Not My Will, But Yours, Lord

Posted on April 15, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

NOTE: You may listen to it HERE.

I don’t always pray, Lord,
I don’t always pray
Till I find the door closed.
Then I cry to You.
Help me pray like Jesus
In Gethsemane.
Not my will, but Yours, Lord,
Not my will, but Yours.

Sometimes when I pray, Lord,
Sometimes when I pray,
I want things I shouldn’t have
And You answer, “No.”
Help me pray like Jesus
In Gethsemane.
Not my will, but Yours, Lord,
Not my will, but Yours.

Often when I pray, Lord,
Often when I pray,
I seek quick solutions,
But you tell me, “Wait.”
Help me pray like Jesus
In Gethsemane.
Not my will, but Yours, Lord,
Not my will, but Yours.

I don’t always pray, Lord,
I don’t always pray
Till I find the door closed.
Then I cry to You.
Help me pray like Jesus
In Gethsemane.
Not my will, but Yours, Lord,
Not my will, but Yours.

Lead, I’ll follow You, Lord,
Lead, I’ll follow You.
I can’t see in darkness,
But the dark is light to You.
Help me pray like Jesus
In Gethsemane.
Not my will, but Yours, Lord,
Not my will, but Yours.

 

About This Song

Best Small Trans Headshot lightened
Some years back my wife was telling me about Jan Karon’s Mitford novels, and she mentioned that Father Tim always said that “Not my will, but Yours” was one prayer God would always answer. That idea stuck in both my head and my spirit.

 

You probably recall the biblical account of Jesus going to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray and taking His disciples with Him. But not even His closest friends could stay awake while He agonized about the unspeakable physical, emotional, and spiritual torture he knew he was going to endure during the next twenty-four hours.

The human part of Jesus wanted to be spared that suffering–who could blame him?–but the divine part of Him knew how important following and obeying His Heavenly Father’s will was. If He didn’t die, the sin that had been part of the human condition from the time of Adam and Eve on would still go on without being forgiven.

And if He didn’t die He couldn’t be raised from the dead to conquer death and provide eternal life in Heaven for all who believe in Him.

So Jesus spoke those simple but unforgettable words as the climax of His prayer, knowing that God His Heavenly Father would answer it, “Not my will, but Yours.”

That’s how we need to pray, too. Wouldn’t you agree?

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see whether one is available for this song. Audio recordings and videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive my weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

 

 

 

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

As Jesus Loves

Posted on April 7, 2021 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.

About this Song:

The three stanzas are quiet and reflective. The refrain comes only at the end, and it’s much livelier.

And here’s a secret about how I kept the stanzas straight while memorizing this song. The three conditions–blindness, deafness, and lameness–come in alphabetical order. To keep the lines straight within each stanza, each second line has a word that begins with the same letter as the condition mentioned in the line before: see, seeks; hear, heeds; lame, lost. And the supposedly sighted person fails to look “beyond himself” while the person supposedly able to get around fails to go “outside himself”–another intentional alphabetical choice.

Not accidents, I can assure you. I’m too well aware of the limitations of my memory.

I’m aware of my other limitations, too.

Joyce Richards, my former mother-in-law, suffered for years with what was first diagnosed as ALS: Lou Gehrig’s disease. When her condition quit deteriorating–and she continued to live–the doctors said maybe this was the slow-developing kind.

But they really didn’t know.

Even though they had ruled out other degenerative diseases, they still couldn’t be sure. She ended up having to use a motorized chair and a specially equipped van, but she didn’t act like a handicapped person. At least not during the time she was part of my life.

She was a giving and caring person–and she didn’t hide her faith, not even from her favorite Jewish physician.

I’m not sure what sparked this song, but I’ll always think of it as Joyce Richards’ song. For she was physically lame, yet always taking the hands of those around her in the most giving and unselfish ways.

Yet how many Christians think of themselves as righteous–while failing to see or 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 guilty–too often–of failing to “love as Jesus loves.” I may care enough to pray, and that’s important. I may cry over the needs of others, 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. But I’m also setting up a goal: to gain the blessing that comes from loving as Jesus loves.

Your comments are always welcome.

You can find a free lead sheet of this song in the drop down box found on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Links you might be interested in:

Posted in Blindness, Deafness, Helping, Lameness, Love | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sometimes I Wonder

Posted on March 31, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

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.

About this Song:

Do you ever wonder why a loving God would allow people to suffer–especially good people? Or why a righteous God would permit the worst of people to live the happiest and most prosperous lives? Or why God the Creator doesn’t use His powers to prevent  earthquakes and tsunamis from wiping out thousands of people at a time?

People have been asking those questions for thousands of years. As Christians, we should be able to explain that God gave mankind free will because He wanted us to love Him voluntarily. Making us robots would have prevented us from being able to do that. But with free will came sin, and the effects of sin have been with us ever since.

I believe that with all my heart. But I also believe God loved us so much that–even before we were conceived–He planned a way out for us: Salvation  through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. He promised us eternal life in Heaven, yes, but also strength and guidance for living the most meaningful life on earth.

But the “most meaningful life” isn’t one that’s free from pain and suffering. We are still subject to the problems brought on mankind’s sin–not just Adam and Eve’s original sin, but sin throughout the ages. So let’s not forget that God’s forgiveness doesn’t prevent us from suffering the consequences of our own mistakes–and our own sins.

Our problems sometimes aren’t even caused by our own sins, though, but by the sins of other people. Like accidents caused by drunken drivers, for example.

But does knowing and believing those things keep us from wanting to ask God why? Don’t we still want to find an answer that makes it all seem more logical–and more acceptable?

If you’re like me, you’re probably saving up a number of similar questions to ask God when you get to Heaven. I doubt we’ll get the answers there, though, because–if Heaven is truly as perfect as the Bible says–we’ll forget all the questions we have about the bad things that happen on earth.

My theory–my understanding, anyhow–is that we won’t even remember our earthly lives. And we won’t care, because eternal life in our Heavenly Father’s presence is so much better. What a wonderful thing to look forward to!

Do you truly believe that, too? How about leaving a comment to share that fact with the rest of us.

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see whether one is available for this song. Videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

      

Links you might be interested in:

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

I’m a Work in Progress

Posted on March 25, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

You may listen to today’s song here…

I’m a work in progress;
God’s not finished with me yet.
He’ll keep growing me more Christlike
Until He calls me home.
He’ll make my salt saltier
And He’ll brighten my fading light.
I’m a work in progress;
God’s not finished with me yet.

He knows all of my limitations,
But He knows my potential, too.
I pray for Him to keep on growing me
Into more of who He wants me to be.

I’m a work in progress;
My life is in God’s hands.
He’ll help me to be more loving
And more forgiving, too.
He’ll give me new ways to serve Him
And the strength to do my best.
I’m a work in progress;
God’s not finished with me yet.

He knows all of my limitations,
But He knows my potential, too.
I pray for Him to keep on growing me
Into more of who He wants me to be.
I’m work in progress;
He’s not finished with me yet.

About this Song:


A number of my songs have been written when dealing with various issues in my own life or the lives of friends and family members. But “I’m a Work in Progress” is probably the most personal of my two hundred-plus songs.

It’s also one of the newest. I wrote the stanzas in early December of 2020 but didn’t add the refrain until early this month.

At seventy-four I can’t keep from looking back at my life. I can see sins I’ve allowed God to help me almost forget about and I can see opportunities missed. Then I look at myself now and wonder what I would be like if I’d been one of God’s more obedient children. Surely He could have used me in ways I can’t even imagine now.

I recall a man who belonged to the same church I belonged to. He faithfully taught Sunday school and sang in the choir. Until he retired, that is. Then he retired from all of his church duties as well.

I was determined not to be like him when I got older. Nonetheless, I’m not only all too conscious of my lifelong limitations, I can’t keep from dwelling on the way age appears to be dulling my ability to do things I used to think I was reasonably good at. But not only did I not want to retire from serving God, my desire to serve Him is growing stronger.

Not to try to pay Him back for everything He’s done for me; I can’t do that and no one else can, either. I want to thank Him by being more obedient and to please Him in ways I’ve never pleased Him before.

I keep praying to be more loving and more forgiving; those are Christian characteristics I can’t attain on my own. Only when I allow God’s Holy Spirit to have more complete control of my life can I become more of the kind of person I believe God wants me to be.

I’m more conscious than ever before that “becoming” that person is an ongoing process. Growing more Christlike isn’t something I can “retire from” at a certain age.

So this very personal song isn’t just a reminder that God hasn’t discarded me to the junk pile as useless, but a way to praise Him for continuing to use me in ways that are pleasing to Him. And to inspire others who may be feeling useless.

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see the one for this song. Videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Posted in Christlikeness, Growth, Limitations, Potential | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Let God Drive

Posted on March 17, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

I have the best intentions;
I long to do all that pleases God
And yet I fail to do what I mean
And do what I mean not to do.

refrain
It’s time to jump into the back seat and let God drive,
It’s time to jump into the back seat and let God drive,
It’s time to jump into the back seat and let God drive,
For He alone knows where I’m really going.

If backed into a corner,
I may admit that I have done wrong,
And yet I tell God what He should do
To make things work out right for me.
(refrain)

It’s hard to want what God wants;
Even Christ Himself didn’t like to suffer,
But He cried, “Not my will, but Yours.”
Lord, help me to pray that prayer, too.
(refrain)

About this Song:

If these words remind you of several vastly different Scripture passages, you’re on the same page I am.

In Romans 7:19-20, the apostle Paul says, “For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do–this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.” That’s from the NIV translation.

Here’s the same thing from the Easy-to-Read translation: “I don’t do the good that I want to do. I do the evil that I don’t want to do. So if I do what I don’t want to do, then I am not really the one doing it. It is the sin living in me that does it.”

No matter which translation you prefer, Christians can relate too easily to what Paul is saying. Just because we’re saved doesn’t mean we’ve lost our sinful nature. We truly don’t want to sin, yet we still do. We won’t get rid of that sinful nature until we die.

But with God’s help, we can keep it under control–under better control, that is. The closer our walk with Him–the more willing we are to put Him in the driver’s seat of our lives–the more we’re able to do the good we want to do and avoid doing the bad we don’t want to do.

The other passage referred to here is Matthew 26:39 & 42. Jesus is praying in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before His crucifixion. He would have much preferred to avoid the physical, emotional, and spiritual suffering he faced the next day. He said, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me.” (That is, may I be spared from the coming agony?)

In verse 42, He prayed a second time. “My father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it. . .”

Ah, but I’ve purposely omitted the most important words in both verses: “Yet not as I will, but as You will” in verse 39 and “May Your will be done” in verse 42.

As today’s lyrics suggest, Jesus was acknowledging that He wanted God the Father to be in the driver’s seat–regardless of Jesus’s personal feelings.

Because Jesus was both God and man, He was born with a sin nature–just like you and me. But He did what the apostle Paul was never able to do: He stayed in such close contact with God the Father that He never let his sin nature take control. Not once. Jesus never sinned.

You and I will never stop sinning. But the closer we get to God–the more we put Him in charge of our lives–the less sinning we’ll do.

If you’re not a Christian, you probably still have problems making yourself do what’s right sometimes and doing what you know is wrong at other times. You’d be amazed how God’s presence in your life can affect your intentions and your ability to carry through with them.

Please leave a comment if this song has spoken to you in any way…or my comments about it.

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see whether one is available for this song.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Links you might be interested in:

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

You Alone, O Lord

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

You Alone, O Lord

You alone, O Lord, are my rock and my refuge;
You alone, O Lord, can shelter me beneath Your wings.
You alone, O Lord, can stretch Your hands to protect me,
And make all my foes cringe before Your feet.

You alone, O Lord, are my shield and defender;
You alone, O Lord, can break the power of evil men.
You alone, O Lord, can put an end to their terror
And punish them for all their wicked ways.

When I lie down, I sleep in peace,
For in You alone I am secure, O Lord.
In You alone I am secure.

You alone, O Lord, are my shield and defender;
You alone, O Lord, can break the power of evil men.
You alone, O Lord, can put an end to their terror
And punish them for all their wicked ways.

About this song:
In January of 1991, the United States–the whole free world, actually–was on pins and needles waiting to see whether Iraq would respond to demands to withdraw from its forceful occupation of Kuwait. The United Nations had set January 15th as the deadline for Iraq to comply.

I’m sure I wasn’t the only person wondering and perhaps worrying about the possibility of our becoming involved in war in the Middle East.

But rather than continue to worry, I sat down in the living room with my Bible and started searching the Psalms for verses of reassurance. I came up with a number of them, but these were the most meaningful:

I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. (Psalm 4:8)

He is a shield to all who take refuge in him. (Psalm 18:30b)

Break the arm of the wicked and evil man; call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out. (Psalm 30:15)

You defend orphans and everyone else in need, so that no one on earth can terrify others again. (Psalm 30:18)

The next day, Operation Desert Storm began.

Even though Desert Storm has long since passed, terrorism–or at least the threat of it–seems to be a constant in modern life. And multiple threats to America from within have brought a new level of unrest.

But God’s power and love and protection are still our only real source of hope. That realization brings the kind of peace nothing else can bring.

I hope you find that kind of peace under God’s wing as well. How about leaving a comment?

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see whether one is available for this song. Videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Links you might be interested in:

I’ll be back again next Wednesday.

Best regards,
Roger

Posted in Desert Storm, God's protection, Iraq, Middle East, Operation Desert Storm, Psalms, Terror, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Days, Hours, Moments

Posted on March 3, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

I could spend my days
Just singing songs of praise
Unto the Lord who’s set me free.
I could spend each hour
Just singing of His power
And of the love that’s lifted me.
I could spend each moment
Singing of my atonement
And the hope Christ Jesus brings.
I could spend my time
Making songs in rhyme
For the Lord of whom I sing.

About this song:

I’m not sure what inspired this song originally, but it turned out to be an exercise in rhyming. You’ll notice that the ending words of each pair of sentences rhyme: “free” and “me”; “brings” and “sing”.

But there are also internal rhymes within each sentence: “days” and “praise”; “hour” and “power”; “moment” and “atonement”; and “time” and “rhyme”.

So the reference to “making songs in rhyme” is actually about writing this song.

The line about “And of the love that’s lifted me” should bring back memories of the old hymn, “Love Lifted Me.”

Believe it or not, I really struggled with the atonement line. Should it be “my atonement” because I’m talking about God making me “at one” with Him? Or should it be “His atonement” because He’s the one who’s done it? I’m still not totally sure, but feel free to change it. I don’t think God will punish either of us for making the wrong choice.

I purposely started with the longest period of time–days–and then worked my way down to the shorter time spans, days and then moments.

To listen to this sing, go here, scroll down to the drop down box of songs recorded on the Yamaha, and select “Days, Hours, Moments.” A free lead sheet is available here.

As always, comments are welcome.

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see the one for this song. Videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Links you might be interested in:

Posted in Days, Hours, Moments, Praise, Rhymes, Singing | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

As You Would Have Other People Do to You

Posted on February 24, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

As you would have other people do to you,
So you must do to them.
So you must do to them.

Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you.
Bless those who would curse you,
And pray for those who would abuse you.

How can God’s love reach out through you
If you love just your friends and family?
Even the least of all men
Gives to those who would pay them back.

Love your enemies; ask for nothing in return.
Then they’ll know you are God’s children.
Don’t ask back for what you’ve given them.

Let them see you living by the
Kind of love you’re giving away.
As you would have other people do to you,
So you must do to them.
So you must do to them.

About This Song:

“As You Would Have Other People Do to You” comes from Luke 6:27-28 and 31-35. . .

27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
(NIV)

Jesus’s outlook on how to treat other people is quite different from the way we’re too often inclined to do it. Sometimes we’d rather say, “Don’t do to others what you don’t want them to do to you.”

Hmm. But Jesus’s words put a different spin on that. An incredibly more positive one.

Do you love your enemies? I’m happy to say I’ve never had but one or two, but they gave me fits. Being civil to them–much less kind and loving–didn’t come easily.

But you know what I forced myself to do?

I prayed for them. On a regular basis. I didn’t pray for them to change. . .to become more likeable. I simply prayed for God to bless them. I tried to be sincere in praying that. Sometimes I succeeded and sometimes I didn’t.

I’m not sure those people ever became good friends, but my opinion of them changed for the better. Maybe I did learn to love them. At least a little bit.

With a large dose of God’s help.

Is there someone in your life you’d rather not pray for? Check with God. Maybe He wants you to pray for them.

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see whether one is available for this song. Videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Links you might be interested in:

Posted in Enemy, Golden Rule, Goodness, Love, Prayer | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

It Is Easier

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

It is easier to doubt than to believe;
It is easier to worry than to hope.
It is easier to fear than to trust,
Than trust in the name of the Man who’s more than man.

It is easier to hurt than to be whole;
It is easier to be blind than to see.
It is easier to suffer than to pray,
Than pray in the name of the Man who’s more than man.

It is easier to stumble than to run;
It is easier to lose than try to win.
It is easier to die than really live,
Than live in the name of the Man who’s more than man.

It is easier to to die than really live;
It is easier to suffer than to pray.
It is easier to fear than to trust,
Than trust in the name of the Man who’s more than man.

About This Song:

Do you know someone who finds it easier to gripe about his problems than to do something about them? You wouldn’t happen to be like that, would you?

I admit it. At some points in my life, I’ve found it easier to complain about my circumstances than to figure out how best to endure and possibly even overcome them.

Maybe that was because I didn’t want to admit that my problems were beyond my ability to control. They were God-sized, not Roger-sized.

Believing that God can solve our problems takes faith, though. A lot of it at times.

Especially when we admit that God’s solutions may not happen as soon as we want or in the way we want. Sometimes He chooses to help us endure our circumstances rather than to change them.

Who wants a God like that?

I do. Because I believe God knows so much more than I do. His wisdom is infinite. I can’t begin to comprehend how He keeps track of billions of people simultaneously and knows every detail of our lives, down to the number of hairs on our heads.

But I believe He does, and I believe He’ll work things out for His ultimate good. Not just mine or ours.

When Jesus lived on earth two thousand years ago, He didn’t simply do a lot of teaching, preaching, and healing. By enduring every possible problem we humans can possibly face, he showed us that victory can be ours.

Not victory through His own efforts, but through the love and wisdom and power of God the Father. Jesus modeled the kind of faith we need to live victorious lives.

The way He lived wasn’t easy, though, and He didn’t promise us an easy road, either. But He assured us of the ultimate victory, and that’s what counts.

If you haven’t yet put your faith in Jesus–the Man who’s more than man–won’t you do so now?

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see whether one is available for this song. Videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Posted in Complaining, Easiness, Faith, God's Provision, God's Voice, God's Wisdom, Negativity, Success, Suffering, Victory | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

“Peace! Be Still”

Posted on February 12, 2021 by Roger E. Bruner

Once Christ and his friends went out in a boat;
A bad storm arose and tossed them about.
Though Christ was close by,
His friends got so scared;
They woke him, he spoke,
And his words calmed the storm.

When Christ told the winds to be silent,
And he told the waves to be still,
The words he spoke calmed the fiercest storm,
And he calms storms even today.

Peace! Be still! Peace! Be still!
Whatever storms your life faces,
Won’t you let Christ help you calm them?
Peace! Be still!

As you live your life one day at a time,
Bad storms will arise and toss you about.
There’s no need to fear,
For Christ is close by;
When his time is right,
He’ll address every storm.

When Christ tells the winds to be silent,
And he tells the waves to be still,
The words he speaks calm the fiercest storms,
Yes, he calms storms even today.

Peace! Be still! Peace! Be still!
Whatever storms your life faces,
Won’t you let Christ help you calm them?
Peace! Be still!

About This Song:

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’ve learned how much I love to take Scripture and reword it in a way I can set to music. “Peace!  Be Still” is one of my favorites.

It’s taken from Matthew 8: 23-27. . .

23 Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”

26 He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.

27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”
(NIV)

I’ve also added something from Mark 4:39 about the same incident. . .

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
(NIV)

Another familiar translation says, “Peace! Be still!”

I think this is one of the most reassuring passages in the New Testament. Jesus was asleep in the boat at a time His disciples were panicking. Not because Jesus was unconcerned about his friends, but because He knew His Heavenly Father was in control and worry was unwarranted. So He spoke to the storm at the appropriate time and the storm dissipated.

What about you? Does your life have storms that sometimes threaten to wash you out of your boat and sink you to the bottom of the sea, figuratively speaking?

Mine sure does. More than once when I’ve needed reassurance, I’ve turned to this Scripture, often by singing this song to myself. The comfort that comes from knowing Jesus can calm our storms is beyond description.

Can you think of a time when Jesus has calmed a storm in your life? How about sharing a comment?

Free lead sheets (lyrics, tune, and chords) are available for many of my songs. Click on the Lead Sheets tab at the top of this page to see whether one is available for this song. Videos for many of my songs, some recorded at home and some at our church’s nursing home ministry, can be accessed at my website, RogerBruner.com, under the Listen tab.

Look for me again next Wednesday. Better still, subscribe to receive these weekly posts by email.

Best regards,
Roger

Links you might be interested in:

Posted in Deliverance, God's protection, Panic, Peace, Storms | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment