UNIMAGINABLE, AMAZING GRACE

by Dennis D. Nelson

I had heard that the musical “Hamilton,” based upon the life of Alexander Hamilton, was good.  Until I went to see a movie version of it on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of its opening on Broadway, I did not know how good.  The staging was stunning, the singing was energetic, the lyrics are brilliant, and the man who played King George was an absolute hoot. 

For me the most powerful part of the play was the song, “It’s Quiet Uptown,” in the latter part of the Second Act.  Alexander and his wife Eliza have moved to a quiet part of town as they seek to rebuild their lives after the severe double trauma of the death of their son Philip and Alexander’s marital infidelity.  Philip was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr as he tried to defend his father’s honor.

UNIMAGINABLE GRIEF

Angelica, the older sister of Hamilton’s wife Eliza, begins the song with these words –
“There are moments that the words don’t reach.
There is suffering too terrible to name.
You hold your child as tight as you can
And push away the unimaginable.”

Parents who have lost a child through death say that that pain is the absolutely worst possible.

The Ensemble then join with Angelica in noting that the Hamiltons have moved up town – to the quiet part of town – as they “learn to live with the unimaginable.”

Hamilton, who had been very active in the founding and early days of our country, describes what life is like for him now in the quiet part of town as he seeks to come to terms with what he has done and the loss he and his wife have suffered. 
“I spend hours in the garden.
I walk alone to the store and it’s quiet uptown.
I never liked the quiet before.
I take the children to church on Sunday.
A sign of the cross at the door and I pray.
That never used to happen before.”

I think of people I have known who surround themselves with constant busyness and noise so they do not have to deal with the painful parts of their lives.  They would never want to live in the quiet part of town.

UNIMAGINABLE GUILT 

But Alexander is suffering not only from the unimaginable grief that he shares with his wife over the death of their son.  He is also suffering from unimaginable guilt over his marital infidelity.  He continues –
“Look at where we are.  Look at where we started.
I know I don’t deserve you, Eliza, but hear me out.
That would be enough.”

Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote the musical and who plays the part of Hamilton, sings these words with a suffering and pain that tears your heart apart.
“If I could spare his life
If I could trade his life for mine
He’d be standing here right now
And you would smile, and that would be enough.
I don’t pretend to know the challenges we’re facing.
I know there’s no replacing what we’ve lost.
And you need time.”

First the company sing, “He is trying to do the unimaginable.”
Then they sing, “They are trying to do the unimaginable.”

UNIMAGINABLE GRACE 

We come to the turning point when Angelica, Eliza’s sister, repeats the same words as at the beginning of the song – “There are moments that the words don’t reach.”  But this time, instead of continuing with “There is suffering too terrible to name,” she sings, “There is a grace too powerful to name.”
“They are standing in the garden
Alexander by Eliza’s side.
She takes his hand.”

That is the turning point.  She takes his hand.  In spite of all her unimaginable grief and Alexander’s unimaginable guilt, she offers him unimaginable grace.  She takes his hand.  What made her able to do that?  What made her able to offer what the company then sings about?

“Forgiveness.  Can you imagine?
Forgiveness.  Can you imagine?”

Every time I hear that song my heart is rung out and I have a deeply moving spiritual experience.

This is not easy, cheap grace – as Dietrich Bonhoeffer described.  This is no, “I’m sorry.  Please forgive me.  Now it should be all over, so why are you still upset, mad at me, and do not trust me?”  Rather this is an unimaginable forgiveness – an unimaginable grace – given by someone who has suffered unimaginable grief to someone who has fully accepted the seriousness and consequences and felt the pain of his unimaginable guilt.

What made her able to do that?  What made Hamilton think that he might have a chance?  The answer can be found in Hamilton’s words –
“I’m not afraid.
I know who I married.
Just let me stay here by your side.
That would be enough.” 

Alexander knew his wife.  He knew whom he had married.  He knew that his only chance lay not in the depth of his confession and/or in the amount of his sorrow but in the depth of her love, expressed in unimaginable grace.

Reminds me of the words of the song that is based on 2 Timothy 1: 12 –
“I know not why God’s wondrous grace to me He hath made known,
Nor why, unworthy, Christ in love redeemed me for His own.
But ‘I know Whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed unto Him against that day.’”

It also reminds me of the story of King David, who along with Bathsheba experienced unimaginable grief.  David bore an unimaginable guilt, but, as undeserving as he was, experienced God’s unimaginable mercy and grace.  David is a prime example of the truth of the statement that is attributed to Ravi Zecharias, American evangelical minister and Christian apologist who learned the full meaning of these words from his own life –

“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”

The Psalm for Ash Wednesday is Psalm 51.  In this Psalm David confesses his unimaginable guilt.  He knows that his only chance is to throw himself completely upon the mercy and grace of God.  The prophet Nathan, who had confronted him with his sin, tells him that – because of his confession – he will not die, but the child that will be born to Bathsheba will die and the sword will never depart from his house (2 Samuel 12: 10-14).

David is guilty of an unimaginable guilt.  He has taken the wife of another man (who happened to be not a stranger but a close comrade) and arranged for the death of that man.  David’s confession did not bring Uriah back to life.  The consequences of his sin remained, just as the consequences of our sin remain.  Uriah was still dead.  

David and Bathsheba are suffering an unimaginable grief.  Their first child died.  Son Amnon will rape his sister Tamar.  Son Absalom will kill his brother Amnon.  Son Absalom will be killed after leading a rebellion against the King and taking over the throne.  What the prophet Nathan said did come true.  The sword never departed from David’s house. 

But David also received unimaginable forgiveness, unimaginable mercy, and unimaginable grace.  From David and Bathsheba Solomon was born, whose descendants eventually included our Lord Jesus Christ.  Even when we humans are at our worst, God can still bring about His best. 

This Lenten season, as once again we bring all our sins and sorrows to the cross, may we again put our full trust in and receive the full blessings of God’s unimaginable, amazing grace. 

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PASTORAL CARE, POWER, AND THE PROPER WORK OF THE CHURCH

Many thanks to Paul Fleming for writing a theological analysis of the Consultation that Bishop Hagmeier of the ELCA’s South Dakota Synod had with the leaders and members of First Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls.  This consultation was held on September 21 prior to their first vote on whether to disaffiliate from the ELCA. 

 Paul is a retired intelligence officer and confessional Lutheran layman who is currently working toward a Master’s degree in Lutheran Theology. His work reflects a deep concern for pastoral integrity, congregational life, and the centrality of the Gospel in the Church.

 My analysis was written more from a governance perspective.  His is from a theological perspective.  A link to my analysis can be found HERE.  

The Bishop’s Consultation was held one week prior to the first vote on September 28.  For that vote 360 out of the 530 ballots (67.9%) voted to terminate the church’s affiliation with the ELCA and 170 ballots voted to stay with the ELCA.  A two-thirds vote on two separate occasions is required to disaffiliate.  The second vote was held on January 25.  There was a total of 661 votes, so 441 were needed to disaffiliate. The total votes were: Yes to disaffiliate: 434 (65.66%)

 – No to disaffiliate: 227.  So the vote failed.  Please join with me in prayer for the pastors, lay leaders, and congregation of First Lutheran Church.   

Paul writes –

Inspired by and written in response to Pastor Dennis D. Nelson’s Lutheran CORE article,
“An Analysis of a Bishop’s Consultation.”

In recent years, many Lutheran congregations have experienced deep strain—not primarily from external persecution, but from internal processes intended to bring “clarity,” “truth,” or “renewal.” Pastor Dennis D. Nelson’s careful and documented article, An Analysis of a Bishop’s Consultation, names this reality with sobriety and pastoral concern. His work provides an important occasion to reflect more broadly on the nature of pastoral care, ecclesial authority, and the proper work of the Church according to the Lutheran confession.

The concern raised is not simply the size or composition of synodical consultations, resource teams, or institutional delegations. Rather, the deeper issue lies in the spiritual logic that governs these encounters. When gatherings described as pastoral immediately introduce loss-based leverage—threats involving funding, scholarships, institutional standing, or reputational harm—the Church risks substituting fear for faith. At that point, consciences are no longer being addressed solely by God’s Word, but are being pressed by consequences.

The Lutheran Confessions speak clearly here. The Church has been given a specific and limited mandate: to proclaim Christ crucified for sinners and to distribute His gifts through Word and Sacrament. Pastors are not authorized to manage outcomes, secure compliance, or curate narratives. They are called to bind and loose consciences only by the Word of God (Augsburg Confession XXVIII). When pressure or strategic silence enters the process, the pastoral office is quietly transformed into an instrument of control rather than care.

This tension becomes especially acute when former pastors are drawn into congregational conflicts. Even where policies permit such involvement, the pastoral office is not a political role that can be redeployed to influence internal governance disputes. Former shepherds retain spiritual authority in the eyes of the congregation. When they are positioned—intentionally or not—to shape outcomes, the appearance—and often the reality—of manipulation is difficult to avoid. For congregations already carrying heavy burdens, this compounds confusion and deepens wounds.

Lutheran theology insists that Christ alone governs His Church through His appointed means. The Church is not renewed by stronger management structures, clearer messaging, or enforced alignment. She is renewed when sinners are forgiven, consciences are comforted, and faith is created and sustained by the Gospel. Any process, however well intentioned, that displaces this center risks turning the Church inward upon herself.

This danger becomes particularly visible when institutional programs or compliance frameworks assume organizing authority over the Church’s life. When ideological accountability or mandated initiatives become functionally central, the Church subtly shifts from proclamation to performance. Good works, justice, and love of neighbor matter deeply—but they must remain the fruit of faith, not a new law that becomes the Church’s operating gospel. As Luther repeatedly warned, even well-intended law always accuses.

Unity in the Church cannot be coerced. Trust cannot be engineered. Renewal cannot be managed. These are gifts of the Holy Spirit, given through the Gospel. When leaders substitute institutional righteousness for sacramental life, they may achieve short-term compliance, but they inevitably lose credibility. Congregations recognize when truth is being managed rather than spoken plainly, and when pastoral language is used to serve non-pastoral ends.

None of this is written with joy in separation. Faithful Lutherans rightly grieve division. The recent vote outcome at First Lutheran, Sioux Falls, only underscores the pastoral weight of these matters and the continued need for prayerful, confessional clarity. Yet coercion must not be baptized as care, nor narrative control labeled “truth.” When leaders refuse to speak plainly or to respect congregational integrity, trust collapses, and consciences seek refuge elsewhere.

The way forward is neither reactionary nor despairing. It is confessional. The Church must return again and again to her true center: Christ crucified for sinners, given freely in Word and Sacrament. Where this center is preserved, even painful disagreement can be borne with patience and hope. Where it is displaced, no amount of institutional effort will suffice.

Faithful Lutherans are not called to win battles, but to confess Christ clearly, soberly, and without fear—entrusting the Church to her true Lord, who sustains His people not by pressure, but by grace.

In Christ,
Paul Flemming

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VIDEO MINISTRIES

HERE is a link to our YouTube channel, which contains 66 videos on books and topics of interest and importance. This month we would like to feature two videos.  First, to continue the themes of guilt, grief, and grace in the opening article in this letter, we have a video review by Daniel Ostercamp of Philip Yancey’s book, “What’s So Amazing About Grace?”  And then Cathy Ammlung continues her series of helpful information for worship planners, particularly in churches where there is no regular called pastor.

“WHAT’S SO AMAZING ABOUT GRACE?”
by Philip Yancey
A review by Daniel Ostercamp

Many thanks to LCMC pastor Daniel Ostercamp for his video review of Philip Yancey’s book, “What’s So Amazing About Grace?”  HERE is a link to his review.  Daniel writes – 

Philip Yancey calls his readers to trust deeply in grace and to proclaim it as powerfully in their lives as in their words. Grace is the specifically Christian treasure that needs to be shared recklessly with the people who judge themselves solely by their successes and failures within this broken world. 

First published in 1997, the book would eventually sell more than two million copies.  The more recent edition includes a preface with reflections about how our world thirsts for grace even more today.  We are not people of reward, retribution or karma, but receivers and givers of love and mercy. 

We walk as best as we can in this life, hoping that our Lord Jesus can use us to form nourishing families, congregations and communities of grace.  The thoughtful writing of Philip Yancey can help you in that endeavor.

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TOOLKIT FOR WORSHIP PLANNING – PART THREE
by Cathy Ammlung

Many thanks to NALC pastor Cathy Ammlung for this third in a series of videos intended to provide congregations – especially those with temporary and/or longer-term pastoral vacancies – with some tools for worship planning.  A link to her video can be found HERE.  A link to the full manuscript of her presentation can be found HERE.   

In this video, Cathy covers the lectionary: What is it?  Where is it?  Why is it?  Why are there more than one?  How do you use the lectionary in worship planning?  What are some pitfalls, and what are the most important things to know about lectionaries as a worship planning tool?

In her first video in this series (LINK) Cathy discussed the whole issue of why worship planning is important.  In her second video (LINK) Cathy talked about the church year, including festivals.

* * * * * * *

May the Lord draw you closer to Himself and the Cross as you begin your Lenten journey.

In Christ,

Dennis D. Nelson
Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

My Heart Will Go On

On April 14, 1912, at 11: 40 PM ship time, the British passenger liner, the RMS Titanic, hit an iceberg, which caused her hull plates to buckle inwards in a number of places on her starboard side, and opened five of her sixteen watertight compartments to the sea.  Over the next two and a half hours the ship filled with water until just before 2:20 AM ship time, on April 15, 1912, when she broke up and sank with over fifteen hundred people still on board. 

One hundred years later – April 15, 2012 – was a Sunday.  In fact, it was the Sunday after Easter.

That day I preached a sermon entitled, “My Heart Will Go On.”

I am sure you recognize that phrase as the title of the main theme song of the 1997 blockbuster movie, “Titanic,” a fictionalized account of the sinking of that great ship.  It starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet as members of two very different social classes who fall in love aboard the ship during its ill-fated maiden voyage.

Recorded by Celine Dion, the song “My Heart Will Go On” quickly became the number one song all over the world.  The fact that that song became Celine Dion’s greatest hit, one of the best-selling singles of all time, and the world’s best-selling single for the year 1998, I believe shows a deep longing in the human heart.

On the Sunday after Easter, April 15, 2012 – one hundred years after the sinking of the Titanic – I shared with the congregation during the sermon that I could imagine the disciples – after the resurrection of Jesus – gathering together many times and sharing thoughts and feelings very similar to the ones that are expressed in Celine Dion’s song.

“Every night in my dreams I see you, I feel you.
That is how I know you go on.
Far across the distance and spaces between us
You have come to show you go on.

“Near, far, wherever you are 
I believe that the heart does go on.
Once more you open the door and you are here in my heart 
And my heart will go on and on.”

In one scene in the movie, as the ship is sinking, Leonardo DiCaprio says to Kate Winslet, “Do not let go of my hand.”  Kate Winslet replies, “I will never let go.”

And the resurrected Jesus says the same thing to us today.  “Do not let go of my hand” and “I will never let go of you.”  Therefore, because of Easter, like the original disciples, we too can say, My heart can and will go on.

First, because of Easter, your heart can and will go on BECAUSE YOUR PAST CAN BE FORGIVEN.   

Have you ever been halfway through a project and then wished that you could start out all over again?  A lot of people are living their lives that way.  They get halfway through life and then they wish that they could start out all over again.

We have all done things that we wish we had not done, said things that we wish we had not said, and thought things that we wish we had not thought.  We all have regrets.  We all carry a heavy load of guilt.

A lot of people cannot move on with the present and the future because they are stuck in the past. Some guilt and/or regret has them all tied up.  They are allowing a former relationship to mess up all their current relationships.  They are saying, “I guess I am just going to have to sit out the rest of my life.”  They are carrying around this huge emotional baggage, and they are wondering why they are so unhappy.

The apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 2: 14, “He erased the record that stood against us with its legal demands; He set this aside, nailing it to the cross.”

Jesus nailed all your sins to the cross.  He paid for all your guilt.  Which means that you do not have to pay for it anymore.

He was nailed to the cross so that you can stop beating yourself up.  He wants to – and He can – forgive your past.  He can cancel all of your debts – all of your emotional debts, relational debts, and spiritual debts.  He can cancel them all.

Like a bill that has been paid, once it has been paid, you can forget about it.  The same thing is true with your sins.  Once God has forgiven it, you can forget it.  It is like when you pay a bill online.  Once you have paid it, you can get a receipt for it.  If anyone says it has not been paid, you can show written proof that it has been paid.  The Bible is written proof that the debt for our sins has been paid.  Why would anyone not want to be a follower of Jesus if for no other reason than just to have a clear conscience?  Because of Easter, your heart can go on because your past can be forgiven.

In our First Reading for Easter Sunday, in Acts 10: 43, Peter is at the house of Cornelius, the Roman centurion.  He says about Jesus, “Everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name.”

Paul wrote in Romans 8: 1, “There is therefore now no condemnation awaiting those who belong to Jesus.”   

Did you ever have an Etch-A-Sketch?  What can you do if you mess up the picture on an Etch-A-Sketch?  You can flip it over, shake it, and then turn it right side up again, and there you will have a clean slate.  The cross is God’s Etch-A-Sketch.  He wants to and He can give you a clean slate.

Because of Easter you can know for sure that every single thing that you have ever done wrong can be completely forgiven.  There is therefore now no condemnation.  Jesus did not come to rub it in.  Rather He came to rub it out.  Jesus said in John 3: 17, “I did not come to condemn the world; rather I came to save the world.”  He wants to help you.  He wants to change you.  He wants to give you a new beginning.  Because of Easter, your heart can and will go on BECAUSE YOUR PAST CAN BE FORGIVEN.

And then second, because of Easter your heart can and will go on BECAUSE YOUR PRESENT CAN BE MANAGEABLE.

Several years ago I was driving on one of the southern California freeways during the middle of the day when all of a sudden my windshield started getting pelted by dozens of little objects as if it were hailing.  But the sky was clear.  Then I thought that maybe I just got hit by a bunch of gravel that came flying off of a truck in front of me.  But there was no truck in front of me.

Then I realized that I had gotten hit by dozens and dozens of bees.  There were splattered bees all over my windshield and mangled bee bodies on my windshield wipers.  I must have run into a swarm of bees.  I was just glad that I was not riding a motorcycle with my mouth open.

And the truth of the matter is that you never know when you might run into – or get run into by – a swarm of something.  Much in life is unmanageable.

Somebody once said, Maturity is when you figure out that you do not have it all figured out. Maturity is when you realize that you cannot control everything that life is going to send your way.

Faith is realizing that you cannot control everything in your life, but God can. So why not look to God and ask Him for His help.  Let God take charge of your life.

Many people say, “My life is out of control.  I feel powerless in my situation and powerless to change my situation.  I feel powerless to break a bad habit, save or sever a relationship, get out of debt, or get on top of my time, my schedule, and/or my finances.”

We all need a power that is greater than ourselves and that is outside of ourselves.  You were never meant to live life on your own power.  The Bible says in Ephesians 1: 19-20, “How incredibly great is His power to help those who believe in Him.  It is the same mighty power that raised Jesus from the dead.”

The same power that raised Jesus from the dead can help you rise above, deal with, and face your problems.  The same power that God displayed in the resurrection of Jesus two thousand years ago is available to you in your life right now.

We do not know what the future holds, but we can know who holds the future.  Even if it is out of our control, it is not out of God’s control.  He can give you the power to face it and deal with it.

In the Gospel writer Matthew’s account of Easter Sunday morning the angel says to the women (28: 5), “Do not be afraid,” and Jesus says to the women and the disciples (28: 10), “Do not be afraid.”  But we all have many reasons to be afraid.

John mentions three people in his account of Easter Sunday morning – Mary Magdalene, Peter, and “the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved,” who is generally considered to be the disciple John.  Each of them had reason to feel that their life was out of control.

Mark 16: 9 describes Mary Magdalene as the one from whom Jesus had cast out seven demons.  How those demons gained access to her life – and what kind of destructive affect they had on her life – we do not know.  But before she met Jesus her life must have been out of control.

Peter had real issues with lack of impulse control, and John must have been a real hot-head, because Jesus called John and his brother James the Sons of Thunder.  Yes, all three of these first witnesses to the resurrection before meeting Jesus were living lives that were unmanageable and out of control. 

The apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4: 13, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”  No problem is too big for God.  No situation is hopeless if you turn it over to Him.

The Bible does not say, I can face all things through the power of positive thinking.  Nor does it say, I can face all things if I get myself sufficiently all psyched up.  Rather it says, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”

Because of Easter, your heart can and will go on BECAUSE YOUR PAST CAN BE FORGIVEN and BECAUSE YOUR PRESENT CAN BE MANAGEABLE.   

And then, third, because of Easter, your heart can and will go on BECAUSE YOUR FUTURE CAN BE SECURE.   

One of the universal problems that we all have is death.  Everybody is going to die.  Someday I am going to die, and someday you are going to die.  Only a fool would go through life not preparing for something that is inevitable.

Will Rogers once said, Worry must really work because almost nothing that I worry about ever happens.  But death happens – sooner or later – to everybody.

It just does not make sense.  But so many people get so busy with the here and now that they do not stop to think about and prepare for what is 100% certain to happen.

A group of children were asked to write down what they believed about death.  An eight-year-old wrote, “When you die they put you in a box and bury you in the ground because you do not look so good.”  A nine-year-old said, “Doctors help you so you will not die until you pay their bills.” Another nine-year-old wrote, “When you die, you will not have to do homework in heaven unless your teacher is there too.”  And then a ten-year-old said, “A good doctor can help you so you won’t die.  A bad doctor sends you to heaven.”

The truth of the matter is that every one of us will die.  But many people do not want to think and/or talk about it.  But still, there is a deep, universal, human longing to know, “What is going to happen to me after I die?”  Because of Easter, your heart can and will go on because you can know for sure what will happen to you after you die.

Because of Easter, your future can be secure because if you believe in the Christ of Easter, then you can know for sure that you can and will spend eternity with Him.

Because of Easter, your heart can go on because YOUR PAST CAN BE FORGIVEN, YOUR PRESENT CAN BE MANAGEABLE, and YOUR FUTURE CAN BE SECURE.  Why would you not want to give your life to and live your life for the Christ of Easter?   

I pray that you experience the depth of God’s love and the joy, hope, and power of the resurrection during this Holy Week.

Dennis D. Nelson

Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

[email protected]

“For behold, they have set an ambush for my life; fierce men launch an attack against me, not for my transgression nor for my sin, O Lord, for no guilt of mine, they run and set themselves against me.”  (Psalm 59:3-4)

We often pay the recompense for our own sin in this world although forgiveness is granted to us by grace.  There are times though when others will attack with no real provocation and simply accuse and malign.  In a world of wickedness, these things do happen.  The Lord knows.  Look to the Lord who knows all things and be comforted by His grace to persevere in every time of trial.

Lord, as a sinner, I want revenge when it is by no fault of mine that I am being persecuted.  Grant that I would rest in Your grace and realize that You alone are able to handle every injustice, for You alone are able to discern what is right and fitting in every circumstance, Lead my heart to turn to You at all times and know that only in You can I find true peace that surpasses all understanding.

Lord Jesus, You have experienced the rebellion of the wicked first hand and know the false accusations that were raised against You.  In Your compassion and by Your understanding, lead me through these times of trial that will come that I may keep my eyes upon You and trust in Your never-failing support through all the tribulations of this world.  Lead me through Your grace dear Jesus.  Amen.

“Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation; then my tongue will joyfully sing of Your righteousness.  O Lord, open my lips, that my mouth may declare Your praise.”  (Psalm 51:14-15)

Any who say they carry no guilt walk in lies.  We all are unclean.  Only the Lord can clean us and He will for those who come to Him and willingly walk in His ways.  The natural reaction is to sing praise to the One who created all things.  Come then and learn from the Lord.  Let your heart learn to sung joyfully the praise of the Lord and declare His goodness to the ends of the earth.

 

Lord, my heart both wants this and does not want this.  I am in a struggle.  I confess some things, but hold back and pretend about others.  Bring me through the place where I play this game to the place of truth that I may now and always abide with You.  Send Your Spirit to nurture my soul that I may finish walking through the Valley of Death into Your abiding light of truth forever.

 

Lord Jesus, You are the Lamb who takes away the guilt of sin and forever banishes it for those who learn to love the Father.  Come lead me O Lord that I would walk in Your grace from where I am to where I need to be.  Help me learn from You how to be humble and holy.  Teach me to sing praises to You now and forever.  Guide me in the way I should go O Lord and then help me to walk that way.  Amen