Have you really listened to MERCYME

I am now 39 years old and next May, I will be 40. I have heard so much about the crisis that some people go through when they reach 40. This age seems to be a turning point in the life of many people. Many people seem to believe that if you have not accomplished anything by 40 then you are stuck.

I guess that is why I love the music of Mercyme. These guys are not young. They have been ministering for many years and until just a few years ago, they became extremely popular. I remember seeing a video of one of their concerts back many years ago when their lead singer, Bart, told the crowd to pray for them because they were going through some hard times. What really impresses me about this group is their testimony. They have wonderful families and they all seem to love each other.

A Reporter once asked the Bart, "Did the group start 10 years ago." Bart replied, I believe that God was already working inside of me even during High School, preparing me for this ministry. Can you imagine that even when he was in High School, God had placed a burden on his heart but they had to wait a huge amount of years before they really started touching people with their ministry. That is a long time to wait. So many times, we want everything done so quickly and if God does not bless us immediately, we give up. Look how many years Jacob, in the Bible, had to wait on this wife. Waiting is part of being a Christian because who are we to hurry up the Lord. We have to learn to have patience and wait on him.

In churches today, their is a huge controversy about what is contemporary and what is not. I do not even like that word contemporary because we, as christians, have placed that word into our book or dirty words. The question we should ask is "Is this Godly or not" and what I mean by Godly is, does this music bring people closer to God. Everyone has different taste in music and their nothing wrong with that so I will tell you that Mercyme has brought me closer to God. Their lyrics are so powerful and it goes right to the heart of a Christian.

Bart's father died many years ago and Mercyme wrote three songs that have helped me through some hard times. One is known by everyone, "I can only Imagine". If you have never heard then you really need to hear this song. If you have ever lost someone close to you then please listen to this song. They also wrote Homesick which also talks about being homesick for heaven. I am going to add a video to this blog of my Father which passed away last year with the song, I can only Imagine.



I could talk about Mercyme all day long but all I can say is that I thank the Lord for them. The Samaritan Revival Group sings many of their songs in spanish and these songs have blessed many spanish speaking people.

I will be writing about Casting Crowns next. They also have an incredible ministry.

Philip Tyson