In the early 70’s, Burt Bacharach and Hal David composed a song that became a top-hit on the music charts in the western world. The song, entitled “What the world needs now”, is a declaration of timeless truth!

The lyrics of the song petition God with these words, “Lord, we don’t need another mountain, there are mountains and hillsides enough to climb… there are oceans and rivers enough to cross, enough to last ‘till the end of time. What the world needs now is love, sweet love… It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.”

The lyrics claim: We have mountains and hills; oceans and rivers; meadows; cornfield and wheat fields; sunbeams and moonbeams, but we don’t have enough of love… enough for everyone. Following this claim is the plea… “Lord, give us love, sweet love… not for some, but for everyone.” The desperate heart-cry of this song is for more love, sweet love, for our love-deficient world.

Many songs that hit the air waves have little or no value in inspiring the building of human relationships in our world. Many songs, in my opinion, are a waste of time and money. Bacharach and David may not have realised at the time that the lyrics of their song actually touch the very heart-concern of God for all mankind… since the time of Adam.

Friends, never in the history of mankind has our world been in a more desperate need of more love than now. Most families in the developed world have an abundance of worldly things, but a shortage of real love. Take a look around your extended families – and consider those you knew in high school/college – and you will quickly see that marriages, families, communities, and the world are breaking-up around us at an increasingly alarming rate. Our world is perishing! We are in desperate need… We need more love… And we need it right now!

What is love, some may ask? Where do we find it? How can we get our hands on it? The answers to these important questions are found in the Bible and will be suggested to you in next week’s, concluding Part II.

Best wishes,
Bill Joukhadar