We Give Them Our Hearts

I wrote this a month and a half ago after a concert that my friends and I put on. Continue to pray for us as the goodbyes that are mentioned in this piece have already begun.

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                The anticipation builds as one after another, people enter the church and take their seats. The excitement and nervousness grows. They are expecting something big. Whether or not they realize it or not, we give them…our hearts.

                Music is a funny thing. It brings out the deepest, ugliest, most beautiful feelings, emotions and thoughts in one four minute song. It is one of the most powerful tools I know. For it breaks down hearts of stone and expresses things you would have never said otherwise. So, through this, we slowly open up.

                The barriers go down. The last time we are all together to put on something like this. The last concert. We can’t wait, but we never really want it to finish. We start out loud and remember the beginning days. There are smiles on every face and rounds of applause. But after a few of those, something is different. Not all clap your hands and shout praise kind of songs, but we begin to express deep thoughts and emotions that would never have come out otherwise. We give them our hearts.

“When I’m overcome by fear

And I hate everything I know

When this waiting lasts forever,

I’m afraid I might let go…

I need a reason to sing” (1)

and

 “Hello’s, good byes, farewells and maybe some-days

Calendars on the walls, leave ‘em blank I don’t want to know…

So you had to go away

You made it through the hardest place

And through the darkest days

Through the sunshine and it’s rays…

So it’s all good, it’s good,

But it hurts like a sting” (2)

and

“Once again I said my goodbyes

To those I love most

My heart feels that familiar pain

As I long for home” (3)

Our hearts. The raw, ugly, beautiful things. Cause deep inside, we all feel the same. We want to stop the clock and treasure the friendships. We don’t want to say the dreaded words “Good bye” and “the End” even if it is only “for now.” This isn’t just the end of the year when we all graduate from high school. No. After this year we won’t live on the same side of the planet. We will be separated by oceans. We will be separated by plane tickets that are too expensive and obligations that must be met. Not all of us will have Facebook or a phone. It will be easy to lose touch.  And we know that that dreaded day is coming. With every tick of the clock those days are closer when we have to give one last hug, cry one more tear, say one more word of encouragement. Then one of us will step in the car and drive away. And the one left behind will watch as their friend get into that car, drives away, and turns a page. It end that song, that beautiful melody of friendship, and then tears will flow. 

That…that rawness of emotion, that ugliness of feeling, that piercing knife of pain cuts to the core. Cuts to the heart. And that is what we give them. We show them a glimpse into that emotion and that dreaded moment. The moment we all wish would never come. We give them our hearts.

But that is not all. Because while that is broken, ugly, painful, it’s not the end of the music. It’s not the end of the song. There is a chord that resolves the ending. The “but” in life’s toughest moments. It’s redemption. Cause we’ve got something. Not just a guitar, piano and voice. Something greater than that. Something that lasts longer, something that doesn’t end when the song does. We’ve got something that’s beautiful. We’ve got the love of Christ in our hearts, soaring through every note that we sing. And that’s the only way we can have beauty and joy in our hearts. That’s why we can sing about the toughest moments and still go on to face them. That’s why we can open up and give people our hearts.

Cause in our heart we can say

“God, I’m crying out tonight

Cause I’ve given you my life

But I’m tired and I’m missing what’s behind

So once more, here’s my life…

Even when the tears are falling

When I find I fear the calling

You remind me

Words you’ve spoken over my life

Promises I’ve yet to see

You comfort me” (3)

and

“He will never leave you alone, He will always be with you, He will never, never leave you.” (4)

and

“For He will never leave us alone

In the times of trouble

He will never leave us alone

In the times of sorrow

I know He’s with us

There’s no need to worry.” (5)

The pain of the goodbyes and the endings of being all together in the same country doesn’t stay forever. Cause we have a God who is so strong, so faithful, so comforting, so trustworthy that we never need to worry. That’s why we can sing. That is why we can build relationships to say goodbye. That’s why we can go on even in the face of pain. We open up to show them of the hope we have. To show them our hearts.

“Cause through it all

Through it all my eyes are on You

And it is well…

So let is go, my soul and trust in Him

The waves and wind still know His name…

I have a reason to sing…

Because I know that You’re still holding

The whole world in Your hands.

You are the reason to sing.” (6)

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All of the songs that are in this post are songs that we sang at the concert. Now I've got some pretty talented friends...the majority of the song lyrics in this blog post written by Jeremiah, Joel and Wilberforce. 

1. "Reason to Sing" - All Sons and Daughters

2. "Like a Sting" - Jeremiah

3. "Here's My Life" - Barlow Girls

4. "He Will Never Leave You Alone" - Wilberforce and Joel

5. "He Will Never Leave Us Alone" - Joel

6. "It is Well" - Kristene DiMarco