He Knows My Name – Tommy Walker

 He wasn’t thrilled with the topic, and really needed someone else to push him into it. What if Tommy Walker’s Divine Maker had felt that way in the beginning, if He had pursued half-heartedly the man-making project, if He had even decided that “He Knows My Name” was just a momentary and insignificant cerebral fragment? Instead, Tommy decided, eventually, that God’s inspiration wasn’t just whimsical, and that an upcoming sermon by a minister in a Los Angeles church (see the seal of Los Angeles here) was the stimulant he could not ignore. After all, he was a worship minister, and this was his role – to write a song when so directed. God is creative in His very nature. So, when someone tells you to mimic that characteristic, what’s that say about you if you refuse? Tommy had already decided that God’s work in his human-ness wasn’t an accident, so he answered with what this minister was expecting. Just flip the switch, and say ‘OK, I’m ready; you’ve got me, God. Use me to say what You want’.

Actually, Tommy Walker’s Los Angeles preacher who asked him for a song in 1996 probably deserves some notable credit for ‘He Knows…’, because that was the title of the sermon that he’d already chosen. You can almost see Tommy sighing as this minister (Mark Pickerill) pitched the idea at him; what had stirred this minister’s thoughts, anyway? Tommy admits he needed ‘sheer discipline’ to agree to this, because he really didn’t feel motivated, even as the poetry began to develop and ink flowed from his pen. Tommy was initially convinced this would be only an average-quality song, but he stuck with it nevertheless.  Perhaps it was the simplicity of the concept that helped Tommy finally feel that something special was in work. Just go with the idea that this Creator made me, and scope out how He expressed Himself in that process. He doesn’t just know ‘my name’, He knows my ‘thoughts’. He gave me a ‘heart’, and my ‘tears’ are ones He gives me. And, He listens when I ‘call’, because He knows what’s going on inside this person He made. It’s all about intimacy with this God and me, Tommy must have decided, as he continued to write. It started in the very first few moments, ‘before even time began’, that I became His. ‘In His hands…’, and ‘…His own’, are words that Tommy used to confess that he could not exist, even as a thought, if God had not first been who He is. And, despite my ability to leave or try to ignore Him, He won’t ‘leave me’. Perhaps that’s because something is more true of God than even His created humans understand at times: that He cannot remove Himself from those He made, since we’re in His image. A human may decide to run away from Him when he really doesn’t want to be part of His Creator. How long can that really persist, one might ask? How much sadness does that engender in God when that happens? Jonah ran the other way, and a whole generation snubbed their noses in Noah’s day. They didn’t have God in human likeness to change their minds. What excuse do you and I have?

Tommy includes a lot of scriptural reminders that God does indeed see each of us intimately (see the link below that show what many writers have said – John [John and 1 John), Isaiah, Jeremiah, David [in Ps. 56, 139], and Moses [in Exodus]). He does feel what we feel, cries over those He made, as the bible’s shortest verse relates (John 11:35).  Why’d He create, if the result has pained Him so? That He’s inscrutable is also who He is, but not when it comes to reaching out for me. It’s a lifelong education, this knowing Him. He already knows me, and yet I cannot help feeling the frustration that there’s always a deficit on my end of this understanding. But, I cannot deny the link is there, and that to fight Him is vain. He knows you and me. Tommy thought at first that this was a ‘so what?’ Then, he thought about it some more. Keep thinking, he says.      

Information on the story behind “He Knows My Name” can be found in Tommy Walker’s book Songs from Heaven, written with Phil Kassel in 2005, published by Regal Books.

Also see the story here: https://www.tommywalkerministries.org/media/song-of-the-week-2019-16-he-knows-my-name

See information on the seal of Los Angeles here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Seal_of_Los_Angeles.svg . The seal  is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. This work was created by a government unit (including state, county, city, and municipal government agencies) that derives its powers from the laws of the State of California and is subject to disclosure under the California Public Records Act (Government Code § 6250 et seq.). It is a public record that was not created by an agency which state law has allowed to claim copyright, and is therefore in the public domain in the United States.

Revelation Song -- Jennie Lee Riddle

 

She’d been praying for a decade, and this was the result. Jennie was having more than just ‘one of those days’ when she envisioned “Revelation Song”, and though she says her thoughts were indeed a prayer, she didn’t want any more of the ‘I’ and ‘me’ to emerge from that inner stimulus that she had to write something new. Instead, what she saw as the focus was the throne and the mercy seat upon which He would be sitting, a vision perhaps as awesome and terrifying as it gets, brilliant and stunning in the light surrounding its Creator-Judge. (See the Mercy Seat shown here, as illustrated in the 1890 Holman Bible, representative of what is described in Ezekiel 1:26-28 and Revelation 4). That’s the way to lift the church up off the ‘daily… rubble…and worry’, as Jennie described herself and those with whom she worshipped in the early 2000s (Revelation Song was written in or about 2004).

 

Jenny Lee Riddle was a young mother taking care of her son one day, perhaps an otherwise ordinary day, with the exception that some feeling had been building in her consciousness for some time. From her own words and the story behind ‘Revelation Song’, we can guess that she might even have been humming or listening to another song (Gerrit Gustafson’s I Hear Angels, written in 1989) with the same scenery that she would use for her own lyrics, because she appreciated its awe-inspiring imagery. She fervently wanted to see Him in all this glory described by Ezekiel and John, this God arrayed in ‘rainbows of living color’. Not only sight, but sound will testify about Him, in ‘thunder’ and ‘a new song’, as exotic creatures surround His seat on the throne – His mercy seat (Hebrews 9:5 and Revelation 11:19) -- to utter His praises. ‘Holy, holy, holy…’ is He, this ‘Lamb who was slain’. To ‘adore You’ is the only proper response, as Jennie reminds us. Just let yourself be filled with ‘awestruck wonder’, watch the ‘flashes of lightning’, and join with ‘all creation’ to sing to the ‘King of kings’. The only ‘I’ and ‘me’ in this episode is the one in which I am overwhelmed, and yet loved, in His very presence because His merciful judgement contains compassion mingled with righteousness. ‘You are my everything’ is the only way in which I can momentarily contemplate myself, and it’s only because I’ve been drawn into final one-ness with Him, He  ‘who was, and is, and is to come’. In fact, in that moment He’s no longer in the past or future tense; think of when all of history will culminate into an eternal present. That’s where Jennie was that day, when she set her son down and picked up her guitar and vocalized some words, words she expected to come true. Look at Him upon His mercy seat, and see if you can imagine what the ancient prophets and this 21^st Century songwriter could see and hear.

 

Step into the bright sunshine, an invitation that we all accept here below without even a second thought. Put on the sunglasses, so you don’t have to squint so much, and so your eyes don’t strain with effort. They didn’t have such protection when Moses came down from Mount Sinai (Exodus 34), and a veil was placed over his face to make the people less afraid, so they’d be less apprehensive in the presence of one who had talked with God – they were warned not to look upon Him, after all. I will have an unveiled face to look upon Him. You and I get that now, even as Paul told the Corinthians and all believers in a post-resurrection reality (2 Corinthians 3:7-18). It’s just a warmup for what Jennie wants us to see, and I won’t be given sunglasses to shield my eyes. I’ll see Him completely. Get ready for that rainbow of colors, and Him who will bestow His gift from where He sits.   

 

See the song’s story told here by the songwriter: Bing Videos (story from beginning through 1:25)

 

See a brief blurb here about the song’s genesis: Stories behind songs that changed the way we worship | ChristianToday Australia

See some of the song’s background her Revelation Song - Wikipedia

 

See here for a description of the place where God sits: Mercy seat - Wikipedia

 

See the image information here, and its public domain status: File:Holman The Mercy Seat.jpg - Wikimedia Commons …This media file is in the public domain in the United States. This applies to U.S. works where the copyright has expired, often because its first publication occurred prior to January 1, 1928, and if not then due to lack of notice or renewal. See this page for further explanation. This image might not be in the public domain outside of the United States; this especially applies in the countries and areas that do not apply the rule of the shorter term for US works, such as Canada, Mainland China (not Hong Kong or Macao), Germany, Mexico, and Switzerland. The creator and year of publication are essential information and must be provided. See Wikipedia:Public domain and Wikipedia:Copyrights for more details.

Still -- Reuben Morgan

 

This one must have come from deep inside, and maybe that’s why there’s not much shared about how it arose. Reuben Morgan just felt the need to be “Still”, early in this century (around 2002), and so that’s what he said to God about his own demeanor. He implicitly trusted God’s character and ability, and his own effort in the relationship was just that one word – Still. Perhaps Reuben was just taking a page from the psalmists’ playbooks (Psalm 37:7; 46:10; and 91:4), and reaffirmed by God Himself (Matthew 23:37; Luke 13:34), a posture that one takes when in need of a most certain protection. What else can one do when troubled by things visible, or maybe afraid of things that cannot even be seen or comprehended? Was it possible that Reuben had heard others who were in a state of anxiety, and that that was distressing his innards, too? Reuben knew where to turn.

 

 

Reuben Morgan was a 27-year-old songwriter with the Hillsong church in Sydney, Australia (in the state of New South Wales, on the nation’s southeast coast; see image here) when he wrote ‘Still’. For any person, living in a city of five million-plus people would just by itself be enough to generate stress – all those people, cars, etc., compressed together in a dense-pack condition. Even among the members of a healthy Christian church environment, the rhythms of 21^st Century life can be overwhelming at times. Was there a health, relationship, or financial struggle in progress that occupied Reuben’s thoughts? Perhaps all of the above, or something else was the spur for Reuben’s turn to scripture, evident in the few lyrics that he crafted to tackle what was taxing his being. David (Ps.37), a Korahite (Ps.46), and an anonymous poet-songwriter (Ps.91) all turned to their Creator-Protector with words that Reuben borrowed some three millennia later, demonstrating that you and I still need Him as much as ever. I am safe ‘under his wings’ (v.1 of Reuben’s song), and I can rest, being ‘still’ in his shadow, knowing He is God (Reuben’s chorus; Ps.37 and 46). Perhaps it was Jesus’ plaintive response to doubters (Pharisees and other teachers) in His earthly ministry that got Reuben’s attention. He longs to guard and reassure those He created, as a hen protects little chicks (Matthew 23:37; Luke 13:34). There’s a ‘storm’ and a ‘flood’ that Rueben felt he could endure, because God has a ‘mighty hand’, something that Reuben and the rest of us can read regarding how He rescued people from slavery (nine times in Exodus --chapters 3,6,7,1314,32; and equally in Deuteronomy – chapters 3,4,5,6,7,9,11,26). And, what about being ‘in Christ’ (Reuben’s v.2)? Could Reuben have done a word search like you and I can today, finding that powerful two-word phrase some 90 times in the New Testament? If he did, there’s a lot there to gird one’s faith, to make one’s courage grow because of being in Him.

 

 

It seems like knowing that I’m in Christ is the key to that rest, the stillness that He has for me. Reuben also evidently settled on that rock, the foundation for a sigh of relief and contentment, a ‘rest (for) my soul’ (v.2). And yet, that doesn’t tell the storms, floods, rising oceans, and thunders to go away. So, true confession time, I admit I still feel stress and the tedium of my existence pretty much every day, sometimes more intensely than other days. Stuff happens and has to be managed, so there’s no getting away from it, is there? How about finding a way through it? Find your way through it, as Jesus did. He prayed constantly, angels came and ministered to Him (Matthew 4:11), and He shared Himself with earthly companions. He’s our model, for how to be still.

 

 

See here for information on the songwriter: Reuben Morgan - Wikipedia

 

See here for information about the image of New South Wales flag: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_New_South_Wales.svg ; This image or other work is of Australian origin and is now in the public domain because its term of copyright has expired.

 

See here for information about Australia’s largest city: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney

Give Us Clean Hands – David and Charlie Hall

 

He was looking for something personally, and then realized more people than himself could use what he’d discovered. Was that what the ancient songwriter-king David found also, a pretty intimate time with God that he cherished and then thought others should hear? “Give Us Clean Hands”, the worshippers of David’s time would have cried, as the ark of the covenant was carried into the Temple (as seen here in this 15^th Century work), or perhaps as they later commemorated that occasion. So, it was no accident when Charlie Hall opened his bible some 30 centuries later and found some insight into approaching God, since this God doesn’t change and asks those who want to draw near Him to do what the worshippers at the Temple did so long ago. Purity…such a hard thing to acquire. Charlie found the words of the psalm were convicting. Ready to practice some submission?

 

Charlie Hall was doing one day (sometime around the year 2000) what he’d done on numerous other occasions: bible study. He indicates in an interview that he was looking for God to speak, to provide something to spur a change in his heart. Why Charlie thought he needed a heart-check is not clear, but perhaps he wasn’t any different from others who come close to God just to find that undefinable something that seems to be missing. Psalm 24 jumped off the page (or off the screen) for Charlie, who says he wasn’t aiming to write a song. It was just a few moments in which he needed to be alone with Him, singing back to God what He was saying to him in scripture, a kind of prayer. And then he read what David wrote (v.6 of Psalm 24) about a ‘generation’ of would-be worshippers. Perhaps this was when Charlie realized that his personal moment could resonate with others. Everyone needs to ‘bow..hearts and bend..knees’, to be ‘humble’ before the Holy Creator. Consequently, all things ‘evil’, and especially ‘idols’, need to be cast aside. Not only ‘clean hands’, but ‘pure hearts’ are the decontamination that is a part of the separation from idols, of making God the one and only being toward whom worship is directed. David’s ‘generation’, and Charlie’s three millennia later, sought God’s ‘face’, the visage of this ‘God of Jacob’. That’s quite a thing to say to this Holy One…to be submissive to Him, and try in one’s own imperfect way to be pure before Him, and then say you want to see His face. Are you and I really ready for this?

 

That goal, to see God’s face, is really an aspiration that none of us will truly realize until Eternity dawns. Moses, too, asked to see Him and was denied by the merciful God (Ex. 33:18-23) – God wasn’t quite ready for Moses to die; He wanted him to do more. Those of David’s time did not yet have Jesus, and those of us in Charlie’s time have only an artist’s conception of what the God-Man might have resembled physically. But, I can sense what’s in my own heart, see whether my hands have engaged in wrongdoing, and admit when I am a bit too close to earthbound things. Those are the three things I can put on my daily agenda to try to rectify, if I am honest and really do want to meet Him face-to-face one day. Just weigh these things on your spiritual scales, including how long they will last…earthly habits and attitudes for something like 80-90 years (?), versus what He can give me in the afterlife that never will end. What’s your scale’s readout suggesting to you?

 

Watch the song story recounted here: https://www.worshiptogether.com/songs/give-us-clean-hands/ (New Song Café) …Based on Psalm 24 by David (story on video from beginning to 2:09 mark (appx)

 

See some information here also, including a brief recitation of the story: https://hymnary.org/hymn/LUYH2013/628

 

See here for the song’s copyright date: Give Us Clean Hands (arr. Joshua Chandra) Sheet Music | Chris Tomlin | Piano, Vocal & Guitar Chords (sheetmusicdirect.com)

 

NIV Study Bible, Zondervan Bible Publishers, 1985, and accompanying notes re: Psalm 24’s background also provided details.

 

Find the image of ark here, along with public domain status of the picture: File:Folio 29r - The Ark of God Carried into the Temple.jpg - Wikimedia Commons This work (The Ark carried into the Temple from the early 15th century, Pol, Hermann and Jannequin de Limbourg (1370s–1416); Jean Colombe (c. 1440–93)) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928.