Jordan Mentz

Take me to the edge the edge of myself Where I can experience the unknown The kind of faith it takes to believe that there is something greater As I step out of my comfort zone there are so many excuses That keep me from stepping out in fiath

By the hand you lead me Take me by the hand so I won’t wander With your heart for me help me to listen I want you to take me by the hand and lead me In the way you want me to go

I don’t know what it means to trust completely but if you take me by the hand I will follow Even through the valleys even through the pain I will trust your hand to guide me as you take me by the hand

I want to rest in the shadow of the Almighty
Singing with my heart a song of praise lifting your name up
When I take refuge in the Lord, and know my fortress is my God
Then He will cover me with His feathers and I can find rest
I will not fear the darkness that engulfs me,
Nor the arrow that is sailing toward my tender heart
Or the plague that destroys this life of mine

I know I can find rest in the shadow of your wings
A shield of faithfulness, to hide behind nothing can touch me
When will I learn what it means to live in grace
What it means to be blown away by mercy
To find hope in my rock, and flourish like a palm tree
My Lord is upright, and there is no wickedness in you

A sinner in the hands of unchanging grace
A fallen man in need of forgiveness
A wounded heart in need of healing
A tender child looking for the reason to live
A questioning human not afraid of the question why

Psalm 91

Every good and perfect gift comes from above
I see your everlasting love within your arms
You never change like the shifting shadows
Call me out of the boat let me come to you
The ocean of life is stormy, but you are my peace
As I step out of my comfort zone,
into the land of the unknown
I know you won’t change, you don’t see the chances I’ve blown
If living for you was as easy as people make it out to be
Then everyone wouldn’t know the difference
Our trials are bringing us one step closer to being with you

The sun changes positions casting different shadows but not you
you are always constant, and you are the light that came for the darkness
Though I feel like you change your location, it is because I have
not taken steps toward you, but I still long to be different
because you have changed me and made me the way you want
Teach me to rest in your arms despite the shifting shadows of the world

17Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17

I have been wanting to give you my heart
I have messed up so much, I didn’t know where to start
If life was a rose it would be thirsty
I have ran away from the living water my soul is parched
I didn’t mean to hide anything but you showed me everything
I had been keeping from you thinking that you were king of

I am giving you my withered heart
You have given me a taste of living water
You have given me a glimpse of your splendor
I had everything but you, but now I want nothing but you
My life was a testament of the prodigal son
your arms welcomed me into your family

I look for parallels in my life today, and how it was back then
It is then I realized that the Bible you wrote was for me
I was born blind, and now I am seeing was once dying
now I am living, was once in bondage to sin, but your
death paid the price and you showed me your message so freeing
I don’t know where I went, but you sought me out

Inspired by “Relient K’s” song “Deathbed” off the Album “Fivescore and seven years ago”.

Crying out for mercy, reaching for forgiveness
As I write words on paper may they express your heart
As I discover the meaning of truly living
I want to bring you all of my being because you are everything
Words come up short, and a thousand breaths wouldn’t be enough
to describe your majesty, your splendor and your heart for the world

I am asking for you to teach me a new way of crying
A joy that fills my soul when I wirte these thoughts on paper
A heart for the nations that beats with compassion
Let them see grace through the empty space
A longing for the lost teaching them what the gospel is
I can’t grab a hold of everything, but I grasp your hand

A way to express emotion, a way to show my love and devotion
A mercy so rich and full that no mind can comprehend
A love so vibrant with your heart, no one can describe
I keep writing because you are working
I have come so far because you have carried me
A bridge of mercy has led me to you.

Inspired by a conversation that Matt Riley and I had about my passion for lyrics, and expressing my heart on paper.

You call me your child and you want me to call you Dad
In a world with so many people without a father figure
A gap that makes it really hard to bridge myth and reality
A compassionate dad, a loving creator, a merciful parent
As I lay awake you whisper that you love me

I look to the mountains, and I see your hands
I look at the trees, and remember the cross that set me free
Dad I want spend time with you, but as my life gets busy
It hurts because I have been so distant from you, but I am longing to come back
For you to cradle me in your everlasting arms

The world tells that there is no one who can take the place of a father
You are the ultimate parent, the loving redeemer, the infinite provider
I want to trust you, as I give you pieces of my broken life
It is hard to imagine, a love that transcends my understanding
A mercy so divine, that it makes me ask the tough questions

I have wanted to spend time with you
I have longed to talk to you but I felt so distant
I did all of the talking and heard only what I wanted
I want to hear your voice and look into your eyes
A deep look inside of myself to re determine my priorities

You have told me you wanted to hold me
Wanting to crawl into your lap, but feeling so far away
You whispered my child, I want you with me
You want me to crawl into your lap as you hold me close
Against you, as I feel your warm embrace, I find true peace

As I look for ways for you to use me,
You have gently held my future in your palm
Your hands once pierced for me, bring healing to my soul
Within your words, I find what it means to die to myself
That is when I truly live again

Bridge:
You love me, You hold me, You comfort me, You’re there for me (14)
As we lay in your lap You whisper I love you my child (14)
You hold my hand You are my provider my loving dad (14)
You watch me when I am sleeping and cry on your shoulder (14)

Chorus:
Please hold my life in your infinite hands so big so wide (14)
As I discover how dependent a newborn is Lord (14)
Help me become as a newborn fully dependent Lord (14)
As I realize I can’t live my life on my own help me (14)

Verse 1:
As I look around help me find true rest (10)
As you gently hold me while I lay down (10)
You provide my spiritual milk then meat (10)
You never give me more than I can chew (10)

Verse 2:
Jesus help me become more dependent on you (12)
I long to look around and discover new things (12)
As I grow in my walk with You I love you Lord (12)
I need you; remind me I can depend on you (12)

Verse 3:
As I turn to you for answers teach me draw me close (13)
I want to know you as I see you every day (13)
I need your hand to guide me show me the only way (13)
I spit up, I mess up my sin is invading me (13)

Verse 4:
You clean me You wash me in your blood upon the cross (13)
I want to glorify magnify your holy name (13)
Change my heart from within me make me more like you Lord (13)
I long to find fulfillment when I turn to your words Lord (13)

When I am lost searching for the answers
I have been calling my voice is getting fainter
Yours is getting louder and I am looking
For something for something that no one can explain

You belong to me, your my child and I am holding your heart
Within my palm, is your weary and battered soul
My heart beats with love as your tears fill my eyes
I hurt for you my child, and I want to heal your pain

Can’t you see my child, within my eyes of compassion
a reflection of my love, a testament of my grace
A representation of mercy and eternity
A heart with a radiance that has set you free when I see your face

I don’t know how you have taken away the bondage that had entangled me
You did it for me on Calvary, and it was so you could be with me
I want to be all you have made me to be, but sometimes I lose my focus
I look at the waves, like Peter and become afraid

Inspired by “Mercy Me’s” song “Never Alone” off the Album “Undone”