Most "Amazing" Worship Song

In one dimly lit room in the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, OH was a choir of humming. There were no pictures at all, but yet a story was being told. On the walls were carved the names of the ships that carried the cargo of the African diaspora who were to be slaves throughout Europe, the Americas, and the Caribbean. The hum that I heard was the melody to what would become, in my opinion, the most amazing worship song ever written. You could hear the cries, the fears, the hurt, and also the hope of survival and salvation in those groans. I had been doing fine as I walked the halls of the museum until I came to that room and it just about floored me. I stood still as tears fought their way to the surface of my eyes and over the edge of my eyelids and began to race down my face and I listened.

Why don't you listen with me for a moment (hum the melody to the original Amazing Grace)?

And I wrote. Here are excerpts of a poem I started.

...I put a voice to history
the walls began to sing a song without lyrics
if was as if the Holy Spirit was echoing the pain
of those trapped in the bowels of the Trans-Atlantic slaveships
yet it was the harmony and melody of courageous voices
who dared to survive...

...I put faces to history
adorned with the clanging disgraceful jewelry
of chains that likely fit the ankles and wrists of the pirates
better than those in captivity
The misguided activity
named slavery
thought to benefit the land of the free economically
after all...someone's hands had to pick the cotton and
cultivate the rice...

...I put voices to history
on that night I believe the Spirit
sounded like (humming Amazing Grace)
and my spirit felt the gamut of emotions
from sad to mad to a joy that deserved tears
because that joy was born out of a remembrance of pain

See, before the words were ever written there was this melody born from the collaboration of the Holy Spirit and the spirits of broken, stolen Africans. The reason why I say this is the greatest worship song ever written is because of the powerful inspiration of the Spirit of God (not that other songs weren't inspired by the Spirit). Aside from what it does to me every time I hear the song, especially in the museum that day, two passages of Scripture are brought to life. In Romans 8:26 the Bible says "the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." That melody came from that place! I would they have words in the bottom of a slave ship, taken from your home, separated from family and traveling across the world to an unknown place. The Spirit had words though. I felt such a powerful sense of God while standing in that room. The other verse is Isaiah 57:15 where God says, "I dwell in the high and holy place and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite." God was on those ships! God was in that room in Cincinnati! God is in the melody of that song! Hundreds of years later I can stand in an integrated room of thousands (as many African Americans have done before me) speaking about that same God! God is Amazing Grace!

Witnessing the Power and the Pain

This past weekend preaching at Shepherd of the Hills main services was a powerful time for me. The testimonies that I was blessed to hear from people who God spoke to through the message were amazing. One thing that I ask God to do often is confirm for me that I was obedient and that He spoke to people through the message. I even pray for specific testimonies sometimes.

This weekend I witnessed the power of God through His word, but also the hurt in His bride, the church. Even as I was preaching I saw more than the normal amount of tears flowing from people's eyes throughout the crowd. Usually there are a couple that you notice are being hit by the Spirit in that particular message, but this was different. I felt as if the Spirit of God was poking at dying embers hoping to get the flame raging again before going out completely. I personally heard the pain from addictions, hurting marriages, and secret sin issues. I know every week someone is hurting, but again, this was different. I wonder how many of these people are disguising their pain everyday like this...how many more?

But I also saw the power of God this weekend! The one story that stuck out to me the most was when a man came up to me after one of the services and told me that he knew of a man in the service who he had left his house Saturday night with a gun in his bag with every intention of killing another man. He had so much rage in his heart. After hearing the message Sunday morning on the supernatural healing power of forgiveness, God had snatched that rage out of his heart and replaced it with a sincere heart of forgiveness. All I could say was wow! I was speechless!

My ministry is very relational. Meaning, I spend a lot of time with people during the week. I see the hurt and hear of the power of God and how His Spirit is moving today. My vantage point as a pastor is unique in that God allows me (and hopefully most pastors) to see more of both ends. One thing is for sure to me, God wants to do this every week in worship. He wants to clean out and clean off His bride.

I hope your fire isn't fading.