To Turn a Phrase

I could be wrong, but for my birthday, my beautiful wife has given me one of the greatest presents ever, an iPod. I know what you're thinking...why did it take so long. Well, I was slow to change to CD's, even slower to change to DVD's, and I still have no idea what Blu-Ray is. So, I'm very late to the iPod bandwagon, but it is an awesome thing.

The last few nights, I've been ripping my vast CD collection and downloading them all onto a machine that's smaller than my phone. I will soon have every song I own at my fingertips everywhere I go. Not to mention podcasts, videos, and other capabilities. Why I ever hesitated to get this technology is beyond me.

But you might ask, why am I telling you this. Well here's what happened: As I've been ripping my CD's, I've also been listening to a bunch of music I haven't listened to in a while. And that, along with some inspiration from some other blogs, made me want to find my favorite lyric.

Words can be so powerful, especially in the hands of a good writer. Even more so, I think, in the hands of a great lyricist. I love it when I listen to a song for the tenth time and hear something new, a special turn of a phrase that gives it just a little deeper meaning.

I also love a great story in song. One of the best story songs I've ever heard has several moments of great impact. It's the story of Abraham and Isaac, but mostly it's a story about GOD. Andrew Peterson wrote the following lines in his song "Holy is the Lord":

I waited on the Lord
And in a waking dream He came
Riding on a wind across the sand
He spoke my name

Here I am, I whispered
And I waited in the dark
The answer was a sword
That came down hard upon my heart


Every time I hear that last line, I can see old Abraham falling to his knees, clutching his chest, and wailing at the thought. The music is haunting, the words are perfectly stated, and I'm right there, seeing it as it all unfolds.

I have other favorite lyrics, but I'll save those for another time. For now, I'd love to hear what your favorites are. What phrases have captured you when you hear them? What stories have been so freshly told through song that you live it? What line, even though you've heard it a million times, can still prick your heart? Really, I want to know.

But to give you a piece of my song and not the whole thing would be wrong. So, below is a video that brings "Holy is the Lord" to life using the TNT movie presentation of Abraham.

Love to all,
Eric