INTRO
In an attempt to do something fun and innovative while learning more about the Bible, I’ve decided to try my hand at making a fourteen day devotional–a devotional with a focus on Christian rock music. The basic format will include the song and artist, a Youtube link to the song, the lyrics in italics, and then a related verse(s) with reflection and prayer. If I’m lucky, it’ll prove itself not only a solid devotional, but also as a reference for when somebody tries to talk down rock music as a credible source of biblical influence. Some songs demonstrate more obvious biblical connections than others, but I hope to make an example of all of them.
Day 1 – “Dead Man” by Wolves at the Gate
Lyrics:
I was once a dead man
A stranger with no home
I stood opposed to God himself
And yet He pardoned me
With all my heart and the fiercest will
Desired not but to thieve and kill
I hadn’t a thought of peace, but war
Surrender was not what I’d endure
I was a murderer filled with lies and deceit
Faced with my list of crimes that I would always repeat
Deliver me, wake me up from this damning sleep
I’m surrendering, pull me out from this wickedness
In this thieving heart of stone
I realized all these sins I could not atone
I was a murderer filled with lies and deceit
Faced with my list of crimes that I would always repeat
I was once a dead man
A stranger with no home
I stood opposed to God himself
And yet He pardoned me
So just at the right time when we were dead in our sins
You took this heart of mine and gave me life again
You gave me life again
This is where I begin
So far apart and a debt to fulfill
This purchase bought on redemption’s hill
An ailing disease I couldn’t cure
Oh this grace! How rich and pure!
Abide in me, my God. I am found in You.
Pardon me, my God. You know my deepest thoughts
Deliver me from sin. I am made anew
I’m surrendering this heart, for which your blood it bought
The mob they yelled and screamed for justice
That wrath was ours, we are to blame
You made a spectacle of rulers
Denying You of a king’s fame
Having crushed the written canon
That wrote of all our guilt and shame
Displayed upon the tree it was nailed
The saving power of Your name
For I was once a dead man
A stranger with no home
You saw this wretch
And You gave him life
Forever I’ll praise You!
I will praise You!
REFLECTION
This song (which, admittedly, is more metal than rock) reminds us that one of the most fundamental gifts God provides his children is the gift of life. True life, always available, but received only once we realize the deadness of our ways and world. Time and time again the Bible points back to this principle: Romans 6:23 (“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord), Colossians 2:13 (“You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins”), and the beginning of Ephesians 2 reminds us of our death and transgressions, only washed white by the grace and love of Christ.
This is the quintessential origin of most testimonies, the self-discovery of how pitiful and powerless we are, and the tremendous outpouring of grace we find in that moment of weakness. We ask God in, and God renews. We are born spiritually dead, but we start a new life, reborn in Christ. Our debt is gone, and God requires nothing more from us, only asking that we take this new life and give our all.
PRAYER FOR THE DAY
In an attempt not to forget our origins, try to shed some thanksgiving for the reason you’re following Christ in the first place. Not because it’s what your parents did, or how you were raised, but because you share a mutual love with a God that had the gall and audacity to do something unbelievable. Forgive you.
Day 2 – “Worth It All” by Disciple
It’s worth it all
If I can just see You, feel You
It’s worth it all
If there’s just one that sees You, feels You
I know it will be worth it all
All the time it’s taken
To be here in this place
The scars have left their mark
But I’m still running
Forgetting what is behind
I’m moving straight ahead
And I will run with a passion ’till I reach the end
I won’t let my eyes move left to right
I’ll run with all my heart, I’ll give it all I got
It’s worth it all
If I can just see You, feel You
It’s worth it all
If there’s just one that sees You, feels You
I know it will be worth it all
Remembering all those voices
Arrows that cut me down
There’s something burning in me
That keeps me running
I know it will be worth it all
REFLECTION
1 Corinthians 9:24 talks about how in a race, all runners run, but only one gets the prize, and then implores us to run with the end-goal of obtaining said prize. Having been in Cross Country myself, I know that you can’t train just one facet of your body. You cannot just strengthen your legs or core or heart, but must train them all. You cannot just train your endurance or your speed, but both. The same is true for your spiritual conditioning and race. Don’t remember your failures and all the races you’ve lost, but remember your goal, your prize, and chase after it with passion. If you don’t have that passion, then ask God for guidance and begin searching. Don’t get off track, don’t get distracted.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
Pray for just that, too. Ask for passion. If you’ve already got a target, ask for the fire in your spirit to burn, or if you don’t have a target, ask for the path to one. We get distracted so easily nowadays. Pray for focus when focus is needed, and then take the initiative to work for it.
Day 3 – “Of Dust and Nations” by Thrice
The towers that shoulder your pride
The words you’ve written in stone
Sand will cover them, sand will cover you
The streets that suffer your name,
your very flesh and your bones
Sand will cover them, sand will cover you
So put your faith in more than steel
Don’t store your treasures up with moths and rust,
where thieves break in and steal
Pull the fangs from out your heel
We live in but a shadow of the real
Step out from time, see the dust of nations
Step out from time, hear the stars ovation
Saturn will not sleep, until the sand has made us clean
Still we stack our stones and bury what we can
But it all will be undone, and nothing built under the sun
will ever stand before the endless march of sand
So put your faith in more than steel
Don’t store your treasures up, with moths and rust
where thieves break in and steal
Pull the fangs from out your heel
We live in but a shadow of the real
So put your faith in more than steel
Don’t store your treasures up, with moths and rust
where thieves break in and steal
Pull the fangs from out your heel
We live in but a shadow of the real
REFLECTION
This song by Thrice focuses almost entirely on one passage of scripture, Matthew 06:19 (“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal”). The principle is pretty straightforward—Nothing on this earth is permanent. Everything is perishable and will eventually fade away. If you put too much focus on keeping these things for yourself, you’ll only end up in a self-destructive cycle where greed and envy devour you like a cancer. Twenty-first century America suffers from this in spades, what with our pervasive and ruthless need for things and monetary security. But what would happen if we dropped that guard for a little bit, and sought out something else for fulfillment? God promises that he will be our all-in-all, and we only need to trust that he’ll pull through as declared in that promise.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
If you find yourself too attached to anything in this world: a car, a job, a person, even a dream, then I suggest stepping back and reassessing your priorities. None of the aforementioned things are bad in and of themselves, we just need to make sure we aren’t keeping God in their shadow. Ask for freedom if you struggle with this, and, if this isn’t a particular vice, then pray for continuing discernment with all things.
Day 4 – “Peachy” by Family Force 5
I think about you all the time,
but even though I don’t talk to you
that doesn’t even mean that we are through
I see you as paradigm
of a life that seems so amused
by all the things that I refuse
I think you’re walkin’ on broken glass
and I hope ur not going down fast
That all seemed so real to me,
Cause I was living in my own fantasy
You’re running after a grand mistake
You’re headed for the real heartache
And then you tell me that you think I’m wrong
Hey, don’t ever bring me back
To where I used to be
‘Cause now I feel so fine and I feel so peachy
Hey, don’t ever bring me back
To where I used to be
‘Cause now I feel so fine and I feel so peachy
Friend, can’t you see I’m trying to help you out?
But your mind is stuck on things that leave you adrift with broken wings
You wanna talk about God Philosophy
I don’t think there’s anything wrong
I’ve got time, in fact lifelong
I, think you’re walkin’ on broken glass
and I hope you’re not going down fast
And then you tell me that you think I’m wrong
Hey, don’t ever bring me back
To where I used to be
‘Cause now I feel so fine and I feel so peachy
Hey, don’t ever bring me back
To where I used to be
‘Cause now I feel so fine and I feel so peachy
Don’t bring me down
‘Cause I don’t have time for that anymore
REFLECTION
Straight from the “Christian Party Band,” Family Force 5 feeds us something with a little energy and a lot of punch. The song is about a man who’s already come to know God, and is trying to help his friend who hasn’t, all the while trying not to get dragged back into that old way of thinking. It could just as easily have been a slow song as an upbeat one; but this song, despite its vigor, touches upon a topic that frightens many Christians, especially stagnant ones. Can we sit down with somebody who is still searching and help lead them to the Lord? Will we mess up and make things worse? When dueling with those thoughts, we must remember where we came from, and the changes that came with salvation. We are commissioned to learn and defend our faith and use our testimony as a tool to reach that end.
PRAYER
Courage. This is one I find myself praying for myself with each passing day. I want and need to be a man of courage, someone armed and ready to display my faith openly, and I invite you to do the same. We have friends and family that need Christ, or if we don’t, we will eventually, and it’ll be our responsibility to be a Christian symbol in their lives.
Day 5 – “Afterglow” by Nine Lashes
Our story time is told
And I’m blinded by the afterglow
Can you hear me dear?
Now I’m thumbing through the pages
Of the beautifully romantic years
I can hear you, dear (I can hear you, dear)
‘Cause right in front of me
You disappear
You’re still vanishing
You left me here
I stand here today
So far from the same
It’s hard to move on without you
So my God, fill these spaces left in me
I’m so near to lost, but I’m not
So near to lost, but I’m not alone
Dear daddy, don’t you miss me?
‘Cause in heaven there’s no room for tears
I can feel you here
As I’m thumbing through the pages
Seems forever’s just too far away
When we meet again
I’ll remember when
Right in front of me
You disappeared
You’re still vanishing
You left me here
I stand here today
So far from the same
It’s hard to move on without you
So my God, fill these spaces left in me
I’m so near to lost, but I’m not
So near to lost, but I’m not all alone
Not all alone
I’m not all alone
I’m not all alone
REFLECTION
This song is more about facing the loss of someone you love, and asking God to enter the broken space left behind. Everybody has lost someone, or if they haven’t, they will eventually. This is not a reason to avoid developing bonds with others and shy away from the possible pain of losing somebody, but to take that pain and use it to strengthen your love, not hinder it. How did you feel last time you lost someone? Perhaps they didn’t die, but just needed to leave your life. How much did it hurt? Did they leave on good or bad terms? If you aren’t careful, the “what-ifs” and daydreaming could become an all-consuming obsession, eroding your mind and feelings to the point of emotional numbness. Did you dwell on the loss? What did you fill that space with?
PRAYER OF THE DAY
You’re not alone. If you need to remember that, tell it to God. He knows anyway, so you may as well get it off your chest if you’re feeling lost or lonely. God can fill in all the empty spaces, and He can help the healing process begin. There won’t be a miraculous “suddenly-everything-is-better” moment. You’ll still feel some pain, but you won’t have to face it alone. Pray for enough trust to fight that battle alongside the one who died to save you, so that you don’t have to do it on your own. Or, if you haven’t lost someone recently, pray for somebody who has.
Day 6 – “The Last Night” – Skillet
You come to Me with scars on your wrist
You tell Me this will be the last night feeling like this
“I just came to say goodbye.
I didn’t want you to see me cry, I’m fine.”
But I know it’s a lie.
This is the last night you’ll spend alone
Look Me in the eyes, so I know you know
I’m everywhere you want Me to be
The last night you’ll spend alone,
I’ll wrap you in my arms and I won’t let go
I’m everything you need Me to be
Your parents say everything is your fault,
but they don’t know you like I know you, they don’t know you at all
“I’m so sick of when they say
It’s just a phase, you’ll be okay, you’re fine.”
But I know it’s a lie.
This is the last night you’ll spend alone
Look Me in the eyes, so I know you know
I’m everywhere you want Me to be
The last night you’ll spend alone,
I’ll wrap you in my arms and I won’t let go
I’m everything you need Me to be
The last night away from Me
The night is so long when everything’s wrong
If you give Me your hand I will help you hold on
Tonight, Tonight.
This is the last night you’ll spend alone
Look Me in the eyes, so I know you know
I’m everywhere you want Me to be
The last night you’ll spend alone,
I’ll wrap you in my arms and I won’t let go
I’m everything you need Me to be
I won’t let you say goodbye,
I’ll be your reason why.
The last night away from Me,
Away from Me.
REFLECTION
One of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands. Having heard the frontman explain the meaning of this song in person makes me pretty confident of its purpose. “The Last Night” speaks from the position of God, talking to a girl suffering depression and suicidal thoughts. He promises that if she will just put her trust in Him, it’ll be the last night she ever spends alone, tormented by her demons. There is no particular Bible verse conveyed in this song, but, instead, the overarching promise and reminder that God is our comfort in times of need and suffering. Refer to Psalm 34:18, Isaiah 41:10, Matthew 11:28-30, and John 14:27.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
If you’ve been depressed, or if you’ve thought about hurting or killing yourself in any way, it’s hard for me to tell you to just pray for alleviation, since you’ve probably done that already. Instead, pray for strength not to give up. Darkness, no matter how long it lasts, doesn’t last forever. In addition, go to somebody and drop your defenses. Tell them what’s wrong. If you don’t have a wholesome friend that can handle that sort of burden (they don’t have to have answers, they just need to be there for you), then don’t feel any shame in seeking professional help. Your dignity is not worth risking your life. I ask this of you wholeheartedly, and if you still do not feel comfortable or safe doing either of those things, then I offer myself as well. If you’re willing to talk, I’m willing to listen. Until then, persist in prayer and hope for something more.
Day 7 – “Drown” by Theocracy
I see a ghost, a spirit
walking on the water
He bids me come to Him
without a boat
To walk upon the sea
So I jump over the edge
And take a step upon the water
I’m getting closer
As I feel the sea move
Underneath my feet
I feel the wind and hear
The roar of waves
That crash around me
and when they get their hold on me
I feel I’m going down
Please don’t let me drown
Like Peter all those years ago
Who looked away and sank below
When I sink in seas of doubt
Will You take my hand and pull me out?
The devil and the deep blue sea
With open arms awaiting me
But I won’t go down tonight
If I keep my eyes on You, I’ll be alright
God, the storms are heavy
And the waves have beaten me down
And the winds have turned me
Every which way
Round and round and round
It’s so hard to focus
But I don’t want to look away
Even when the waves grow higher
Every day
Higher every day
Waves and whirlwinds turn my eyes
Raging under threatening skies
The miracles of yesterday
Can sometimes seem so far away
Oh we of little faith, how quickly we forget
Tired and battered by the waves
Won’t let the waters be my grave
Devotion deeper than the sea
The ocean’s tide won’t swallow me
A hand is reaching
I grab it and rise
REFLECTION
Matthew 14: 22-36 is one of the most well-known passages of Jesus demonstrating his power, as well as a prominent act of faith and failure from one of his disciples. When Peter sees Christ coming to them, he asks to join his Savior on the water, and Jesus invites him out. Through his faith, Peter is able to walk on the water, which is unstable and threatening; but shortly after realizing the danger of his actions, Peter begins to sink, and Jesus pulls him out.
It’s easy to lose faith when we’re scared of the storms around us, whether they be personal, societal, or global. In all things God is there, and he is making the most of the good and the bad. All he asks is that we trust him as much as our weak little spirits can manage. Matthew 17:20 states that if we had faith even the size of a mustard seed, we’d be capable of insurmountable feats.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
There is no observable limit to how strong our faith can be, so don’t give up on making it stronger. Pray and practice it always, even if that means fasting food or taking risks. If you want to see the fruits of powerful faith, cultivate that faith.
This is awesome, Cooper! Great job of giving merit to these artists’ lyrics by showing the biblical meaning in them. Making this a devotional that we can use over a two week period was genius!