Welcome to Tuesday it is time, Yes it's time, for Musical Notes of a different Kind!! A focus on songs some old and some new, with something just a little bit special for you! It's time for the blog without any rival, complete with past blogs all arranged in archival. Let us start let's get going, the time is a-wastin'. There are notes to be sung, there are thoughts to be hastenin'. A song filled with love is our focus today. Come on, you'll love it, just join in the fray. A salute to the season, love takes a bow. Let's do this, get going, it all starts right now!
'Twas the week filled with Valentine's and all through the land, the folks they were frantic, what gifts would be grand? Chocolate, flowers, and cards they'll adore. An expression of love, but wait there is more! Stuffed toys, and date nights with hearts all aglow, 'tis a time of surprises and feelings that show. The Notes, not exempt will shine like a ray, a precursor to this special day of all days. With songs that uplift and thoughts from above, we'll show you just what we did for love..."
While its debut would not be on Broadway, the musical, A Chorus Line, would take Broadway by storm upon its opening on July 25, 1975, at the Schubert Theater. It would win 9 Tony awards after having been nominated in 12 categories. It also would win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1976. The original Broadway run would entail 6,137 performances, the longest ever on Broadway up to that time. That performance record would later be surpassed by Cats in 1997.
The music from A Chorus Line has been used in popular culture since its debut in 1975. "What I Did For Love" has proven this acclaim as it has been covered by a vast array of artists from Bing Crosby to Josh Groban. While never charting on Billboard's Hot 100, the song's poignancy has made it one of the more prominent songs from the musical's soundtrack and a good go to if you need just the right setting in your television show: "What I Did For Love" - GLEE - from the 2010 episode ''Audition''
"What I Did For Love" comes at a point in A Chorus Line where one of the dancers suffers a career-ending injury. This causes great reflection from the remaining cast members as they are asked by the director what they would do in that situation. Their reply, the declarative statement of their passion for their artistic expression - "Won't regret, can't forget what I did for love".
Have you ever pondered what you've done for those people/things in which you are passionate? What were you willing to risk or sacrifice so that passion could be fueled or the love for that person could be expressed appropriately?
As you would imagine, the Bible is filled with references to just such risks and sacrifices. In fact, if you want to find out what the true nature of love is, and what has been sacrificed for that love to be fully revealed, you should start by reading The Gospel of Jesus according to the Disciple John New American Standard Bible/The Message Paraphrase of the Bible/King James Version of the Bible parallel
In this book, you find the most familiar quote from the Bible to many in our world, John 3:16 NASB/The Message/KJV This passage of scripture details the risks and sacrifices that a Holy God was willing to take and do for love. It is the penultimate example of what we should be willing to do for love. In fact, John would later on in his recounting of Jesus life tell about Jesus stance on what love means. John quotes Jesus as saying "greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends". John 15:13 NASB/The Message/KJV
We've discussed this before here at Tuesday's Musical Notes, but I think it bears repeating. Jesus is saying exactly what you think He's saying in this passage. You should be willing to die as an expression of love for other folks. He did!!! He loved everyone so much that He gave up heaven and the presence of God to be enveloped in skin and bone to live as we do. He gave up the adoration of angels to be ridiculed by men. He gave up His throne in heaven to receive a crown of thorns and a cross of crucifixion, the most horrendous form of capital punishment ever invented. That's what He did for love.
So, the question now becomes what are you willing to do for love? Are you willing to give up your agenda and place yourself in the servitude of Jesus? Are you willing to believe today that Jesus is who He says He is and did what the Bible says He did? If so, you only need ask Him to take control of your entire life. Leave no part out! Allow Jesus to direct and guide your life, then be willing to risk and sacrifice your life for others as He did.
If you are a believer, what will you do for love? Are you willing to attach yourself to a local church and love the folks who attend there? Are you willing to love them without condition? Are you willing to lay down your life in the form of spending time in fellowship, worship, and prayer with them? Are you so in love with the folks in your local congregation that you can hardly wait to spend more time with them...in a small group... on Sunday night... Wednesday night... or even in a business meeting? Are you willing to use talents that you have and spiritual gifts given from God to serve the folks in your church...even the babies? What dear believing friend are you willing to do for love?
That kind of love is the "flip side" of the sacrifice in which Jesus spoke. You may not have to die for His sake. But you surely will have to lay down your life in the form of time, resources, experience, talent, and passion to serve the folks, believers and nonbelievers, in your community. This is the ultimate expression of love and love's what they'll remember. Upon the final analysis of your life, if you have laid down your life for others, you can be demonstrative in saying... "Won't regret, can't forget what I did for love...what I did for love..."
'Til Tuesday,
Serving HIM by serving You,
randy
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