My husband and a few of his closest friends have been writing and recording music for years. More recently they have developed a website to post their songs and some essays they had written. For months they have discussed a refurbishment of their site to make it one where they could host their music, publish essays, and most exciting of all…blog! The last few weeks have held late nights, frustration and hard work to produce what you can see now if you visit the Godsong Music website.

The new site for Godsong Music is a destination. Accompanying the fresh new look of the site is a new song called “For All Who Will Follow”, a stirring song that calls us to walk on the path that Christ has laid out for us. This is the first in a collection of songs from the band’s new album called Possible. Throughout the summer one song at a time will be available to download from the site.

Also, they are writing essays. The first posted is one of a three-part essay by Bobby titled “Alive”. This intriguing essay tells the behind-the-scenes story of Ty Sager’s life and how Godsong got to where they are today. In addition to this there is an all-new blog section where different members of Godsong will be posting regularly, so this is a site you will want to frequent. In all sections a comments feature has been added for readers to leave feedback. If you like what you hear and read, please pass the word along and see it for yourself by clicking the link below.

Before my summer break from the office, my life consisted of eight hour work-days, squeezing in time to meet with friends, make personal calls and errands. At night I would quickly straighten up our apartment if there was time, make dinner and usually had some evening event be it a Bible study, meeting with church or planned event. Days seemed short and not much time passed before I was heading to bed so I could do it all again the next day. In stark contrast, with the office closed for the next three months, I now find myself enjoying being home. I have uninterrupted time to read and pray. I can go for walks, have long lunches with friends and get things done around the house. Each summer day seems to be at my disposal. We have some plans that will take up a few of the weeks, but all in all I have a number of days with no strict plans or to-do lists. Though it is nice to have relaxing days of leisure I also don’t want to waste a single one of them.

Many Christians are easily swept away in the whirlwind of busyness that surrounds life and this world. Jobs, family, the children’s activities, church involvement, friends, renovating the house, getting married, friends, school, projects and dreams. These things so quickly fill our plate that when it comes to the Lord and obedience to Him we are simply too busy for it. We seem to be terribly preoccupied with life and all of its happenings so much so that there is little if any time to study, pray or fellowship together. We think that we can get by with just trying our best to be spiritual. We attend church on Sunday and Wednesday. Not taking God as seriously as we should. We don’t study the Word. We don’t pray. All the while we hope that God understands that our lives are hectic and that we mean well, but just don’t have time for Him. In the end we are too wrapped up in the buzz of our own life to surrender to Him.

Sometimes in our good intentions, we get caught up in the busyness of Christian things. We don’t want to seem worldly or be accused of not doing enough for the Lord so we attempt to do it all. People like this are on are on every committee the church offers. When there is a new program, they are on board. They attend multiple Bible studies, help out in the nursery, teach a Sunday school class and participate in the praise band. It doesn’t stop here. They always wonder if there is more they could be doing for the Lord. They want to do all they can for Him. So they join the witnessing team on Friday nights and the landscape crew on Saturday mornings…and keep looking for more. They want to be found busy with the Lord’s work.

I have been guilty of both these extremes–too busy to even have time for God and too busy trying to do everything to serve Him. I have learned that neither is the right perspective. It isn’t about what I’m doing or not doing, it is about my heart. We don’t know how much time God has allotted for us on this earth so we must use it wisely. The temptation is to use it wisely in the ways of the world by accruing as much wealth as possible, giving ourselves to the pursuit of travel, education, expertise or experience. Nothing is wrong with any of these things, but they are not to be our focus. There is also a temptation to think that since we are heaven bound that we are free from all responsibility on earth. Falling into idle living, neglecting the obedience to which we are called. We need to avoid these extremes and learn that it is all about the heart.

I fear that much of the time we honor God with just our words and our actions. We go through the motions and traditions, but really our hearts may be far from Him. (Matthew 15:8) This has been an epidemic among God’s people for centuries. The prophet Haggai spoke to the people so they might not be busy with their own homes but dedicated to the Lord.

On our way home from Montecito, Bobby and I made a short stop in Monterey. Our good friend Ty joined us and we picked a luxury hotel, ate out and even played golf…I think that qualifies as a brief vacation. It’s so relaxing to spend uninterrupted time on a weekday at the coast rather than at the office. I think I will enjoy this summer off.

A small note about the golf experience…I have never played golf before. However I have been learning about it as Bobby does and his family and extended relatives are somewhat obsessed with the sport. Do you ever see something and think, “Oh, that doesn’t look hard, I can do that”? I did this about golf. We came to a Par 3 course in Pacific Grove and I quickly realized my assumption was far from true. But after a few hours of learning the basics and hitting a few balls in trees and across the street we were all having a great time and I even hit par on one hole! It was very exciting and Bobby was dancing all around like I had just won the U.S. Open.

We had a long conversation together about how man is lost. All people gravitate toward selfishness and become preoccupied with their own desires. Much of the time we see the results of this in the development of gross sin and the consequences of such lifestyles. Many people try to act as though man has, inside himself, the power and ability to turn from this way of life and not do evil but good. None of this is true apart from the saving work of Christ. Sadly many people wander through years of their lives lost in the lie that if they just muster up enough motivation or will power or look deep enough inside themselves so that things can be different. But the freeing reality is that we all have sin and problems. We are troubled people. Bobby said, “Without putting our hope fully in Jesus, everything we look forward to will come and go and fundamentally leave us unfulfilled.” In Christ life is so different. In Him we are not bound to sin, we are not lost. Instead we are set free from ourselves and the sin that entangles us and given a whole new fresh start–life in His hope.

“Therefore gird up the loins of your mind,
Be sober, and rest your hope fully
Upon the grace that is to be brought to you
At the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
1 Peter 1:13

Recently Bobby’s grandma passed away and yesterday was a memorial service in remembrance of her. I did not know her well, but naturally I attended. Many relatives came, including some I had never met. People shared and cried, laughed and mourned. Some delicious food was provided and most everyone spent the time visiting. There was a table set up with pictures, old newspaper articles and memories of Grandma Blakey. I haven’t been to many memorials or funerals, but I am intrigued by what people remember about someone who has passed. It seems that most prominent points stand out, positive or negative. Maybe they were a strict parent, enthusiast of some hobby, loving to a spouse, successful in a career, education, or accomplishments. Failures are hardly mentioned because everyone is remembering all of the good things for which they lived.

It is common to be absorbed with image and reputation. It seems that we always want people to think we are the best at something, or at least leave an impression that will have us taken seriously. When someone describes us negatively we are offended. Surely we don’t want people to think we are judgmental, narrow-minded, a complainer or shallow. When I was younger I tried so hard to be physically attractive. I wore lots of makeup and made sure that my hair, clothes and nails were just so. I wanted people to say that I was the prettiest. Then one day I heard someone state that one of my sisters was the prettiest person they had seen. I was crushed! I wanted to make that impression and I had failed! Tonight I am thankful to have realized that all my attempts at image and reputation are futile in the Lord. Paul’s words in Philippians 3 have spoken loudly to this matter in my life as I seek to live pleasing unto the Lord and not to men.