The six songs
These are the songs from the book, each with its recording and its words. When the songs speak to God, they address Him as “You.”
- My Times Are in Your Hands
- No Fourth Floor in the Elevator
- The Blind Fortune-Teller
- Tomorrow Is in the Lord’s Hands
- No Need to Count the Day
- Every Hair Is Counted
1. My Times Are in Your Hands
The Preface
Verse 1I was six when my father died And I learned to fear the coming day Incense smoke and the fortune-teller’s word Were the safety I held on to Good predictions, I took with a smile One bad line kept me up at night I thought my fate was written down on paper I never knew who held the reinsChorusMy times are in Your hands Not in the stars, not in my birth signs Not in a door number, not in lucky days Lord, my whole life is in Your handsVerse 2A fortune-teller promised me riches And he introduced me to his daughter Three months later the dream was broken And I asked how he could be so wrong A blind man said our clash would ease And once again I gave my heart Looking back I see it was Your mercy Leading me quietly, step by stepBridgeAugust third, nineteen ninety-seven I laid my old fortune charts down You forgave me all my divination And my tomorrow I give to YouChorusMy times are in Your hands Not in the stars, not in my birth signs Not in a door number, not in lucky days Lord, my whole life is in Your hands
2. No Fourth Floor in the Elevator
Chapters One, Three and Six
Verse 1The elevator opens, a row of buttons After three comes five After twelve it jumps to fifteen The floors are there, just renamed Eights on the license plate, no fours on the door Nine, they say, means long and lasting A sound, a wish We are afraid, and we are hopingChorusNumbers do not speak, it is the heart that speaks Four will not harm you, eight will not make you rich Who holds my days? I know it in my heart Not a number, but the Father’s loveVerse 2Thirteen at the table, rain on a Friday Each story scarier than the last But search them to the end, and many legends Are only tales of recent daysChorusNumbers do not speak, it is the heart that speaks Four will not harm you, eight will not make you rich Who holds my days? I know it in my heart Not a number, but the Father’s loveOutroThe fifth floor is still the fifth floor And my road, the Lord already knows
3. The Blind Fortune-Teller
Chapter Five
Verse 1Summer of nineteen ninety-six In a hospital ward I met you That night I called and asked your birth hour Your mother had already guessed why I waited in line for more than an hour Just to hear a lucky word He said our signs were in conflict But our birth charts would ease it, and life would be goodChorusWho was holding my hand? Not the teller, not the chart It was the One who before creation Had already chosen me Even the fortune-teller’s words Were never outside Your hands Today I no longer ask my fate I only come to thank You for Your graceVerse 2I once thought that he was right But one was wrong and one was right, no more A saying that covers both ways Can explain whatever comes Now looking back, I understand Your will was settled long before The one I love is Your gift to me Not a blessing from a birth chartChorusWho was holding my hand? Not the teller, not the chart It was the One who before creation Had already chosen me Even the fortune-teller’s words Were never outside Your hands Today I no longer ask my fate I only come to thank You for Your grace
4. Tomorrow Is in the Lord’s Hands
Chapters Nine and Twelve
Verse 1Open the almanac: good to marry, bad to build Moving house or opening shop, we ask it first We want to buy insurance for tomorrow But we do not know what tomorrow brings Life is like a morning mist When the sun comes up, it is goneChorusEverything has its own time Birth and death, tears and laughter, all in Your hands The day does not choose me, and I do not choose the day If You allow it, I will goVerse 2I will make my plans, and I will pray A wedding date, a new home, what suits our friends I will be gentle with my elders’ hearts But I will not give my heart to the almanacChorusEverything has its own time Birth and death, tears and laughter, all in Your hands The day does not choose me, and I do not choose the day If You allow it, I will goBridgeTomorrow is not in the hands of a day Tomorrow is in the Lord’s hands
5. No Need to Count the Day
Chapters Eight and Ten
Verse 1Some avoid six-six-six A highway renumbered, a house number changed Some count the letters of the Bible And say they found a hidden voiceVerse 2Some worked out the date of the end Eighteen forty-four, twenty eleven They sold their goods and watched the sky Morning came, and all went on the sameChorusI do not need to count the day I do not need to fear a number The times and dates the Father sets I only need to watch, and love And every day to walk Your wayBridgeNot a code, not a formula Your word is clear and plain Not fear, not guessing Your love is waiting for meChorusI do not need to count the day I do not need to fear a number The times and dates the Father sets I only need to watch, and love And every day to walk Your way
6. Every Hair Is Counted
Chapters Nine, Eleven and Twelve (the close of the book)
Verse 1I used to count the lucky days and the bad Count my birth signs, count my fate Count the floors and count the door numbers The more I counted, the more I fearedVerse 2Then I learned that You had counted me Every hair upon my head Not one sparrow is forgotten How much more the one You loveChorusTeach me to number all my days Give me wisdom, free from fear What You gave me was not fear But power, love, and a sound mindBridgeNot four, not eight Not thirteen, not six-six-six It is Your hand, it is Your love That holds my tomorrowChorusTeach me to number all my days Give me wisdom, free from fear What You gave me was not fear But power, love, and a sound mind