"Because He Lives"

Songs can do a lot for a person. A song or even a single line from a song can: can make you happy, sad, mad, forgiving, depressed, proud, or all of the above. There are two songs that bring all of those emotions to me. "Because He Lives" and "Amazing Grace" Many of you may not know the song "Because He Lives", it was written by The Gaithers,

"God sent His Son, they called Him Jesus, He came to love, heal, and forgive; He lived and died to buy my pardon, An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

Because He lives I can face tomorrow, Because He lives all fear is gone; Because I know
He holds the future, And life is worth the living just because He lives.

How sweet to hold a newborn baby, And feel the pride and joy He gives; But greater still the calm assurance, This child can face uncertain days because He lives.

And then one day I'll cross the river, I'll fight life's final war with pain; And then as death gives way to vict'ry, I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know He lives."

The chorus of this song came to me just a few days after we lost our first son. I couldn't remember just how it went so I looked it up, but only the chorus. Two days later we sang this song on Easter morning at church and I still can't get thru the 2nd verse w/ out tears. I do know that because He lives I CAN face tomorrow! This bittersweet song has been sung as a congregation song just after I found out I was pregnant with Sissy, just after we announced it to everyone and right after she was born. It was also sung just after I found out I was expecting Boo, just after we announced it and right after he was born, with no planning. (We do sing it at other times too, and Daddy and I are the only ones who know this or every time we sing it all eyes would be on us! ;)

And then there's "Amazing Grace." Last night at church we sang Amazing Grace as the alter call. It brought tears to me eyes, not because it is such a great song or that it signifies my testimony, but because of the memories it holds. Both sad and happy. This was the song we sang at the graveside services for our Little Angel.

As I sat there last night I thought of the sweetest sound and the sweetest thing I have ever heard. The sweetest thing was when Sissy was born and Daddy looked at me with tears in his eyes and said, "Do you hear her? Do you hear her crying?" And that my friends was the sweetest sound I have ever heard, Sissy's little baby cries. Our family was waiting in the nurse's station just outside of the c-section room and they said her cries filled up the entire floor!!! Oh, how long we had waited to hear a baby cry.

Now, on to the pride. When Sissy was just about 18 mo. she "sang" her first special at church. She would go around the house singing "B I B I B" in perfect tune to "The B I B L E", so she went up front one Sunday night and sang for the church. She moved on to bigger and better, just after she turned 2 she Sang "I'll fly away" and most recently "Amazing Grace". I am so proud to be pushing my cart in Wal-Mart while Boo is singing "Oh, Church of God, the day of Jubilee" or walking in a store swinging Sissy's hand and she starts singing "God will carry me home"

It truly is "Because He Lives"!!!!!!

Mama