WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD

I see trees of green........ red roses too
I see ’em bloom..... for me and for you
And I think to myself.... what a wonderful world.

I see skies of blue..... clouds of white
Bright blessed days....dark sacred nights
And I think to myself .....what a wonderful world.

The colors of a rainbow.....so pretty ..in the sky
Are also on the faces.....of people ..going by
I see friends shaking hands.....sayin’.. how do you do
They’re really sayin’......i love you.

I hear babies cry...... I watch them grow
They’ll learn much more.....than I’ll never know
And I think to myself .....what a wonderful world

The colors of a rainbow.....so pretty ..in the sky
Are there on the faces.....of people ..going by
I see friends shaking hands.....sayin’.. how do you do
They’re really sayin’...*spoken*(I ....love....you).

I hear babies cry...... I watch them grow
(you know their gonna learn
A whole lot more than I’ll never know)
And I think to myself .....what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself .......what a wonderful world.



Recognize those lyrics? You should. For a while, in the nineties, it seemed like every movie played in theaters had one of Louis Armstrong’s songs in its soundtrack. Okay, maybe not every movie, but enough that at one point, I made note of it.

Louis Armstrong grew up in racist America. He was born and raised in the birthplace of Jazz, New Orleans, LA, in the very early twentieth century. Growing up, Louis was a worker from the age of seven on, running rags and coal for a wealthy family to try and help raise money for his family. Imagine a seven year old in today’s America being counted on to win bread for the family. Know any seven year olds?

Now, this post didn’t come about on its own. Several days ago, my pastor used these very lyrics in his sermon, and said some of the same things I am going to say here. I just felt it was a good thing if I were to share this wonderful world, and this wonderful man, and all of the lessons we can learn from his attitude about the world he lived in.

The colors of a rainbow.....so pretty ..in the sky
Are also on the faces.....of people ..going by
I see friends shaking hands.....sayin’.. how do you do
They’re really sayin’......i love you.

Did I mention that Louis Armstrong grew up in a racist America? At the time of his birth, and in the Deep South, blacks were not allowed in many of the places whites were. Some examples of that would be churches, stores, restaurants, town halls, schools, and all manner of other businesses and locations.

For a black man to even speak to a white woman when not addressed constituted a forward sexual advance, and many black men were jailed or worse for doing so. What a wonderful world.

Louis doubtlessly heard the word “nigger” repeatedly, every day. What a wonderful world? To live in such a time, to be called the names he was called, and treated as less than human, is unthinkable. Yet it happened, right here in America.

What was Louis’ response? “What a wonderful world.”

How many of us could suffer the same, and still claim this as a wonderful world? How does a man who experienced racism all of his life write such a song?

My pastor spoke of thankfulness, and of an ability to recognize God’s good works amidst all of the hate and evil in this world. I believe that is what is takes to write such a song. I believe it takes a willingness to find God, in everything, and if possible, to give thanks for what we find, wherever we find it.

I know of people in Egypt jailed for their faith, beaten, and left to suffer for weeks sharing a two foot by four foot cell with rats and feces for weeks on end, who do nothing but praise God, and glorify Him for all of His good works. How is it possible for these faithful to be so thankful, and praising?

That is a question we must all answer, because in America, I see precious little praising of God, and we suffer nothing in comparison to what the faithful in Egypt, Palestine, and other Muslim nations suffer. In America, we are wealthy, and every so often we hear of one our “rights” being trampled, such as the right to pray in school. Immediately, we complain, and set out to change it. Change is good, but along with this attitude of regaining our “rights”, do we also find praise for God? Or do we cry out, and complain for that which we have lost, and demand that it be returned?

I know the answer to that question for America as a whole. You will too, if you remember September eleven. The cry from our nation was “God bless America”. It wasn’t a cry of praise. It was a demand.

So, where do we go from here? Do we actively seek the praise of God? Or do we actively seek to find the bad, and comment about it?

Look at those lyrics again. If anyone had a platform and reason for hate, it was Louis Armstrong. He grew up in hate, he was its victim, and his response to it was gratitude, so much that he had to write a song about how he felt.

Christians murdered for their faith. Skies so blue you have to squint sometimes just to see them. What a wonderful world.

Sex in every corner, on every television set, and completely permeating many American minds. Children singing “Yes Jesus loves me”. What a wonderful world.
Politicians lying, the wealthy and powerful enslaving the masses through gimmicks and revolving credit. One soul believing in Jesus. What a wonderful world.

Thank you Lord