song for theme #8B: Belief in a Personal God

“A Better Day” by Stephen P. Cook

to be sung to the tune of “Higher Ground” by  Green, Agee, and Dorff / Barbra Streisand

I recall when

My life turned

Running scared

Bridges burned

Shame and death for me over the edge

You made me stop and make a pledge

Calculating cynicism¹

I traded for faith and trust

Facing life with humility²

Not privileged upper crust

So oh my God

How I live for You

Be my guide

Goodness shining through

Keep me safe

To You I pray

Lead us to

A better day

I once felt

Alone, separate³

With no spirit

No hand to hold

Lifeless concrete all around me

Like an empty tomb: damned cold⁴

Finding You my salvation

Greatly nurturing my soul

Where sun finds cracked pavement

We know flowers will soon grow

So oh my God

How I live for You

Be my guide

Goodness shining through

Keep me safe

To You I pray

Lead us to

A better day

SONG—NOTES / COMMENTS

1—This recalls Pope John Paul II’s “cynical society of consumerism” remark in his 1984 Christmas message from Rome.

2—Humility, or being humble, to Alan Morinis involves "limiting oneself to an appropriate amount of space while leaving room

      for others."  In relating to others a humble orientation proclaims, "I don't have all the answers and I want your contribution." 

3—Alone and separate is one way of describing feeling estranged or alienated. It is the opposite of belonging.  If love involves

      what belongs together being together, then hate involves bringing about or enforcing their separation.

4—To some this may invoke the opposite of the traditional fires of Hell: a cold modern psychological state associated with

      spiritual death, pain, loss, and the ultimate alienation.

Comment: this theme has value as emotional armor. Just as fearful or bruised children turn to parents for security, reassurance, or comfort, millions of adults depend on a personal relationship with God, often con-ceived of as a parent. Project Worldview themes related to building a conception of God, or one of disbelief,  include #1A, #1B, #2A, #5A, #5B, #7A, #7B, #8A, #8B, #9A, #9B, #10, #11A, #11B, #14A, and #14B.

Got a “chip on your shoulder” and don’t believe in a God who answers prayers? Perhaps you’ve spent your reality cash too soon, “before you have seen everything?” What you may not have seen is yourself scared out of your mind, totally alone, where it seems nothing short of a miracle will save you. When the chips are down, will you go quietly into the night, or will your whole being—with emotion you can not imagine—desperately cry for divine help? “There are no atheists in foxholes” is one of those complete sentences with its own Wikipedia entry; “Do not go gentle into that good night” from poet Dylan Thomas is another.