Songs of the Past

I’m a nostalgia kind of guy. It’s not that I’ve ever been accused of being overly-sentimental or silly about it, but I can be take back to past experiences very quickly. I’m sure my wife would like me to tell her more often, but every July 4th I remember that it was on that very day in 2001 that I kissed her and “knew…” Yeah, THAT kind of “just knew.” When I was in Baton Rouge last summer for my brother’s wedding, I remember seeing a few places that I would frequent growing up, and it triggered some fun memories of times with friends. For the record, I now realize that cruising town in a mini-van with M.C. Hammer’s “2 Legit 2 Quit” blasting out the open windows is not quite as cool as me and my friends thought.

Which brings me to the one thing that has always been the strongest pull of nostalgia. Music is my weakness, and has made me into a crazed fan more than once in my life--as one friend from college recently remembered on a Facebook post. Because I tend to saturate myself with different music, certain songs immediately take me to different places in my life. Anytime I hear “Dreams” by Van Halen, I am transported to third grade when their “5150” was my very first album. (It was on cassette--do any of you remember those?) “Go West Young Man” by Michael W. Smith was what I listened to over and over during my tenth-grade year of Youth Camp. “Love of a Lifetime” by Firehouse is one of the songs I sang at my (now) Brother-in-law and sister-in-law’s wedding that made my (now) wife pay attention to me, “Faithfully” by Journey is the song we first danced to at their reception, and just over a year later, “I’ll Be” by Edwin McCain was our first dance as a married couple.

Since it’s Valentines Day, I felt like going down that particular memory lane to make my point. The truth is, many songs will take me back, and many of them have great meaning. Just last week, I discovered and bought a used copy of a CD that was stolen from me just after college. The singer is Jonathan Pierce, who is pretty well unknown by many people. He never really “made it big,” but certainly had his fans. He got his start singing with the Gaither Vocal Band, and released a solo CD in the mid-1990’s. I bought the CD and on it are two songs that quickly meant alot to me.

Because of different things I was going through, I was really challenged with the lyrics (and powerhouse vocals) of two songs. “One Love” is the title track that quite simply just reminds us that with all that’s going on in our world, the Love of Christ is powerful enough to change individuals, those around us, and even the world. It’s a personal, pursuing, and deep love that Christ has for us, and that took Him to the cross on our behalf. “Healing Hands” is another song that simply reminds us that no matter what condition our hearts are in, no matter how beaten, bruised, or broken, the hands of Jesus are waiting to heal us and restore us with His love.

As far as deep spiritual insight goes, I haven’t shared anything new or particularly life-changing. But, sometimes the simple musings of one person can trigger our own thoughts and send us to that place where we remember songs or experiences that mean a great deal to us. Just for grins, I’m posting videos here with those songs, and maybe you will enjoy them for yourself. Either way, don’t ever be afraid to reminisce and think of how God has brought you to where you are either because of or in spite of the different places you’ve been. Just don’t stop there--make yourself available for God to continue moving you where He can use you in the future!