Here
are the next 5 songs in our countdown! Sorry about the delay!
35. Let Me Love on You
"O
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,
how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her
chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!" - Luke 13:34
I
sent you poets, baby, to pen sweet lines of love
I
left a million undiscovered clues
I
sent you prophets, lady, to beg you, "Please come home"
They
all came back bloody, beaten and abused
Let
me love on you
We were big fans of the TV show Twin Peaks around the
time we made this CD. This song was an attempt to emulate that low, baritone
guitar sound that was so prevalent in the music from that show by the great
Angelo Badalmenti.
Some folks expressed some confusion about what the title line in
the chorus meant. “loving on” someone is a Southern expression meaning to show
affection and intimacy towards someone. A Southern mom might say to her
children, “C’mere and let momma love on you a little bit!” and then wrap them
up in a big embrace.
I wanted to pull back the veil and explore what I believed God’s
heart is towards us. Over and over again, the scripture echoes His desire to be
“among” us and “in our midst.” Revelation 21 records that the signature mark of
the new earth will be that the dwelling place of God would be physically and
literally with us. God would no longer seem a distant shadow or whisper barely
heard. We will see Him up close and personal. His presence will no longer be
something we sense or feel; He will be among us as our God and we will be with
Him as His people.
I’m not sure if it worked in the context of the darker, somber
quality of the music. It seems kinda juxtaposed now but it worked for us at the
time. It seemed a great way to close out the record. Little did we know we were
pretty much closing out our career together as a band with that track.
-Jerry
34. Wounded World
"You
are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be
made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out
and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be
hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they
put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same
way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and
praise your Father in heaven." –Matthew 5: 13-16
We
sting like salt in the wounds of a wounded world
I
had the opening riff rolling around in my head for months before I wrote the
rest of the song. I got the idea for the lyrics from Jesus’ words, “You are the
salt of the earth.” I was thinking of all the things salt does; preserves,
flavors, etc. Then I thought and it stings in an open wound. Like salt in a
wound, Christians can also be seen as an annoyance by a world wounded and
separated from God. Whenever we are compelled to speak truth when people prefer
lies, we are hated and scorned. We sting like salt in the wounds of a wounded
world.
At
first I sang the lead on this one but in the studio Terry decided Mark’s voice
sounded more heartfelt and desperate, largely because he was recovering from a
bad head cold.
-Jerry
33.It's a Boys' Boys' Boys' Boys' World
"I
denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart
took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when
I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under
the sun." - Ecclesiastes 2:10-11
You
better believe it's a dangerous thing
When
we start believing that youth is king
Probably my third favorite JT song ever (right after Little Red
Words and This Moment). I am especially pleased with the lyrics to this one. Ever
a child of the Eighties, I was trying for a big jungle drum driving beat of
stuff like Duran Duran, Big Country, etc. We only played it live a few times
but I always loved it when we did. It’s a ton of fun!
The idea for the song grew out of a discussion about the
youth-obsessed nature of our culture. We worship it like it’s the pinnacle of
existence. We spend the first 20 years of our lives trying to grow up then the
rest of our lives trying to stay 20! It’s insanity. The entire culture is
geared toward youth and regards age as an enemy rather than a gift to be
treasured and embraced.
It was my attempt to be both funky and philosophic at the same
time. If you listen close we take a playful jab at our old touring mates, the
Newsboys, in the fade out.
-Jerry
32. Time Bomb
A
well of secret shame is buried deep inside my crooked heart
It's
quiet on the surface but inside it's tearing me apart
Alright,
I need someone to talk to
I'm
a time bomb, baby
We had been listening to a lot of INXS at that time. We were big
fans of that band and I really wanted to capture their funky, dance-groove
influence in a song. Listening back now it sounds really “white” to me, like
Kevin James’ character in Hitch learning to dance from Wil Smith.
“Don’t you bite your lip!”
Lyrically, it’s all about trying to handle your sin yourself.
You try to keep it a secret from everyone around you because you don’t want to
deal with the shame and guilt and embarrassment associated with it – whatever
“it” is. So instead of seeking help and strength from the allies God has put in
your life (and they are there, you just have to look for them hard enough and
have patience), you just hunker down and try harder to do better. The problem
with that it that the whole approach runs counter to the gospel. You cannot
handle it yourself. You can’t ignore it and hope it just gets better. It’s just
a matter of time before it manifests itself in your life somehow and you can
bet it won’t be pretty. Find someone you can trust and get help. Your Enemy is
too big and if we could have handled the battle ourselves, then Jesus on the
cross was pointless.
I had high hopes of radio single potential for this track but it
was not to be.
-Jerry
31. About Sex
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"It
is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual
immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that
is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know
God." - 1 Thessalonians 4: 3-5
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The
Greatest Hit We Never Had. People used to drive from all over to hear us play
this song in concert. It was, without question, the show stopper in our early
live sets. It was originally intended for Door Into Summer but was passed on
when the final song selection was made. We re-recorded it ,intending it for
Knock Breathe Shine, but Terry declined to produce it. He felt the lyrics were
too “moral majority” and that it clashed with the musical and artistic
direction the album was taking. Looking back I can see that Terry was probably
right, but the ideas expressed in it are still true and more relevant today
than when it was first written, even if the pop-culture reference are outdated.
-Jerry
Tune in next time for new stories from Jerry, Ron, and Keith!
Tune in next time for new stories from Jerry, Ron, and Keith!