Jars of Clay: If I Stand

Jars of Clay performs a song by Rich Mullins:

Moments of Mullins' Meanderings

Simple yet profound meanderings of Rich Mullins were regular occurrences during his concerts. I recently stumbled upon this video. Although I've seen it before I was again reminded of the tremendous blessing that this man, whom I never met, has been to me.

Everywhere I go I see You…

All creation displays the glory of God. I’m seeing the glory of God in many places; in sunsets, in my beautiful wife, in a father’s unconditional love, in my unbreakable love for my daughter, and most lately in a friend who is very conformed to the image of Christ. All of these are God’s creation, and as such they display His glory as He has designed them to do so.

Some glimpses of His glory as seen in His creation are too marvelous for words. During those times when I behold His glory in His varied displays of His majesty my heart overflows with joy unspeakable. Tonight was one of those times.

Like John the Baptist leaped in his mothers womb when Mary, pregnant with Jesus, entered the room, so my heart leaps with joy at this friendship with one of Jesus’ disciples. If my heart can be so impacted by some of God’s children - then what will it be like to be with Jesus for eternity? If my circuits are nearly overloaded by the glory of Christ that I encounter in His people and His creation oh what eternal and unspeakable joy must await His people who will have the infinitely priceless treasure of knowing Him more and enjoying Him more forever.

1Co 2:9 However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"—


My heart with thankfulness does overflow
That Your dear mercy and glory I may know
Words fail me to speak of You adequately
I find myself desiring You ever increasingly
You are breathtakingly majestic and beautiful
May I enjoy You to the absolute limits possible
May the veil You pull forever away
That in visions of Your glory I might ever stay


One of Rich’s songs is especially pertinent to this: “I see You.”

For a sample of the studio version of this awesome song click here and then click on the song entitled "I see You." Although this video is a little rough, this song is one of my all time favorites!

Rich Mullins: The Color Green

Rich had a gift for writing heart-felt God-worshipping lyrics. This song is an excellent example.

My Deliverer is coming

Rich Mullins

My favorite musician of all time is without a doubt Rich Mullins. Although he passed away just over 10 years ago his music still ministers to me and to countless others.

For those who do not know much about Rich, he was a passionate and extraordinarily gifted musician who radically loved Jesus. Rich could have been very wealthy because of his music, but he was not by choice. He chose rather to take the average salary of an American (I think about $26,000 at the time) and he assigned a board to oversee the rest of his money which was used to support many worthwhile causes. He lived on an Indian reservation in New Mexico and spent lots of his time teaching music to and serving the native Americans.

I thought I'd do my best to highlight his musical gifting for your enjoyment - just in case you're not familiar with him. Here are some of my favorite albums of his. You can click on the links to listen to song samples from amazon.com:


A liturgy a legacy & a ragamuffin band











Songs











Songs 2







The world as best as I can remember it Vol. 1











The world as best as I can remember it Vol. 2











The Jesus Record
- This was Rich's last recording. This album consists of 2 CDs; 1 of Rich (rough & awesome audio - not recorded in studio) and 1 of his group and other recording artist friends of his playing his songs from this album. Rich died in a car accident (1997) only a few days after recording these songs.





It is an amazing thing to me that one can love someone so much that they have never even met. I'm astounded at the impact that this man whom I never met has had on me. I was about 14 years old when I first I began listening to Rich. 15 years later his music is still ministering to me, and no doubt many others as well. I have often thought that Rich will be one of the first people I want to meet when I get to heaven. I look forward to singing worship songs with him.

Thank you Lord for the gift of Rich Mullins.

A Rich quote:
"We walk by faith and not by sight - not because we are blind, but because faith gives us the courage to face our fears and puts those fears in a context that makes them less frightful. We walk by faith and not by sight because there are places to go that cannot be seen and the scope of our vision is too small for our strides. Faith is not a denial of facts - it is a broadening of focus."

It is my sincere hope that you may enjoy the music ministry of Rich Mullins as much as I have.

Enjoy!