Musical Emotions – Part 1

A few days ago in Music to Touch Our Hearts I listed a number of pieces of music which always pull at my heart-strings. So the first piece of music I listed was the Salvation Army band piece entitled The Light of The World – You can listen to it here:

O Jesus, thou art standing

Outside the fast-closed door,

In lowly patience waiting,

To pass the threshold o’er.

Shame on us, Christian people,

His name and sign we bear,

O shame, thrice shame upon us,

To keep him standing there!

 

O Jesus, thou art knocking:

And lo! that hand is scarred,

And thornes thy brow wncircle,

And tears thy face have marred.

O love that passeth knowledge,

So patiently to wait!

O sin that hath no equal,

So fast to bar the gate!

 

O Jesus, thou art pleading

in accents meek and low:

I died for you, my children,

And will ye treat me so?

O Lord, with shame and sorrow

We open now the door;

Dear Saviour, enter, enter,

And leave us nevermore.

The above are the words which go with the the music of The Light of the World.

So image Christ knocking at the door of your heart, pleading with you to let Him in. Do you open the door of your heart or do you turn Him away?

Well, a number of years ago before I became a senior soldier in the Salvation Army , I remember hearing that piece of music and being captivated my the music and the words, and asking myself “have I really opened the door of my heart and let Jesus in?”.

I think that was the time when I realised that I’d maybe opened the door of my heart, but I hadn’t taken the safety chain off! In other words I realised I was only giving Jesus a bit of my heart, not the whole.

It was then I fully opened the door of my heart and let Jesus into my life, and I can proudly say I haven’t looked back since!

While the above words are those which the music relates to, I must admit that for me the words of another song, which we also sing to this tune, are those most precious to me:

O Jesus, I have promised

To serve thee to the end,

Be thou forever near me,

My Master and my friends.

I shall not fear the battle

If thou art by my side,

Nor wander from the pathway,

If thou wilt be my guide.

Strong words, but ones I can still sing honestly!

How about you, can you remember when you opened your heart completely to God? How about now, can you honestly sing those words today?