Cort
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I know hes' not Pema Chodron but he is a very committed Christian apparently - living a clean life...and down both he and his wife go....and he wrote a popular song about it
Happier but not healed.
Popular Christian song Everlasting God arose out of Christian songwriter and worship leader Brenton Browns personal experience of Gods inexhaustible strength amid his chronic fatigue.
Brown revealed this to The Christian Post in a recent phone interview.
This is his account of how he was inspired to write the song.
Brown, in his mid twenties at the time, was a worship pastor at a church at Oxford University. In his account, things were going well.
He said: We were doing services and travelled around town. We were seeing people become Christians.
We were making records and writing songs.
But things took a sudden turn for the worse for Brown. (SUDDEN ONSET)
In his words: One morning I woke up and I didnt feel well. And I thought perhaps I had a cold or a flu. And I sort of waited for it to go away.
But it didnt go away after a week, two weeks.
After six months Brown decided to visit the doctor to diagnose his symptoms. It was then that he discovered that he was suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).
According to MedicineNet.com, CFS is a debilitating and complex disorder characterised by profound fatigue of six months or a longer duration. It is not improved by bed rest and may be worsened by physical or mental activity.
Although I tried to kind of fake it and just keep going, at a certain point it just physically wasnt possible, said Brown.
It was then that Brown felt God telling him to return home to South Africa to get some rest. Interestingly his wife Jude had just been diagnosed with CFS, which is not a contagious illness. (Really?)
It was a major disappointment for Brown having to move back in with his parents in his mid twenties, he expressed. His parents were equally affected by the turn of events.
Brown recalled that he was pretty desperate and crying out to the Lord.
He said: I remember thinking: Man, does God know were here?
I just felt like weve been pouring our lives into church really and into our projects for Him. I just felt like I cant believe Im unwell and I had to move back home and move in to my parents.
During that time, Brown was reading the Book of Isaiah. He was comforted by a passage in the 40th chapter.
Brown said: God speaks to Israel and says: Dont think that I have left you. Dont think that your way is forgotten.
I know where you are. I know who you are. And I know what you are going through. I am the everlasting God. I dont grow weak or weary. Those who wait on Me will receive strength.
The passage inspired Brown to write Everlasting God.
He said: I just felt like that promise held true for Gods people.
And as I pondered that truth that day I determined that we were going to wait on Him and let Him have His way in us and what He wanted to do.
The Browns never got healed of the chronic fatigue syndrome, Brenton highlighted.
We still have to put the gloves on every day and get to work, he said. But God kind of carried us across.
Brown also reflected on how his condition made him more aware of his limitations.
He said: I found myself upset, angry, uncharitable, ungracious, irritated far more often than I thought Id be. (Welcome to the Club )And I realised man, how does Jesus do this?
Brown realised how amazing it was that Jesus never acted in a way that was ungodly or unrighteous.
In the final analysis, the illness was turned to his advantage.
He said: If anything it has just opened my eyes to more of just the goodness and holiness of God every day and my need for that in my life, the need for the strength of the Lord in my life.
New album
The theme of Browns new album titled Our God is Near has been in his heart for the last couple of years, he highlighted.
In fact it was the main message Jesus preached while He was on earth, Brown pointed out.
But what does it mean that the Kingdom of God is near, he pondered.
It is God arriving in Jesus and saying: Hey its going to be okay, Brown explained.
Theres power and strength and hope, he said. And everything that you need for this life is at hand.
The first single from the album, Joyful, reflects what happens when God meets His people, Brown expressed. It is based on the well-known hymn Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee written by Henry van Dyke.
The message of that song is when God comes joy comes, he said. When God comes hope comes and light comes.
Happier but not healed.