“He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” Zephaniah 3:17c
Call me a romantic, but there have been so many times in my life when the perfect song lyric has floated into my perception, and it’s been exactly what I needed to hear from God. Whether I’m enjoying driving with the windows down while needing to know that God is with me, or I’m stressing about making dinner and needing to know that God sees me, sometimes God has used my favorite secular songs to speak right to my heart.
This is a list of songs and their lyrics that you can play when you need to feel like a God is singing a love song just for you. Maybe all of the lyrics won’t apply precisely, but when the chorus comes, close your eyes and imagine God mending your heart through these words and melodies.
1. Lovable – Sam Cooke
Leave it to Sam Cooke’s smooth voice to communicate how deeply God loves you. Play this song when you need a reminder of how God sees you, every second of every day.
Lovable, my girl
She's lovable
She's lovable, my girl
She's so lovable
Candy's sweet and honey, too
There's not another quite, quite as sweet as you
2. I Do – Susie Suh
This song is a sweet homage to love that isn’t earned, it just is. Listen to this calming song when you need to feel God right beside you, whether or not you feel like you deserve it.
I just want to love you when the goings tough
I just want to hold you when you're not enough
I just want to give you everything I've got
I do, I do
3. Dream a Little Dream of Me – Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong
This song is a personal favorite of mine. I played it every day for a summer when I was in a faith drought, and it reminded me to look for God in the small, beautiful things that we experience every day. This is a song to remind you how God wants to make his presence known to you and stay on your mind, all through the beautiful things he made.
Stars shining bright above you
Night breezes seem to whisper, I love you
Birds singin' in the sycamore trees
Dream a little dream of me
4. Crosses - José Gonzáles
This song has a slower, darker feel to it, and can be a great companion to deep and difficult feelings. It will be a sweet invitation to you to trust that God will lead you through darker times and sees what you are going through. He’ll help you “cast some light” and have hope.
Don't you know that I'll be around to guide you
Through your weakest moments to leave them behind you
Returning nightmares, only shadows
We'll cast some light and you'll be alright
We'll cast some light and you'll be alright for now
5. Come Softly to Me – The Fleetwoods
Oldies love songs are so simple and, therefore, so sweet and profound! Just reading these lyrics, imagining God beckoning me to himself, and asking me to stay, makes me tear up. Listen to this song to soften your heart and help you leave your anxieties at the Lord’s feet.
Come softly, darling (Dum dum, dum doo dum, dooby doo)
Come to me, stay (Dum dum, dum doo dum, dooby doo)
You're my obsession (Dum dum, dum doo dum, dooby doo)
Forever and a day (Dum dum, dum doo dum, dooby doo)
6. I Will Possess Your Heart – Death Cab for Cutie
Whether you interpret this song as stalker-ish or not, the truth is, we all want to be pursued as the object of one’s desire. I love this song because it’s like an invitation from God to simply spend time with him, and he’ll work on my heart to do the rest. My favorite way to listen to it is imagining God singing these lyrics before I ever became a Christian–knowing he was waiting for me to come to him, and that he was so happy when I did.
How I wish you could see the potential
The potential of you and me
It's like a book elegantly bound, but
In a language that you can't read just yet
You gotta spend some time, love
You gotta spend some time with me
And I know that you'll find love
I will possess your heart
7. Trust in Me – Etta James
This ballad is a classic for a reason. It speaks to how hard it can be to trust in relationships and to rest in their security. Thankfully, even when people don’t meet our standards, God always will. Listen to this song when there is something specific that you need to surrender or when you are feeling especially anxious. It will help calm your fears.
Trust in me in all you do
Have the faith I have in you
Love will see us through
If only you trust in me
8. Dizzy on the Comedown – Turnover
What does it mean to be dying to get someone dizzy? I’m not sure. But I like to see this song as God asking to dance with me–to be involved in my life, to wrestle with me, to catch me when I fall. Listen to this song when you don’t feel like yourself, and see which lyrics stick out to you. God wants to restore you through dynamic relationship.
'Cause I can still remember when you were afraid of the dark
And I told you to come
And you followed where I asked you to go
You'd go
Would you come here and spin with me?
I've been dying to get you dizzy
Find a way up into your head
So I can make you feel like new again
9. You Send Me – Sam Cooke
Okay, I’m a sucker for Sam Cooke and love songs, but this song is just so sweet. Listen to this song when you need to know that you make God feel butterflies. You are so special to him!
At first I thought it was infatuation
But woo, it's lasted so long
Now I find myself wanting
To marry you and take you home
I know, I know, I know, you send me
I know you send me
Whoa-oh, you, you, you, you send me
Honest you do (Do, do, do, do)
10. Baby Where You Are – Mountain Man
In our fast-paced, overwhelming world, it’s so easy to forget that God just wants to be with us. This song reminds me of Psalm 139:5-8:
“You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me…
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.”
This simple ditty will remind you that God wants to see what you see and know what you know. Listen to it when you need a reminder that being with God is the goal, not doing for God.
If I could go, baby, where you go
If I could know, baby, what you know
Then I could see, baby, what you see
Just to be, baby, where you are
Just to see, baby, where you are
Music is such a spiritual thing–there is music in heaven! (Revelation 14:2). So it is no surprise that God can use secular music to speak to our hearts. So go ahead–put on this playlist and dance with God as he speaks gently to your heart. I won’t judge you for slow dancing in your living room!
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The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of CrosswalkHeadlines.
Kelly-Jayne McGlynn is a former editor at Crosswalk.com. She sees the act of expression, whether through writing or art, as a way to co-create with God and experience him deeper. Check out her handmade earrings on Instagram and her website for more of her thoughts on connecting with God through creative endeavors.