How sweet it is

Zechariah 9:16 On that day, the Lord their God will save them, as the flock of His people; for like the jewels of a crown they shall shine on His land. 17 For how great is His goodness and how great His Beauty! Grain shall make the young men flourish,and new wine the women.

Many times I am stopped in my tracks unexpectedly and reminded by the beauty of Christ. Yesterday I was captivated by the lyrics of James Taylor's "How sweet it is to be loved by you" as I drove home. As you read the lyrics below, take time to think through and examine if the words of the song describe your soul's longing for Christ.


I needed the shelter of some one's arms, there you were
I needed someone to understand my ups and downs, there you were
With sweet love and devotion
Deeply touching my emotion
I want to stop and thank you baby
I want to stop and thank you baby (yes I do)

How sweet it is to be loved by you (feel so fine)
How sweet it is to be loved by you

I close my eyes at night
Wondering where would I be without you in my life
Everything I did was just a bore
Everywhere I went it seems I'd been there before
But you brighten up for me all of my days
With a love so sweet in so many ways
I want to stop and thank you baby
I just want to stop and thank you baby (woah, yeah)

How sweet it is to be loved by you (it's just like sugar sometimes)
How sweet it is to be loved by you

You were better to me than I was to myself
For me, there's you and there ain't nobody else
I want to stop and thank you baby
I just want to stop and thank you baby (woah, yes)

Now obviously I pull up way short of calling Christ baby, so please don't let your mind run down that path as that would be a severe lack of appropriate fear and respect for the God of this universe. What I want to hone in on is the intimacy, longing and completeness of a heart that has finally found a love worth praising.

Look at the scripture from Zechariah above and add to it what you know about Christ's redeeming work in your life, and then compare that to the joyous lyrics made in this love song. In the love expressed by JT in this song, He has found:

> A shelter of someone's arms
> Someone to understand my ups and downs with sweet love and devotion
> A love worth pondering "where would I be without you?"
> A love taht is te richness of life itself
> The lover was better to Him than He was to Himself
> The Love is exclusive and He has love for no other

While there are many other parallels, I hope that the big picture is clear by now. I love how Zechariah says that the Lord's redeemed will shine like jewels in a crown. Amigos, we will only shine if we have truly received and live to worship Christ as the only source of perfect truth and complete Love. For so many years my relationship was a dark and stingy list of things to do and avoid. When the beauty of Christ touches your heart, and you respond with worship of Him shining is the natural state. Just like JT, we are left to sing in an intoxicated love "How sweet it is to be loved by You!".

When is the last time you have done that? Have you ever done that?

Please take time in this dark age we live in to express the Love you have for your redeemer and then shine on friends......Just like honey to the bee, it is what we were created to do!