The Forgotten Song…

In 1990, Michael Peterson, an up-and-coming artist, was strumming a new song on his guitar for a youth camp in Daytona Beach, FL, as he began to sing:

“When I look into my life, and I don’t like what I see, I ask myself what gets my time, my money, and my affection...”

I was drawn by the song and internally confronted because, at the time, I did not like what I saw in the mirror. (Tears are welling up in my eyes now as I write.)  I was hopeless and directionless.

There were a plethora of people in the room, but as far as I was concerned, this moment in time was for me.

Mr. Peterson  stopped his new song and said,

“Look in your hand and ask and answer, what gets your time?”

I did.

He proceeded:

“What gets your money?”

Though money was lacking, I answered honestly.

Lastly:

“What gets your affection?”

I could not answer the last question as I did not know what affection meant. Staring at my open hand, as if he were reading my thoughts, he said:

“If you don’t know what affection means, it is usually found in what gets your time and money.”

Now I had all three answers. The next statement changed me forever:

“The answer to those questions in your hand," he said,  “is what you have to stand on for all of eternity.”

I stared at the most shallow and unworthy answers.  With no one knowing but me and God, I erased the temporal and replaced it with: Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.

35 years have passed and at every significant crossroad, I have asked myself those questions that have served, and still serve, as a guardrail for me. I am continually aware of what gets my time and money and, consequently, my affection.

This is not profound. Little in my life has been profound—rather simple, actually. But when honestly implemented… the simple becomes profound.

Now to the artist who wrote that song in 1990. I had been looking for him for decades and seven years ago, stumbled on the same name—Michael Peterson (not a unique name when trying to locate someone) and decided to give him a call.

He looked different in the pictures but then again, it had been 28 years. When the voicemail began,  I briefly shared who I was and proceeded to sing the song. Not knowing if this was the same person, I was taking a risk of some sort and said,

“If this provokes holy curiosity,  I can be reached at ________.”

That night he returned my call by singing the correct lyrics on my phone:

“When I look into my life, and see my true reflection, like the mirror of my time, my money and my affection.”

He was unaware of how my life had changed and how the song has been with me at every major milestone. Here is the surprise: he forgot the song entirely and, had I not called him, he would have never remembered it at all.

Michael went on from 1990 to become a superstar in Country Music, writing blockbuster songs including the #1 song on the charts in late 1997, From Here to Eternity. I went on from 1990 with this simple song, the forgotten song, that changed the course of my life forever.

We are friends now. As of July 2020, I have a personal recording of the song I first heard in 1990—the one I have been internally singing for decades.

It is amazing what is happening in the background of life. Miracles and milestones that are taking place without our awareness.

A forgotten song by one is the featured soundtrack of another. But when the time comes, both are brought to the same point on the journey of life again… for purposes unknown—perhaps a holy reflection of what gets one’s time, money, and affection.

These questions were answered for me in 1990 and have been revisited a myriad of times since, in all phases and seasons of my life. On their face they are simple, but the answer to them has a profound impact on life, as we know it, and beyond.

— Psalmist Chad is a local songwriter and member of Jesus Is The Key Church in Melbourne's Eau Gallie district. Follow his YouTube channel, The Song Of The Lord, for a new song ever Sunday.

— Christians of Brevard is a multi-church initiative that seeks to amplify the voices of local churches and ministries for the purpose of encouraging the local body of Christ and advancing the Kingdom of God. Join our Facebook community @ChristiansOfBrevard