After the events of this week, with the passing of my grandfather, I thought it only appropriate to share the story and lyrics of a new song from my upcoming EP, entitled “The Lord is My Strength.”

When I began thinking about this song in August of 2009, I was deep into study on the Old Testament book of Habakkuk. I had recently preached a sermon entitled, “Because I Said So,” where I talked about having faith through the uncertainties of life. I wrote in my journal the words, “I will rejoice in the Lord; I will be joyful in God my Savior.” As I said those words over and over, I began to think of ways to capture the message of hope through faith in a song.

Later that year, I began following the music of worship leader Casey Darnell. Casey has since become a friend of mine, and after hearing his music and witnessing his amazing faith and heart for God, I knew that if possible, I wanted him to be a part of this song. He graciously signed on, and after several songwriting sessions, “The Lord is My Strength” came to fruition.

There are several references from Scripture that laid the framework for this song:

Habakkuk 3:2
LORD, I have heard of your fame;
I stand in awe of your deeds, O LORD.
Renew them in our day,
in our time make them known;
in wrath remember mercy.

Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.

Matthew 11:28
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Jude 1:24
To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy…

I look forward to letting everyone hear the song once the final production is done, but I wanted to share the lyrics with you in the hopes that God will use these words to provide strength for those who are in times of brokenness.

The Lord is My Strength by Jon Lloyd & Casey Darnell

Oh Lord, we’ve heard of Your fame
Now we stand in awe of Your glory
Let Your grace and Your mercy reign
Though my heart and flesh may fail
You are God, and You never will

The Lord is my strength
Through the trials and pain
He is able to carry me
Every step of the way

The Lord is my strength
and my portion always
Every time I am weak
The Lord is my strength

Let the weary hearts find Your rest
Let the hungry soul now be fed
In our times of brokenness
Though our hearts and flesh may fail
You are God, and You never will

© Copyright 2010 BRN Music\Ava Truth Music.

Look for the complete ALIVE EP on iTunes and in stores this Fall.

-jon

This Thursday at 11:00am EST I’ll be doing a live webcast of my “Where’s the Why in Youth Ministry” seminar. To RSVP, move your mouse over “Workshops” at the top of the screen and then click on “LIVE.” Alternately, you can click here: http://bit.ly/b7hrac

Should be fun – there’s even prizes to be given away!

Hope to see you there!

So here’s a small list of things that a lot of people don’t know about me. Maybe you’ll learn something new.

• I have a secret love for aviation, and almost became a private pilot.
• I went to UNC on a trumpet performance scholarship, and I wanted to be a band director.
• I can blow your mind with some card tricks.
• I love to do origami.
• I’ve never seen Top Gun, Rambo, Lord of the Rings, any Star Wars movie, any Star Trek anything, Terminator, Rocky, Indiana Jones, and most anything else.
• I’ve won several poker tournaments.
• I used to have long hair.
• I first got glasses in the second grade. I got contacts in the ninth grade.
• My first car was a 1989 Chevrolet Cavalier Z71.
• My second car was a 1993 Mazda MX6.
• My third car was a 2001 Chrysler Sebring Convertible.
• I used to do bubblegum pop music, and had backup dancers. One of those backup dancers introduced me to my wife.
• I have a younger brother and sister.
• I used to be a nationally-ranked racquetball player.
• I can’t swim.
• I taught myself to play the guitar.
• I can build a computer from the ground up.
• I play piano entirely by ear.
• I secretly love to draw and do graphic design.

Anything about you that no one would guess?

Yesterday I preached on the book of Habakkuk. It was a great opportunity to explore a semi-unknown book in the Old Testament. Habakkuk happens to be one of my favorite books in all of Scripture, and once you listen (or read), hopefully you’ll see why.

So here is the audio recording of the sermon, followed by a transcript. Any feedback would be welcome and appreciated!!

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Because I Said So – Transcript