Developing in Life (Song)
Reference: SPD-S02-001-Sw-R00-P2
(Written on on 9 April 2003)
Web site: http://www.ajourneyinlife.org and http://www.ajourneyinlife.com
This song is protected by copyright © 2003 Lim Liong. Permission is given to reproduce part (where the meaning is retained and the part is not quoted out of context) or all, of it, for personal use or for sharing with others, on condition that no changes are made and the song is made available free of charge, and not used in any commercial setting. Please do so with carefulness and discretion.
This paragraph must be included when the song is reproduced so that others who reproduce it will be conscious of the conditions stated above.
As you see the day growing bright,
And behold your need and plight,
Do you choose to walk in the light,
Learning to do what is good and right?
As you face the forces of night,
And you take your stand to fight,
Do you trust God and His might,
Walking by faith and not by sight?
As I see God's glory so bright,
And I give Him all my right,
I will always walk by His light,
Living is Christ my true delight!
The song above would be better appreciated in conjunction with the reading of A Journey in life, Part 2 Volume 1: The process of Life. This song expresses the main issues considered in Part 2 —- the path of moral and spiritual development in life while living in this world, involving the need to deal with the self-life, overcoming the evil one, the temptations and sufferings in this world, and the development of moral and spiritual substance in our being.
As you see the day growing bright,
And behold your need and plight,
The phrase 'the day growing bright' is intended to refer to the physical realm as well as the spiritual realm. In the physical realm, it refers to the daily experiences we go through in life: as the day dawns and grows brighter, we encounter various situations in life, including difficulties, pain and sufferings. Such situations reveal our weaknesses and failures and help us to recognize our need to come to God for help. In the spiritual realm of 'the day growing bright', it means that when we make progress in our spiritual development there is increasing spiritual light from God, with a better understanding of the realities of the spiritual realm and what is required of us. In this light, we behold our weaknesses and failures in a way and to a degree that we may not have been conscious before —- light exposes what has been in the darkness in our lives.
Do you choose to walk in the light,
Learning to do what is good and right?
When our weaknesses and needs are revealed, the way we respond will directly affect our development. Would we run away from the light of God and hide, unwilling to face our failures and deal with them honestly? Would we lament our failures and become discouraged and wallow in self-pity and hopelessness? Or would we set our hearts to always come to the light of God, humbling ourselves before Him in a spirit of contriteness and asking Him to teach us how to overcome, even though it means the painful process of denying ourselves, taking up our cross daily and following the Lord Jesus? Do we truly want to live according to God's ways and His standards, 'learning to do what is good and right'?
As you face the forces of night,
And you take your stand to fight,
The apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians 6: 10-20 that we are involved in a spiritual warfare with the powers of darkness ('the forces of night'), and it is critical that we learn how to take our stand to fight against them, and having done all, to remain standing firm in our faith in God. If we are to grow strong and overcome the evil one, and develop deep oneness with God in our moral and spiritual being, we must be resolute and uncompromising in our rejection of the evil one and all his ways and not in any way entertain any suggestion that comes from him. If we are prepared for the cost that is involved in this spiritual war and we take our stand with God and His will, we need not be afraid of the evil one and what he may do to us, though the path may be difficult and long.
Do you trust God and His might,
Walking by faith and not by sight?
If we are not prayerful in our lives, we are likely to seek to overcome temptations and pressures from the evil one by our own means -- our natural and worldly wisdom and abilities. If we do so, we will inevitably be defeated, and we will know the misery and wretchedness of failure despite great determination, as the apostle Paul describes so clearly in Romans 7: 14-24. On the other hand, if we learn to always depend on God and His power, we will know the victory in this battle, as we learn increasingly to trust Him and obey Him in all aspects of our lives.
The path of walking by sight is closely related to the self-life, as we live according to natural inclinations and abilities and choose the path that is easier and more pleasant. On the other hand, the path of walking by faith requires our giving of ourselves fully to God, to live for Him and with Him, as we learn to concentrate on the spiritual and eternal rather than the visible and temporal, living by good and stable moral and spiritual meaning rather than morally damaging passing pleasures and fleshly feelings.
As I see God's glory so bright,
And I give Him all my right,
The third stanza is a testimony of all those who have decided to give their lives completely to God to live according to His will and His ways. If we grow well, we will behold the glory of God, in His being and in His will and His ways, in increasing brilliance and beauty. This can encourage us and inspire us to a deeper response of worship and adoration and a greater steadfastness in our commitment to Him and His will, in the midst of struggles and pain in this world. We will then find great joy in living for Him, walking with Him and doing His will, in increasing oneness with Him. As we learn to be willing and joyful bond slaves of the Lord, we will not cling to our 'rights'. Instead, we will submit to God and His will in all situations, gladly and resolutely affirming, "Not my will but Yours be done", with meaningful appreciation of the rightness of this path and living by what is truly right in His sight. It is in this context that we can fully exercise our rights as children of God and disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ to partake of the life of God and to participate in His plans and purposes.
The deepest roots of the self-life must be thoroughly and completely dealt with if we are to grow to maturity in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a long and difficult process, but as we identify with what is in the heart of God, we will discover that the treasures of this world that were so attractive to us before have become of no significance to us now. The apostle Paul entered into this reality as he counted all things as 'rubbish' in order that he might know the Lord and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, so that the resurrection life of the Lord Jesus would characterize his way of living (Philippians 3: 7-14).
I will always walk by His light,
Living is Christ my true delight!
These last two lines emphasize the spiritual principle that if we want a life of moral and spiritual quality, there is the vital necessity for an enduring and complete commitment to walk with God in His ways with all honesty and integrity, always to do what is pleasing in His sight and always to live by His grace and power.
When the Lord Jesus has become the basis of our lives, the goal and the means to attain the deepest longings of our hearts to be good and to be one with God, and when He is deeply formed in our moral being, we will then know the liberating and ever-growing joy and fulfilment of living life at the highest plane of meaning for now and for eternity.