Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
- Proverbs 3:5-6
Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him.
- 2 Kings 18:5
“Now there you are
Yes, there’s that face
That face that somehow I trust
It may embarrass you to hear me say it
But say it I must, say it I must!
You have the cool clear eyes of a
Seeker of wisdom and truth
Yet, there’s that up turned chin
And the grin of impetuous youth
Oh, I believe in you
I believe in you
I hear the sound of good, solid
Judgment whenever you talk
Yet, there’s the bold, brave spring
Of the tiger that quickens your walk
Oh, I believe in you
I believe in you
And when my faith in my fellow man
All but falls apart
I’ve but to feel your hand grasping mine
And I take heart, I take heart.
To see the cool clear eyes of a
Seeker of wisdom and truth
Yet there’s that slam, bang, tang
Reminiscent of gin and vermouth
Oh, I believe in you
I believe in you”
- Frank Loesser, I Believe in You
Okay, so you think of a song that has the title I Believe in You, and you think, that is a song that could easily be turned into a worship song. But then you get to the gin and vermouth. Really? You are dreaming of martinis? Or negronis? What about the Purple One? Or then there is the Corpse Reviver?
For your information, I knew about martinis, not that I have ever had one, but I looked up the rest online. Growing up in a dry county in Mississippi, I am glad I can research such stuff online. It makes it “look” like I know stuff!
But then my mind wandered…
For sooth, I thought
In my youth
As I tapped a tooth
Sitting in a corner booth
Trying to show that I had some couth
Asking my cousin Ruth
If she knew a single word
In the English language
That rhymes with truth
Other than vermouth
Okay, he had already used “youth.” What else was left?!
Really, I heard an arrangement of the song that repeated the last verse three or four times, and I wondered if I had accidentally changed the channel to the martini channel, an endless loop of advertisement.
But then, I had to download the original song, which was written as part of the musical “How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying” in 1961. Frank Sinatra then sang with the Count Basie Orchestra to record it in 1964.
But look at the verses. There is something about this person’s look that says “I trust them.” The chin, the grin, the youth. But then, going deeper, there is good judgment. Bold, brave, a spring like a tiger when you walk.
But then, the next bit realizes that all of mankind leaves us wondering if there is anyone we can trust. But then, holding their hand gives them heart.
With a title and a refrain that are perfect for a worship song, there is not much that could salvage the rest. God is a Spirit. We do not see Him. We cannot gaze upon His chin or the brave swagger in the walk. We have to take that part by faith and then see that God does not take us to the brink and then our faith in Him falls apart. But it has to start with faith, that faith that God supplies.
Here is a recording that surprised me. If you search for “I Believe in You” you get the Don Williams country song and nothing else. You have to expand the search to include “big band” and that is where I found the U. S. Army Field Band from Fort Meade, Maryland, specifically The Jazz Ambassadors with SFC Randy Wight singing. The arrangement is by Quincy Jones.
Sometimes, these old songs can easily be rewritten just a little to become a worship song. Sometimes we see Jesus in the words without anything being rewritten, but sometimes we are hit: SLAM, BANG, TANG. And we start to wonder. Where did we go wrong. God is Truth. We can trust God. But we keep chasing things that we can see or touch, things that ultimately cause us to lose faith in those earthly things.
When all along, we can trust God.
Soli Deo Gloria. Only to God be the Glory.
Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley 
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