Yours

Last year, my husband was invited by some good friends at the Christian relief organization Food for the Hungry to go to Indonesia and do tsunami relief work.

It took him about 2.5 seconds to say yes. (And about 2.5 hours for God to convince me to let him go. "Not without me! Not without me!" was my initial response.)

I could write a book about his trip and all the things he experienced while he was in Meulaboh. (As could he; he's a good writer in his own right.)

(Did I just say "writer in his own right"? Oy. It must be late.)

Instead, let me sum up one of the over-arching lessons: Our God is global. He cares deeply about every race, every tribe, every tongue. There is no people group beyond his reach, no one too poor to escape His attention, no untouchable that God isn't yearning to embrace.

Of course, my husband, who spent his early growing up years as a street rat in a foreign country, is intimately aware of this. But the trip to Indonesia was a sharp reminder to both of us that God is working all over this world, in the most desperate and heart-breaking situations. Because of God, there is hope -- even for tsunami-ravaged mothers in Indonesia, even for AIDS orphans in Africa, even for the oppressed dalits in India.

I think that's why I love the song "Yours" on Steven Curtis Chapman's new album. It isn't the only track on the CD that has a global slant, which is to be expected at this point from a man so passionately involved with orphans in foreign countries. "Yours" is just the one that resonates most strongly with my heart.

As SCC tells it, he wrote the song in London, during a visit to write some worship music with Matt Redman. (The final cut on "This Moment" is an example of their work together.) He was taking a break one afternoon from writing, and as he walked the streets, he started to look at the faces passing by. Discouraged. Dead. Hopeless.

(Ever seen something similar in your world?)

I'll let the song lyrics tell the rest of the story. (Sample clip here.)

I walk the streets of London
And notice in the faces passing by
Something that makes me stop and listen
My heart grows heavy with the cry

Where is the hope for London?
You whisper and my heart begins to soar
As I'm reminded
That every street in London in Yours
Oh, yes it is

I walk the dirt roads of Uganda
I see the scars that war has left behind
Hope like the sun is fading
They're waiting for a cure no one can find

And I hear children's voices singing
Of a God who heals and rescues and restores
And I'm reminded
That every child in Africa is Yours

And its all Yours, God, Yours, God
Everything is Yours
From the stars in the sky
To the depths of the ocean floor
And its all Yours, God, Yours, God
Everything is Yours
You're the Maker and Keeper,
Father and Ruler of everything
It's all Yours

And I walk the sidewalks of Nashville
Like Singapore, Manila and Shanghai
I rush by the beggar's hand and the wealthy man
And everywhere I look I realize

That just like the streets of London
For every man and woman, boy and girl
All of creation
This is our Father's world

And its all Yours, God, Yours, God
Everything is Yours
From the stars in the sky
To the depths of the ocean floor

And its all Yours, God, Yours, God
Everything is Yours
You're the Maker and Keeper,
Father and Ruler of everything
It's all Yours, God

The glory is Yours, God
All the honor is Yours, God
The power is Yours, God
The glory is Yours, God
You're the King of Kings
And Lord of Lords

And its all Yours, God, Yours, God
Everything is Yours
From the stars in the sky
To the depths of the ocean floor
And its all Yours, God, Yours, God
Everything is Yours
All the greatness and power,
the glory and splendor and majesty
Everything is Yours
Yeah, it's all Yours

Want to hear the song in all its glory? You have one more day to enter the drawing for a free copy of "This Moment." Leave me a comment on this post. I'll pick a random winner Friday night. The winner's name will be posted with the last review Saturday.