You Came For Me

In this week's episode, Dennis Jernigan shares the story behind his song,  “You Came For Me” from the recording, Forty Days and Forty Nights - Songs of Contemplation and Intimacy Vol. 1." That mp3 is available at https://www.dennisjernigan.com/store/product.php?c=24&p=2353 The lyrics can be found below.

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You will find the show notes and lyrics below:

 

Welcome to The Dennis Jernigan Podcast, where we journey together towards healing, hope, intimacy, and refuge, ultimately seeking a deeper connection with Jesus. Throughout my years, one truth remains clear: God makes purpose out of everything. He will not waste anything we bring to Him. Not our sorrows, not our wounds, not even our failures.
Hey there, I'm Dennis Jernigan, your host, and today I'm thrilled to reveal the story behind my song, “You Came For Me," featured on the album Forty Days and Forty Nights - Songs of Contemplation and Intimacy Vol. 1. Back in 2010, I felt a divine nudge to embark on a challenge I had never attempted before—a forty-day fast. Admiring those who had accomplished such a feat, I found myself teetering between awe and amusement at the thought of completing a forty-day fast. Yet, one day, I felt a compelling urge to begin this uncharted journey.
Little did I anticipate the profound revelations and life-altering transformations God had in store for me during those forty days. Having weathered three years of grief and loss, navigated economic downturns, grappled with my identity and relationships, faced major surgery, coped with my daughter's marriage and relocation across the globe, and felt alienated from the Christian music scene, I woke up that morning realizing the urgent need for a comprehensive reboot—mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.
From May 3 through June 11, I embarked on a journey consuming only water, fruit, and vegetable juice, shedding 40 pounds in the process. While the physical transformation helped post-surgery, the realignment of my mind, emotions, and spirit towards God set my entire being on a new course. Each morning, I delved into either Psalm 40 or Isaiah 40, and with each meditation, the Lord inspired a new song within me—each promptly recorded as it came to me. These forty songs across four volumes represent the essence of a 40-day voyage of self-discovery.
My aspiration for these collections is for you to use them as spiritual reflections in your daily walk of intimacy with Christ. The lyrics and corresponding Scriptures are accessible on this website, serving as a roadmap to help you rediscover your identity in Christ and unearth hidden treasures in your relationship with Him. If you ever consider embarking on a fast of your own, I enthusiastically recommend Dean Briggs' book, Consumed: 40 Days of Fasting, Repentance & Rebirth. Dean's guidance offers a soul-nourishing, Christ-centered approach to a spiritual fast, providing you with encouragement and strength along the way.
Today I am sharing the story behind the song, You Came For Me, which, now sounds funny to say, came to me on May 5, 2010 or day 3 of my 40 Day Fast, as I meditated on Psalm 40:2a in the NASB which says, He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay…
Whenever I mediate on the Word of God, I take it very personally. Due to the deep hunger pangs of my physical body, it didn’t take long for my soul to begin to experience very similar hunger pangs I sensed in my thought life, my emotional life, and in my spiritual life. For the first 22 years of my life I had felt trapped - hopelessly trapped - mired in the unforgiving muck of my own depravity. My mind began to flood with the realization of just how far I had fallen away from the Lord as a young man and just how stuck I had been in my sin.
I remember feeling so alone in my younger days, trying to make sense of my sexual identity and feeling completely abandoned; feeling that if I were to suddenly disappear, no one would ever even notice, much less come looking for me. 
But then, on November 7, 1981, completely out of the blue, God revealed Himself to me; Revealed just how massive His love for me truly was; Reaching out to me in the middle of my sin-soaked identity showing me that He could reach as far as I could fall; helped me see that not one time in my life had I ever been alone. Showed me that for each and every step of my entire life and existence, He had been pursuing me. That knowledge left my heart undone, sitting there in His presence, being soaked with His wonderful grace and being wonderfully drenched in His incredible love. He did bring me up out of the pit of destruction and out of that miry clay. Never once had He stopped pursuing me…and has never stopped since the day I came to that realization. Let’s take some time to bask in that realization for the next few minutes.
SONG
The Lord reminded me that every tear I have ever cried, He has saved. Why would he save or keep a  record of my tears? I believe that He used them - still uses them - as a form of prayer. When I have come to the end of words I have to say to Him and the cares of the world have left me reduced to nothing but tears, He uses those very tears as a weapon of warfare against the lies of the enemy.

Psalm 56:8-9 in the NIV says, “Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll; are they not in your record? Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me.”

It does the human soul well to know God pursues us. Luke 19:10 in the NIV says, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Who was lost? Every single human that has ever existed and ever will exist. Jesus came for us but loved us enough to not leave us in that state of lostness. That is simply astounding.

Thank you for tuning in to The Dennis Jernigan Podcast! For more about my journey, music, and updates, visit dennisjernigan.com. Stay connected by following me on Facebook, Instagram, and enjoy my music on various streaming platforms. If you'd like to support the podcast's creation, consider joining my team at www.patreon.com/dennisjernigan.

If you're looking for the mp3 of the song “You Came For Me" from the album "Forty Days and Forty Nights - Songs of Contemplation and Intimacy Vol. 1," head over to the store at dennisjernigan.com or find it on popular streaming services.

Remember this from today's episode: the constant, unwavering, massive love of God is where we must choose to abide and wait on Him. He loves you and eagerly waits to meet with you. Can you spare a few moments today, tomorrow, and beyond to wait on the Lord? I assure you, it will be worth that wait. Now, go forth and embrace the truth of who your heavenly Father says you are.
Dennis Jernigan
 
You Came For Me
Words & Music by Dennis Jernigan
Received on May 5, 2010
Psalm 40:2a
©2010 Shepherd’s Heart Music, Inc./Dennis Jernigan
 
Verse one
You brought me up when I was down
Sin took me in. You brought me out
You delivered me. You came for me, my God
 
You rescued me when I was bound
You set me free, lost is now found
You delivered me you came for me, my God
 
Chorus
Out of destruction You made a way
Out of the darkness You brought me light of day
Out of despairing my burdens baring,
You made a way
 
Up from my sorrow. Up from my tears
You came restoring all of my wasted years
Out of my sorrow, brand new tomorrow
You delivered me. You came for me
 
Verse two
Bound up in chains, mired in doubt
You broke the curse, bringing me out
You delivered me. You came for me, my God
 
Downcast in shame, too many days
You lifted my eyes up to Your redeeming gaze
You delivered me. You came for me, my God
 
Chorus
Out of destruction You made a way
Out of the darkness You brought me light of day
Out of despairing my burdens baring,
You made a way
 
Up from my sorrow. Up from my tears
You came restoring all of my wasted years
Out of my sorrow, brand new tomorrow

Words & Music by Dennis Jernigan
Received on May 5, 2010
Psalm 40:2a
©2010 Shepherd’s Heart Music, Inc./Dennis Jernigan•www.dennisjernigan.com•1-800-877-0406
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