I Don't Wanna Go - A Song for Our Value Risk Big
This last week, Nick shared about our church Value "Risk Big", demonstrated by our willingness to trust God where we can't see, but He is calling us to go. The "bottom line" of his sermon was "God calls us to 'Risk Big' kind of obedience for the good of the church and the glory of God alone."
In thinking over this, it kept coming to my mind that risking big in our obedience to God isn't really a risk in an eternal sense. From our perspective as created beings wrestling with sin and bound by time, stepping out in faith may seem risky or even crazy, but from the perspective of our eternal Heavenly Father, He knows what will happen and He has a plan. That's why Jesus prayed in the garden in Matthew 26:39 "not my will but Yours be done," just as He taught us to pray in the "Lord's Prayer" from Matthew 6:9-13, v10 says "your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." From a human perspective obedience to the Lord can feel like stepping into the unknown, but when following the Lord, we can have peace and hope knowing His will is to grow the church by bringing more people into relationship with Him which ultimately brings more glory to Him, the only one worthy of glory.
Well this connected a dot to a song from a musician I've been listening to a lot lately, Chris Renzema. One song in particular is called "I don't wanna to go," which follows this theme of following God in obedience through things that are above our understanding and just trusting in Him. The song references David wanting to build the temple in 2 Samuel 7; the Israelites on the shore of the Red Sea in Exodus 14; Moses trusting God's plan when seeing the Promised Land but not being allowed to enter in Numbers 27:12-22 and Deuteronomy 24; Peter seeing Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration in Matthew 17:1-13; and finally Jesus in the Garden in Matthew 26:36-46, Luke 22:39-46. It's a great song with poetic, Biblical examples of people obeying God when it was difficult and hard to understand.
Like David and the Temple, I want to bring You praise
But like David and his Temple plans, Your ways are not my ways
You don’t need me to build a temple to know that You love me still oh
Like Israel on the shore, all I see is crashing waves
But like Israel on the shore, its through the wild You make a way
I wanna go where You go, I wanna stay where You stay, oh
I don’t wanna go if you’re not going before me
I don’t wanna go if you’re not going before me
I don’t wanna go if you’re not going before me
I don’t wanna go if you’re not going before me
Like Moses in the desert, I want to see the land
But like Moses in the desert, I can’t fully see Your plan
Still Your love doesn’t stop, when I see the land from a mountaintop, oh
Like Peter on the hill, I want to make this my place
But like Peter on the hill, before Your transfigured face,
I wanna go where You go, wanna stay where You stay, oh
Anywhere You are, I wanna be there,
its written on my heart, You’re all I’ve ever needed
Anywhere You go, I wanna be there,
It’s written on my soul, You’re all I’ve ever needed
Like Jesus in the garden, Will you take this cup from me
Like Jesus in the garden, You don't call where you won't lead
I wanna love like you love, I wanna bleed like you bleed, Oh-oh