Yesterday, on Easter Sunday – we attended a beautiful service with much music, scripture and reflection. As the pipe organ swelled and the choir sang majestic praises – it was very emotional for me. After the service we had a brunch with my parents and when we got home I saw that one of my friends had posted this song on facebook, and something resonated with me right there and then. It was something intangible, something I couldn’t put my finger on – I just knew that this song was exactly what I was feeling all morning long as I too, found an inner joy and peace at the celebration of our Lord’s defeat of death and the grave.
I remember singing this song in choir years ago and I also found it in a songbook for some of my vocal students to sing over the years. It’s one of my favorites.
In this Easter season – it is wonderful to reflect and “Be Ye Glad”.
Enjoy a wonderful arrangement of this song by “Glad”.
God Bless
In these days of confused situations
In these nights of restless remorse,
When the heart and the soul of a nation
Lay wounded and cold as a corpse
From the grave of the innocent Adam
Comes a song bringing joy to the sad.
Oh your cry has been heard and the ransom
Has been paid up in full, be ye glad
Chorus:
Oh, be ye glad, oh, be ye glad.
Every debt that you’ve ever had
Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord.
Be ye glad, be ye glad, be ye glad
So be like lights on the rim of the water
Giving hope in a storm sea of night
Be a refuge amidst the slaughter
Of these fugitives in their flight
For you are timeless and part of a puzzle.
You are winsome and young as a lad.
And there is no disease or no struggle
That can pull you from God, be ye glad
Last night Greg and watched a Biography of John Walsh – better known as the host of the popular television program, “America’s Most Wanted“. Some may not know that it was his own personal story of grief that led him to be an active voice to Congress and helped changed some laws regarding missing children and bringing criminals who abduct children – to justice. He was then asked to host this show – and since the onset of the program in 1988 – hundreds have people have been found.
Image via Wikipedia
John and his wife had a beautiful six-year-old boy, named Adam. Adam was abducted and murdered – his body found dumped in a river near their home. Although John had his suspicions of who had committed this crime – it took the police and authorities over 25 years to solve the crime – and by this time, the man had passed away – before ever being sentenced. Although it was comforting to have the thing “put to rest” – it was a lifelong sorrow and passion within John to try to change the system – and have more help and networking around the country and the world.
As we watched this program – it struck me. I said to Greg, “I wonder if John realized that this one tragedy in his life – allowed him to be the vehicle in which real change would take place for other children and suffering families? Do you think he knew that because of this – he forever rewrote history”?
Oh – but what a price to pay for change.
Years ago – there was no stoplight in front of the church where Greg was on staff. It was a dangerous busy highway and hard to turn left to come out of the church – as many of us had to do. The city refused to put in a stop light. Something about “not enough people’ or something like that. It took a few fatal accidents in that place to finally wake them up – and today there is a stop light there.
It is the painful, tragic and often fatal events that thrust people forward to make a change.
So I got to thinking about this – and tried applying this principle to my own life. I too have experienced heartache – just like you. Yours may look different from mine – yours may be loss of a child, a husband, a parent – or a relationship – but loss is still loss. Grief is still grief.
What if – instead of putting that passion, anger, frustration and questions that we experience about the loss inside ourselves and hoping time, friends and activity will help put it to rest – we instead saw it as a possibility to do something great? Maybe even something that we would never have done if we had never experienced or been touched with the pain at all?
What if – we turned grief around, inside out and stared it down, used that raw emotion to fuel a passion for others and saw it as a “God moment”.
I’m sure at the time of tragedy, the Walsh’s did not think any such thing – but the wonderful things he has done since 1981 are a sacrifice and personal tribute to their lost son – the effects of which are still felt today.
I think if we could all muster up the courage and turn tragedy around – make grief palatable – look fear in the face and use that raw emotion to find God’s purpose in the pain – the world would have more artists – more musicians – more writers and more champions.
Our pastor had a great message yesterday. The subject was “Why do bad things happen?” – a very timely topic in light of the recent events in Japan.
As he spoke and listed the possible reasons why things happen – I was reminded of the journey that I have been on – and the many people who I have encountered along the way who have also had bad things happen to them.
Sometimes bad things DO happen to good people. It’s called LIFE. We live in a fallen world where things are going to happen.
We ourselves are fallen creatures – capable of making choices that are not always the best. Many things we do to ourselves – and although the Lord forgives us – people aren’t always so kind – and worse than that – there is the fall-out and carnage from those choices that can follow us for the rest of our lives.
Our choices, therefore – can lead us down a path of unresolved issues, guilt, despair, hurt and frustration, separation from loved ones and good friends. Or they can lead us to reconciliation, understanding, forgiveness and love. I want to be in the later group – and I want all those that I have wronged to also be in that group. Ah – but that is not always possible. My husband Greg – calls this, “Cindy Land”.
And of course when touching on this subject – my childhood teachings come in to play. Certain scripture verses come to light when talking about ‘temptation’ – or ‘failing’ or just simply a ‘mess-up’. Scriptures that would cite the Devil or at least demonic activity as the culprit for why we mess-up – why we are tempted to do wrong – or get involved with wrong people and wrong choices. Things like, “The Devil is crouching at the door” or “The Devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may destroy”. And although I buy into some of that to a certain extent – (I cannot argue with scripture after all) – I also have to accept responsibility for my own choices. I do know people who blame the Devil for everything saying, “The Devil made me do it” – instead of accepting personal responsibility for their own actions. And almost always, those same people point fingers and blame others – instead of looking inside of themselves and taking the responsibility for themselves. This makes me sad – because I know they will never heal properly while trying to “run from the devil” or run from those “bad people” who tempt them into doing wrong. The answer is almost always inside ourselves and has to do with our own heart. Can the Devil take advantage of us when we are weak? – Yes. Does he tempt us? Yes. I do believe that. But he cannot force us to do anything – we are capable of making those bad choices without any help. The heart of man is deceitfully wicked and prone to wander – without any help at all. “Resist the Devil and he will flee from you”
I know for myself – that I am almost always aware when I make a choice – good or bad. There comes a point of ‘no return’ – where I blow past all the red flags – and intentionally do something – because I want to. I can admit that. I think everyone would be better and healthier if they could just admit it too.
Like my pastor, Stephen – I do not believe that the earthquake and tsunami of Japan and a couple of years ago the earthquake in Haiti – is the result of God’s judgment.
I believe that the world is fallen – it has been fallen since sin entered the garden through Adam and Eve. And yet despite this fact – I believe that God is good. He sent His son Jesus to rescue me from myself, to validate and identify with me. I believe that He loves me. He came – He got involved. He forgives and He is with me through bad things that happen to me. He walks with me and gives me the ability to get through it. He is very aware that I am fragile and that I blow it. He is slow to anger and covers me with love and mercy. And one day – things will be perfect again – when He returns and we see Him as He is.
Until then – we are here – living with fallen people – and in a fallen world.
When you have had something bad happen to you – either by a mistake and wrong choices that you have made – or just because you’re living in a fallen world with fallen people – I believe that you have a choice – just like I do. A choice to quit and say, “I’m done” – or you can take that bad thing and use it to help other people – becoming a softer and more compassionate person who understands God’s amazing grace. Someone whom others will come to when in trouble – who need an understanding hug and word of encouragement.
I read that God took something from the man
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