‘But as for me’: A Kaleidoscope of Bible Verses

Ruach Breath of Life

At this time when millions are feeling deeply unsettled by so much that they had taken as normal being suddenly removed, Joshua’s tremendous and challenging declaration came to mind as I was pondering these things: ‘Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . but as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.’ (Josh. 24:15) Like Joshua, though so much remains uncertain, may we find many ways to serve Him! There are numerous occasions when this phrase is used in the Bible. You will be familiar with them, of course, but I have drawn many of them together in this presentation and set them to beautiful music, like ornaments in a band. Sometimes, like Joshua, the verses are markers laid down for us as we determine to move purposefully forward, embracing our calling and commission. At other times they are a cry from people in intense and immediate need. As Sally Mowbray, Colin Owen and I read, the music ranges from the contemporary to the very ancient, beginning with Maria es libre, a lovely piece of music composed and played by David Booth from Malvern for guitar; a powerful piece called The Scottish Connection that our friend James Horsfall from Jersey wrote; a beautiful Song without Words by Mendelssohn – and then the oldest extant piece of music in existence: Seikilos, which was found on a tombstone in Turkey and dating from the first or second century. How amazing that this has survived – and that it still sounds so contemporary! The whole is beautifully resolved by a wonderfully ‘settling’ piece composed in lockdown itself, by Justin Coldstream. Here are precious truths and promises to hold on to and apply!