"Joseph took his wife and her child and they went to Africa
To escape the rage of a deadly king
There along the banks of the Nile,
Jesus listened to the song
That the captive children used to sing
They were singin'
My Deliverer is coming - my Deliverer is standing by
My Deliverer is coming - my Deliverer is standing by
Through a dry and thirsty land, water from the Kenyon heights
Pours itself out of Lake Sangra's broken heart
There in the Sahara winds Jesus heard the whole world cry
For the healing that would flow from His own scars
The world was singing
My Deliverer is coming - my Deliverer is standing by
My Deliverer is coming - my Deliverer is standing by
He will never break His promise - He has written it upon the sky"
from My Deliverer by Rich Mullins
Rich Mullins last album was recorded on a beat box, luckily. If he hadn’t taken the time to strum them into such a basic recording equipment the last song cycle about the life of Jesus would have been killed with him in that tragic car wreck in 1997. They survived and The Ragamuffin Band put them into some sort of produced form.
In his Jesus song cycle this was his nativity opener. As with Rich he takes the Biblical story and adds the poetry and images to the scene to open up the truth. Jesus hearing songs about his own coming is a great way to portray Advent. Painting the picture of Jesus time in Egypt as a refugee Mullins places Jesus among the exiles, his Old Testament ancestors seeking freedom and a Messiah.
Two days before Christmas we recognise that the Deliverer is coming. He is standing by!
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