“It’s not about you.”
When I read those four words in the opening of Rick Warren’s mega-bestselling book, The Purpose-Driven Life, it was a life-changing moment. Sitting in a small group with other college students, I felt like two things happened at once.
First, I felt a weight lifted from my shoulders. I still did not fully understand God’s purpose for my life, but it was a relief to know that it wasn’t about me.
Second, I was intrigued. If my purpose wasn’t about me, then what was my purpose about?
Over the forty-day journey my group embarked on through that book, I discovered the power of orienting your life around glorifying God and living out His purposes for your life. Our group finished the book many years ago, but I’m still living that adventure of seeking to serve God’s purpose for my life.
That book and journey came to mind as I’ve been listening to and loving Seph Schlueter’s new song, “Words We'll Sing Forever.” His first massive hit, “Counting My Blessings,” was the soundtrack of countless videos all over my Instagram feed, and the winner of the 2024 K-Love Fan Award’s Breakout Single of the Year. While “Counting My Blessings” focuses on the ways and places Schlueter sees God at work in His life, “Words We’ll Sing Forever” shifts the focus away from how God is at work and onto the character of God.
In reflecting on “Words We’ll Sing Forever,” Schlueter describes the importance of songs that remind us that life is not about us.
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“As someone who grew up in the church, the most powerful songs for me were the ones that took my eyes off of myself and lifted them to God. ‘Words We’ll Sing Forever’ is that song… It’s a song for the Church to sing and lift to the Lord. It’s a song for each individual to focus their attention on Christ. And it’s a song for Jesus, to praise and glorify Him.”
Listening to the song, I thought about driving an hour away from my home into the wilderness as the sun set. A friend and I met up with a man from our church who had made his telescope. Away from light pollution, the stars shifted from fuzzy elements to high-definition clarity. God’s glory in creation overwhelmed us.
Schlueter’s lyrics offer us a visual version of that same experience. In at least three instances, his words echo the Word of God directly.
First, in the song’s opening lines, Schlueter sings, “We could fill a thousand books” with stories of God’s goodness. This lyric echoes John 21:25, where the apostle wrote how "Jesus also did many other things. If they were all written down, I suppose the whole world could not contain the books that would be written."
Second, in the song’s chorus, Schlueter draws on the words and images of Isaiah 6. This chapter describes Isaiah’s prophetic calling and his vision of the throne room of God. In the chorus, we hear lyrics like, “Holy, Worthy… Glory in the highest,” which echo Isaiah 6:3. “They were calling out to each other, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies! The whole earth is filled with his glory!’”
Third, as the second verse begins, Schlueter sings about “Since before the dawn of time… endless choirs of angels all singing Your praises.” John presents this word picture in the book of Revelation.
“Then I looked again, and I heard the voices of thousands and millions of angels around the throne… And they sang in a mighty chorus: ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered—to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing. And then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea. They sang: ‘Blessing and honor and glory and power belong to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever.’”
We often get caught up in family conflicts over trivial matters. Our anxiety grows because of a political conflict in our country. We worry about how a complex situation at work will be resolved. However, when our focus shifts from ourselves and even our world that is passing away to the glory of our eternal God, something shifts inside us. Declaring words we will sing forever, as Seph Schlueter describes, is not dull or monotonous. Worshipping with “Word’s We’ll Sing Forever” can restore our sanity and sense of purpose in a world that feels like it has gone mad.
Turn on this song and allow your focus to shift from a spinning world to the One who holds it in His hands.
Scott Savage is a pastor, author, and speaker with the best last name in the world. Scott’s writing helps people transform difficult circumstances into places where they can thrive. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona, and loves watching movies with his wife and three kids. You can begin Scott’s life-changing project, The 21-Day Gratitude Challenge, today.
