Yet another interesting Creative Writing assignment. This one was to choose 10 songs or books ( I used songs) to express the different parts of who I am. This was very testing, and was a challenge unlike any I’ve encountered before.
I am a sinful person. That reality is one that I have to come to terms with every day, and one that I need constant reminder of. That is one of the reasons that this song is one of my favorites. It’s simple yet potent lyrics are easy on the ears, but don’t skirt around the facts that yes, I’ve lied far more times than I’ve been caught, and often I put my own desires above the needs of other people, and that every single day, I have to die unto myself so that I can live.
This song is loaded with depth, and though not a strictly Christian song per se, it has a lot of truth in it regarding our human nature. That is one reason that I particularly appreciate it. The other is that it reminds me that when it comes to secrets and hidden things, I always seem to be surprised or even betrayed when they are found in other people, but how quickly I forget that I’ve done the same thing, so why shouldn’t someone else.
Love Constraining to Obedience ~ Indelible Grace
“Changes a slave into a child, and duty into choice”. These are some of the lyrics to this song, and honestly, I have to say that this is something I struggle with; to truly take all of my duty and debt to Christ and count it as the greatest choice, the best pleasure. I find it far too easy to be crushed under the demand of the law, and all too often cannot find it in my heart to seek Christ with the appropriate amount of desire and affection, so that the law becomes counted as merely another way to serve with gladness.
I make mistakes. I’ll be the first to admit that. However, all too often I think, I want to make them, and then have no consequences afterwards. I think that this is a desire shared by many people, and the simple fact of the matter is that yes, sometimes the choices we make and the things we pursue have consequences. And sometimes those consequences are not easily erased. Whether it is something more relational like breaking someone’s trust, or something more concrete and immediate like being responsible for a car accident, the same principle serves across the board. Sometimes our past follows us, even if we try to fall away from it.
Joy in the Journey ~ Michael Card
It is all too easy to get caught up in the goal or the destination to where we travel. This song is a constant reminder to me not to get caught up in getting through this worldly journey (which I do all too often), but instead to earnestly rejoice in the trip. The lyrics to this song are extremely poetic and deep, and particularly reassuring and comforting to those who are weary and tired of the constant struggle faced on this earth, as they offer not only the reminder of the joy in the journey, but also of the final hope that we have in the eventual end.
Just a note, but it was extremely hard to find a version to this song anywhere. Eventually I found one, even though it’s not optimum. If you scroll to the bottom of the page after linking to it, there’s a pane with all of the songs on the album, Bluebird included.
I am a songwriter. And as such, this song speaks to me on a variety of levels, and I absolutely love its wandering, almost-sleepy feel. As a songwriter/composer, I know all too well that sometimes all it takes is a bluebird, or a word, or the merest cue to inspire a song, but sometimes it takes all night, or all week, or even all month. While frustrating this may be, it is very reassuring to have it put in a song, so that I know that I am most definitely not the only one who suffers from such irregularity.
This song is rather cryptic and mysterious, but it perfectly conveys the frustration brought by the feeling of spinning your wheels, something that I have trouble with quite often. It’s the feeling of wanting to move on and do something new and sensational, but all movement and change seems to be blocked or futile. While this comes and goes, I have to constantly remind myself that I’m not on my time, that I’m being directed, and that includes both the when, AND the where.
Depressing as this is, I have to say that it relates a large part of me as a person. I tend to adopt a rather hopeless mindset sometimes, as I see thing after thing crumble on this earth. While this is to be expected as a Christian, quite often I forget to take refuge in the eternal nature of God. But apart from that failure, I have very much come to the conclusion that no matter how permanent something may seem to my blind eyes, in the end, so long as it is built of the earth, it will invariably become nothing more than dust in the wind.
Oh Love That Will Not Let Me Go ~ Indelible Grace
The lyrics to this song are incredibly potent for any true believer, and especially so for me. As mentioned before, I struggle with the hopelessness and constant struggle and decay that I face every day on earth. However, this song reminds me that there IS a love that will not let me go, even should I wish it, and I can rest my weary soul in that love. That is a remarkable privilege enjoyed by Christians, one that I think we neglect and take for granted too often. That we can truly rest in the assurance of the love of Christ, unlike any other people on earth.
Great Day to be Alive ~ Travis Tritt
Truth be told, when all is said and done, sometimes it’s just a great, satisfying day to be alive.
Jacob Carrick 