This song has come to the forefront in the life of our church because of the recent trials we've had to face. The testing of our faith has made us more resolved to endure and overcome the sufferings for the all-surpassing glory of God. It is not only our obstacles that will be defeated, but the Kingdom of our God will overtake the kingdom of this world. This song helps us put our battles into proper perspective. The evidence that this is taking place is seen in the transformation of our lives and community. We are nothing like we used to be. - Jared Anderson

The day the news of the scandal at New Life broke, we held our normal Friday night college and 20-somethings service called theMILL. It was the first public gathering on our campus since the news, and the service that night was anything but ordinary. I remember leading worship as over a thousand students defiantly confessed their hope in Jesus, refusing to be deterred because of a man's shortcomings. At one point in the worship service, I kept singing phrases about "when darkness falls, joy comes in the morning" and "when all seems lost, hope is everlasting." I wrote them down and forgot them for awhile. A few months later, I revisited the phrases and eventually finished the song.

There is incredible hope that is now ours because God has come to us. The world is messed up and full of trouble and brokenness. The good news is not that we will one day escape it all, but that God is bringing His Kingdom, His rule, here to the earth. One day all will be made new and we will be in a new Heaven and a new earth. The Kingdom of God is a Kingdom that has come, but also not yet. We sing "Hosanna" because the King has arrived and He is bringing salvation. He has started to transform everything. What we have is a foretaste, a hint, of what is about to fully take place. In C. S. Lewis's words, "The cure has begun." God has come, and with His arrival comes hope, joy, and strength for those who believe. [Additional reading: Zeph. 3] - Glenn Packiam

"Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." (Psalm 42:11) David talks to his soul. He is downcast. He is weary. I was struck by this passage because I was relating to David. Because of the great trials our church was enduring, I was weary. I wanted to sing to my soul. I wanted--from my spirit-- to tell my soul to get up and find rest in a great God. I wanted to tell my soul to decide that no matter what, He is worthy of praise.

The chorus line "You are greater, greater than the fight that rages for my life," was written, and I questioned if it was too graphic or aggressive of an idea. It was one week later that a gunman walked on to our campus and opened fire. We lost 2 precious teenagers that day, and if it weren't for the actions of a few heroic security members, it could have been hundreds. I realized then that the lyric I had been questioning was a prophetic statement and I decided to keep it.

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) This passage leaves us to conclude one thing. He is greater. Greater than our weakness. Greater than our failures. Greater than our circumstances. Greater than the fight that seems to rage over and over again. It’s a declaration of truth. Our God is greater. But it doesn't end there. Not only is He greater, but He is inviting us to find rest! "For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:30) Let's surrender to our awesome God and find rest... find life and healing. - Jon Egan

I was sitting in my office late on a Friday afternoon, about to leave to get ready for theMILL, our college and 20-somethings service. In my hands was a picture from the sonogram of our first child, a girl. The picture made all the emotions I had felt when I sat in the ultrasound appointment, watching and listening to her beating heart, come rushing back. The pregnancy had been full of some scary moments, so to be at this point was overwhelming. I went over to the office next door where there was a keyboard and began to sing.

"I will stand and worship You for everything You are to me I will lift my voice in praise for all the wonders You display I will stand, I will stand and worship You."

Not long later, the song was finished, with the exception of a few phrases I kept tweaking.

Through salvation we see God's love demonstrated and His goodness revealed. That is reason enough to praise. But God keeps drawing us with tender mercies, calling us into relationship with Him. The only response to that kind of grace and love is to worship--not to attempt a repayment, not to prove that we deserve it--simply to worship.

As we started to do the song at our church, I watched as people responded to God with a firm, unshakable decision to worship. "I Will Stand" is a declaration to God, a choice to worship no matter what, because it is the only response to God's great love and grace. [Additional reading: Romans 5] - Glenn Packiam

This song is a little musical departure for us, but my friend Matthew Fallentine and I were working on this song and commenting about how our church responds to any song with a little R & B feel. We were talking about the two great characteristics of God that we all write songs about. One is his awesome, all-surpassing power and the other is his overwhelming, unending love. Many songs focus on one or the other, but I think the contrast is fascinating.

My wife, Aimee, is so incredibly loving to me and our children, but what I'm grateful for is her deep strength of character. She is a strong woman! Women typically appreciate a strong man who is not afraid to emotionally convey the deep love in their hearts. This idea reflects the image of our Maker, for God is the one who originally put love and might together. He has the power to obliterate us, but he doesn't; He loves us. His grace and strength working together are what sustain us. His mercy in the face of his omnipotence is what makes us grateful. "Mighty King of Love" is about God's unrestrained love applied through his unrelenting power. Christ is the King who was willing to lay down his life. Love for us could only be demonstrated through one strong enough to take on the sin of the whole world. His name is higher than any other! His love is greater than any failure. He is the "Mighty King of Love"! - Ross Parsley

“They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” (Revelation 12:11) I was leading worship at our youth retreat when this message first resonated in me. We were in a season of uncertainty. Our future was not secure. We were introduced to a weakness we've never known before. But in that weakness, we were introduced to a Jesus we've never known before. "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:9-10) Never has this passage meant so much. We found a strength in God that superseded any ounce of power we thought we had in the past. We found the power of God as it far outweighed any semblance of strength we used to know. This was different. This was our story. It was our testimony. It was all God and zero man.

I remember thinking that I never want to be strong on my own again because this type of strength is much better! It was this promise and hope of overcoming that kept us going. It was the realization that our lives are not our own and we gladly give it up, even to death. Jesus Christ, the perfect and spotless One, never sinned but suffered as if he did. He overcame! Now we can overcome! It's been our anthem. It's a proclamation of truth. It's a song of faith. We have a Savior. He overcame all odds. So will we! And so we have!! -Jon Egan

I was struggling with the idea that so much of what I had given my life to over that last 15 years of ministry was somehow useless, wasted, or just plain gone. I was very aware that any accomplishments were God's doing and he had mercifully minimized my failures, but I was discouraged with feeling lost. I knew that God had been faithful to me in the past, but I was having trouble remembering. As I was praying, I heard this phrase in my mind: "I'm your Savior, Restorer, Rebuilder and Rewarder." It occurred to me that my use of the word "Savior" had lost its meaning in my life. As a pastor's son raised on the front row, I had relegated the term to a title instead of an action. I began to embrace the idea that God "saves" us over and over again, not just from something, but for something.

He takes our brokenness, mistakes and failures and in the restoration process makes us better than we were. He takes what we've been through and reworks it for our benefit! Nothing is wasted. In this way He "saves" everything for his own use. When we surrender to him, He is saving what has been lost, restoring what has been broken, rebuilding what's been torn down and rewarding us for seeking after him in the valley of our difficulty. Position is nothing, direction is everything with God! He never punishes us for where we are, only for refusing to go where He is leading. He is a Savior, and He wants to save us for His great glory and purpose.

I remember the day the words to the pre-chorus came to me, which serve to emphasize the bigger idea of this song: "You rescued me from all my fears and loosed the chains of wasted years." With Christ, our future is not the sum total of our past. Because of Christ, the chains of our mistakes or failures don't have to keep us bound. He is our Savior! - Ross Parsley

I am overwhelmed at how God leads us in sacrifice. He is calling us to make them, but only after making them Himself. It amazes me how much God has done to reach us. He could easily prescribe a remedy to cure us from imperfection, but He has chosen the path of redemption. To use the imperfect as part of the perfection: that is the mystery. The Lamb that is God became slain. The Messiah chose death. He bore our weakness. May the greatest gift of love never be lost on us. - Jared Anderson

Jon Egan started this song, and it was wonderfully poetic, but not finished. We began working together on it because we both loved this idea of speaking the unspeakable name of God. “Yahweh” is the English derivative of “"YHWH,” which was used for the holiest name of God. “Adonai” was the most common name used in its place. However, because of the cross, Christ has become our mediator, our advocate and our intercessor. What was once unspeakable and unreachable has become the name on our lips and the arms that have pulled us close. We must always revere Him in His holiness, but now, through Christ, we have also received His invitation to intimacy.

During the last two years at New Life Church we have had to cling to both the “bigness” and “nearness” of God. His “imminence” as well as His “transcendence” have been so important to us as we have traversed the valley of disappointment and tragedy. “Yahweh” is a song that emphasizes God's immutability and eternal quality. “Yahweh” literally means that He is the Redeemer of all things by His own strength and power. He is the ancient One who is all-sufficient. He is the creator and sustainer of all things. We can trust Him because He is with us from our first cry to our dying breath. We can trust Him because He has always been and always will be the faithful One who is with us! He is Yahweh. - Ross Parsley