These songs are just samples of an important way I find encouragement

Several months ago I reconnected with a friend and colleague I’d known for decades. Since we’d both retired, we’d slipped out of touch with each other as often happens. But her husband had suddenly died months earlier, and now Evelyn and I were telling long-distance friends about the Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases that were changing our lives. My friend is a thoughtful, passionate, productive person, and I knew sharing our new perspectives on life would bring both of us insight and nurture.

We scheduled a phone call, not the last conversation we’ve shared, each of them as helpful as I anticipated. But an email she sent me has stayed with me the longest and strongest of all. In it she recommended two songs by contemporary Christian rock band Casting Crowns. Each contains lyrics worthy of Sondheim with a hopeful, but not saccharine message for anyone suffering loss.

Maybe you’ll find encouragement or hope in at least one of them.

Just a sample of each here (Copyright laws forbid printing the whole lyric to each):

“Oh, My Soul”
“There’s a place where fear has to face the God you know.”

“Praise You in This Storm”
“My strength is almost gone. How can I carry on if I can’t find you?”

Click on the titles to follow the links to the lyric videos on YouTube. Reading the words as they’re sung brings particular impact. Then maybe you’ll find the songs in your favorite music streaming service and play them again and again. That’s what I’ve done.

In fact, I started a whole playlist called “Comfort.” It accompanies me regularly when I’m alone in the car. A couple more entries:

“Shaper of the Dust” by ForeverBeSure
”Shaper of the dust . . . come and teach us to number off our days, that we would walk in wisdom till the end.”

“The Lord Is My Salvation” by Keith and Kristyn Getty
“I will not fear when darkness falls. His strength will help me scale these walls. . . .”

Alzheimer’s counselors regularly suggest music for its calming effect on patients with dementia. I know it’s good for me, too. These aren’t the only selections, to be sure. But perhaps they will be new and helpful to you as they were to me the first time I discovered them—and again and again since then.

Photo by Mohammad Metri at Unplash.com