2015 has gotten off to an incredible start for us here in New Jersey ! I have made a resolution to take my guitar playing higher and so as a result I have been playing more and writing more and just getting inspired in general !!! One thing that has been really exciting is that this Summer from JULY 2ND - 5TH, the NYC Church of Christ is hosting the ICMC EAST ! We are thrilled to host the conference, which was given the theme "CHANGE THE WORLD"
I have to admit, the title has really grown on me. At first I was not sure how I felt about it. As Christians, in theory, we all want to see the world changed for Christ ! But honestly for me I can get overwhelmed at the sheer numbers and just trying to imagine what it would take in practice to convert 7 Billion people. Its pretty sobering when we realize what a small percentage there are who are truly holding to Jesus' teachings (John 8:31-32). On the flip side of things I think it can be easy to cast grandiose visions of "Changing the world for Christ" but fall short in our personal lives. The truth is, before we can "CHANGE THE WORLD" we have to change ourselves. This thought led me to this theme song which is titled "CHANGE ME". It is a vertical worship song asking God to change us from the inside so that we can, together with him, change the outside world - one person at a time ! I have posted the sheet music, lyrics, and a rough demo recording of the song below. In the verses, I wanted to recount different miracles that Jesus did where he changed one thing into another completely different thing !!
VERSE 1
Water into wine
Stormy seas made calm
Doubt into belief
Darkness into light
VERSE 2
Empty nets were filled
Blind received their sight
Empty stomachs fed
Dead brought back to life
I have always been amazed by the miracles of Jesus. The culmination of these miracles was his power over the grave (Dead brought back to life). Then in the pre-chorus everyone joins in four-part harmony to sing together:
PRECHORUS
You can change the world
Father, we believe !
You're the mighty God
The God of miracles
To me this is a statement about God. He has the power to change the world. He is the one who does miracles. He has already changed the world and he can do it again and again. Then the chorus goes:
CHORUS
Change me
Make me like your Son
Change me
And we'll change the world together
One by one
God has done many miracles in both the OT and the NT. If God could change blindness to vision, emptiness to fullness, doubt to belief, and death to life, then surely he can change us to be like Jesus !
This thought gives me hope & encouragement. Only when God changes us to be like Jesus can we change the world. Only when we are working TOGETHER with the Holy Spirit and our brothers & sisters in Christ can we change the world - one person at a time ! We are really looking forward to the International Campus Ministry Conference here in NY & NJ ! Please keep the conference in your prayers !!
"And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit."
- 2 Corinthians 3:18
