Why Me
2 AM, it’s dark and it’s cold
Trying to stay warm by the fire
It’s a dirty job; I’m despised by the world
They all say we shepherds are liars
The wind stood still, the grass began to shake
I thought they’d come to bring us justice
They said a boy, a King, a Savior had been born
And that they’d come to tell just us this
Why me, I’m an outcast, unclean, I’m a coward
When His Glory has found me
Why me to be the first to see this boy with all this power
Tell me why me, tell me why me
We left our sheep and ran right off those hills
Into a town they say is David’s
We found the cave, the babe the manger where they said
This Christ the Lord, this holy one is
I’m the least of those who should have known
We’re the least of these who should have fallen to our knees
© Dave Siverns 2008
These are the lyrics to “Why Me”, a song I wrote for our Christmas eve service at E-free this year. It’s got this kind of groovy soulish thing musically.. kind of fun, but it’s one of those songs that you have to sing honestly or it just doesn’t sound right.
Check the “And there were shepherds…” post for some of the thoughts that went into this. One of my favorite parts of the songs which isn’t overly related to what I said yesterday is second line in the second verse (the second paragraph). It’s all speculation on my part, but I wonder if the shepherds thought the angels were there to bring them justice. Every time angels appear to someone in the bible, the first thing they say is “do not be afraid.” I love how that fear gets turned into something way better than they could have imagined.
I’ll see if I can record a demo of this at some point in the near future and get a link up for some audio. Until then, just hum the words to a tune until you find something that works…
Have read your comments and I like your focus on the unworthiness of the shepherds. I wonder how many times they revisited that wind-swept hill, their bleak surroundings, and the bright glare from the messengers. What amazes me about this heavenly birth announcement is the focus on the listeners – who stops to think about that when the words tumble out about the baby’s birth? Think of the news you have heard ( if you’ve been on the receiving end of this) : the excitement, the details (gender, weight, name), the enormity of it. Who stops to say : “Don’t be afraid…don’t worry! Here’s some good news…of great joy…just for you!” This is a birth announcement like no other, where the main message is love. Wonder if the shepherds pondered that too.