The Bridge - Brad Bagans
In the 1950’s, a Gospel group by the name of the Swan Silvertones re-did a 1915 song named “Mary Don’t You Weep.” In this song, there was line that goes like this: “I’ll be your bridge over deep waters if you trust in my name.” Lately, all over the world, many people feel like they are in deep waters. Everyone is told to stay home, jobs are lost, businesses are closed, foreclosures are beginning, 401’s are tanking, loved ones are sick, and sadly many people are losing their lives. One of the most widely known verses in the Bible, John 3:16 states, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whosoever believes in him will not die but have eternal life.” Sin separates us from God and there is a large bottomless valley between us and God. We are on one side and God is on the other. Jesus came to be a solid bridge by which we have access directly with our Creator. By his death and resurrection, Jesus Christ became the bridge to God that is eternally set in place.
In the Spring of 1969, America witnessed the assassinations of both Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. As riots and racial tensions happened all over the United States, people across the country were told to stay home. People lost jobs, businesses closed, loved ones were lost. Meanwhile, in New York, there was a young songwriter who wanted to bring God’s peace to a broken world. He wrote the line “When you’re weary/Feeling small/When tears are in your eyes/I will dry them all.” When writing this song, he was stuck for weeks until he listened to a gospel song from the 1950’s group the Swan Silvertones entitled: “Mary Don’t You Weep.” A single line from that song gave Paul Simon the inspiration to pen “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” and for the last 50 years, Bridge Over Troubled Waters remains one of the most recognized song sang in times of trouble.
No matter what troubled waters swirl beneath or around us, we safely reside on the bridge that is Jesus Christ. The foundation of this bridge is built on a massive, firm foundation of God’s love, grace, and mercy. Remember these words from Jesus in John 14:6 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus is the bridge.
Prayer: Thank God for sending Jesus to be our bridge.
Action: Share with one person, the hope and peace God has given you through Jesus.
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