A Great HYMN 30 May 2008
Posted by Renette in Hymn (Jars of Clay), Jars of Clay.add a comment
Jars of Clay is one of my favorite bands of all time, and one of my favorite memories was watching their concert in Araneta Coliseum three years ago with my boyfriend Sidney, plus Julie and Carl (my church mates). I’ve loved them since around 1998 or 1999, when I was first introduced to their music by Carl. He lent me his cassette tape of their album “Frail,” which he bought on sale for around Php50.00 I think.
HYMN is not my favorite Jars of Clay song, but I like it very much; so much in fact that I remember telling Carl that I wanted him to play this song in my funeral. As a rule, I like old hymns – with their outdated English and the slightly repetitive tune from start to finish – and I enjoyed Jars of Clay’s modern hymn (aptly titled “Hymn”). I also loved their covers of old hymns, modernizing them and giving them a new sound (such as “I Need Thee Every Hour” and “It Is Well with My Soul“).
Back to Hymn. I was won over this song by virtue of one haunting line: “I’ll pirouette upon my grave…” What a beautiful way to think of dancing in relation to death, which reminds me of the verse “You have turned my mourning into dancing” (Psalm 30:11). Even the saddest occasions are times of celebration as long as God is with us.
The melody of Hymn is beautiful, the words are profound, and the imagery is lovely. I hope you’ll take the time to listen to it using the YouTube link I provided.
Oh refuge of my hardened heart
Oh fast pursuing lover come
As angels dance around Your throne
My life by captured fare You own
Not silhouette of trodden faith
Nor death shall not my steps be guide
I’ll pirouette upon my grave
For in Your path I’ll run and hide
Oh gaze of love so melt my pride
That I may in Your house but kneel
And in my brokenness to cry
Spring worship unto Thee
When beauty breaks the spell of pain
The bludgeoned heart shall burst in vain
But not when love be pointed king
And truth shall Thee forever reign
Sweet Jesus carry me away
From cold of night and dust of day
In ragged hour or salt-worn eye
Be my desire, my wellspring lie
I KNOW IT!!! 29 May 2008
Posted by Renette in Hillsongs, I Know It (Hillsongs).add a comment
I KNOW IT (from the Hillsongs) is a huge favorite with me simply for the memories it brings back every time I hear it. This song is from “All Things Are Possible,” which was the first Christian album (and in cassette tape format too!) that I bought way back in 1998 as a college freshman. It was an important year for me – it was the year I graduated from high school, it was the year I went to college, and it was the year I first started being actively involved in my home church, IRM Marikina. (There’s actually another important reason – it was the year I met the guy who would become my boyfriend after 7 years as close friends – Sidney).
The song pretty much talks about knowing for sure what the core of all Christian theology is – that Jesus died for us and set us free. There’s this line I particularly like – “[I'm] not living life my own way.” It reminds me that once you ask Jesus into your heart, you should give Him the steering wheel of your life and take the backseat yourself. Unfortunately for us, we’re usually backseat drivers, nagging the Driver on where we should go and where we should stop and which way we should turn and how fast we should go. So I guess this is a reminder for me today to chill and let Jesus do the driving. He knows what’s best for me after all.
I know it, I know it
His blood has set me free
I’ve been delivered, forgiven
Fear has got no hold on me
I’m set apart, not living life my own way
No holding back till I see Him face to face
Because I know it
Oh yes I know it, I know it
The blood of Jesus has set me free
There is healing in the Name of Jesus
Salvation in the Name of Jesus
Forgiveness in the Name of Jesus
I’ve never known it like I know it today
There is power in the Name of Jesus
Fullness of joy I’ve found in Jesus
Strength in the Name of Jesus
I know it, I know it
Oh I’ve got to tell you that I know it
What If I Stumble? 28 May 2008
Posted by Renette in DCTalk, What If I Stumble (DCTalk).add a comment
WHAT IF I STUMBLE has always been one of my favorite songs, from one of my favorite groups, DC Talk. The lyrics are heartfelt and searing, the melody is haunting, the blending of Toby Mac, Michael Tait and Kevin Max’s voices is just outstanding.
It sums up the fear a Christian faces in falling flat in the face by doing something wrong for the whole world to see. It is a very honest admission about the struggle every Christian faces in doing what’s right, and doing what’s not right, but feels right. “What if I stumble? What if I fall?” it keeps on asking. “What if I lose my step and I make fools of us all?” Note that it doesn’t say: What if I lose my step and I make a fool of MYSELF? It accepts that one wrong move can dishonor the Name of God and of the church and of all other Christians. Such a tall order for an imperfect, work-in-progress human being.
The song begins with a quotation from Brennan Manning, a controversial Catholic author and speaker, which is sadly true today: “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips then walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”
Is this one for the people? Is this one for the Lord?
Or do I simply serenade for things I must afford?
You can jumble them together, my conflict still remains
Holiness is calling, in the midst of courting fame
Cause I see the trust in their eyes
Though the sky is falling
They need Your love in their lives
Compromise is calling
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
What if I lose my step and I make fools of us all?
Will the love continue when my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble, and what if I fall?
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
You never turn in the heat of it all
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
Father, please forgive me for I cannot compose
The fear that lives within me or the rate at which it grows
If struggle has a purpose on the narrow road You’ve carved
Why do I dread my trespasses will leave a deadly scar?
Do they see the fear in my eyes?
Are they so revealing?
This time I cannot disguise
All the doubt I’m feeling
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
What if I lose my step and I make fools of us all?
Will the love continue when my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble, and what if I fall?
Everyone’s got to crawl when you know that
You’re up against a wall, it’s about to fall
Everyone’s got to crawl when you know that
I hear You whispering my name
You say, “My love for You will never change”
Never change
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
You never turn in the heat of it all
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
You are my comfort, and my God
Is this one for the people? Is this one for the Lord?
HILLSONGS UNITED Live in Araneta 27 May 2008
Posted by Renette in From the Inside Out (Hillsongs), Hillsongs, Hillsongs United Live in Manila, Mighty to Save (Hillsongs).add a comment
Last night (May 26), my boyfriend Sid and I went to the worship concert of Hillsongs United in Araneta Coliseum. I wasn’t really that psyched to go at first for a couple of reasons (they didn’t really make sense so I’d rather not mention them) but he was really excited about it. Sid, who plays drums for our church band, got a free upper box A ticket to the concert courtesy of our church, and he bought another ticket so that he could take me along.
I didn’t really know what to expect, so I was stunned when I got inside. We got in a little before 8 pm, and the place was PACKED! Joel Houston opened things up by reading (or was it paraphrasing?) a chapter from Psalms. You’d think church people would be all prim and proper, but you’d be surprised at how crazy the crowd was. for some reason, the lyrics of a DC Talk song suddenly popped into my mind: “What would people think when they hear that I’m a Jesus freak…”
The atmosphere was really overwhelming and very emotionally charged. I don’t think it’s possible for you to be at Araneta last night, to listen to the songs (and to the thousands of people singing along), to watch the people jumping and dancing and raising their hands and worshipping at the top of their lungs – and NOT want to join them and worship God as well. People were literally on their feet for 2 straight hours! I had to sit a couple of times though – my stilettos were killing me.
I don’t really know all the songs, but some of the lyrics really touched me personally, and I found myself listening to it over and over again today via YouTube:
Everyone needs compassion
A love that’s never failing
Let mercy fall on me
Everyone needs forgiveness
The kindness of a Savior
The hope of nations
Savior
He can move the mountains
My God is mighty to save
He is mighty to save
Forever
Author of salvation
He rose and conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave
So take me as You find me
All my fears and failures
Fill my life again
I give my life to follow
Everything I believe in
Now I surrender
Shine your light and let the whole world see
We’re singing for the glory of the risen King… Jesus
What I love about this song is that it reminded me that my Savior can move mountains. He’s the God of the impossible after all, and He is more than able to handle any problems we may have. All we need to do is ask Him to take us as He finds us, with all our fears and failures.
A thousand times I’ve failed
Still your mercy remains
And should I stumble again
Still I’m caught in your grace
Everlasting
Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending
Your glory goes beyond all fame
In my heart, in my soul
Lord I give you control
Consume me from the inside out Lord
Let justice and praise become my embrace
To love You from the inside out
Your will above all else
My purpose remains
The art of losing myself
In bringing you praise
And the cry of my heart
Is to bring You praise
From the inside out
Lord my soul cries out
This song actually reminded me of two other DC Talk songs: What If I Stumble and Consume Me, both of which are my favorites. I guess our prayer is that we learn “the art of losing [ourselves] in bringing [Him] praise.”
Anyway, if you were there and would like to remember all the songs they played, you can check this concert review I found from the Pinoy Christian Music blog, since it contains a playlist. It also tells how the concert went in greater detail than I did here.
