Only by the grace of God

I keep having to remember the same lesson.
Once upon a time, I knew that God knew better,
and that He cared about me.
And once upon a time, I walked on my porch
and knew that I hadn't gotten myself in the good place I was
- and it was a good place.

And I'm often frustrated
That I need divine assistance
Divine grace
Divine wisdom
And that the brains He gave me in '80
and the brawn
and the guts
and the good looks (ha!)
aren't enough to get me through,
that I need His help, almost daily.

And then I remember the times when I moved without Him
When I took control
and made choices
and screwed everything up so badly
(almost everything bad about my personal great tribulation
is entirely my fault
and the deliverance
I can take no credit for.)

And I'm in the best place in my life
and I wouldn't trade it for any other position so far
although I think I'd do better if I had another chance
except some things I couldn't fix

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MM#98
"I Need Thee Every Hour", Annie Hawks

I need Thee every hour, most gracious Lord;
No tender voice like Thine can peace afford.

I need Thee every hour, stay Thou nearby;
Temptations lose their power when Thou art nigh.

I need Thee every hour, in joy or pain;
Come quickly and abide, or life is in vain.

I need Thee every hour; teach me Thy will;
And Thy rich promises in me fulfill.

I need Thee every hour, most Holy One;
O make me Thine indeed, Thou blessèd Son.

    I need Thee, O I need Thee;
    Every hour I need Thee;
    O bless me now, my Savior,
    I come to Thee.

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 MM#99
"Jesus, Take The Wheel", Carrie Underwood

She was driving last Friday on her way to Cincinnati
On a snow white Christmas Eve
Going home to see her Mama and her Daddy
With the baby in the backseat

Fifty miles to go and she was running low
On faith and gasoline
It'd been a long hard year

She had a lot on her mind and she didn't pay attention
She was going way too fast
Before she knew it she was spinning
On a thin black sheet of glass

She saw both their lives flash before her eyes
She didn't even have time to cry
She was so scared
She threw her hands up in the air

    Jesus, take the wheel
    Take it from my hands
    Cause I can't do this on my own
  
    I'm letting go
    So give me one more chance
    To save me from this road I'm on
    Jesus, take the wheel

It was still getting colder when she made it to the shoulder
And the car came to a stop
She cried when she saw that baby in the backseat
Sleeping like a rock

And for the first time in a long time
She bowed her head to pray
She said I'm sorry for the way
I've been living my life

I know I've got to change
So from now on tonight

    Jesus, take the wheel
    Take it from my hands
    Cause I can't do this on my own

    I'm letting go
    So give me one more chance
    To save me from this road I'm on

    Oh Jesus, take the wheel
    Oh, I'm letting go

    So give me one more chance
    Save me from this road I'm on
    From this road I'm on
    Jesus, take the wheel
    Oh, take it, take it from me
    Oh, why, ooh