I have been recently impressed with the importance of, the supreme value of God’s holiness. He is so far above my low place. It is like comparing a burning match with the blazing inferno of the surface of the sun, like comparing a single celled amoeba with the complexity of a grown human. As creature to Creator there is no possible way that I could have ever on my own been able to come near to the standards of perfection and the white-hot holy nature of God. Just a single blemish, a single spot of sin in me, no matter how tiny, is sufficient to make me unworthy, unable to be in His presence.

And yet, in the immense depth of God’s love for all people, He made a way for the sin in my heart to be blotted out. In 1 John 1:9, it is promised, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” Jesus Himself made that forgiveness possible, taking on Himself the punishment for the sin of us all. When I repent of my sins and forsake them, His forgiveness is then given to me. The result is that the immense gap between God and myself is removed, and I can be in His presence, now on earth in prayer, and later in heaven directly.

A part of the presence and the holiness of God is His Name. As He Himself is higher than anything else in all of heaven or earth, so also is God’s Name higher, more important, than any other name. And years ago, Chuck Girard was given the words and music that I’ve posted here today, as a reminder of that on aspect of he nature of God. Girard performed the song on his own album, The Name Above All Names in 1983, but the first time I heard it was when it was sung by Debby Boone four years later, and that version has stuck most with me. Listen here, and revel in the That Name!

[ please go to the post to hear the audio! ]

It’s the Name above all names
And we will declare it,
We will declare it
It’s the Name above all names
And we will shout it to a dying world!

Who will declare My Name?
Who will shout My Name
In the midst of the nations?
Who will take the shield of faith
And the sword of My Word,
And declare My Name to a dying world?

He who has declared Me thus far,
Will walk in even greater power
For the sands of time are running out,
But My Name will be declared in this final hour

I am Jehovah!
I Am that I Am!
And My trumpet shall soon call out
I formed the worlds with a whisper
But I’m getting ready,
I’m getting ready,
I’m getting ready to shout!

It’s the Name above all names
And we will declare it,
We will declare it
It’s the Name above all names
And we will shout it to a dying world!

It’s my will to possess all of your life
I’ll take it all
So surrender to Me
For I’m building an army,
To go in My Name
And My words in your mouth
Shall set the captives free

I am Jehovah!
I Am that I Am!
And My trumpet shall soon call out
I formed the worlds with just a whisper
But I’m getting ready,
I’m getting ready,
I’m getting ready to shout!

It’s the Name above all names
And we will shout it to a dying world!
(Oh, the name of Jesus!)

It’s the Name above all names
And we will declare it,
We will declare it
It’s the Name above all names
And we will shout it to a dying world!

©1992 Sea of Glass Music/ASCAP

The pain of aloneness can be unbearable. And anyone who feels truly alone knows the truth of the phrase, “alone in a crowd”. It is more than being apart from people; it is being apart from people even when they are in the same room with you. That feeling of isolation, when you don’t have the connection with others that you need.

It doesn’t matter how or why it happens. It might be your fault, it might be the fault of your friends, it may have no clear cause. But the reality is that you do not know how to fix things, and you do know that the loneliness is so hard to go through.

You try to put a good face on it. You put up walls to make it appear that you don’t care, when inside you feel like you are dying. And the longer you live with it, the more hard your heart becomes, scar tissue that you try to build on to make it hurt less.

Sometimes you know of things you can or should do to fix it, but you feel unable. Sometimes you have tried and tried to fix things, but your efforts failed, or were rejected. And still you are alone.

The presence of a friend who cares for you is what you want, but even in the best of circumstances, this is not guaranteed. That friend is just as flawed as you yourself are, and the failure of a friend may be worse than the lack of a friend in the first place.

How can there be a solution to this problem? The place to start is by not depending on other people. Instead, you need to turn to that friend who truly will never leave you. In Hebrews 13:5b, we are promised by God, “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” This is a promise that you can be sure of. Jesus will always be there for you, even when every other friend has turned away.

Wayne Watson tells this so well in the song featured today. Listen to it, feel the words, hear the truth of what is said. Ask Him to reach into that wounded heart you carry within you, and touch it with His healing and His love. Ask to have your heart made new.

[ please go to the post to hear the audio! ]

Smile
Make ‘em think you’re happy
Lie
And say that things are fine
And hide
That empty longing that you feel
Don’t ever show it
Just keep your heart
Concealed

Why
Are the days so lonely?
I wonder where
Where can a heart go free?
And who will dry the tears that no one sees?
There must be someone
To share your silent dreams

Caught like a leaf in the wind
Looking for a friend
Where can you turn?
Whisper the words of a prayer
And you’ll find Him there,
Arms open wide
Love in His eyes

Jesus!
He meets you where you are
Oh, Jesus!
He heals your secret scars
All the love you’re longing for
Is Jesus
The friend of a wounded heart

Joy
Comes like the the morning
Hope
Deepens as you grow
And peace,
beyond the reaches of your soul,
Comes blowing through you,
For love has made you whole

Once like a leaf in the wind
Looking for a friend
Where could you turn?
Oh, you spoke the words of a prayer
And you found Him there
Arms open wide
Love in His eyes

Jesus!
He meets you where you are
Oh, Jesus!
He heals your secret scars
All the love you’re longing for
Is Jesus
The friend of a wounded heart…

He meets you where you are
Oh, Jesus!
He heals your secret scars
All the love you’re longing for
All the love that you need
Is Jesus
The friend of a wounded heart

Oh, the friend of a wounded heart
Oh, the friend of a wounded heart
Oh, the friend of a wounded heart
Oh, the friend of a wounded heart

As amateur bee-keepers, my wife and I have learned many of the skills needed to manage bees. One of these tricks is the use of smoke to calm the bees, and keep them under control when it is necessary to work on the hives. To use this smoke, you need to know how to create the right kind of fire, and how to make it keep burning.

There are many methods of getting a smoker going. You have to start by igniting paper, then adding twigs, then progressively larger sticks, until you have hot coals. To this, you add a material that will create lots of smoke to keep the bees in line.

What fails to keep this fire going? Several things can happen. If you don’t put the right kind of fuel in the smoker, it will burn quickly, and the fire will go out too fast. If you pump the smoker too much, it also burns hotter and faster. Don’t pump it enough, and the lack of oxygen smothers the fledgling fire. Adding too much of the material that creates the smoke may also smother the fire. Starting the fire and then ignoring it will also cause the fire the die too soon.

The work of God in my life can be likened to starting and maintaining a fire. The flame that ignites the fire comes from the Holy Spirit. However, I need to continue to come back to the Spirit to keep that flame hot – a lack of prayer and praise in my life restricts His work, and the flames can get low. Neglecting church attendance (corporate worship with other believers) can also have a detrimental effect on my fire. Both of those issues are like taking a coal out of a fire and setting it aside, by itself. It will be hot for a while, but it will burn low and it may go out.

Maintaining a fire also can involve adding fuel to it. In beekeeping we add pine needles or compressed cotton to the fire, to produce the desired amount of smoke. In the Christian life, the source of the added fuel can be study of the Bible, or spending time in prayer, or even putting my faith to work by serving others.

The smoker, the fuel, the pine needles, the twigs, and the flames are all individual components that are needed to get the desired result in beekeeping. Leave out one of these parts, and the result will not be what is needed. The same applies to the work of God in my life; I need to make use of all of these components of maintaining my own fire, in order to keep the fire of the Holy Spirit hot!

[ please go to the post to hear the audio! ]

Prayer is a passion, incense upon the flame
Worship is battle no enemy can tame
Lord, your breath is a righteous fire
A zeal we need and we desire
Your Holy Spirit we require

Holy, holy fire, holy jealous light
Holy coals of cleansing, purest holy white
Holy, holy flame, a holy God’s desire
Wholly purify me, all-consuming holy fire

Praise is His Spirit, a sacrifice to thee
Consuming the wicked, all of the wicked in me
Answer us with atoning fire
Without the flame we can’t acquire
A heart fulfilling Your desire

Holy, holy fire, holy jealous light
Holy coals of cleansing, purest holy white
Holy, holy flame, a holy God’s desire
Wholly purify me, all-consuming holy fire

There are fires for warming
And fires to comfort man
In Your comfort I’ve been sleeping
GIve me burning zeal again!

Holy, holy fire, holy jealous light
Holy coals of cleansing, purest holy white
Holy, holy flame, a holy God’s desire
Wholly purify me, all-consuming holy fire

Yesterday, June 6, 2010, Dana Key died suddenly. He was a founding member of the Jesus music duo Degarmo & Key, along with friend Eddie DeGarmo. At the time he died, he had been pastor of a church in Cordova, Tennessee. Along with many others, I am saddened by the news of this loss.

As I myself get older, the news of someone’s death in my age group (Key was 56, just two years older than I) seems to have greater impact than it did in the past. I’ve always had the attitude of “that could be me” when I hear such news, as I have no illusions to my own immortality or indestructibility. Working as a physician, I see disease and death often happen to people who are not “old”.

If you’ve read past entries in this blog, you know that one of my fond dreams is about Heaven, and what it will be like. That threshold we all have to cross, however, is that of Death. It can happen unexpectedly (auto accident) or after a known illness (cancer), but it comes to all.

What Dana Key knew, and what all believers in Jesus should know, is that the life that will be there for us after death is completely outside of our imagination. As written in 1 Corinthians 2:9, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.” And as much as this life has things in it that are beautiful, enjoyable, or wonderful, the things in heaven will be way beyond anything that we know here.

To commemorate the passing of Dana Key, I am not playing one of his songs. I am picking one by Wayne Watson that seemed appropriate. It deals with the concept of the second coming of Jesus, but is just as applicable to the transition from earth to heaven that happens to us one at a time.

[ please go to the post to hear the audio! ]

Changed in a moment
In the twinkling of an eye
Taken up into Glory
Seated at the feet of God the Father
Singin’ with the angels, Allelujah!
Any moment now, we could be changed!

I have heard it for some time now
This life will soon be done
That our striving will be over
And the world will soon be one
That the Lord Himself will call us
That the trumpet blast will sound
And the graves will all be opened
And holy feet will leave the ground

Changed in a moment
In the twinkling of an eye
Taken up into Glory
Seated at the feet of God the Father
Singin’ with the angels, Allelujah!
Any moment now, we could be changed!

Oh, I remember praying
In the happy days of youth
For the world to keep on turning
There was so much left to do
There were battlefields to conquer
There were mountains left to climb
And dreams to be realized
But now I’ve changed my mind

Some of the goals that seemed unreachable
Are finally in my grasp
Some of the dreams most unbelieveable
Have come to be at last
And although I’ve had a better life
Than I ever thought could be
There is a better day a-comin’
When He comes back for you and me!

Changed in a moment
In the twinkling of an eye
Taken up into Glory
Seated at the feet of God the Father
Singin’ with the angels, Allelujah!
Any moment now (any moment now)
Any moment now (any moment now)
Any moment now, we could be changed!

Any moment now, we could be changed!

Any moment now, we could be changed!

Any moment now, we could be changed!

To celebrate the resumption of a functioning Downloads section, I have added three new JM tapes:

Enjoy!

Bob & Jayne's home, the day before the flooding washed away everything

Jerry Bryant made me aware of one couple who lost everything in the flood: Bob and Jayne Farrell — better know to the CCM community as Farrell & Farrell. They started in music in 1973, in the group Millennium, continued through 1976 in the group Dove, and then started as a duo with their first album on NewPax records in 1978, Farrell and Farrell. They continued to release albums and toured extensively until 1991, when they retired from active performing.

According to the Facebook group “Save Farrell and Farrell“, the extend of the damage to their home and property was total, and they made it out with only the clothes on their backs. If you want to help them out, you can go to their web site and purchase one or more CDs, both old and some new music.

At my church, they have been stressing four facets to the Christian life over the past year. These are Worship, Grow, Serve, and Go. All of what we can and need to do as followers of Jesus fits under one of these categories. Church services? Worship. Bible study? Grow. Help at a soup kitchen or pregnancy counseling center, or help with children’s classes at church? Serve. Mission trips, in the U.S. or abroad? Go. I could be missing something, but I think these cover pretty much everything.

The point of “Go” is to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus, to take the message of salvation through His name to those who have not heard it. It is not, however, something that is easy. “Go” and “Serve” both take me out my comfort zone, to a place that makes me have to deal with people I don’t know, maybe people who are unfriendly, or demanding, or “unloveable”. But continuing to live only within my comfort zone, and sharing and interacting with those people, does not accomplish the purposes for which God has prepared me.

Today’s song by Cynthia Clawson illustrates this nicely. A good song to use when contemplating mission trips, either local or global. Bring the message (the water) to those who are parched for it!

[ please go to the post to hear the audio! ]

See the fields so dry and thirsty
They’re dying from a lack of rain
And here I’m standing in the fountain
Watching them perish, and who’s to blame?

How can they hear without a preacher?
If they’re not shown, how can they see?
I’m gonna go out where they’re hurting.
And stop expecting them to come to me

I’m gonna carry the Water to the desert
Stop this hauling water to the sea
I’m gonna seak out the dry and barren places
The sick ones need the doctor
I’m gonna stop this hauling water to the sea

They search for truth in empty bottles
The world can’t quench their need within
But Jesus is the Living Water.
With just one drink, they’ll never thirst again

I’m gonna carry the Water to the desert
Stop this hauling water to the sea
I’m gonna seak out the dry and barren places
The sick ones need the doctor
I’m gonna stop this hauling water to the sea

Carry the water to the desert
Stop this hauling water to the sea
Carry the water to the desert
Stop this hauling water to the sea

I’m gonna carry the Water to the desert
And stop this hauling water to the sea

You can purchase the entire Finest Hour CD or MP3 files directly from Cynthia Clawson’s web site here.

One thing that we will never know (until perhaps when we see the Lord face-to-face) about the first Easter is exactly why the Devil would take the step of getting people to crucify Jesus, when Jesus had already stated several times that He would rise again from the dead. I mean, how could Satan be so very stupid? To allow this event to happen may have been his big gamble, that God in human form would shrink back from this very terrible event, and complete the transaction of the authority of the earth to permanent, never-ending evil. If that was the case, it was a gamble that did not turn out the way the Devil wanted.

And during those three days that Jesus was amongst the dead, before He rose, what did He do? Was He tormented by the Devil beyond what had been done during the crucifixion and the events leading up to it, or was it the Devil himself who was the tormented one, realizing that events were working ever more powerfully against him?

Carman’s classic song, Sunday’s On The Way, takes a humorous look at the nail-biting that Satan must have done, waiting for that third day to come.
[ please go to the post to hear the audio! ]

The demons were planning on having a party one night
They got beer, Jack Daniels, and pretzels,
A little red wine, and some white
They were celebratin’ how they crucified Christ on that tree
But Satan, the snake himself, wasn’t so at ease

Well, he took his crooked finger
And he dialed the phone by his bed
To call an old faithful friend, who’d know for sure if He was dead
“Hey Grave,” Satan said, “tell me, did my plan fail?”
Old Grave just laughed and said, “Hah, the dude is dead as nails”

Oooooh, on Friday night, they crucified the Lord at calvary
But He said, “Don’t dread,
In three days I’m gonna live again, you’ll see!”
When problems try to bury you, and make it hard to pray,
It may seem like Friday night, but Sunday’s on the way!

A tranquilizer and a horror flick didn’t calm Satan’s fear
So Saturday night, he called up Grave
Scared of what he’d hear
“Hey, Grave, what’s going on?”
Grave says, “Man, you’ve called me twice,
and I’ll tell you one more again boss, the Jew’s on ice.”

Devil said, “Man, remember when,
Lazarus was in his grave?
You see everything was cool, then four days later
BOOM, he was raised!
Now, this Jesus is much more trouble
Than anyone has been to me
And it’s got me shook, cause He says
He’ll only be there three!”

On Friday night, they crucified the Lord at calvary
Oh, but He said, “Don’t dread,
In three days I’m gonna live again, you’ll see!”
Yeah, when problems try to bury you, and make it hard to pray,
It may seem like Friday night, but Sunday’s on the way!

Sunday morning Satan woke with a jump,
Ready to blow a fuse
He was shaking from the tips of his pointed ears,
To the toes of his pointy shoes
He said, “Grave, tell me, is He alive? I don’t wanna lose my neck!”
The Grave said, “Your evilness, maintain your cool; you a wreck!”

Grave said, “Ah, now, cool your jets, Big D;
my sting is still intact
You see Jesus is dead forever
Man, He ain’t never coming back
So just mellow out man, go drink up or shoot up,
But just leave me alone
And I’ll catch you la… eh,
Oh no, man! Oh no! OH NO!
Somebody’s messin’ with the stone!”

And the stone was pushed away,
And it bounced a time or two,
And an angel stepped inside,
Said, “Hey, I’m Gabriel, who are you?
If you’re wondering where the Lord is,
At this very hour,
I tell you he’s alive and well, with resurection power!”

Oh, on Friday night they crucified the Lord at Calvary
Oh, but He said, “Don’t dread, in three days, you count em boys,
I’m gonna be kickin’ again, you’ll see!”
When problems try to bury you and make it hard to pray,
It may seem like Friday night
But I say Sunday
I’m here to tell you Sunday’s on the way!

Hallelujah!

We learn by living through an experience or being told a fact, and then build additional learning on top of that experience. Further experiences or facts are added on top of the original one, supplementing or reinforcing them, and adding to a wall of knowledge that makes us who we are.

Have you ever noticed how much non-factual memories cement the factual ones in place? Consider the sense of smell. It has a strong connection to memories. An experience in the past can be brought immediately to the forefront of the memory by smelling something connected with that memory. I can think of several situations in my own life where I have experienced this. If I were to smell the odors that were around the rubber processing plant where I worked for a summer while in college, it would immediately bring that memory to mind. When my parents moved to Tustin, California and I visited there for Christmas, the fresh smell of the air in the morning was very striking, and when I smell that again, I am brought back to that Christmas.

Just as the sense of smell is connected to memories, so also is music. I have many tapes of music I recorded from the radio as I was moving from high school to college and beyond, and as I listen to those tapes, I am reminded about places and events in my own life, things that were going on when I made the recordings. Sometimes there is not even a clear specific memory, just a feeling associated with the music – sadness or satisfaction or joy or exhuberance.

Today’s song hit me this way. It brought me back to an Easter service several years ago, and the thrill of celebrating once again the triumph of the resurrection of Jesus. Not just the story of it – the fact of it. And this is one that you can’t enjoy properly by just reading the words – you have to listen to the song itself!

[ please go to the post to hear the audio! ]

Celebrate! He’s alive!

Let the children sing
A song of liberation
The God of our salvation
Set us free
Death, where is thy sting?
The curse of sin is broken
The empty tomb stands open
Come and see!

He’s alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive! Praise and glory to the Lamb.
Alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive forever, Amen!

Let my heart sing out,
For Christ, the One and only
So powerful and holy
Rescued me
Death won’t hurt me now
Because He has redeemed me
No grave will ever keep me
From my King

I’m alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive! praise and glory to the Lamb.
I’m alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive forever, Amen!

I’m alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive! Praise and glory to the Lamb
I’m alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive forever, Amen!

Worthy is the Lamb
Worthy of our praise
Worthy is the One
Who has overcome the grave
Let the people dance
Let the people sing
Worthy is the mighty King!
(repeat many times)

He’s alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive! Praise and glory to the Lamb
He’s alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive forever, Amen!
(repeat many times)

He’s alive forever, Amen!
He’s alive forever, Amen!

He’s alive, He’s alive, He’s alive
He’s alive, He’s alive, He’s alive

Worthy is the Lamb
Worthy of our praise
Worthy is the One
Who has overcome the grave
Let the people dance
Let the people sing
Worthy is the mighty King!

He’s alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive! Praise and glory to the Lamb
He’s alive, alive, alive, hallelujah!
Alive forever, Amen!
(repeat forever, amen!)

Let me know what you think, and whether you’d like to see more of these tapes posted.