Without Him

Without Him I could do nothing.
Without Him I’d surely fail.
Without Him I would be drifting,
Like a ship without a sail.

Without Him I would be dying.
Without Him I’d be enslaved.
Without Him life would be worthless,
But with Jesus, thank God I’m saved

Chorus:
Oh Jesus, oh Jesus
Do you know Him today?
Please don’t turn Him away!
Oh Jesus, my Jesus
Without Him how lost I would be!

I will go ahead and apologize now because I know you are probably thinking to yourself, “Jeff, what does this quaint old song have to do with Christmas?”  Well, as Christmas rolled around this year, I would constantly hear people talking about the needs of others (which is a good thing).  People that need food.  People that need jobs.  People that need Christmas gifts.  People that just need help.  The reality is that this world is filled with people that are “doing without” this year because of their financial circumstances.  But the more I heard this, the more I wondered about how many more people there are that are materially blessed, but are still “doing without.”  Those that are “doing without” Jesus.  They are walking through this world without hope, without peace, without an assurance of their eternal destiny.  Folks that are living this life completely “Without Him.”   I wondered to myself, maybe this is the kind of song that needs to be sung at Christmas time.  Maybe there are those “doing without” even though they have full shopping carts and plenty of gifts around the tree, and we need to be reminded that some people are “doing without” but in a different way.  Those that are living with an emptiness on the inside because they are living without God.  I doubt this song will be on the next hit Christmas album, but as Christians, I hope we take advantage of this season to be different than the world.  That we can not only materially bless others (helping those in need of food, clothing, shelter, money, etc.), but that we can also share the good news of Jesus’ birth, death and resurrection in this world too.

Couple of comments on the lyrics:

• “Drifting like a ship without a sail” – When I first thought about this phrase, I got the image of a boat on calm waters out in the Gulf of Mexico and wondered if “drifting” was really all that bad.  Maybe a better mental image is one of a tattered boat that has gone through the storms of the seas.  The boat is battered.  The sails are torn.  The rudder is broken and the ship is directionless.  And there is no anchor to rely on.  That truly is a picture of what it is to live this life without God.  Without Him, we are truly are without hope, drifting, and dying.
• “I’d be enslaved” – There is a perception by non-believers that Christianity is a religion that enslaves.  They see the Ten Commandments and all the “do’s and don’t’s” and they think to themselves, “I want to be free to do whatever I want.”  The reality for these people is that they are already enslaved to something.  It may be money/greed.  It may be some type of alcohol/drug.  It may be that they are enslaved to self and selfishness.  But all of us are serving a master.  That master is sin, self, and the wickedness of this world.  Or that Master is Jesus.  He is the Master who’s “yoke is easy and whose burden is light.”

So as you celebrate this Christmas, my prayer is that you will not “do without.”  No, I am not as concerned about too many folks on the “Hymn of the week” distribution list doing without a meal, or doing without a few Christmas gifts.  I am more concerned that we go through this season, and do so “Without Him.”  It is easy in the hustle and bustle to forget Him.  To make Him an afterthought.  To celebrate Christmas “Without Him.”  We don’t do this intentionally, but we are prone to do it inadvertently by not being intentional about making Him the center of the season.  I personally don’t want to “do without” this year.  My prayer is that you don’t want to “do without” either.