How Beautiful Is A Mother's Love

I was blessed to have a wonderful mother! My memories of Mom are filled with her unending love for me and my brother, and for our father. She was always available for us, and was exceedingly generous with not only her time, but her resources. I always knew that when I needed her, she was there. I appreciated her wisdom and view on things, and unlike my peers, I didn't have one of those generation gaps. She was indeed my best friend! Unfortunately, the Lord took her home too early, when she was only 59 years old. Cancer took her life in three months after the diagnosis. Our family was devestated and in shock, not knowing how we would ever survive her absence. But...we did. And she is etched in our hearts and our memories forever. I find myself, as a mother now, attempting to imitate her mothering style, the best way I can. I know I fall short, and she did also, but there is nothing like a mother's love! It is the most beautiful thing a person can receive while growing up, and this treasure enables one to love others. When one is loved, one can give love freely!

In honor of Mother's Day and all those mothers who give of themselves for their families, I would like to share a video that I just finished, called "How Beautiful Is A Mother's Love". I wrote the lyrics, and the melody is from a Twila Paris song. My friend, Renee Wilson, sings it here. It was recorded at church, and unfortunately the volume wasn't high enough. Still, I hope you are able to enjoy this! Happy Mother's Day!!

Who Needs To Know II Video Debut

Today I had the opportunity to complete another video of a song

that I wrote. It has a similar title to the original Christmas song,

"Who Needs To Know" but this one is for any time of the year.

I pray that the Lord will use this song in His mighty way to enlarge

His Kingdom. That at least one person will hear it and make the 

most important decision he can make in his life:

a decision to accept Jesus Christ as his Savior!

To God Be The Glory!!

No Greater Love Than His

Easter. What does it mean to you? To alot of people, it stands for the Easter bunny, colored eggs, and springtime. To others, it stands for the cross, the tomb and the empty grave. Quite a contrast, isn't it?
Even though I have included the Easter bunny, colored eggs and thoughts of spring in my Easter celebrations, I have always embraced the truth of knowing that my Jesus loved me enough to shed His blood on the cross for my sins, spent three days in the tomb, and rose again to bring victory to the war on sin! God, being Holy and Righteous, cannot look at sin, and we people are born in sin because of Adam's disobedience. In order for us to be reconciled to Him and spend eternity in heaven, Jesus, God's only precious Son, had to come down from His heavenly throne room, live a human life, and even though He was without sin, He bore our sins on that ugly cross. All because of His great love for us. For you and for me.

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.

Now remain in my love. 

Greater love has no one than this,

that one lay down His life for His friends.

You are my friends if you do what I command.

This is my command. Love each other."

John 15:9,13-14,17

All you have to do in response to His love is to accept it! Realize that you are a sinner, confess that you need a Savior to cleanse you of your sins, and accept Him into your heart. Let Him be Lord of your life. He will do the rest! And your life will never be the same!

There is a song that we will be singing this Easter in church called "Christ Is Risen" by Matt Maher. Let me share some of the lyrics with you:

Let no one caught in sin remain

inside the lie of inward shame

But fix our eyes upon the cross

and run to Him who showed great love

and bled for us, freely You bled for us

Christ is risen from the dead

trampling over death by death

Come awake, come awake,

come and rise up from the grave

Christ is risen from the dead

we are one with Him again

Come awake, come awake

come and rise up from the grave

O death, where is your sting?

O hell, where is your victory?

O church, come stand in the light,

the glory of God has defeated the night singing

O death, where is your sting?

O hell, where is your victory?

O church, come stand in the light,

Our God is not dead, He's alive, He's alive!

Hallelujah!! My Savior is alive! And He's waiting for me! This is an Easter worth celebrating!! Will you join me?

What Does Love Look Like?

Love. Such a powerful word. Why does it intrigue us so much? Why do we hear this word mentioned so many times, and why do we desire it as much as we do? I personally feel we can't survive in life without it. We need to be loved. We find ourselves searching for love. As the song says, sometimes in the wrong places! But the longing for it can lead us to do almost anything!
I'm not talking about romantic love, though it brings strong emotions. The kind of love I'm thinking about is general love. Just knowing one is loved. That you mean something to someone. Are you loved? Do you feel you matter to anyone? If you were to disappear, would anyone miss you? Really?
People can show love in many ways. Recently I asked my Facebook friends how they feel loved by others. The responses were compliments, time spent with them, gifts, words of encouragement. These things are good and reassure us that we indeed are loved by others. But let's face it. People are notorious for being unreliable and inconsistant in showing love. They can love you if you make them feel good about themselves, and then if you don't, they can withdraw their love. And there you are. Wondering what happened. And wondering if you were really loved in the first place. And then, there are those few precious people out there who love you regardless of what you say or what you do or how you make them feel about themselves. They continue to love you. Always being by your side. Always lifting you up. Always available to encourage you and make you feel like you matter. These people are what I call the precious jewels in life. Always to be treasured.
But, there is Someone who promises never to withhold His love for you, no matter what you do or say. And He even gave His life for you on the cross because you do matter! The Bible tells us that God knew us from the beginning, even in our mothers' wombs. Ephesians 1:5-6 tells us "In love, [God] predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will - to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves." His love isn't based on our works. His love is based on who He is. God is love. In Him we were chosen (Ephesians 1:11). He chose us! He wants us! He loves us! He pursues us! And He wants all of our love: all of our heartfelt, soulfelt and mindfelt love that we can give Him. Someone shared recently in a Bible study that I attend that she feels God created us with a capacity to love Him because He was lonely. Interesting thought.

So, what I am trying to get across here is that if there is a time when you are feeling unloved by anyone, please remember that you are loved far more by your heavenly Father, who gave His Son, Jesus, to be your Savior. He brings the Holy Spirit to comfort you, encourage you and guide you through this sometimes unloveable life. And the joy of His love in you will radiate outwards, so you will be able to share that love with others. Share the love!

Not Goodby, But See You Later

Yesterday I provided some music for the memorial service of a friend of mine who passed away earlier this week. I played with him years ago in the worship team I am now a part of at my church. He was a skilled guitarist who had a passion for music. He breathed, slept, and lived for music. He even had his own studio with enough equipment to be a music store! It was fun having him in the band, and I would get a kick out of just watching him start a song. In fact, everyone would be waiting for him to do his guitar riff. I remember one particular song that either he or I would be able to start the song. Since he was taking so long to remember, I started it on the keyboard....which he wasn't too happy about! He enjoyed playing in several churches, and would float around.
He also had a passion for Jesus. I believe he knew that his passion for music was given to him to glorify His Lord and Savior. And he did that well. He left a legacy of being a husband, father, brother, coworker and friend, who loved Jesus and loved playing his guitar.
At the altar, among the flowers, were pictures of him, and his guitar. It was seeing that guitar that touched my heart. It sank in that he would no longer be playing it. His fingers would no longer be strumming it, making it do what guitars should do.
Knowing for a fact that he is now with Jesus is very comforting for his family and friends. We are separated now, but only for a short time. I wrote a song that was recently recorded in Nashville by a friend of mine, Jim Dunmire. Welcome Home was sung at the memorial service. Here are the lyrics:

In the twinkling of an eye, a shout will fill the air.

The dead in Christ will rise to finally meet Him there.

We who will remain in Him will join them in the sky.

Together we will see His face, no longer asking why.

Welcome home....Welcome home.

Tears will be replaced by songs of endless joy.

Loved ones at our side will make a joyful noise.

Surrounded by His radiant love, everyone will know.

A grand reunion's taking place; we'll finally be at home.

Welcome home, my child, you are here at last.

A place prepared for you.

I have waited long for this Age to pass,

so I can be with you.

Welcome home.

Now in a mirror dimly, we'll see Him face to face.

No need of mortal bodies, but perfection in its place.

The time we spend while waiting is like a day to Him

Hearts that long for loved ones will finally meet again.

Welcome home, my child, you are here at last.

A place prepared for you.

I have waited long for this Age to pass,

so I can be with you.

Welcome home.

Welcome Home, Jim Fitzgerald!  And save a place for us!

Let God Be God

Several weeks ago I found myself worshipping at a church during a weekend vacation in another state. The sanctuary had little light, except for over the stage area. All that was there were the band instruments, waiting for the worship to begin. Up on the back wall behind the drums was a large rectangular opening, and inside was a large cross on a wall of river rock. It was beautiful and stately. I stared at that cross, preparing myself to worship my Jesus. I was happy to be in this place, and was looking forward to this service, especially since I didn't have to be directly involved with its operations like I do at my home church. I could just relax and worship!
While staring at that cross, a phrase came to my mind. Silently audible and very clear: "I will accomplish what I need to accomplish." Awesome worship followed. Jesus was touching my heart in a way that was sorely needed.
In the weeks to follow, I pondered on that phrase that He gave to me that morning, and I believe this is the message He wanted me to share: We need to let God be God!!
How many times do we find ourselves telling God what He needs to do to solve our problems? Do this....heal him...fix my relationship....get me a job...the list is endless. We want God to take care of the situations that are troubling us, and in our minds, have already decided what it is that He needs to do for us. Don't we realize that we need to let God be God? He knows far better what we need than we do, and as our loving Father, He knows how to give good gifts to His children. He can do abundantly more than we can ever ask of Him. And everything He does is for His glory and to draw us closer to Him. He accomplishes what He needs to accomplish....in His perfect way and His perfect time.
So the next time I go to Him in prayer with a request, I can present it to Him peacefully, knowing that He will accomplish what He needs to accomplish....because He is God.

A Missed Opportunity

The other evening I was driving through a small town, and had someone with me. As I passed a park, I noticed a person sitting on a swing, alone. Though it was hot and humid, this person had a blue sweatshirt pulled up over (her?) head, and she was looking down at the ground, alone. I continued on, but deep inside of me, I wanted to turn around and check this out. But I was afraid the person who was sitting next to me wouldn't understand and be upset that I was perhaps mingling in someone's personal affairs.
As I drove on, all I could think about was this person...was something troubling her? Was she depressed? Abused? There she was, all alone in a park, dressed way too warmly. Something seemed wrong. I felt guilty not stopping. If I had been alone, I think I would have turned around and talked to her.
For the rest of the trip, I prayed silently for her, and thought about her, and prayed again, and again, that God would give her the help she may need for whatever she is facing. I know God is fully aware of her circumstances...maybe there was nothing wrong. But if there was, He knows her name, and everything about her. And most of all, He loves her! I prayed that God would send someone her way to help her...even if it wasn't me. No, it wasn't me. But He heard my prayers. And I believe He will help her.
Have you ever had this happen to you? Where there was something you could have done for someone...but didn't. Sure, there can be reasons why you didn't act, but still, you didn't.
God is merciful. And even though I missed this opportunity of ministering to someone and sharing the love of Jesus, I pray that He will send more opportunities my way. That my eyes will be open to the needs of others. After all, this is what sharing the love of Jesus is all about!