I had a weird experience the other morning. I awoke with the words of a song in my heart and on my lips. What was strange about it was that it is an old love song written by Leon Payne. When we were first married, I used to sing it to Carol in my best baritone, Jim Reeves imitation and she would smile broadly and advise me to keep my day job. I had not sung or even thought about that song for at least 45 years, so I had no idea why it should suddenly come back to me like that. Then, as I thought about the lyrics, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that hymns, worship music and gospel songs are actually all love songs. By simply changing the word “dear” to “Lord”, that song becomes a worship song.
I love you because you understand, Lord
Every single thing I try to do
You’re always there to lend a helping hand, Lord
I love you most of all because you’re you
I love you because my heart is lighter
Every time I’m walking by your side
I love you because the future’s brighter
The door to happiness, you open wide
No matter what the world may say about me
I know your love will always see me through
I love you for a hundred thousand reasons
But most of all I love you ‘cause you’re you.
Not all worship songs speak of the “overwhelming, never ending, reckless love of God”. Not all hymns describe how “love lifted me” or “Jesus loves me this I know”. Not all gospels songs tell us that God’s “love is the anchor we can hold onto”. But what they all have in common is that they express the loving relationship between us and God. As I hear them or sing them, I become very aware of His love for me and my love for Him. I can’t really say my love for Him is mutual, because there is no way I can match His love for me, but I have spent a lifetime trying and that has now become my day job.