Victory

Do days get any better?

Does news get any more profound?

He's alive!

He is risen!

He is risen indeed!

Victory
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein

The word spreads like fire through the city -
Best news I've ever heard, if it is true.
When the women went to prepare the body,
All they found was an empty tomb.

Is it really as the prophets spoke?
Has death been swallowed up in victory?
Oh, where are its plagues?
Where is its sting?

I really have to see this with my own eyes,
So I run as fast as I can go,
I lay eyes on the abandoned graveclothes
And set my hand on the rolled-away stone.
  
Is it really as the prophets spoke?
Has death been swallowed up in victory?
Oh, where are its plagues?
Where is its sting?

This Jesus, even death can't hold Him down!
This Jesus has conquered and He walks among us now!
I've heard it spoken from the lips of those who've seen,
I've been given all the evidence I need.

Because of this Jesus, His death, His Glorious Name,
Repentance and forgiveness can be proclaimed.
Never before have I felt such joy and such relief -
I'm in love and I am free!

And it's really as the prophets spoke,
Death's been swallowed up in victory!
Oh, where are its plagues?
Where are its plagues?
Where are its plagues?
Where is its sting?

And what kind of Glory has been revealed -
That God would be Just
And we'd be healed?



2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory



 

This Wait

Holy Saturday.

How to write of the impossible wait,

Of not knowing what would come next?

Reaching high for this one,

And faltering often.

This Wait
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein

Shabbat morning and I can't even rise,
But I hear rumors of what's going on outside.
They say His disciples have locked themselves away,
All of them understandably afraid.

Soldiers stand guard where He was laid,
So His followers won't slip into His grave,
Steal His body and claim He's alive.
Word is, He promised after three days He would rise.

This Man Who healed the sick and raised the dead,
The innocent One Who was condemned -
Dare I hope and dare I pray
For such an end to this wait?

Most people just go on with their lives,
A few sit and whisper of sacrifice,
How we offer again and again.
Can we really ever pay off this debt?

They tell how the prophet speaks
Of One whose wounds can really bring us peace.
They wonder what it means to say
That this Savior will prolong His days.

This Man Who healed the sick and raised the dead,
The innocent One Who was condemned -
Is it possible the wrath that I should get
Could somehow fall on another's head?
Can such a peace really exist -
That would lift the crushing wight off my chest?
Dare I hope and dare I pray?
Dare I hope and dare I pray?
Dare I hope and dare I pray
For such an end to this wait?



2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory



 

What Have I Done?

Oh, this one,

This song for Good Friday.

I may be telling a story,

But my heart feels the weight -

That this song's really about me.

Do songs get any harder to sing than this one?

Thank You, God, for Grace.

What Have I Done?
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein

I wake to chaos and commotion.
I dress and run to see what's going on.
A crowd has gathered before Pilate.
I spot Jesus, bound and beaten, near the front.

Pilate refuses to condemn Him.
The mob won't settle for less than their demands.
Their words resound throughout the courtyard,
"Crucify Him!"

And I find the same cry
Coming from my mouth and my heart.
This Jesus, He changes everything,
And I just want things to stay the way they are.
It hurts less.
I can't take this.

They drag Him through the streets to Golgotha.
He is so weak that He can barely stand.
I can hardly watch but feel compelled to follow,
So I go up to the place of death.

I see His agony as they hang Him,
Yet my heart sits like a stone within my chest.
The Rabbis and the soldiers all mock Him,
"If He's the Son of God, let Him save Himself from this!"
 
And I find the same cry
Coming from my mouth and my heart.
This Jesus, He changes everything,
And I just want things to stay the way they are.
It hurts less.
I can't take this.

I can barely hear that He is speaking,
But, I swear, His eyes pierce me right through.
He prays to God in heaven,
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

And my heart shatters apart,
I fall to the ground, utterly undone.
I find that it's not the government,
But it's my self that I need saving from.
What have I done?
What have I done?

I hear Jesus take His last breath,
I feel the earth tremble under me.
My tears wet the bloodstained ground.
Truly, this Man was Who He claimed to be.


2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory



 

Seder

Thursday,

Maundy Thursday,

"Thursday of the Commandment".

Thursday, Jesus celebrates the Passover Seder with His disciples.

Beth Moore's Passion 2013 message comparing the Biblical account with the traditional ceremony has never left my mind,

Symbolism buried deeper than I would have understood.

I stayed up late Wednesday to listen.

My favorite part is where she speaks of "dayenu" - "it would have been enough" or "it would have been sufficient",

And she says it wouldn't have been sufficient.

If Jesus had just been born of a virgin, it would have been a miracle, but it would not have been sufficient.

If Jesus had just taught the Word of God, it would not have been sufficient.

If He had healed the sick,

Cast out demons,

Raised the dead,

It would not have been sufficient.

If He had been beaten and scorned and mocked, but never shed a single drop of blood, it would not have been sufficient.

That part didn't make it into the song,

But it's sure been in my heart.

Here's my (summary) retelling of the Seder.

Seder
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein

I slip into the house where they're eating.
I shouldn't be there, but I really have to know.
I sit on the stair as Jesus reads
How we were delivered long ago.

He pours the first cup of promise,
Recounts how God said, "I will bring you out."
They drink the wine and say,
"Blessed be the Lord!"

I know that it is time for the hand washing,
I inch closer, trying to peek.
I can see Jesus kneeling,
Washing their feet.

He says, "A servant is not greater than his master,"
Teaches them to do as He has done.
The disciples aren't sure what to think.
I, too, have never seen a Seder like this one.

They take the second cup of promise,
Recount how God said, "I will deliver you."
They drink the wine and say,
"Blessed be the Lord!"

Jesus takes the matzah and He breaks it,
They eat the bitter herbs until they cry,
But I think it's much more than the pain of Egypt
Flowing from His eyes.

He says that one of them will betray Him,
Gives the dipped bread to the man I saw yesterday.
Jesus tells the man to go on with his plans,
I barely have time to get out of the way.

He pours the third cup of promise,
But only into His own glass.
Is this not God's Word - 
"I will redeem you with an outstretched hand"?

He breaks the bread and says it's His body,
Tells them to take it and eat.
The cup, His blood of the covenant,
He passes around to drink.

And, Jesus, He doesn't pour the fourth cup,
God's promise, "I will take this people as my own."
They sing Hallel and leave.
I sit, too stunned to see where they go.


2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory



 

Who He Claims to Be

Song for Spy Wednesday -

The day that seemed too quiet,

Yet so much was going on.

Oh, I know these need work,

But they've sure been working on my heart.

Who He Claims to Be
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein

He teaches in the temple this morning.
I hear the thunder echo in the sky.
He speaks of judgment and says He'll be lifted up,
Tells us to believe and become sons of light.

The others in the crowd voice my objections -
That the Law says the Christ will remain.
How then can the Messiah be lifted up?
Or is this Jesus not what He claims?

And the whispers rustle through the crowd
Like the wind blowing in the trees,
"Will He not bring prosperity?"
"Will He not bring us peace?"
"Is He a liar?"
"Is He crazy?"
"Is He Who He claims to be?"

The high priest has called a secret meeting,
Invited members of the council to his home.
From where I stand, I have seen them walking in,
But, what they speak of, God only knows.

Someone to my left says that they're praying.
Another to my right says they're afraid
Of the punishment if Jesus leads the people to rebel.
Still another says they're jealous of His fame.


And the whispers rustle through the crowd
Like the wind blowing in the trees,
"Will He not bring prosperity?"
"Will He not bring us peace?"
"Is He a liar?"
"Is He crazy?"
"Is He Who He claims to be?"

I see one more slip into the meeting -
Swift as a shadow, yet he catches my eye.
He comes out later holding a bag in his hands,
I glimpse his face and see it's one of Jesus' friends.
Something here just doesn't seem quite right.

Will He not bring prosperity?
Will He not bring us peace?
Is He a liar?
Is He crazy?
Is He Who He claims to be?


2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory



 

No One Ever Spoke Like This Man

Oh, what He says on Tuesday?

Blows my mind and leaves a knife stuck in my chest.

It was hard to write into song,

But, oh, so worth it.

No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein

Tuesday He comes again to the temple,
I stand among the crowds to hear Him teach.
"An uneducated young man,"
Those who study Torah call Him.
Funny, that isn't how He seems.

The Pharisees come up as He is teaching,
Ask of the authority by which He speaks.
He asks them the same of John,
And, for fear of reputation,
They do not answer, but rather turn to leave.

And no one ever spoke like this Man.
These leaders have never been so stumped before.
When He speaks, their eyes grow cold
As though He stares into their souls,
Yet they keep trying, sure they'll gain the upper hand,
But no one ever spoke like this Man.

The Pharisees come back a little later,
This time it seems they've really thought,
Ask if the tax is wrong or right,
He lets the image decide -
Reminds us we're made in the image of God.

Well, the Sadducees try next to trick Him,
Try to show the resurrection is absurd.
He just blows them all away,
Tells them they don't know what they say,
Don't know God's Power or what's written in His Word.

And no one ever spoke like this Man.
These leaders have never been so stumped before.
When He speaks, their eyes grow cold
As though He stares into their souls,
Yet they keep trying, sure they'll gain the upper hand,
But no one ever spoke like this Man.

Then the Pharisees send forth one lawyer,
Who wonders which command is the greatest in the Law.
And the answer Jesus gives-
How it burns within my chest! -
Shema Yisrael . . . love your God
With all your heart and soul and mind,
Love your neighbor as much as your own pride.
The lawyer hails Him as wise,
I lower my eyes.
How well have I done this in my life?

No one ever spoke like this Man,
No one's words have ever cut so deep.
When I convince my head to rise,
I see Him catch my eyes,
Wonder if it's my tears or my heart He's looking at.
No one ever spoke like this Man.


2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory



 

House of Prayer

It's a week of passionate burning

To get these words out,

To tell this story -

Not just the story of some random observer,

But, in so many ways, my story.

Today I even had to improvise a music stand.

Monday - Jesus cleanses the temple.

House of Prayer
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein 

I am standing in the temple when He comes in,
I watch Him as He moves through the crowd.
He walks toward all the merchants, fire burning in His eyes,
He is determined to kick them out.

I watch Him overturn their tables and throw their chairs,
Step back as one stool lands before my feet.
The vendors start running for the exit.
He makes every last one leave.

He shouts, "You set up market in a house of prayer,
Bring in your thievery and lust,
Your wicked hearts defile what ought to be pure,
Your voices drown out those who come to worship God."

The children all laugh and sing, "Hosanna",
The adults are far too shocked to speak.
Just yesterday they'd been celebrating judgment,
But they wanted judgment on their enemies.

The Pharisees are seething in the corner,
Their hateful thoughts written in their eyes.
They scan the scene, try to control what's happening,
As Jesus teaches, cutting through their lies.

He says, "You set up market in a house of prayer,
Bring in your thievery and lust,
Your wicked hearts defile what ought to be pure,
Your voices drown out those who come to worship God."

And what man ever spoke like this before?
Who, in anger, has ever been so right?
Whose words have ever cut me to the core,
And yet are so full of life?

And His face is set, as solid as a stone.
What for, I can't pretend to understand.
This Jesus, He isn't what I wanted,
But maybe God's given something better instead.



2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory



 

Hosanna

I know it's been quiet here for far too long,

And probably will be again for a bit longer,

But this week?

This week is special.

If I could just share with you some of my meditations?

I know I'm a day late,

But I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Hosanna
by Mary Schieferstein
©2014 Mary Schieferstein

The prophets spoke of old,
Their words resound with hope
That we are almost too cut off to feel.

The rulers of this land
Are terrified we'll take a stand,
But we have neither the strength nor the zeal.

We've been watching for the One
Who was promised to come,
And You're sure closer than anything we've seen.

So, will You hear our cry,
Or will You leave us here to die?
Won't You give us what we need?

Hosanna, Jesus,
Will You not save us, Son of David?
Will You not bring forth the Kingdom,
You, most honored and most blessed?
Hosanna in the highest.

The kings of old rode off to war
With shining armor and sharpened swords,
Yet here You sit on a donkey's colt.

Has no one told You of the plan?
Please, won't You say You understand,
Please, say You've come to rescue Your own.


Hosanna, Jesus,
Will You not save us, Son of David?
Will You not bring forth the Kingdom,
You, most honored and most blessed?
Hosanna in the highest.

Oh, I did not expect
That You would come like this,
Won't You please tell me You see something that I can't.
Please tell me that there is still a plan.
Please tell me You'll save us from this mess.

Hosanna, Jesus,
Will You not save us, Son of David?
Will You not bring forth the Kingdom,
You, most honored and most blessed?
Hosanna in the highest.

Hosanna, Jesus,
Will You not save us, Son of David?
Will You not bring forth the Kingdom,
You, most honored and most blessed?
Hosanna in the highest.

Hosanna in the highest.

Not your typical Palm Sunday song, I know.

I wanted to catch the desperation,

To understand how the crowd felt, beneath the excitement -

Picture a lone young woman, behind the throng, catching glimpses of Jesus through the crowd.

She knows what they're all hoping for - what she's hoping for -

But is that what they're going to get?

I love the emotion of that.

Thoughts?

I always love to hear them.

Thank you so much, friends.

God bless!



2014 Easter Songs Series:
Palm Sunday - Hosanna
Monday - House of Prayer
Tuesday - No One Ever Spoke Like This Man
Spy Wednesday - Who He Claims to Be
Maundy Thursday - Seder
Good Friday - What Have I Done?
Holy Saturday - This Wait
Easter Sunday - Victory