Take My Life – I Am in Awe
Last week, I was listening to Jeremy Camp’s CD “Stay” in my car all week. It is his debut CD from 2002, and it’s one of my favorites.
When I listen to my iPod in the house, I usually put it on shuffle and so I never know what song is going to be next. But often I prefer to listen to a CD all the way through from beginning to end, in the order the artist chose to arrange the songs. That is definitely the case with “Stay.” There are two songs in particular on that CD that seem to me to be so perfectly placed one after the other.
The first in “Take My Life.” This is a hard rocking song and quite possibly my favorite Jeremy Camp song. I love the electric guitar riffs and the emotion in his voice as he sings:
Take my life
Take my mind
Take my soul
Take my will
I am yours and I give it all to you
As I listen to this song, I can feel the struggle I have within myself to give my life, my mind, my soul, my will completely to Jesus. I desire to give Him my all because of all He has done for me and because of who He is. But I also know that I cannot on my own give it all to Him because of my sinful nature, because of my inherent selfishness. I want to keep some of it, maybe just a little piece, for myself. Jeremy sings and I pray, “Here I am I’m giving all I can.” And so I offer all my everything, but the only way I can truly become His alone is if He takes that which I offer.
There is an urgency in this song, a crying out for God to “quick, take it, take it all, before I change my mind.” I hear in the rawness of Jeremy Camp’s voice and the driving power of the electric guitar the tension between my sinful nature and the desire for God that the Holy Spirit has place in my heart.
I find, as this song comes to an end, God is faithful to honor my prayer. He will take, for His glory, that which I offer. Suddenly, the next song on the CD begins. It is called “In Your Presence.” It is a more tranquil song, with an acoustic sound and softer vocals. I can feel that I am in the presence of the Lord. I can see in my mind the beauty of Jesus on the cross, and His majesty on the throne. I am in awe of who He is and what He alone can do in my heart.
He alone is able to take my life and turn it into something worthwhile. He alone is able to take my mind and fix it on that which is holy. He alone is able to take my soul and save it from certain death. He alone is able to take my will and make it His own. He alone is worthy of praise. I am in awe of His love and mercy.
Share this:
Thank you, Linda, for these songs. I’ve only heard Jeremy Camp’s songs that they play on the radio, so loved this listen to a little more from him. I’m not sure, but doesn’t he have quite a testimony that goes behind this music of his? Thinking that he lost his wife to cancer, but not sure . . .
I loved how they do show that urgency and that peace. There are still urgent times in my life when I cry out to Him! And those times when He answers and comes into my situation . . .that sense of His presence is so wonderful, even when I’m not in the midst of a trial!
God bless you and your love of Him as you give Him your all each day!
Deb, Yes, Jeremy Camp did lose his first wife to illness (I think cancer) when they had not been married very long. The title song of his CD Beyond Measure is about that loss and the surpassing love of God that came in to help him through it. He is now married to a beautiful woman named Adie who is also a singer. I saw her open for one of his concerts a few years ago and bought her CD. She has a beautiful voice!
My favorite line in the second song is “Of your beauty I will always stand in awe.” Just to ponder His beauty and majesty do bring me such peace knowing that this awesome God of ours loves me and is merciful to me. Peace, Linda
I was just listening to KLOVE on the radio yesterday and they mentioned in the lead-in to “Healing Hand Of God” about how the loss of his wife to cancer inspired him to write that song (I suppose among many others). I didn’t realize that he had gone through this before I heard that yesterday and it just amazed me at how he was able to glorify God in the light of such a tragedy. What an awesome testimony 🙂
Thanks for sharing these videos, Linda!
Loren, I’ve actually heard him give his testimony about how God brought him through it all in concert. He puts on a wonderfully worshipful (but definitely rockin’) show. Peace, Linda
Thanks Linda,
The exchange between yourself and buttermilk80 added much food for thought to a great post. I shall get fat here today 🙂
I’ve given my life to Him (and taken it back) many, many times. I’m learning to ‘chill’ these days … to let Him take care of it without meddling. Did I say that was easy? It is so not! But I’m getting to the point where I realize that letting Him handle it is the best way to go.
His perfect peace passes all understanding. Praying that His perfect peace will be ours and we’ll no longer have the need to run our own lives 😉
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Linda, and thanks for the songs. 🙂
Blessings,
ann
Where would I be if not for Your grace
Carrying me, in every season
Where would I be, if not for Your grace
You came to my rescue and I want to thank You
For Your grace!
(Israel Houghton – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afvFhQPf5G4)
Ann, I too appreciated the comments by buttermilk80, and they added much to my thinking on this topic. His website is quite good, too, with lots of short but truthful posts.
Thank you for adding another song to the mix on this Music Monday! I love that – “Where would I be if not for Your grace?” Lost is where I would be. We sang Amazing Grace in church yesterday and it was so awesome! Peace, Linda
Indeed! How beautiful it is to have our hearts strengthened by Grace!
With open hand, extended in peace. May God grant all who read these things, that certain and firm peace.
by His Grace.
We all struggle with a certain “urgency”. This urgency, however, is not God’s urgency. He is steady and pure. It is His desire that His children attain that same steadiness. I too used to feel that urgency. I just knew that I would sink back to my old ways if I didn’t appeal to Him in those precious moments. Yet, now I seek Him in a steady and peaceful manner.
I do understand that state of urgency. But He has brought me to His steadiness. My fallings and failings are less and less an irritant. My trust in His completeness is growing every day now. May God grant that all His children rest in His inability to lie.
By His Grace.
Thank you for stopping by and leaving such a wonderful comment. There are many days when I too seek Him in a steady manner, and I always know in my heart that He is there and will never leave me nor forsake me. He has promised to complete in me the good work that He has begun, and I am completely confident that His Word is true and that He does not lie.
The thing I like about these two Jeremy Camp songs together, and perhaps that wasn’t clear in my post, is that they highlight the transition that you mention of going from being in that state of urgency into a state of peace, of being in His presence. As I listen to these two songs, I am reminded of having made that transition, and I want to share that with my readers, some of whom are still struggling to rest completely in His grace.
Peace, Linda