When You Feel As Though Your Sinking

    To start, I think it is essential to let you know a bit about my religious background. I was raised in a Pentecostal Holiness Church and went to a Baptist private school from K-5 through 10th grade. While many of you might know there’s a pretty big difference between the two. Throughout my years spent in the church, we typically sang hymns with the choir. However, sometimes the choir would put their spin on these traditional hymns. However, I would like to focus on the songs we listen to in chapel at my private school because I tend to connect on a deeper level to contemporary music. 

    One specific song by Hillsong called Oceans (where my feet may fail) connects with me on a spiritual level if you will.  I would also like to preface this song is quite long, but I think listening to the whole piece is vital to understand how into it Christians (or at least I) get. (Also, I have placed the full lyrics at the bottom!)



    There are specific lyrics in the song that connects with me. For example, “The great unknown, Where feet may fail, and there I find You in the mystery, In oceans deep, My faith will stand.” These lyrics represent how God calls us into the most complex situations of our life. This is the “mystery where feet may fail.” This is an important concept in Christianity because we have to stand by our faith and call upon Him when things get tough. By doing this, we can “ keep my eyes above the waves, when oceans rise, my soul rests in your embrace, for I am yours, for you are mine.” The song also goes into more detail about the more challenging times in our lives. 


    Now, this might sound silly, but I want to compare God to a GPS. A GPS gets you from point A to point B. However, you can choose any route to get there, and you will still get to your destination. Similarly, in our walk with God, he has given us free will to make decisions for ourselves. By doing so, we might find ourselves in problematic situations. Yet, we will end up at our final destination with him when it is all said and done. Oceans sings about the fear in our lives, where we believe we might fail. However, his grace abounds us in the most significant trials, and he is our never-failing guide through it all. “ your grace abounds and deepest waters, Your sovereign hand, will be my guide, where feet may fail, and fear surrounds me, you’ve never failed, and you won’t start now."


    Finally, there is one more set of lyrics I would like to point out. “ Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders, let me walk upon the waters, wherever you would call me, take me deeper than my feet could ever wander, and my faith will be made stronger, and the presence of my Savior.” I choose to save these lyrics for last because I believe they strongly impact any Christian listening to this song. For myself, I believe that calling upon God and diving into His word during the hardest times of your life is crucial. By doing so, we can make our faith stronger and feel the presence of our God leading us through these dark, murky waters. 


You call me out upon the waters
The great unknown
Where feet may fail
And there I find You in the mystery
In oceans deep
My faith will stand
And I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves
When oceans rise
My soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours
You are mine
Your grace abounds in deepest waters
Your sovereign hand
Will be my guide
Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me
You've never failed
And You won't start now
So I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves
When oceans rise
My soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours
And You are mine (You are mine)
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
And take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
And take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
Yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah
Oh, Jesus, You're my God

I will call upon Your name
Keep my eyes above the waves
My soul will rest in Your embrace
I am Yours
And You are mine

Comments

  1. Cassie L.March 15, 2021 at 4:58 PM

    Hi! I thought your blog post was really deep and helpful. I like the connection you've made with this song. I would have never thought of comparing God to a GPS. Makes sense in my opinion.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Amber CoxMarch 15, 2021 at 6:58 PM

    Dallas I love this song. It's one of those songs that you can never get tired of. Comparing God to a GPS is a new way of thinking about it. I had never thought about it like that. Learning about others perspectives and introspection is always interesting. Thank you for sharing this!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Cherelyn CogginsApril 8, 2021 at 6:39 AM

    I really love how much thought and emotion comes through this post. I have always loved this song. It is so beautiful. Not just from a Christian perspective, but from a breakdown of the music itself. There is so much deep and meaningful emotion in this song. I also really love the comparison you made regarding God and a GPS. I grew up in Christian teachings, and though I often struggle with the high levels of hypocrisy and judgement that often came with the churches we were involved with, and though my life has changed as I have grown older, I still believe in God and personally love that connection that you made.

    ReplyDelete

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