OH THERE'S NOTHING BETTER THAN YOU!

Songs and singing have always been a part of my life from as far back as I can remember.   My father sang, high tenor and my mother was an alto, so it only makes sense, with that wide of singing range, that I too can sing.   Mostly melody, but a baritone in the morning and with a little practice, a lower tenor in the evening.   It's a gift that I love, and I use often.   Many days are spent plucking away on the guitar, playing and singing and worshipping along with my favorite YouTube praise songs. 

One of my current favorite songs to sing and play is Graves into Gardens by Elevation Church and Worship Team.   The song is pretty easy to play, especially if you have an ear for music, but what I find myself doing a lot as I play is concentrating more on the words on the songs, and not the music part.   I play rhythm acoustic guitar, so once you figure out the chord progressions, it's pretty easy to concentrate on other things going on during the actually playing of the song.    So, most times, I really try to focus my mind on playing to the Lord.   I Invision myself before Him, just singing and playing away.   But there are times that even though I've heard or played a certain song numerous times, I find myself really concentrating on a word or phrase within the song, and I find those times to be the most intimate times of worship with my Father.   

In the song that I have referenced is the line "Oh there's nothing better than you!"   It's stated numerous times throughout the song which means the writer of the song wanted listeners to grasp that there truly is nothing better than God!   As I played the song today, that phrase really stuck with me and I wondered to myself what am I putting before God, what am I looking to first instead of the Lord, and what do I need to repent of and replace with simply God instead of the thing or action that in my mind I believe I absolutely need to function on a daily basis?

Coffee of a morning?   I'm not a coffee drinker.   Never have liked the bitter taste of it.   My mom drank it naked, or black, and it just wasn't for me.   But my wife drinks it.   She says she can't function without it.  She's not alone.   Most coffee drinkers think that way.   But that's not true.   You can live without it, because if you couldn't, I would have been dead a long time ago!   Truly of a morning, all you really need is Jesus!

A routine to survive the day?   Most people don't like change or spontaneity.   They like to have a rhythm.  A way to judge how the day is progressing, whether good or bad, as they look to survive the day.   I know I have my routines and when things don't go that way, it seems my whole day is messed up.  But do we need a regular routine, or do we just need to align our thoughts and actions with the Lord as we progress through each day and week?   Come what may, through thick or thin, just continue to trust that the Lord will sustain us and have that kind of faith!   Oh, to reach that point in daily walk with God!!   Sadly, I'm not there yet.   Much like the morning/daily coffee drinkers, I have set my mind not on all things above but on doing my daily routine that helps me survive the day and get to my favorite time of the day when my wife comes home from work, and we can share the evening together!   Don't get me wrong, I don't want to lose that.  I spent a lot of my life alone and I truly enjoy God's gift of having someone in the house during evenings and nights!   But I do believe there are times I do trust in the companionship of a human being, rather than the companionship of a Holy God which I claim in the song there's nothing better than, yet I fail to rely on to sustain my every minute of existence.   

The lyrics sure made me think that I need to change my thought patterns more.   Pray more for His grace and mercy to wash over me and forgive me for clinging to Earthly patterns or people instead of simply believing that He's got me, and I don't really have anything to worry about.   Psalms 121 is a great passage of scripture for those looking for what the Lord does for us on the daily.   I encourage you to read it, memorize it, make it a part of your daily routine in multiple ways and at multiple times.  

Oh, there's nothing better than YOU! Is 100% TRUE, and as Psalms 121 states in verse 3 He (the Lord) will not let your foot slip, and He (the Lord) who watches over you will not slumber (sleep).