Whole and Healed

The darkness seeps in like a thief in the night
It overtakes the light, silent without a fight
How can it win, when I’m hidden in Him?
I question this life, this hope, why I live
And confusion creeps in, telling me I’ll always sin
I hear the lies but no words, they just shape my life
Overcome by deception, no way out of my plight
Where is the truth? Does what I’m hearing got proof?
Where to turn, where to look
You say Your Face is everywhere, but I can’t see it

But You reach down, grab my darkened heart
So I know You never left, I just felt we were apart
The light blazes, instantly overtaking the darkness
It stands no chance when my mind and heart believe
When I can see again, and hope remains my friend
Your love always pulls me through, I know I can trust You
With every broken piece, every false identity
For when You speak the truth I hear and I declare
That I am different than what I thought, ‘cus those were only lies
You’ll never leave my side, I’ll follow you to the end
Jesus, you’ll always be my Brother and my closest Friend
One I can rely on, lean on, depend on
And Your light, Your truth will trump the darkness that tries to steal
The life You’ve given me through Your blood, which can never be concealed
In You I am whole and healed.

Going Back...

Never give up. Be a history maker. You are a hero in your generation. Worship with abandon. Give your life to the cause of the Gospel.
This is what I grew up hearing. I heard it from my parents, I heard it in my school. In my church. I heard it calling to me in the music I worshipped to.
I believe God prompted me to pull out an old Noel Richards tape. No, that wasn’t a typo. I really mean tape. I think sometimes we disqualify some spirit led authentic music merely because of its antiquity. I grew up listening to Noel Richards and others like him, on fire, radical passionate men and women whose mantra was “We will never back down. We’re in love with God and we are not afraid to tell the world.” As a little child, I heard that coming through the songs they sang and sang along to myself. They almost became anthems of the spiritual life of my childhood. We’re dangerous people. Keep on praying. I do believe. I’m gonna be a history maker. Dance in the River. Simple truths and analogies that captured the heart of a simple little girl.
I remember when I was little and I was at a worship service at church. I remember this specific moment when I was watching a lady worshipping. She was so passionate, so wrapped up in praising her Lord, and it struck me. I wondered how someone could be so excited about God. Little did I know that I would grow to gain a more full understanding and gratefulness for all God is and did for me, but in that moment, my heart began to seek. I remember other times of worship when there was just this sense of wonder. I felt at home; I felt like it was all right somehow. I remember when the songs, or in reality, the Holy Spirit, caused me to worship, and I didn’t always know why.
But God was awakening my little heart. I felt like I was joining a movement, something really important that I knew I would be a part of my whole life. Over time, it became more exciting, and I began to understand how people could get so excited about God, even more than ice cream or sleepovers or vacations. I know that He was doing something big at that time when I was a little child in the 90’s. I know I’m young, and to some, that was not that long ago at all. You are adults now perhaps, and you were adults then, like my parents. I know you saw things that I didn’t. It’s just interesting because children see the world in a unique way. I don’t remember everything, but I can remember the sense of wonder. The sense of being a part of something great. An exciting adventure that I was born for. The incredible truth is, I’m still a part of it. Only my perspectives have changed.
Perhaps I need to get some of them back.