Yesterday, on April Fool’s Day, I found myself listening to the song “Fool for You” in my car as I drove. Do you know the song? Written in 2000 by Nichole Nordeman (who, in my opinion, is one of contemporary Christian music’s most talented songwriters), “Fool for You” is a musical and poetic treatment of the kind of “foolishness” described by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:22-23: “For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.”
In “Fool for You,” Nichole Nordeman’s lyrics illuminate with creative brightness the sheer foolishness of the cross:
There are times when faith and common sense do not align,
when hardcore evidence of you is hard to find.
And I am silenced in the face of argumentative debate.
It’s a long hill. It’s a lonely climb.They want proof,
They want proof of all these mysteries I claim.
For only fools would want to chant a dead man’s name.
Maybe it’s true, but…I would be a fool for you all because you asked me to.
A simpleton who’s seemingly naive,
I do believe You came and made Yourself a fool for me.I admit that in my darkest hours I’ve asked what if,
What if we created some kind of man-made faith like this,
Out of good intention or emotional invention,
and after life is through there will be no You.They want proof of all these miracles I claim,
For only fools believe that men can walk on waves.
Maybe it’s true, but…I would be a fool for you all because you asked me to.
A simpleton who’s seemingly naive,
I do believe You came and made Yourself a fool for me.Unaware of popularity,
and unconcerned with dignity,
You made me free.
That’s proof enough for me.I would be a fool for You,
Only if You asked me to,
A simpleton who’s only thinking of
The cause of love.I will speak Jesus name,
and if that makes me crazy,
they can call me crazed.
I’m happy to be seemingly naive,
I do believe You came and
made Yourself a fool for me
Listening to the song inspired a prayer within me that sounded something like this:
Transform me inwardly, Holy Spirit. Deliver me from the oppressive arrogance that motivates me to want to be admired, and carry me more deeply into a wholehearted willingness to be considered foolish for the sake of your Son and his Way. In a mind-boggling expression of self-emptying grace, you allowed yourself to become a fool in Christ. Manifest his ‘foolishness’ in me, that my life might bear witness to the ‘foolish’ kingdom that you inaugurated through his life, death, and resurrection.
As I type these words, that prayer is still somewhere close to my heart.
Happy Birthday, and thank you for sharing such a perfect prayer with us this day, s beautiful day after April Fool’s Day!
Your prayer became the introduction into my devotional time this morning.
Thanks for being so authentic: that in itself is an incredible act of foolishness in the eyes of the world.
Blessings……..
Nicole is one of Jan’s favorites. Have a great Day!
Hey Eric,
Just now catching up on some of your old posts. I had never heard this song until December, when I was preaching on “UnCommon Sense.” The worship team sang it as a special piece, and it was great. Hard to be willing to be a fool in this world of fame and facts, but how can we do anything else?