"Grenade"

On the current (Week 8, 2011) Billboard list is the song "Grenade" by Bruno Mars. This song is about a man in love with a woman who doesn't love him back. Check out the lyrics:
Easy come, easy go
That's just how you live, oh
Take, take, take it all,
But you never give
Should of known you was trouble from the first kiss,
Why were they open?
Gave you all I had
And you tossed it in the trash
You tossed it in the trash, you did
To give me all your love is all I ever asked,
Cause what you don't understand is
I’d catch a grenade for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
Throw my hand on a blade for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
I’d jump in front of a train for ya (yeah, yeah , yeah)
You know I'd do anything for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
Oh, oh
I would go through all this pain,
Take a bullet straight through my brain,
Yes, I would die for ya baby;
But you won't do the same

No, no, no, no
Black, black, black and blue beat me till I'm numb
Tell the devil I said “hey” when you get back to where you're from
Mad woman, bad woman,
That's just what you are, yeah,
You’ll smile in my face then rip the breaks out my car
Gave you all I had
And you tossed it in the trash

You tossed it in the trash, yes you did
To give me all your love is all I ever asked
Cause what you don't understand is
I’d catch a grenade for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
Throw my hand on a blade for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
I’d jump in front of a train for ya (yeah, yeah , yeah)
You know I'd do anything for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
Oh, oh
I would go through all this pain,
Take a bullet straight through my brain,
Yes, I would die for ya baby;
But you won't do the same

If my body was on fire, ooh
You’ d watch me burn down in flames
You said you loved me you're a liar
Cause you never, ever, ever did baby...
But darling I’ll still catch a grenade for ya
Throw my hand on a blade for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
I’d jump in front of a train for ya (yeah, yeah , yeah)
You know I'd do anything for ya (yeah, yeah, yeah)
Oh, oh
I would go through all this pain,
Take a bullet straight through my brain,
Yes, I would die for ya baby;
But you won't do the same.
No, you won’t do the same,
You wouldn’t do the same,
Ooh, you’ll never do the same,
No, no, no, no

As I read these lyrics I was reminded of how often we talk to people who are hurting. We are surrounded by men and women who feel the pain of rejection, break-up, divorce, unfaithfulness, and all the countless other things that rip our hearts apart.

We see single moms that are working hard and barely able to pay the bills, struggling to raise her kids feeling that she is out of control and wondering when life will get easier.

We see a man who is working a job he hates that doesn't pay enough to provide for his family in the way he was taught he should. He is struggling day in and day out wanting to do more but doors keep slamming in his face.

We see a couple who appear to have it all but it is all an act. They don't want anyone to know that their marriage is falling apart. They constantly argue and fight. He drowns his pain in his favorite drink while she cries herself to sleep every night. They both are asking the same questions, "What did I do to deserve this?"

We may see a girl who never felt the love of a father desperately seeking the love of any man who will give her attention. Or the boy who was taught that real men are tough, so he bottles everything inside until he explodes in a act of aggression and rage.

We encounter people like this every day, we might even be these people. Like Bruno Mars we are looking for the love that is willing to risk it all for us. A love that isn't here today and gone tomorrow, an enduring love.

The fact is, people will always let us down. Sometimes in big ways, sometimes in small ways, but we will be let down. I remember when a friend and mentor of mine (someone who was helping train me for the ministry) fell in an adulterous affair. I was mentally, emotionally, and even spiritually crushed. I was ready to walk away. At first I tried to talk to him but he told me to never speak with him again. I just wanted to understand what happened.

During this time God began to show me that I had put my trust in the wrong place. I was looking to people as my source of security when God wanted to be my security. In Deuteronomy 31 we find Moses giving his farewell speech. He is telling the nation of Israel that he will no longer be leading them as they go into the Holy Land. It will be Joshua who will lead them as they cross the Jordan River. In this passage Moses encourages the people with these words, "the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

These words are still a comfort for us today. As we go through the trials of this life we can rest assured in the one who will never leave us or forsake us. Jesus said it like this in Matthew 28, "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

May we remember that we never have to face anything alone; that we have a friend who is closer than a brother that loves us more than we can understand. Jesus wasn't only willing to lay down His life for you but He did it! He paid it all for you and for each and every person who is willing to let Him in their life.