Song Speak: Glory To You

Guest ColumnistCommunity News

by Andy White

I’d like to share the back-story of “Glory to You,” a song found on the “Undivided” album recently released by our church. We have sung this song several times at SBCC.  My hope is that this story will inspire your worship to become more meaningful.

Glory to You

©2009, Music & Lyrics by Andy White

If I can open my eyes to see,

the measure of eternity

The highest star, the deepest sea,

they speak of you

You made the mountains with your hand

Ocean tides, every grain of sand,

The saints will sing, by your command

They speak of you, they speak of you

For your kingdom is all around,

in my rising up, in my lying down

For your kingdom is all around,

in every sight and every sound

Glory to you, glory to you…

Every woman and every man,

Woven into your perfect plan

In every tongue, from every land

They speak of you, they speak of you

I can go days, and I can go days,

and hardly think of you

Open this heart, use every part

to bring glory to you, glory to you

For a couple years, I met monthly with some of my fellow songwriting buddies. I really got into these little summits because the guys didn’t hold back when they thought a song could be better. During that time, we’d often come up with a topical “challenge” that we’d all try to write to that month. One month, the challenge was to write a “worship anthem.”  You know, some sort of instantly catchy, toe tapping ditty that would catapult every soul into the euphoric ether of the Spirit’s presence within the first minute! Yeah, that type of song.  Easy, right?

Well, I have no idea if that is the genre “Glory to You” landed in, but I am thankful that the song came to life that month.  It was an interesting chain of events that brought this song out of its cocoon. Often, when writing, I’ll start with some sort of tangible scripture, concept or emotion that I’m trying to capture.  But with this one, I had nothing besides a commitment to keep the BPM (beats per minute) up at a decent pace. At that point, I realized it was time for a reality check. The last thing I wanted to do was write a song that was musically memorable but void of content…basically fluff. It was time to burrow beyond the periphery of my consciousness.

I turned to prayer and asked God to enlighten me. I begged for Him to reveal a direction to take with this song challenge. Much to my surprise, instead of finding a song, I found conviction. These are the things God said to me over the next few days of searching:

You are so busy.

You don’t seem to have time for me.

Multiple days go by without you even thinking about me.

Can’t you see that my hand is in everything?

These were not the things I was expecting to hear Him say for my little song-writing project. But, as many of us know, God has a much grander scheme, which far out-reaches our puny plans. He is always working behind the scenes, regardless of whether or not we choose to acknowledge his activity. God cared about my heart much more than my song. So, instead of focusing on my song, I began to search for what He might have to say to me about my life.

The Lord is so good. He reminded me that being with Him doesn’t have to be difficult or complicated. Everyday life could be infused with Him, if I could simply acknowledge His presence.  A walk on the beach could become a time for spiritual connection. A gaze at the mountains outside my car window could be a powerful catalyst to connect with my Savior.

And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD: “O LORD Almighty, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. (Isaiah 37:15-16)

To my amazement, God had more than just a rejuvenated friendship in mind during this time of searching. He had a particular message to impart, and it was all about His Kingdom. He reminded me that as amazing as the natural wonders of earth are, they are but a fraction of the glory I will see in His kingdom. The message He gave me was to not let there be a disconnection between what is happening here on earth and what I will one day see in heaven. It was time for me to tune in to God’s daily work.

Then Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let Him hear. “When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around Him asked Him about the parables. He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that, “’they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’” (Mark 4:9-12)

This was a new way for me to approach my everyday life. It was as if I had been at the cinema with dark sunglasses and earplugs. God’s kingdom is being built before my very eyes. One life at a time. One conversation at a time. One sunset at a time. God is constructing paradise each day. All I had to do was wake up with open eyes and ears.

It was an exciting revelation—not at all what I thought would be the subject of a new song. However, once I went through this time of searching, I found that the lyrics for the song unfolded rather quickly. I was excited to have an upbeat song that spoke of the glory of heaven. God knew the song he wanted to give me all along.

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:13)

You can find an mp3 of this song on iTunes or here: https://www.sbcommunity.org/resources/worship