face this week, be comforted in knowing that God loves you and he always will. And may your love for the Lord be strong and constant throughout your journey in this life.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Strong Enough
Some of you may know that I recently moved to England from America. During the stressful weeks leading up to the move, the song Strong Enough by Matthew West was speaking to me. While moving to another country is nothing compared to some of the challenges that many people in this world face, it was and still is a strain on me as a person, largely because I haven't had a whole lot of change in my life. Around that same time, I watched a close friend deal with the severe illness of her father and his death. I would think of her when listening to this song as well, and wonder when I will be in a similar situation and what toll that will take on me.
So here's the YouTube video, take a look, listen and read the words....
For me this song is about that old adage, "God won't give you something you can't handle." I like to add "with his help." Sometimes you just know that you can't handle the trials of this life on your own. We all try to be in control, but some of the trials are just too hard....illness, loss, the things in life that could cause us to question Him, or reach out for help from Him because there is no one else.
Maybe that's the point
to reach the point of giving up
When I'm finally
Finally at rock bottom
Well, that's when I start looking up
And reaching out
Maybe we do have the strength handle it, but we are overwhelmed by it and trusting in God can help us cope and not suffer through the situation. Or perhaps the situation is so new and different for us that God needs to make us stronger to be able to endure.
It is these times when the pain is too much to bear, the addiction too hard to overcome, the fear so great that it hinders us, that our own efforts as humans just aren't enough. We need extra strength, extra courage from the only one that can give it. It's too bad that sometimes we wait until we are at rock bottom to seek His help.
My favorite part of this song is actually scripture: Phillipians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength
or
I can do everything through him who gives me strength (NIV)
It's such a simple scripture to memorize and have in your back-pocket for those challenging situations. It's even easier for me to remember it when I sing it in my head now, thanks to this song.
This song comes from Matthew West's "Story of Your Life Album" for which he asked listeners to send him letters for him to write songs about. So as part of this album he has created videos with the back-story about who inspired this song and their story. This one was inspired by a girl named Haley.
May you be able to trust in the Lord and give your problems to Him. He will guide you through the trials of this life and give you strength and comfort.
So here's the YouTube video, take a look, listen and read the words....
For me this song is about that old adage, "God won't give you something you can't handle." I like to add "with his help." Sometimes you just know that you can't handle the trials of this life on your own. We all try to be in control, but some of the trials are just too hard....illness, loss, the things in life that could cause us to question Him, or reach out for help from Him because there is no one else.
Maybe that's the point
to reach the point of giving up
When I'm finally
Finally at rock bottom
Well, that's when I start looking up
And reaching out
Maybe we do have the strength handle it, but we are overwhelmed by it and trusting in God can help us cope and not suffer through the situation. Or perhaps the situation is so new and different for us that God needs to make us stronger to be able to endure.
It is these times when the pain is too much to bear, the addiction too hard to overcome, the fear so great that it hinders us, that our own efforts as humans just aren't enough. We need extra strength, extra courage from the only one that can give it. It's too bad that sometimes we wait until we are at rock bottom to seek His help.
My favorite part of this song is actually scripture: Phillipians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength
or
I can do everything through him who gives me strength (NIV)
It's such a simple scripture to memorize and have in your back-pocket for those challenging situations. It's even easier for me to remember it when I sing it in my head now, thanks to this song.
This song comes from Matthew West's "Story of Your Life Album" for which he asked listeners to send him letters for him to write songs about. So as part of this album he has created videos with the back-story about who inspired this song and their story. This one was inspired by a girl named Haley.
May you be able to trust in the Lord and give your problems to Him. He will guide you through the trials of this life and give you strength and comfort.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Giving Wings to Prayers
One of my choir directors used to tell us that music gives wings to our prayers. Those words always stuck with me. Through my journey as a listener and singer of christian music, I am often reminded of how powerful music can be. In capturing the emotion of our prayers, the joy in our praise, the pain in our struggles. The more I come to know a song, the more I feel it and find understanding in the words and melody that connects me to God. When singing in a Praise Band in my home church, each week I would learn a new song and that song would speak to me. I would discover parts of the Bible I hadn't read before in the song. I would find comfort in the words as they relate to my personal journey and the journeys of others. I always feel compelled to share both the music and the meaning I've learned.
This has been a dream of mine for a very long time now. To write and share what I learn from Contemporary Christian songs. I'm not much of a writer or much of a musician for that matter, but I do love this music and how it connects me with my Lord. I pray that others will find this same joy in listening and learning from these truly inspired musicians. I don't have a perfect vision of what I want this blog to be, but I do know that it is now time for me to see if I can make this dream happen, with the guidance of the Lord of course.
This has been a dream of mine for a very long time now. To write and share what I learn from Contemporary Christian songs. I'm not much of a writer or much of a musician for that matter, but I do love this music and how it connects me with my Lord. I pray that others will find this same joy in listening and learning from these truly inspired musicians. I don't have a perfect vision of what I want this blog to be, but I do know that it is now time for me to see if I can make this dream happen, with the guidance of the Lord of course.
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