Lord Jesus, You Shall Be My Song (ELW 808)
1 Lord Jesus, you shall be my song as I journey;
I’ll tell ev’rybody about you wherever I go:
you alone are our life and our peace and our love.
Lord Jesus, you shall be my song as I journey.
2 Lord Jesus, I’ll praise you as long as I journey.
May all of my joy be a faithful reflection of you.
May the earth and the sea and the sky join my song.
Lord Jesus, I’ll praise you as long as I journey.
3 As long as I live, Jesus, make me your servant,
to carry your cross and to share all your burdens and tears.
For you saved me by giving your body and blood.
As long as I live, Jesus, make me your servant.
4 I fear in the dark and the doubt of my journey;
but courage will come with the sound of your steps by my side.
And with all of the family you saved by your love,
we’ll sing to your dawn at the end of our journey.
Text: Les Petites Soeurs de Jésus and L’Arche Community; tr. Stephen Somerville, b. 1931
Text © 1987 Les Petites Soeurs de Jésus, admin. Augsburg Fortress. Tr. © 1970 Stephen Somerville, admin. Augsburg Fortress.
Reprinted under OneLicense.net #A730924
Devotion
Though the choice of this as our theme hymn for Lent holds up the metaphor of a journey, I must state that I prefer to see Lent as a season rather than a journey. Though I am a millennial, I don’t relish the tendency of millennials to make everything into a journey—I am on a wellness journey, a fitness journey, and so on.
Palm Sunday ushers in the final week of Lent—the final stretch. We have spent weeks preparing our hearts for Easter. Perhaps we have fasted. Perhaps we have added a spiritual practice, increased scripture reading, or deepened our prayer time. So no, for me Lent is not a journey, but by the end of it, it always feels like it has been a long season of waiting. Next week we will celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, a miracle like no other. Let us spend the last week of this season truly reflecting and preparing ourselves for this good news.
Prayer
Gracious God, as we continue to pray and fast and prepare ourselves for the Easter miracle, sustain us and bless us. Amen.