I hear the whispers

I hear the agonizing cry

I hear the fears as they close in on me

tears well in my eyes

Must I?

I watch the friends walk away one by one

I notice their faces before they turn

Were these friends once mine?

I look in their eyes and can’t believe it

Must I?

The raindrops fall

my soul weakens in the silence

the cold wind blows

I shiver in despair

Oh, sweet memory

of blue, blue skies

oh, sweet melody

that once was mine

No one heard

no one remembers

Will a new day dawn?

This night never seems to end

I sing

but it feels as if in vain

I once was free

but I fade

Must I?

I feel the hatred

I feel the strikes against my soul

and the pain

the pain

Must I?

Must I stand?

Must I speak?

Must I fight?

Must I believe what no one else believes?

Must I?

Or shall I die with the rest of them

long-lived and shallow

old and sitting caged in a parlor

without a memory of the brilliant world I was made for?

Shall I forget

shall I joy in loss

shall I envy, accept, grasp, relish the peace of the fallen

shall I forget all that spreads my wings and makes me soar?

I cannot

for the sweet promise lingers even in the storm

oh, sweet, sweet promise of spring

of trees in blossom sheltering, of beauty, and the calm warmth of sunlight

Must I?

Must I stand when no one else will?

Must I sing when all is bleak?

Must I still fight to believe?

Must I be the hope of spring even when all others lose hope?

Must I?

I was created

that this would be my joy

to sing when all others fall silent

to believe when the truth was snow-covered out of sight

I was created

to sing for You

to joy simply in truth

oh, create this joy in me!

I cried out to God with my voice—

To God with my voice; 

And He gave ear to me.

In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord;

My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing; 

My soul refused to be comforted.

I remembered God, and was troubled;

I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed.  Selah 

You hold my eyelids open;

I am so troubled that I cannot speak.

I have considered the days of old,

The years of ancient times.

I call to remembrance my song in the night;

I meditate within my heart, 

And my spirit makes diligent search. 

–Psalm 77:1-6 (nkjv)

“Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins?  And not one of them is forgotten before God.  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

–Luke 12:6-7 (nkjv)

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

 

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the Gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel, to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.  For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.

–2 Timothy 1:7-12 (nkjv)

I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.  For in the Gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

–Romans 1:16-17

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.  For by it the people of old received their commendation.

–Hebrews 11:1-2 (esv)

And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people.  God Himself will be with them and be their God.  And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying.  There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

 

Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”  And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” 

 

And He said to me, “It is done!  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.  I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts.  He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.”

–Revelation 21:3-7 (nkjv)

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