Inspired by the events of September 11, 2001. But dedicated to all those across the world who grieve for those they have lost.
It always intrigued me that Peter, Andrew, James and John, when called by Jesus, at once left their nets and followed Him. No good byes to the family. No hanging around to take time to pack. They left their nets at once and followed Him.
Why would they do that?
Was it their own impulsiveness?
Was it the call of adventure that seemed more appealing than the monotonous life they were living?
Or was it Jesus Himself who drew them in?
I believe it was simply Jesus. He draws people to Himself with a Love that is a forever kind of Love, coming from the very Center of All God is.
He calls with The Voice we recognize as familiar, coming from a Place we perhaps once lived and will return to one day.
I believe that it may be for us, as it was for Peter, James, Andrew and John. We may be in the middle of an ordinary day when we turn around and see Jesus. He will say, “Follow Me.”
It won’t matter what is going on around us.
It won’t matter who or what we are leaving behind.
We will be drawn into the Source of All The Power in The Universe and enfolded in more Love than we have ever felt.
I imagine the things we see at that moment will be so amazing that we may feel we need the tongues of angels to tell us what we have seen. At that moment, we will know we are seeing Glory!
Those who are left on earth do not get the same view. As we see someone transitioning into their new body, any number of emotions can attempt to overtake us.
Even if we see death as a new beginning for our loved ones, it feels like an ending for us, who grieve. Life will not be the same for us ever again.
It is difficult enough to deal with our feelings about death when we have one person die or even just a few.
However, events such as September 11, 2001, jar us to our core. It brings to mind how quickly life can change, how little we really control, even on an “ordinary” day, and how life can seem very unfair.
In spite of the many questions we cannot answer, we can answer the most important one.
What happened to those who heard The Voice they recognized that morning?
Where did those people go who responded to “Follow Me?”
After the events of September 11, 2001, I wrote a song in memory of those who some say were lost that day.
However, I believe, instead, they were found! Jesus was there and the report of His Followers would have been quite different from what the news reports said on that day.
The following song is copyrighted by me, but feel free to share it with whomever you think could receive comfort from it. I will share the music at a future time. Please credit me as the writer, if quoted separately from this blog.
I’m With Jesus!
© 2001 Carolyn Priester Jones
Lyrics and Music
(Introduction)
I was working on that morning.
My cup of coffee was half gone.
Suddenly, I felt a gentle breeze.
I turned around to see …
And to my surprise, it was Jesus!
He was standing there with me!
(Chorus)
Jesus!
Standing there with me!
Jesus!
Plain as He could be!
Jesus!
He told me not to fear!
He said,
“Follow Me. We’re leavin’ here!”
Others might have been calling,
But I heard only Him.
There might have been other noise.
I’m not sure what might have been.
I just knew …
(Chorus)
It was Jesus!
And there was no pain!
Me and Jesus!
We walked and talked again!
Jesus!
He showed The Way to me!
And we walked right through that stormy sea!
In a world I left behind,
the headlines might have read
That all of us had perished …
that all of us were dead.
But they were have been so wrong
‘cause I’m more alive than then!
I walk the streets of Glory,
and I walk here with my Friend!
(Chorus)
I’m with Jesus!
What a Glorious Sight!
I KNOW Jesus!
And everything’s so right.
I HEAR Jesus!
like I never did before!
I’ve had JOY since
we walked through Life’s door!
Very truly I tell you,
whoever obeys My Word
will never see death!
John 8:51 (NIV)
