As Jesus Loves

Posted on July 8, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

Who is blind, one who cannot see,
Yet seeks to care for those in need?
Or one who claims to see,
But never looks beyond himself?

Who is deaf, one who cannot hear,
Yet heeds the cries of those in pain?
Or one who claims to hear,
But listens only to himself?

Who is lame, one who cannot walk,
Yet takes the hands of those who’re lost?
Or one who claims to walk,
But never goes outside himself?

Refrain:
How blind are those who will not see
The needs that Jesus sees!
How deaf are those who will not hear
The cries that Jesus hears!
How lame are those who will not take
The hands that Jesus takes!
But how blessed are those
Who love as Jesus loves.

My former mother-in-law suffered from a degenerative disease that was long misdiagnosed as ALS: “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.” Yet she didn’t feel sorry for herself. Instead she focused on the needs of others, including the specialist she developed a special kinship with. Everyone who knew her and benefited from her kindness was aware that she was a Christian. One who loved others as Jesus Himself loved.

How many Christians think of themselves as righteous–while failing to see and respond to the needs of others; while failing to hear and answer the cries of others; while failing to reach out and assist those who need their help?

I’m too often guilty of failing to “love as Jesus loves.” I may care enough to pray, and that’s important. I even cry over the needs of others at times, and that’s good.

But how often am I willing to get a little dirt on me through hands-on assistance? Not often enough.

So whenever I sing this song, I’m preaching to myself. And I’m setting up a goal: to gain the blessings that result from loving as Jesus loves.

You may listen to this song here and print or download a free lead sheet here.

My twenty-fifth Christian novel is in the edit-and-revise stage right now and probably won’t be ready for publication for at least several months. The front cover is depicted below above the graphic of the other novels’ covers.

Links you might be interested in:

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Sharing the Harvest

Posted on July 1, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

Over the last few months I’ve posted a couple of songs based on one or more of these Scriptures:

Matthew 9:37-38…

37 Then he said to his disciples,
“The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.
38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore,
to send out workers into his harvest field.” (NIV)

Isaiah 6:8..


8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying,
“Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” (NIV)

Luke 15:7…

7 I tell you that in the same way
there will be more rejoicing in heaven
over one sinner who repents than
over ninety-nine righteous persons
who do not need to repent. (NIV)

Although this song is similar in theme to the others, it’s different because of the completeness of its message in relation to the Scriptures it’s inspired by. Keep those verses in mind as you read the lyrics below or follow the lead sheet here and listen to the recording here.

Who will come and share in the Harvest?
Who will work the Master’s fields?
Who will join the angels as they’re singing praise
For each soul the Harvest brings in?

Crops are ripe and ready to harvest.
Who will help to work the fields?
Never has there been so much to harvest
Or to lose if the workers are few.

Crops will die if left where they’re standing;
Who will gather them in time?
Smallest losses cannot be afforded,
For the Master planted His Son.

Pray that the Master will send more workers
So the Harvest will be complete.
If He calls you, pray with ready answer,
“Here am I, O Lord, send me.”

When Jesus told his disciples that the harvest was plentiful, He meant there’s not just a world full of people in need of being harvested (saved and brought into His Father’s Kingdom), but who are eager to hear and respond to God’s good news. But that can only happen if God has enough willing workers—us, His followers—to share the Good News with others to and gather them in. God’s angels rejoice over every individual who’s saved. Couldn’t they possibly also grieve over each person who is left to die in the field–to dis without salvation?

Since Jesus gave His life so everyone could be saved, the failure of God’s workers to do their part in harvesting the lost is costly indeed. I don’t believe God expects every Christian to participate in the harvest in exactly the same way, but if we really care about the lost about us, we ought to be willing to go: to do whatever the Lord desires of each of us.

<(((°>

Progress on editing and revising my 25th Christian novel (see the cover below) is moving along slowly but surely. The graphic below that shows the covers of my first twenty-four novels.

Links you might be interested in:

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The Balm Song

Posted on June 24, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

Do you remember the worrisome days of COVID? It was an appropriate time to write a song like this one. It wasn’t just appropriate then, but for all times. God cares for and provides for all of His children. It’s beyond wonderful to know we can rely on Him.

Dictionary.com gives one of its definitions of “balm” as “anything that heals, soothes, or mitigates pain.” What better balm could we desire than the love of God?

I need not fret. I need not worry.
God’s love is the balm that calms my soul.
Why be concerned about tomorrow?
My life is in God’s loving hands.
Why be concerned about tomorrow?
My life is in God’s hands.

I’ll sing of God’s love,
And I’ll sing of His compassion.
I’ll sing of His concern for me.
I’ll sing of God’s care,
And I’ll sing of His provision.
I’ll sing of all He does for me.

I need not fear. I need not be anxious.
God’s love is the balm that calms my soul.
Why be concerned about the future?
My life is in God’s loving hands.
Why be concerned about the future?
My life is in God’s hands.

I’ll sing of God’s love,
And I’ll sing of His compassion.
I’ll sing of His concern for me.
I’ll sing of God’s care,
And I’ll sing of His provision.
I’ll sing of all He does for me.

You may listen to this song here and view, download, or print a free copy of the lead sheet here.

My twenty-fifth Christian novel is in the edit-and-revise stage right now and probably won’t be ready for publication for at least several months. The front cover is depicted below above the graphic of the other novels’ covers.

    

Links you might be interested in:

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Sing to the Lord

Posted on June 17, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

A few months ago I came across Psalm 93 and immediately fell in love with the first four verses:

Sing to the Lord a new song;
    sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, praise his name;
    proclaim his salvation day after day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations,
    his marvelous deeds among all peoples.
4 For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
    he is to be feared above all gods.

I’m not a terrific memorizer, but God’s Holy Spirit put in my heart that I should learn it. So I memorized it one verse at a time day after day. When I was pretty comfortable with the first three verses and a little less with the fourth, I sat down with my guitar and started noodling around. (“Noodling around” is a technical musical term meaning exactly what it sounds like: “fiddling around”.)

I don’t normally write a song that way. I usually have the beginning notes come to me in a dream or even when I’m doing something totally unrelated to music. So having a tune come so easily was unexpectedly wonderful. As always, however, I refined the tune somewhat over a period of days.

But that part of the tune only covered the first two verses. Then I saw a reference to Psalm 150: 6 in a devotional I was reading. I made note of it and came back to it later and added it to the first two verses, soon coming up with a tune for that part, too.

That just left verses three and four. The tune for #3 grew naturally from what had come before, but I was having problems with #4. Because verse 4 refers to the Lord as One to be “feared above all gods,” it didn’t seem like a contemporary way to describe God’s superiority since Christians consider God to be the only God. As you can see from the lyrics below, I felt led to describe God as “most worthy of all to be praised.”

l wanted to mention that because it is the only deviation from the NIV translation of the Scripture. Otherwise, you could sing the song directly from the Scripture.

An audio recording is found here, and a free lead sheet is here.

So, the very short song ended up being worded thusly:

Sing to the Lord a new song.
Sing to the Lord all the earth.
Sing to the Lord, praise His name
And proclaim His salvation day after day.

Let all who have breath praise the Lord.

Declare His glory among the nations,
His marvelous deeds among all peoples.

For great is the Lord
And most worthy of all to be praised.

As you know if you’ve been following this blog, I’ve not only written more than two hundred songs, but twenty-four Christian novels. The rough draft of #25 is finished and I’m in the process of editing and revising it.

The Devil and Pastor Gus is one of my favorites. Below the graphic for that book is a graphic displaying the covers of the twenty-four.

Links you might be interested in:
My website
My Amazon Author page

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Create in Me a Clean Heart, O Lord

Posted on June 10, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

I suspect that most people are familiar with the biblical story about King David committing adultery with Bathsheba and then trying to cover up his sin by sending her husband to the front of battle, where he was sure to be killed.

David didn’t get away with his double sin, however.

The baby Bathsheba conceived by David was very dear to the him, but God punished him by permitting the newborn to die. The prophet Nathan not only knew the truth, he confronted the king about it. David repented and wrote Psalm 51, seeking the Lord’s forgiveness.

Psalm 51: 10-12 isn’t just a good prayer for us when we’re repenting of some wrongdoing, it’s a good prayer when we simply need to freshen and strengthen a less that perfect relationship with the Lord .

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

I kept my rewording of those verses to a minimum in this song, but I’m not sure which translation of the Bible I was working from.

Create in me a clean heart, O Lord,
And renew a right spirit within me.
Don’t turn me away from Your presence, Lord,
Or withhold Your Spirit from me.
Don’t withhold Your Spirit from me.

Restore unto me the joy of Your salvation;
Let Your Spirit make me whole once more.

Create in me a clean heart, O Lord,
And renew a right spirit in me.
Lord, renew a right spirit in me.

You may listen to a recording of this song here. You’ll find a free PDF of this song here.

Over the last fifteen years or so I’ve written and published twenty-four Christian novels. They’re all available on Amazon in both print and Kindle editions. I’m currently editing and revising #25.

Links you might be interested in:

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Our Father in Heaven (The Lord’s Prayer)

Posted on June 3, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

Even Christians who haven’t memorized much Scripture can probably recite The Lord’s Prayer. I purposely said “recite” because actually praying those words can be difficult with the words coming to our minds and mouth automatically.

Jesus didn’t tell His disciples to pray that prayer, but to use it as a guide for their prayers. Can you do that? It’s hard at times, isn’t it?

That’s one reason I often use this song for praying because I didn’t word it exactly the way Jesus did. Even after singing it probably hundreds of times during my morning devotional times, I can usually still focus prayerfully on the words.

Our Father in Heaven, holy is Your name.
May Your kingdom come, may Your will be done
On earth as it is in Heaven.

Lord, give us this day our daily bread.
Forgive us our wrongs as we forgive.
Lord, turn us back from temptation’s door,
And keep us safe from the Evil One!

Our Father in Heaven, holy is Your name.

You may listen to it here and, if you desire, get a free lead sheet here.

Not only have I written over two hundred songs, I’ve also written and published twenty-four Christian novels. One of them is shown below, and the graphic below that contains thumbnails of the covers of all twenty-four.

Links you might be interested in:

 

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Learning to Touch Lives

Posted on May 27, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

This song is not necessarily a Christian song as such, but it ought to be quite relevant to Christians.

Have you ever visited a church you’ve never been to before and been greeted by practically no one? Did you feel like going back again? I doubt it. My wife and I experienced that many years ago, and we still remember the coldness we felt there. Wouldn’t that be the same for you, too?

Wouldn’t a simple “hi” or a handshake have made you feel welcome? And wouldn’t it have given you more of a reason to come back rather than to continue avoiding it?

Smiling at someone or shaking hands is just the beginning, though. Really getting to know someone takes time, time for them to accept your interest in and concern for them.

While smiling and shaking hands aren’t greetings only Christians use, they’re a simple means of making a positive influence on someone who might need to be noticed and shown concern about. But wouldn’t it good to also pray for ways to really connect with that person?

A recording of this song may be heard here. A free PDF lead sheet is available here.

When I meet someone for the first time
And I shake that person’s hand,
I touch his life in a physical way
That says, “I know you’re there.”

But my prayer is to learn to listen
To just what he thinks and how he feels–
So I may learn to touch his life
In a way that says, “I care.”

I write Christian novels as well as songs.  Have a gander at Why Not? shown below or look over the image below that which shows the covers of all twenty-four of my  novels.

I’ll be back again next Wednesday. Please join me then. Better still, sign up to receive these weekly posts by email.

Links you might be interested in:

Posted in Caring, Cup of Cold Water, Greeting, Handshake, Listening, Meeting, Touching Lives, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

When I Walk with Him

Posted on May 20, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

Over the years I’ve had a number of people tell me several of my songs would make good children’s songs. I suppose that’s because of their simplicity. It’s fine with me for people to think that, even though I have only written a couple of songs specifically for kids.

I can’t recall whether this song is one of those or not, but you might want to listen to it with that idea in mind. Here’s a link to the lead sheet.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Nothing is impossible when I walk with Him.
When I walk with Him, yes, when I walk with Him,
Nothing is impossible when I walk with Him.

Though the night is dark, I know I won’t get lost.
Jesus lights the way ahead when I walk with Him.
When I walk with Him, yes, when I walk with Him,
Jesus lights the way ahead when I walk with Him.

Though the path is steep, I know I won’t fall down.
Jesus takes my hand in His when I walk with Him.
When I walk with Him, yes, when I walk with Him,
Jesus takes my hand in His when I walk with Him.

I am not afraid of what tomorrow brings.
Jesus whispers words of hope when I walk with Him.
When I walk with Him, yes, when I walk with Him,
Jesus whispers words of hope when I walk with Him.

I remember walking on a very dark road years ago without a flashlight of any kind; I had to hit my shoe against the pavement to be sure I hadn’t wandered off the road. I recall another time when I was walking on such steep steps–there weren’t any railings–that I was sure I would fall down.

You may not have experienced that kind of darkness or steepness literally, but I can’t keep from believing that you have experienced an emotional or spiritual darkness or steepness sometime in your life. If you are truly a Believer, the certainty of the last stanza is what brought you through.

Of my twenty-four novels, Rosa No-Name is probably my wife’s favorite. Interestingly,  it’s not just a stand-alone novel, it is also both the prequel and the sequel to Found in Translation, even though it’s not a young adult novel. In intrigued? Check it out.

Of 

Links you might be interested in:

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Sometimes I Wonder

Posted on May 13, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

Have you ever found yourself in such a miserable situation that you questioned whether you could work your way out of it, even with God’s help? Or have you ever been so resentful of evil people who are getting away with all kinds of bad things that you question why God doesn’t just wipe them out? Or do you read about the numerous innocent victims of hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes and wonder why God doesn’t prevent those disasters from happening?

If so,  you aren’t alone. If God is truly good and loving–I believe He is–why does He permit bad things to happen? I don’t think we’re going to find a satisfying explanation while we’re still living on earth. God’s ways are beyond our ability to understand. Better to hold on to questions like those till we get to Heaven.

But will we even get answers there? Heaven is a perfect place. It doesn’t have any of those things we question the existence of on earth. And I believe Heaven would be less than perfect if we could even remember the questions we wanted answered on earth.

What do you think?

You may listen to this song here and view or download a free lead sheet here.

Sometimes I wonder why the righteous suffer,
And I make a mental note to ask God by and by.
But when I get to Heaven and meet Him face to face,
I know I will forget to ask, for Heaven is a perfect place-
With no memories of earthly pain.

Sometimes I wonder why the wicked prosper,
And I make a mental note to ask God by and by.
But when I get to Heaven and meet Him face to face,
I know I will forget to ask, for Heaven is a perfect place-
With no memories of earthly wrongs.

Sometimes I wonder why disasters happen,
And I make a mental note to ask God by and by.
But when I get to Heaven and meet Him face to face,
I know I will forget to ask, for Heaven is a perfect place-
With no memories of earthly woes,
And no memory of earthly wrongs,
And no memory of earthly pain,
And no memory of earth at all.

I think The Devil and Pastor Gus is one of my best books. Check it out and see if it might appeal to you. You may quickly access my Amazon Author page by scanning the QR code on the graphic containing pictures of my twenty-four book covers.

Links you might be interested in:

Posted in Disasters, Free will, Pain, Prosperity, Suffering, Wicked People, Wrongdoing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

I Can’t Count Them!

Posted on May 6, 2026 by Roger E. Bruner

No sheep this week. Well, not exactly.

Here are the lyrics to a song I wish I could duplicate the style of for other songs. But the meaning is far more important than what someone might consider one of my better recordings. Listen here and read the lyrics shown below. The lead sheet is here.

In the ocean,
I wonder how many schools of fish there are.
I can’t count them.
In the forest,
I wonder how many different trees there are.
I can’t count them.
In the meadow,
I wonder how many blades of grass there are.
I can’t count them.
In the graveyard,
I wonder how many have died without the Lord.

refrain
I can’t count them! I can’t count them.
The numbers are too great.
I can’t count them! I can’t count them.
But Jesus knew and loved each one.

In the desert,
I wonder how many grains of sand there are.
I can’t count them.
In a blizzard,
I wonder how many flakes of snow there are.
I can’t count them.
In the night sky,
I wonder how many flecks of light there are.
I can’t count them.
All around me,
I wonder how many will die without the Lord! (refrain)

According to one source, approximately 117 bullion people have lived on the earth during its existence. 45-50 billion people have lived on earth since the time of Jesus. Only around eight billion of those have identified themselves as Christians. That leaves an awful lot of people who haven’t been or aren’t Christians now. Deceased individuals who have either died without ever hearing God’s Good News or who heard it but lived and died without believing.

The Census branch of the United States government has a “pop clock” that shows some really interesting current statistics about the rate of world population growth and much more. Back when I worked at the International Mission Board, I programmed a version of the pop clock, but this one is much more thorough. Take a look at the clock here. You won’t be disappointed.

Today’s individual Christians aren’t responsible for the spiritual condition of the people who came before us or all of the nearly countless unsaved people living in the world today. But how can we look around us at the small number of lost people–sheep–we’re in contact with now and ignore their spiritual needs?

Jesus couldn’t. He died for each one of them.

I’m still working on my 25th Christian novel, Wait for Me. I’m about half done with the rough draft, and I’m finally progressing at a decent rate of speed.

I’ve written novels for a variety of age groups, but A Twisted Rainbow is one of only a few coming of age novels. I recently reread it for the first time in years and really enjoyed it. Maybe you would, too.

Links you might be interested in:

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