I always thought tears of joy were reserved for the upper eschalant of life experiences like child birth, weddings day, seeing your child graduate, etc. Today for the first time in my life, I experienced tears of joy. We had the Ugandan Children’s Choir perform at our church service this morning. Saturday they performed on the circle downtown as well. IN just meeting them Saturday, my passion for being with AIDS orphans in Africa grew back to the capacity that it once was before I let life get in the way and distract me. Their smiles were so authentic, what cute children, beautiful in their simplicity and pureness.There is this song called I Am Free that we do sometimes during our worship time on Sunday mornings, it goes something like this:
Through you the blind will see
Through you the mute will sing
Through you the dead will rise
Through you our hearts will praise
Through you the darkness flees
Through you my heart screams I am free I am free
I am free to run(I am free to run)
I am free to dance(I am free to dance)
I am free to live for you(I am free to live for you)
I am free(I am free)
Yes, I am free(I am free)
Through you the blind will see
Through you the mute will sing
Through you the dead will rise
Through you our hearts will praise
Through you the darkness flees
Through you my heart screams I am freeI am free
Are you free?
I am free
After the children had done their routine, the worship band and the children did a duet to this song. During the chorus as we would sing I am free to run, they would just sing and run in place, then I am free to dance, they would show those pearl whites and dance in place, and when we got to I am free to live for you, they just jumped around pointing to the sky. In that couple of minutes I experienced these tears of joy. My heart was moved with great compassion to see these children who came form a dark place have freedom and truly live it out. These children are free from the fear of the epidemic tearing their country apart, free of worry for food, free of local insurgent oppression, free from worrying about finances, free from trying to escape their past. These children are free by Christ. Jesus said it himself, “Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:35-36, NIV).” Jesus sets us free form anything that is oppressive, oppression comes form sin and it is only Jesus who can set us free form that slavery. So to see these children sing and dance and smile about how free they are because of Christ brought tears to my eyes and warmed my heart.
Thank you Ugandan Children’s Choir! Often times we feel they need us, but it is truly the other way around.
I pray you know this freedom, may you seek it, it is worth your life and in return you receive true freedom and abundant life. May we all seek to be as free as these Ugandan children!
After the children had done their routine, the worship band and the children did a duet to this song. During the chorus as we would sing I am free to run, they would just sing and run in place, then I am free to dance, they would show those pearl whites and dance in place, and when we got to I am free to live for you, they just jumped around pointing to the sky. In that couple of minutes I experienced these tears of joy. My heart was moved with great compassion to see these children who came form a dark place have freedom and truly live it out. These children are free from the fear of the epidemic tearing their country apart, free of worry for food, free of local insurgent oppression, free from worrying about finances, free from trying to escape their past. These children are free by Christ. Jesus said it himself, “Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:35-36, NIV).” Jesus sets us free form anything that is oppressive, oppression comes form sin and it is only Jesus who can set us free form that slavery. So to see these children sing and dance and smile about how free they are because of Christ brought tears to my eyes and warmed my heart.
Thank you Ugandan Children’s Choir! Often times we feel they need us, but it is truly the other way around.
I pray you know this freedom, may you seek it, it is worth your life and in return you receive true freedom and abundant life. May we all seek to be as free as these Ugandan children!
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