The Lord Is SongGiver

 

PSALM 42:8

The LORD decrees His loving devotion by day, 

and at night His song is with me as a prayer to the God of my life.

Job 8:21

He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with a shout of joy. 

    When I first got filled with The Holy Spirit I saw myself as a mountain filled with music. And when the mountain became a volcano, it wasn't lava that flowed, it was Music. New music, new songs. Songs of joy, songs of hope, songs of rejoicing; songs of sorrow, songs of wistfulness, songs of grief. Songs of pain, songs of the love of God and for God; songs of laughter, songs of weeping. 

    All of these flowed from God through His Holy Spirit into me where they flowed out of my pen and my mouth. Many Christian songwriters will tell you that it is not of their imagination from which they write and sing: it is a gift from God meant to be shared with whomsoever God places on our path. 

    Many nights He would waken me and have me write. But I remained rested, for I was with Him and He is my Rest. Sometimes these songs would build up inside me while I was doing something else, like running around the velodrome in the predawn hours with my bestie. Or the time she and I backpacked Ireland (Perfect Replica*)  Sometimes, I'd be sitting in a meeting and the song would start writing itself (No Room*), even though I wanted to wait until the meeting was over, I relented, repented, and let God move through me. No Room I actually wrote before I got baptized in The Spirit, but God was moving in me even then.

    There is coming a day when sad songs will not only be a thing of the past, they won't even be a memory. For in the presence of God is fullness of JOY. In His presence is LIGHT and LOVE. In His presence we sing the song of the redeemed. All together every saint will sing that song. It is the sound of many rushing waters. It is the resounding song of Love for God for this great thing He has done. 

     

*PERFECT REPLICA

I wonder what my God shall see,

When He sees a finished me?

Perhaps I'll be a Daniel,

Content in times of stress.

Or maybe I'll be Lydia

Adorned in purpleness.

Perhaps I'll be Rebekah,

Waiting ever on;

First 'twas by the well,

Then for her two sons.

I wonder what my God shall see

When He sees a finished me?

Perhaps I'll be an Andrew

Who leads my brother to

The One and Only Savior

Who died for me and you.

Perhaps I'll be a vessel,

What let the Son shine in;

Who mirrored God's reflection

To a lost and dying friend.

I wonder what my God shall see

When He sees a finished me?

Perhaps I'll be a fruitful vine

For God to harvest home.

And I shall wear a robe of white

With stars upon my crown.

And when He views the finished me,

I know He'll smile in victory--

"Well done thou good and faithful,

You may enter in,

Here's your gown; here's your crown.

Hello, friend."

I wonder what my God shall see,

When He sees a finished me.

I've gone through the fire,

I've gone through the grind,

I've gone through the waters

Time after time.

God has not forsaken me

In any of my trials.

And when He sees the finished me,
I'll wear a great big smile.

*NO ROOM

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

Can you imagine telling God 

you have no time for Him?

There isn’t any place today for Him to enter in.

To enter in with joy delight,

Communion sweet to share

No room for Jesus, No room anywhere.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

The temples are empty, no life exists here.

No joyful days, no redeemed souls, 

The faces of the people are shut, blank and cold.

I see forlorn temples, I hear lonely sounds

Heartbeats, no heartbeats, no love of God abounds.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

No merry hearts, no shining lights

The doors to the temple are shut, slammed in tight

Listening, not hearing; Hearing, not caring.

Heartbeats, no heartbeats, no love of God lives here.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

Now, when the feastday of the Bride

Arrives and you are there,

Will you hear Jesus say to you,

“You have no place set here.

There is no room for you today,

You’ll have to go, you cannot stay:

I do not know your name you see, 

It isn’t written here.”

No room, no room, no room for you.

No way, no how, not here at this time,

Not now.

    While No Room is the number one requested song that I sing when I sing, this song is one my favorites:

The Ballad of The Body of Christ

I am the eyes That see the need for compassion

I am the hands That do the work of The LORD

I am the feet That go through the doors that are open

I am the heart, The heart of The LORD.

I am the ears That hear the cries of the lonely

I am the arms That carry the grieving and sore

I am the legs That walk the crowded sidewalks

I am the heart, The heart of The LORD.

I am the Body of Christ that was broken/I’ve been asleep for a thousand years it seems/But now I’m awake and I see the needs that aren’t spoken/Gettin’ ready to run, Gettin’ ready to fly / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

It’s God’s desire That no one should be lost

It’s God’s desire That everyone be saved

He can’t make your choices, It’s entirely up to you.

Don’t hesitate, don’t even wait 

Don’t turn and walk ................ the other way!

I am the voice When God gives the words to be spoken

I am pure silence When I need to be ............... when I need to be

I am the Body of Christ That was broken! / I been asleep for a thousand years it seems / But now I’m awake And I see the needs that aren’t spoken / Gettin’ ready to run, Getting ready to fight / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

I am the fingers That pull the lost from the fire

I am the knees That bend to carry the load

I am the back That bears the marks of the hunter

I am the heart, The heart of The LORD.

I am the Body of Christ that was broken/I’ve been asleep for a thousand years it seems/But now I’m awake and I see the needs that aren’t spoken/Gettin’ ready to run, Gettin’ ready to fly / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

I am the Body of Christ That was broken! / I been asleep for a thousand years it seems / But now I’m awake And I see the needs that aren’t spoken / Gettin’ ready to run, Getting ready to fight / 

Gettin’ the Body back in shape.

You are the Body of Christ That was broken! / You’ve been asleep for a thousand years it seems/ But now you’re awake and you see the needs that aren’t spoken / You’re gettin’ ready to run / Run your endurance race / Gettin’ your body back in shape.

Now, you know my story. Now, you hear my voice. 

Signs & Wonders of Christ's Arrival - - Swaddled & Clothed

 

Luke 2:7

And she gave birth to her firstborn, a Son. She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

#Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 4683

Swaddling Cloths: strips of cloth for wrapping newborns

From the Greek word 'sparganoó' (pronounced spar-gan-o'-o). 

Looking it up in my Illustrated Dictionary, it tells us that this is (1) the most loving thing a mother would do for her infant child. (2) 'it is a reminder to us of Christ's humility in becoming a human being for our sakes'. 

    Having left heaven and all His glory behind, He now finds Himself clothed in strips of cloth. His first bed is a borrowed manger in a dimly lit stable behind a busy inn that had no room for Him. 

    The first time He is visited by others, He is wrapped in these cloths and lying in a feeding trough. In a barn. In what could have been the smelliest place, the aroma of heaven now fills the stable. For the Messiah has arrived. 

    But not with pomp and circumstance, not with bells and whistles; not as a conquering king, nor a triumphant entrance. No, this Christ has arrived as a mere babe and is found by many, though not received by many. After all, there was no room in the inn, was there? 

NO ROOM by Todd Agnew

    However, now the opportunity to receive Christ has come to you and to your household. His purpose in coming to earth was fulfilled 33 years after His birth. While not many received Him in His lifetime, untold numbers of people have sought Him, found Him and received Him into their hearts. And you know what? There's always room for more. Jesus never turns any seeker of Truth away.

    John 1:11, 12

11. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.

12. But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.

    Galatians 4:4-6

4. But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

5. to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons.

6. And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”

    No longer wrapped in swaddling cloths, no longer an infant unable to care for Himself, Jesus now is wrapped in light and life (John 1:4). For He is Light and Life to all who find Him. He is Truth. And He now lives in the hearts of those who have received Him upon believing in His name: that He Is Jesus Christ, Messiah, the only begotten Son of the Most High God. 

    In infancy He was wrapped in swaddling cloths for His protection and growth. In the grave He was again wrapped up in cloth but for an honorable burial (John 19:40, 41). 

    Now, in heaven and in our hearts, He is clothed once more with glory, with honor, with praises (Revelations 5:12, 13). We who believe are His temple (1 Corinthians 6:19) not made with hands (Mark 14:58). We who believe are honored and awed that Jesus would make His home in us. 

    No longer does darkness reign in our hearts and lives: for the Christ now sits on the throne of our hearts, directing us in what is right and will fulfill God's purpose and plan (Proverbs 3:6). 

    John 12:46

I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in Me should remain in darkness.

John 14:6

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

Have you seen the Light? Do you find yourselves being drawn to the Light? For this Light scatters the darkness and all its inhabitants away into the shadows. This Light illuminates and reveals what is hid and can be found. This Light shines in the hearts of every believer, revealing and making possible the uprooting of all evil in the heart. 

    Psalm 139:24, 25

24. Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. 

25. See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the way everlasting.

    Can you hear the Father's cry? He's calling you to come into the Light and let the Light come into you.  

SOFTLY AND TENDERLY by Alan Jackson

GOD WITH US by All Sons & Daughters

 KEEP THE LIGHT ON by Christy Nockels

NO ROOM

--An Original Song by Me-- 

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

Can you imagine telling God 

you have no time for Him?

There isn’t any place today for Him to enter in.

To enter in with joy delight,

Communion sweet to share

No room for Jesus, No room anywhere.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

The temples are empty, no life exists here.

No joyful days, no redeemed souls, 

The faces of the people are shut, blank and cold.

I see forlorn temples, I hear lonely sounds

Heartbeats, no heartbeats, no love of God abounds.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

No merry hearts, no shining lights

The doors to the temple are shut, slammed in tight

Listening, not hearing; Hearing, not caring.

Heartbeats, no heartbeats, no love of God lives here.

No room, no room, no room for Jesus

No way, no how, not here at this time, not now.

Now, when the feastday of the Bride

Arrives and you are there,

Will you hear Jesus say to you,

“You have no place set here.

There is no room for you today,

You’ll have to go, you cannot stay:

I do not know your name you see, 

It isn’t written here.”

No room, no room, no room for you.

No way, no how, not here at this time,

Not now.

No Room

A song I wrote several years ago which has become a Christmas favorite 

at our church. The number one request every year.