I am a huge fan of music. From classical to hip hop, I love it all (except country). There is nothing that stirs my mind's attention and my heart's affections like Christian music. Let's be honest for a second. There is some Christian music out there, past and present, that I could do without and have no shame in hitting the next button as soon as I hear the first note. Some of my favorite people to listen to are Shane and Shane, Bethel, Bryan and Katie Torwalt, and TGP, just to name a few. Not only are they incredibly talented musicians but they are also biblically sound writers. 

I remember driving home the other day and a certain Shane and Shane song came on and I couldn't help but weep. Let me share the lyrics with you: 

The father of lies
Coming to steal
Kill and destroy
All my hopes of being good enough
I hear him saying cursed are the ones
Who can't abide
He's right
Alleluia he's right!

The devil is preaching
The song of the redeemed
That I am cursed and gone astray
I cannot gain salvation
Embracing accusation

Could the father of lies
Be telling the truth
Of God to me tonight?
If the penalty of sin is death
Then death is mine
I hear him saying cursed are the ones
Who can't abide
He's right
Alleluia he's right!

Oh the devil's singing over me
An age old song
That I am cursed and gone astray
Singing the first verse so conveniently
He's forgotten the refrain
Jesus saves!

Any time I hear this song I cannot help but to weep. I weep because of the last two words: Jesus saves. The entire song is full of truth; I cannot gain salvation, I am cursed and gone astray, death is mine. It's full of a weighty truth that can become a burden if we choose to believe it and forget the refrain. If we choose not to believe that Jesus saves. 

When they sing "He's forgotten the refrain/ Jesus saves", I lose it. We are not cursed anymore because of Jesus. We can abide because of Jesus. We are found because of Jesus. Embracing accusations is part of the beauty. In order to understand the beauty of being found, we must understand that we are lost. But hallelujah, Jesus saves!

Embrace the accusations but don't forget the refrain. Embrace the fact that you are weak, broken, weary, and a hot mess. Cling to the refrain: Jesus saves, mends, heals, restores, adopts, and calls us his own.