Songs that Speak to me
We remember song lyrics and tunes in a magical way. When your brain struggles to remember things, music is one of the last things to go. Certain songs have seen me through seasons in my life. Here is where I share the songs, the why, and the how they’ve impacted my life.
The Lord is By My Side
Our pastor introduced us to this song and initially I enjoyed the musical side of things, but I really have come to appreciate the lyrics as I go through my time on bedrest. It is especially meaningful at times when you may feel alone. I don’t know about you, but thinking that I’m going through the day with the Lord by my side gives me a nice boost.
It talks about God being our Shepherd. I love this imagery. A Shepherd takes care of his flock in a special way. He gives us peace, hope, and strength. He remains by our side. And when we look back, we can see His goodness to us.
Based on Psalm 118:6, some of the lyrics are below:
“The Lord is by my side
Forever by my side
His hope, His strength, His peace is mine
The Lord is by my side”
New Wine.
This song is one that I love to sing, but when I’m going through a tough time, I can rarely sing it without getting emotional. It is the lyrics that get me.
In the crushing, in the pressing, you are making new wine...
In the soil, I now surrender...
Make me your vessel, make me an offering, make me whatever you want me to be…
Jesus, bring new wine out of me.
We had been praying boldly and specifically that we would get pregnant naturally by the end of December 2020, and that it would be a genetically healthy pregnancy with a baby making it full term. In January, I took a pregnancy test after being a week late. It was positive.
In February 2021, I was hoping to see a healthy baby in an ultrasound, but instead we saw a very low heart rate and we were told to prepare for the worst. The following week I experienced a miscarriage. We kept saying to each other “why would God half answer our prayers and get us miraculously pregnant without IVF, only to have it end in a miscarriage?” We had our hopes dashed when we realized that our prayers were not answered, or they were “half answered”.
This song reminds me that when I trust God fully, I don’t need to understand. Amazingly, during this third miscarriage, I was able to experience peace in the crushing. I believe he is bringing new wine out of me.
Oh Come, All You Unfaithful.
How often have you sung or heard the well-known Christmas Carol “O Come, All You Faithful”? This year, I was looking at songs to use in our Sunday advent church service focusing on Peace. I came across this song that offers a new perspective. This song was written at a writer’s conference at the beginning of 2020 before the pandemic had changed our lives.
Of all Decembers, this one brings a more universal sense of sadness and loneliness amidst the quarantining, social distancing, and isolation. Families are unsure if they will see each other, nervous about the risk involved, and it can overshadow the true reason for the season. I know for me, December will always be a reminder of the month our twins should have been born. It is one of the reasons that I love this song, because I feel it speaks directly to me, as someone who has experienced grief, and someone who is still waiting, weary of praying.
Jesus didn’t come to gather all the faithful people. We are not all joyful and triumphant. He came for those feeling weak, those who are waiting on something, weary of praying. He came to comfort those who are bitter and broken, fearful and anxious. So as you listen to this song (and please listen!), know you are not alone, and I hope that this Christmas season, you would come to a new understanding of the Christmas story. I also elaborate on my ideas in the post “Bethlehem, did you know?”
It is well.
While I love the old hymn “It is Well”, there is a newer version of the song that I think is worth sharing. My dad first sent me this song a few years ago and recommended that I use it when leading worship one Sunday. I listened to it and was immediately at peace. When I listened to the song writer, Kristene DiMarco, explaining how she came up with the lyrics, I felt an even stronger bond with the song.
She had been going through a tough time trying to buy a house, and that was her source of worry. She said as she was prompted “the waves and wind still know my name”, that she knew that her worry was based on her circumstances and not who God is. While buying a house may seem insignificant to others, it was significant to Kristene. And our challenges are significant to us. Whatever we are going through, we need to remember who God is and that He’s got us.
Upon singing this song for the first time at church, I was given feedback from multiple people saying they were touched by it. An older woman at church who can never remember the name of the song, bless her heart, calls it “Through it all”. I actually really like thinking of it’s title like this. Through it all - every bad, tough, challenging situation, my eyes should be fixed on God.
Graves into Gardens.
My husband introduced me to this song. He had been “jamming out” to it for a few days on repeat, and said that it gave great perspective. The lyrics speak to how being on this earth is not ever going to meet our deepest needs. No amount of praise from our friends, family, or strangers could truly fill our cups. No home, no matter how big or how full it is can truly fulfill our hearts’ desires. No job, no title, no salary will sustain us enough.
Yet there is someone out there, the God of the mountain, and the God of the valley, who’s mercy will find us wherever we are. He will meet our deepest desires. He will turn things around. He turns graves into beautiful gardens. He turns seas that we think are impassable into highways. He turns the situations we are in around, and that is what I have seen Him do in my life. My infertility is the postponement of a dream that initially seemed unfair, un-understandable, and inconvenient. However, it has turned into a wait that has been a gift. I have been able to draw closer to God and deepen my faith. I have been able to recognize the importance of becoming a new person in the midst of the wait. I am able to appreciate the potential gift of children more than I ever would have without this wait.
There is nothing better than You. There is NOTHING better than You. There is NOTHING BETTER THAN YOU. I may sometimes veer away from this truth, but this song brings me back. When you listen, be sure to play your air drums on the bridge!