Rising worship leader Hannah McClure enlists renowned artist Kari Jobe for a collaborative version of her song, “Even Though I Walk.” Alongside her husband, Paul, and award-winning songwriter Jason Ingram, McClure penned the powerful anthem after suffering a miscarriage during the global pandemic.
Following the pregnancy loss, routine surgery was deemed necessary. Complications during the procedure, however, unexpectedly sent McClure to the intensive care unit. Furthermore, McClure had to endure a frightening stay alone in the hospital, due to COVID guidelines that restricted family members from staying with her overnight.
“Even Though I Walk” stands as her personal weapon of warfare as she crafted the song in the wake of the traumatic turn of events. She spontaneously began singing some of the lyrics during the first night of worship she and her husband led post-surgery.
While the verses call on the name of the Lord as a Shepherd, Father, Savior and Healer, the chorus leans into Psalm 23:4-5, which says, “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies…”
Although she and Paul released an original version of the single that initially dropped in 2024, her most recent recording captures a live performance with Jobe that takes the fear-fighting track next level.
“I’m so thankful for Jesus and that He uses our stories for good,” McClure shares in reference to her own story, which inspired the anthem that’s now being sung in churches around the world.
“This is so much more than just a song for us. It’s a testimony and a revelation of who God is, who He has been to us, and who He continues to be. I’m learning that it’s not about the escape from the valley but about the promise that He is with us in the valley,” Paul adds. “It’s a mindboggling thing that a song could help give language to someone else’s journey with God, but that’s our prayer. [Our desire is] that this song would be a reminder that God is with us and that it would be a weapon against fear and the lies of the enemy.”
Originally from High Point, North Carolina, Hannah and Paul McClure began leading worship as teenagers. The married couple currently reside in Redding, California, with their three children.
