Jesus or My Girlfriend
I thought for this week’s addition of “Jesus or My Girlfriend” I would make us take a closer look at a song I am sure many of us have sung. This song is strikingly familiar to a poem I wrote my future wife in college after a rather intense discussion which resulted in her throwing a notebook at me and vowing to never acknowledge my existence again. I know some of you are going to bring up context, but…
Verse 1
Draw me close to You
Never let me go
I lay it all down again
To hear You say
That I'm Your friend
Verse 2
You are my desire
No one else will do
'Cause nothing else
Could take Your place
To feel the warmth
Of Your embrace
Help me find the way
Bring me back to You
Chorus 1
You're all I want
You're all I've ever needed
You're all I want
Help me know You are near
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15 Spoke Up:
Scott,
This song was sung at my wedding. How dare you bring this up. It is my sacred cow and you are hitting just a little too close to home:)
I've never heard that song before. Singing it in church would just be gross, and it's way too flakey to sing to my wife. Maybe if I was a "love"-sick teenager...
Travis was it being sung to your wife or Jesus at the wedding? Or both?
Scott,
The bible does call us the Bride of Christ. In addition, Solomon had a simlar song (that was a little more graphic) if I remember correctly.
your thoughts?
~ Gene ~
Honestly up until today I actually liked this song. I have sung this song a few times (maybe 3). However, I somehow managed to overlook a few obvious problems with it. One, it is extremely vague in its message. What are we actually asking here? What does it mean when it says "bring me back to you"? Have I lost my salvation or am I a backslider? Have I sinned and broken fellowship?
This song is vague enough I think you could apply totally different meanings to every line depending on your theological preference. The 1st verse seems to lean pretty Arminian, but I don't know the writer's intent, because he didn't give it to us in the song. If it is not Arminian then it must be a song of repentance. While I have no issues with repenting I don't see this as a very good song for corporate worship. Also if it is a song of repentance it still has a few theological issues. One of the questions I always ask before choosing songs to sing is "what picture does this paint of Christ or God or whomever is represented. This song is so vague I beleive the answer would depend on the individual.
Which raises the question are some songs good for private worship, but not corporate worship?
These songs are all left intentionally vague because the writers want to leave open the prospect of the song being a crossover hit, not because they just love Jesus sooooo much. He's just their meal ticket until they get good enough to write 'real' songs.
Man. I used to sing that one all of the time in my prior theological life. Now just reading it gives me the eibee jebees.
Jeremy Weaver said "He's just their meal ticket until they get good enough to write 'real' songs."..............Until they can write REAL songs!?!?!...I hope you didnt actually mean that!
Scott,
Sorry it has taken me a while to get back here. In answer to your question, I think the goal Amy and I had at our wedding nine years ago next month was to bring as much glory to God as possible. We knew a lot of lost people would be present and wanted everything to point to Jesus (including all the music). This song was sung and played as the groomsmen and bridesmaids were processing to the front of the church.
I'm sure that it could have appeared to have double meaning to those who were gathered there. I don't think we intended it to be so. At the time, I was ignorant of the possible theological ambiguity in such songs. I still don't think it's a "bad song" in the sence that it can't be sung with a pure heart toward God. I think it can acurately express one's desire to relinquish all earthly idols (relationships and otherwise) for an intimate relationship with the one true God. The song sounds like someone who has been "away from God" and therein lies much of the ambiguity.
I share the same concern as you, it sounds too much like the same words one would sing to their girlfriend and that is not good. There are better songs written these days that have more Christ-centered, Bible-centered language that fit the contemporary praise genre these days. If we had known then what we know now, we would have chosen them. But still, I'm biased toward the song and my heart starts to beat rapidly every time I hear the song on the radio. I just can't help it. Is it because the song has double meaning for me? No, but I will never be able to separate it from that day of destiny, so my opinion is pretty much worthless:)
Travis, I was just kidding about it being sung to about your wife. Like I said before in the right context to song makes sense as a worship song. I still wonder if it is the best song for a corporate setting. I have actually had our church sing this song twice in the last 8 months or so, and I don't believe it harmed our congregation any. However, I doubt in that setting we sing it again.
By the way everyone has lots of songs that nastalgia clouds their judgement over. Everytime I hear "the devil went down to Georgia" I tear up.
forgiven sinner,
I was employing sarcasm. That's why I put the quotes around the word 'real'.
Charlie Daniels rocks, Scott!
For Scott
Scott,
I agree, its probably not ideal for a corporate setting, only at my wedding.
BTW, I know you were left out of going to T4G in Louisville by your "friends", but many of the congregational songs were phenominal. Some of them were hymns that were redone by the Sovereign Grace guys. I'm sure you already know about it. Our church is looking at doing some of the songs off the Hymns project album "Upward." Have you checked any of those songs out?
yeah I have listened to a lot of the sovereign grace stuff. I like it personally, but I find a good number of the arrangments may not be right for my congregation.
I have recently introduced 3 hymns written by Stuart Townend and cowriters.
Stuarts "The Power of the Cross" is one that should be sung by every church.
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