Hymns With A Message: WHERE COULD I GO?

Sunday, January 28, 2018

WHERE COULD I GO?

There is an appointment that we all have and can't avoid. That is our final earthly appointment with death. We don't know how it will happen or when it will happen. For some it happens quickly for others it is a long painful event. And while we can't do anything to avoid it, the key is being ready for the next step - eternity, with or without the Savior. I have watched many of my friends and family meet this appointment over the years, some seemingly too early in life. But a loving God has a plan and purpose for each. Recently another friend of mine, a good Bible teacher, received a terminal diagnosis. Here are some things that he shared with me. "Pray that in this journey ... I will bring the Lord honor and glory, that in some way I would radiate Jesus to everyone I come in contact with in the medical world. There is no medical cure at this time only treatment to stabilize and maintain. Death is a natural part of life and I have faith that the Lord is in this some how. It certainly is not what I had planned. But in His wisdom He has made this a part of our lives. It is now time for my last teaching assignment and that is to teach younger saints how to die. Pray that I teach it well." We can't predict how we will each react when we receive this news, but one thing is certain. Where we can really go at that time is to the Lord. He alone will provide the strength and peace we need to meet this appointment. This week's song asks the question where can we go? It was written in 1940 by James (J. B.) Coats (1901-1961), a songwriter from Mississippi. The inspiration for the song came some years earlier when Coats was at the bedside of one of his dying neighbors, an African-American gentleman named Joe Keyes. Being a preacher, Coats had asked Keyes if he knew where he would spend eternity when he died. Keyes simply replied, "Where could I go but to the Lord?" Some years later, as he was away from home teaching a singing school, Coats finally included these words in his gospel song. As Coats wrote, "Life here is grand with friends I love so dear. Comfort I get from God's own word. Yet when I face this chilling hand of death, where could I go but to the Lord?" What a joy to know that when we come to that final appointment, the Lord will be there to safely carry us through the fear and pain, safely to the better land He is preparing for us. Do you have this assurance?

1. Living below, in this old sinful world

Hardly a comfort can afford

Striving alone, to face temptation's sword

Where could I go but to the Lord?

Where could I go, oh where could I go?

Seeking a refuge for my soul

Needing a friend, to help me in the end

Where could I go, but to the Lord?

2. Neighbors are kind, I love them everyone

We get along in sweet accord

But when my soul, needs manna from above

Where could I go but to the Lord?