Hemmed In

Psalm 139:1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me! 2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;you discern my thoughts from afar. 3 You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. 4 Even before a word is on my tongue,behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. 5 You hem me in, behind and before,and lay your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;it is high; I cannot attain it.

Lately, I have been listening to a lot of my old CDs. Most of the new stuff I have bought in the past year gets a few listens and then stuck back in the case. This could be why I seldom buy CDs anymore. I am convinced it is getting easier to get a recording contract, although I am sure there are plenty of starving artists out there who would greatly disagree with me. It just seems like there is a lot of mediocre music out there. Anyway - back to the topic at hand. I know there is a whole lot of controversy surrounding Amy Grant. If I was famous and my sins were exposed there would be a lot of controversy about me too, so who am I to judge. Again - back to the topic at hand. (It's becoming apparent that I am ADD isn't it?) So, I was listening to Lead Me On. Here are the lyrics:

Amy Grant - Lead Me On
Shoulder to the wheel
For someone else's selfish gain
Here there is no choosing
Working the clay
Wearing their anger like a ball and chain.
Fire in the field
Underneath a blazing sun
But soon the sun was faded
And freedom was a song
I heard them singing when the day was done
Singing to the holy one.
Lead me on
Lead me on
To a place where the river runs
Into your keeping, oh.
Lead me on
Lead me on
The awaited deliverance
Comforts the seeking...lead on.
Waiting for the train
Labeled with a golden star
Heavy hearted boarding
Whispers in the dark
"where are we going--is it very far? "
Bitter cold terrain
Echoes of a slamming door
In chambers made for sleeping, forever
Voices like thunder in a mighty roar
Cry to the lord.
Lead me on
Lead me on
To a place where the river runs
Into your keeping, oh.
Lead me on
Lead me on
The awaited deliverance
Comforts the seeking...lead on.
Man hurts man
Time and time, time again
And we drown in the wake of our power
Somebody tell me why.
Lead me on
Lead me on
To a place where the river runs
Into your keeping, oh.
Lead me on
Lead me on
The awaited deliverance
Comforts the seeking...lead on.
Lead me on
Lead me on
To a place where the river runs
Into your keeping, oh.
Lead me on
Lead me on
The awaited deliverance
Comforts the seeking...lead on.


A few weeks ago, I was listening to this song and just started weeping. I have heard this song a million and four times. It came out in 1988. It was probably the best selling Christian album that year. So yeah, it got a few listens. Anyway, I heard the song in such a new way. I so need deliverance from my sin. As mentioned in yesterday's post, I am just sick of it. This song talks both about slavery and about being in bondage. Can you imagine a slave reaching the end of the Underground Railroad, only to turn back around and run right back to the slave master? Ludicrous I say. Can you imagine the survivors of the Holocaust being set free from the concentration camps at the end of the war, only to run back into the gas chamber? How foolish! Yet, again and again I return to sin. Beyond stupidity. Psalm 139 has become such a prayer. The whole passage is an awesome exploration of just how much God loves us. I particularly love the portion above. I love the part about being hemmed in behind and before. If you think about the hem of your jeans, its purpose is to keep the fabric from unraveling. God's grace and forgiveness is the same - without him, I would unravel. Thanks be to God for protecting me from my own undoing.