In Moments Like These – David Graham

What was the moment? Did he look at the clock hands or a calendar to mark that time, with as much fanfare as some ancient clocks might have inspired (see the 14^th Century elephant clock in the picture)? He was probably experiencing something special, because he wrote a song “In Moments Like These” to commemorate that occasion. Maybe he was hoping that he could rekindle the moment if he created a way to remember what he felt like. Would it be a Pavlovian kind of word-action association, in which the words and music would remind him of the feelings of devotion to the One above? What was David Graham’s background and life up to that point? What does the song say about him looking toward Him?

We know little about this David Graham, except what we can read in the words he wrote in this song. Publicly available information (on the internet sites listed below) indicate that he was born in 1948, so that would mean he was 32 years old when the song was composed in 1980. He wrote probably at least a few other songs, including “Alalalelujah”, otherwise known as “Ha-la-la-la”, “We Worship Thee”, “Give Him Glory, Glory”, and a few others in the 1970s and 1980s. So, he wasn’t shy about expressing his faith openly, was he? Chances are that he tried to lead others to the Holy One’s throne through this music. Perhaps he was engaged in formal ministry in this effort too. Was his worship style of a pentecostal or otherwise very expressive nature, someone might ask, since he invites the worshipper to “lift up…hands” with his song? And, what were the circumstances of this song’s creation…what draws people to the Lord in love and devotion? Perhaps it was an answer to prayer, a ‘thank you’ for deliverance, or a recognition of blessing.

The moment could have been anything. And, it matters little to God what circumstances draw me toward Him. The challenge here is using the moments I have. Are you waiting for a special moment? …you just had one. Now tell someone how it felt. 

Addendum: Here’s what David Graham e:mailed this blogger about the story, on 13 February 2017. Thanks David!  I wrote the song, guitar in hand, on a beautiful spring Sunday afternoon on a hillside near the edge of the Flathead Valley in northwest Montana. The music and words just "came"...all at the same time...as I sat leaning against a tall Douglas Fir tree and watched my four beautiful children...running, laughing, and playing on the bright green grass surrounding the log home down the hill below me. There's much more to the story but I will NEVER forget that day.

 

See this site that indicates Graham was born in 1948. http://www.hymnary.org/hymn/AAHH2001/572

The following site suggests some other songs that David Graham wrote:

http://www.faqs.org/copyright/david-eugene-graham-a-collection-of-twelve-songs-behold/