STAY

Probably the hardest thing about the World Race was having to say goodbye every single month. We would spend a whole month in each country pouring into lives and building up people while they did the same for us. Over the course of a month, we would obviously build a lot of really close relationships with the locals. Every month, when it came time to leave, we had to explain to a child or tribesman or whoever that we were leaving and we were not sure if we would ever be coming back. Many times we even had to leave them in their bad situations, unable to promise a better tomorrow (outside of heaven). We learned fast that we had no choice but to leave it to God because it was too big for us. Such is the case with all our problems.

This is a song I wrote while still on the race. I wrote it first in month 3 in Cambodia after we had left our ministry at Good Sheppard Orphanage. Later in month 6, God prompted me to re-write it completely. I obliged and went a completely different angle for the song, as God had put on my heart. What resulted was a song written for more than me, but also for a friend, Melissa Betz. She helped me tweak a few prepositions and adverbs to make it more grammatically correct (thanks sis) and helped develop the rhythm and tune of the song, because I know nothing about such things. Cameron Caviness provided the guitar note mastery to give the song its heartbeat, and by the end of month 9 we had a finished product.

There is a much longer and more God-glorifying story to the development of this song, which I will post in a subsequent blog. I do not have a recording of the song to go with these lyrics, but as soon as I do, I will add it to this blog and repost it. Until then, enjoy.