It is finished

Finding time to write has been like finding time to redo my toenails. It hasn't been a priority (I don't wear flip-flops in the winter), and I really don't want pull up all of the yucky stuff today anyway. And for me, as with toenails, you kind of have to finish what you have started. Who wants three red toenails? Likewise, I'm not one to start a blog entry and not really finish, at least within two or three days. I know this is a gift that the great writers possess, to mull over passages of genius before pushing the "save" button, but I'm not one of them. I like to have a finished product fairly quickly. And, most often, it is definitely at the expense of the product.

This is true in most areas of my life. Just ask my husband. I like knitting projects, dishes, sweeping, to-do lists, registration forms, meals, lesson plans and deadlines COMPLETED. I can rest quietly at the end of a day only if what I was supposed to finish that day is DONE. And, yes, I confess, I'm a little obsessive about it. Thus, there are many sleepless nights and many lists lying around our house waiting to be crossed-off and thrown into the abyss of completeness.

Our family loves hymns. There is an old hymn in our Trinity Hymnal called "Hark! the Voice of Love and Mercy". It sat unnoticed among the worn pages of our family hymnal until just this past year. My family purchased a copy of Red Mountain Church's (Birmingham, Alabama) redone hymns. There have produced several fantastic CDs (I recommend them all),but the one entitled "Help my Unbelief" is one of our favorites. It has some great acoustic interpretations of beautiful hymns, most unknown to the contemporary world. Song #4 (as my children call it) is called "It is Finished" (otherwise known as "Hark! the Voice of Love and Mercy" on page #259 in our hymnal).


In my college days I had a 25 minute commute to my favorite local church in Franklin, Tennessee. With windows rolled down, my left leg propped up on the side of the driver's seat, music flying out of the windows of my Honda, my soul sang with the poets of our days and those of long ago (I loved hymns even then). I sang loudly. But now I rarely sing with gusto, or with pleasure, or with tears; most of my time in the car is spent driving three kids to ballet or to the grocery store - hardly time to emotionally let go and enjoy those five minute trips that let you listen to music freely. I might have time for one song in the car, but the kids usually get to choose first. And if you have kids, you know why. Occasionally when I have a little drive to Dallas by myself or when I'm driving to an evening coffee date, I might turn up some tunes, but usually it is Coffeehouse or something like old Dave Matthews. Nothing to rock my soul like those hymns.

But the other day, Song #4 came on while racing to basketball practice. Much had been left undone at home, including laundry, unlocked doors, and the scattering of toys in the driveway. Something struck me as the song began and I sang. I sang loudly. I sang with pleasure. And I sang with tears. I even smiled. Let me share a brief excerpt from the updated version. I think you can find the tune on www.redmountainmusic.com.



Hark! the voice of love and mercy
Sounds aloud from Calvary:
See, it rends the rocks asunder,
Shakes the earth and veils the sky
It is finished! It is finished! Hear the dying Savior cry.
It is finished! It is finished! Hear the dying Savior cry.



Finished all the types and shadows of the ceremonial law;
Finished all that God had promised; death and hell no more shall awe;
It is finished! It is finished! Saints from hence your comfort draw;
It is finished! It is finished! Saints from hence your comfort draw.



Dear friends (I'm preaching now), this is a song to turn up and belt out. Amidst all of my unfinished blogs, amidst all of the lingering chores, amidst all of the toys left on the ground, amidst all of the unresolved conflicts, amidst all of the feelings of being imcomplete, my GOD, my LORD, has finished His business. He has finished all that matters. He has finished our salvation. He has finished our glorification. He has finished the brokenness in me and in my world. He has defeated the enemy. He has finished all that He started on that first day. And my guess is that those toys on the ground don't matter quite so much....

He has finished.

It is finished.

So, dear Saints, from hence your comfort draw.