As an aged former rocker, I love many contemporary Christian bands. My favorite is Third Day (with apologies to MercyMe). The song that is on the top of my list is "Mountain of God".
The Lord sometimes gives me the opportunity to speak of how we can make it through any troubles and trials that come our way if we place our faith and trust in Him. There will be times that we feel we're going through our troubles all alone and that no one cares. Loneliness is something that can steal your happiness and joy when troubles come your way, bringing the overwhelming sense of depression into your life. Though I minored in counseling, I’m speaking from my personal experience. The events Christ has allowed me to go through the past three years have been very traumatic and there are times that I feel like my friends and family have deserted me, no one cares, and Christ seems like a distant figure that is busy with the other people and problems of the world. When we take the view that we’re all alone, defeat settles in.
During times like these, we have to look deep within and rely on Christ more than we ever have before. It can be difficult because human nature makes us want to isolate ourselves and withdraw from others. We want to handle our problems on our own and tough it out. Others may view it as a sign of weakness if we let them see that we’re vulnerable. Christ never designed us to be introverts. If we go back to the beginning and look at Adam, we see that God decided it wasn’t good for him to be alone so He created Eve as a companion. (Genesis 2:18-“and the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone”-NIV) People can grieve with us, comfort us, and cheer us up if we allow them to. Christ loves us more than we could ever imagine or deserve, He wants us to cast our worries and care on Him and promised to never leave us or turn His back on us. (1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you; Deuteronomy 31:8-“The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”-NIV)
In 1963, the United States Supreme Court made it illegal to have verbal prayer in America's public schools. The primary plaintiff of the court case was one of the best-known atheists, Madalyn Murray O'Hair. Through the years, she was very vocal in her support of atheism and the “ringleader” in the campaign against religion in public life. However, on August 27 1995, she vanished, leaving her car at an airport and $500,000 missing from the American Atheists Association bank account. The Internal Revenue Service seized Mrs. O'Hair's home and property for payment of creditors and back taxes, one of the items at auction were her diaries. An entry stated, "The whole idiotic hopelessness of human relations descends upon me. Tonight, I cried and cried, but even then feeling nothing." I was really struck by four words that Madalyn Murray O'Hair reportedly wrote at least half a dozen times over the years, "Somebody, somewhere, love me."
The cry for love in Mrs. O'Hair's diary, is the cry of every human heart, "Somebody, somewhere, love me." Even for many of us who do believe in God, there is still that awful hurting feeling. It's possible for us to believe in God, to do God's work, and to still miss out on the experience of His love. And without that love, the emptiness and loneliness in our heart is never satisfied - no matter how many loves we experience.
While you may not be an atheist, it could be that you've invested a lot in things that could easily become other gods: your career, your children, your projects, maybe your friends, your charity work, even your spiritual pursuits. But the deep, sense of aloneness seldom seems to go away. Every type of love has ultimately either failed you or failed to satisfy you. So, after all these years, your heart is still whispering - even shouting the same thing - "Somebody, somewhere, love me." I put my former Wife and my Children above Christ and the love He had for me and when they were all gone, suffered a tremendous blow from the void of their love. It was then I came to the realization that His love would never end whether I failed Him or not. I all had to do was to ask for Him to forgive my shortcomings and I was immediately restored in my walk with Him. Though others, and I, may remember my failures and bring them to mind, He never did or will. His love is unconditional and His forgiveness is unlimited.
Asking God to help you is easy. Developing a close relationship with Him is also easy. You can bring your shortcomings, hurts, loneliness, worries, cares, problems, etc. to Him no matter how large or small. He longs for us to have a close walk with Him and to provide you with an unloseable, unconditional, and immeasurable love. When all others fail, when all others turn their backs, when all others disappear, He will still be there patiently waiting for us. No matter what we’ve done or how hard we’ve fallen, He’ll still be there for us and love us. As a Christian, Jesus will be there with you. No matter how low the valley or how high the mountain, He is there with you.
Jesus is the "Somebody, somewhere" that your heart has been lonely for. And you don't have to live one more day without His love.
Mountain of God
The Lord sometimes gives me the opportunity to speak of how we can make it through any troubles and trials that come our way if we place our faith and trust in Him. There will be times that we feel we're going through our troubles all alone and that no one cares. Loneliness is something that can steal your happiness and joy when troubles come your way, bringing the overwhelming sense of depression into your life. Though I minored in counseling, I’m speaking from my personal experience. The events Christ has allowed me to go through the past three years have been very traumatic and there are times that I feel like my friends and family have deserted me, no one cares, and Christ seems like a distant figure that is busy with the other people and problems of the world. When we take the view that we’re all alone, defeat settles in.
During times like these, we have to look deep within and rely on Christ more than we ever have before. It can be difficult because human nature makes us want to isolate ourselves and withdraw from others. We want to handle our problems on our own and tough it out. Others may view it as a sign of weakness if we let them see that we’re vulnerable. Christ never designed us to be introverts. If we go back to the beginning and look at Adam, we see that God decided it wasn’t good for him to be alone so He created Eve as a companion. (Genesis 2:18-“and the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone”-NIV) People can grieve with us, comfort us, and cheer us up if we allow them to. Christ loves us more than we could ever imagine or deserve, He wants us to cast our worries and care on Him and promised to never leave us or turn His back on us. (1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you; Deuteronomy 31:8-“The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”-NIV)
In 1963, the United States Supreme Court made it illegal to have verbal prayer in America's public schools. The primary plaintiff of the court case was one of the best-known atheists, Madalyn Murray O'Hair. Through the years, she was very vocal in her support of atheism and the “ringleader” in the campaign against religion in public life. However, on August 27 1995, she vanished, leaving her car at an airport and $500,000 missing from the American Atheists Association bank account. The Internal Revenue Service seized Mrs. O'Hair's home and property for payment of creditors and back taxes, one of the items at auction were her diaries. An entry stated, "The whole idiotic hopelessness of human relations descends upon me. Tonight, I cried and cried, but even then feeling nothing." I was really struck by four words that Madalyn Murray O'Hair reportedly wrote at least half a dozen times over the years, "Somebody, somewhere, love me."
The cry for love in Mrs. O'Hair's diary, is the cry of every human heart, "Somebody, somewhere, love me." Even for many of us who do believe in God, there is still that awful hurting feeling. It's possible for us to believe in God, to do God's work, and to still miss out on the experience of His love. And without that love, the emptiness and loneliness in our heart is never satisfied - no matter how many loves we experience.
While you may not be an atheist, it could be that you've invested a lot in things that could easily become other gods: your career, your children, your projects, maybe your friends, your charity work, even your spiritual pursuits. But the deep, sense of aloneness seldom seems to go away. Every type of love has ultimately either failed you or failed to satisfy you. So, after all these years, your heart is still whispering - even shouting the same thing - "Somebody, somewhere, love me." I put my former Wife and my Children above Christ and the love He had for me and when they were all gone, suffered a tremendous blow from the void of their love. It was then I came to the realization that His love would never end whether I failed Him or not. I all had to do was to ask for Him to forgive my shortcomings and I was immediately restored in my walk with Him. Though others, and I, may remember my failures and bring them to mind, He never did or will. His love is unconditional and His forgiveness is unlimited.
Asking God to help you is easy. Developing a close relationship with Him is also easy. You can bring your shortcomings, hurts, loneliness, worries, cares, problems, etc. to Him no matter how large or small. He longs for us to have a close walk with Him and to provide you with an unloseable, unconditional, and immeasurable love. When all others fail, when all others turn their backs, when all others disappear, He will still be there patiently waiting for us. No matter what we’ve done or how hard we’ve fallen, He’ll still be there for us and love us. As a Christian, Jesus will be there with you. No matter how low the valley or how high the mountain, He is there with you.
Jesus is the "Somebody, somewhere" that your heart has been lonely for. And you don't have to live one more day without His love.
Mountain of God
Third Day
I thought that I was all alone, broken and afraid but You were there with me.
Yes, You were there with me.
And I didn't even know that I had lost my way but You were there with me.
Yes, You were there with me.
I thought that I was all alone, broken and afraid but You were there with me.
Yes, You were there with me.
And I didn't even know that I had lost my way but You were there with me.
Yes, You were there with me.
'Til You opened up my eyes I never knew, that I couldn't ever make it without You.
Even though the journey's long and I know the road is hard.
Well, the One who's gone before me He will help me carry on.
And after all that I've been through now I realize the truth.
That I must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain of God.
As I travel on the road that You have lead me down You are here with me.
Yes, You are here with me.
I have need for nothing more now that I have found that You are here with me.
Yes, You are here with me.
Yes, You are here with me.
I have need for nothing more now that I have found that You are here with me.
Yes, You are here with me.
I confess from time to time I lose my way,
But You are always there to bring me back again.
But You are always there to bring me back again.
Even though the journey's long and I know the road is hard.
Well, the One who's gone before me He will help me carry on.
And after all that I've been through now I realize the truth.
That I must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain of God.
Sometimes I think of where it is I've come from and the things I've left behind.
But of all I've had, what I possessed nothing can quite compare with what's in front of me.
But of all I've had, what I possessed nothing can quite compare with what's in front of me.
Even though the journey's long and I know the road is hard.
Well, the One who's gone before me He will help me carry on.
And after all that I've been through now I realize the truth.
That I must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain of God.
Yes I must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain.
Yes I must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain.
I thought that I was all alone broken and afraid but, You are here with me.
Yes, You are here with me.
4 comments:
good stuff gary! that actually really hit home for me!
You will always have a fan club as long as I exist... hey, wait a minute, I have eternal life! O' well, I guess you're stuck with me!!!
I appreciate your transparency. No one can authentically share those words unless they have been there.
I love ya Gary,
chad
Thank you for your transparency and thanks for trusting us enough to be real. I thank God that He loves you so much and that He feels your pain as He gets you to the next level of your relationship with Him.I've noticed in my life and other's that when God allows us to suffer the great pain of loss, He's usually got something better waiting ahead.I can hardly wait to see what He's got in store for you.
Very well said Gary! Many times we get caught up in everyday life and forget the one true love, Jesus Christ! By doing this Satan can more easily deceive us and we are more apt to cave in to our sinful nature. May we all continue to seek Him and gain strength from Him. May God continue to Bless you Gary.
Mark
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