Contemporary worship band Switch is the student ministry of Life.Church. Based in Edmond, Oklahoma, they recently released Symphony. The album contains a mix of worship and upbeat pop songs, including “Lifeline,” “Obsession,” “Count Me In,” and “Symphony.” A theme that Switch weaves throughout their album is about remembering our identity of who we are in Christ.
Many years ago, I saw the movie Mr. Holland’s Opus, starring Richard Dreyfuss. Growing up playing alto saxophone in concert band and marching band, I could really relate how in the movie it was depicted that as a team we can all become something bigger than ourselves. That’s truly the call of each of us who believe in Jesus.
Symphony represents God's role in the life of the believer. I had the chance to speak with band members and married couple Cassidy and Rob Estevez about their hit song, “Count Me In.”
Please tell me the personal story behind this song.
Cassidy: “Count Me In” is a continuation of the theme of our song “Symphony.” With that hit, we talked about how the peace of God is something we can cling to when we're walking through chaos and anxious seasons. "Count Me In" takes that theme a step further.
Now that we have that confidence and peace in God's unfailing love, we can stand on that love and say whatever comes, count us in. The song is a line in the sand and a confident declaration that nothing is going to count us out. That’s the heart behind this song.
Rob: The second half of our album, Symphony, was written after our EP with the same name. We were coming from this place of addressing everything we were going through and then thinking about our next step. After we’ve found peace and hope, what do we need to say when we face these seasons again? "Count Me In" is a declaration of the strength we find in Jesus. No matter what we go through, I’m jumping in every moment.
Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song?
Romans 8:28(VOICE): “We are confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live according to His plan.”
Psalm 150:6(NKJV): "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!"
James 1:18-19(VOICE): "We have a special role in His plan. He calls us to life by His message of truth so that we will show the rest of His creatures His goodness and love. Listen, open your ears, harness your desire to speak, and don't get worked up into a rage so easily, my brothers and sisters."
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV): "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight."
Philippians 1:6 (NKJV): “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
Philippians 4:6-7(NIV): "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
2 Timothy 3:16-17(VOICE): "All of Scripture is God-breathed; in its inspired voice, we hear useful teaching, rebuke, correction, instruction, and training for a life that is right so that God's people may be up to the task ahead and have all they need to accomplish every good work."
What is the takeaway message?
Cassidy: One of the lines from “Count Me In” says, “Even when my legs are weary, I’m not going to give up that easy. Whatever comes, count me in.” When we wrote this song, there were many people in our church facing overwhelming odds. This song is a declaration of victory over the enemy. It’s our prayer over the church. There’s no panic in the chorus. Just a calm resolve to follow Jesus despite the odds. For us, this song sounds like what that step of faith feels like.
Every single step of the way, when we follow the Holy Spirit there’s an even greater reason for doing something or saying something than we realized. When we wrote "Count Me In," we never could have seen a season like this pandemic coming. How specific the Holy Spirit led us to include lyrics about “with every breath You are reviving these burning lungs,” as we face this pandemic and the imagery of our lungs. That’s not an accident.
Everything happens for a reason with the Holy Spirit. I think it's a beautiful example of His intimate concern with the details of our lives--even orchestrating lyrics of one song to be an encouragement for people in this time. We're happy to hear how God is using this song to encourage people dealing with anxiety and fear during this time.
Rob: "Count Me In" speaks to His character, like Cassidy said, and His concern about who we are and what we're going through. Especially when we feel alone and desperate, we feel like God is far away. This song is a testament to God’s nearness and how much He cares. He is going to resource us. Jesus came down to show us He won’t leave us alone. This song is about His character and His heart for us.
Lyrics
One more step, one more exhale As I follow where You lead Feel my heart as it’s racing Down the path You set for me
When the road feels unending There’s a promise You reveal When these days leave me empty You sustain me even still
With every breath You are reviving These burning lungs You keep me going When I can’t run God be my strength Till the work is done, done
I won't let the race overtake me
Won’t let anxiety faze me Whatever comes, count me in Count me in Oh, even when my legs are weary I’m not gonna give up that easy Whatever comes, count me in Count me in
Count me in Count me in
I trip up and You catch me Then You lift me up again You direct every footstep You are with me till the end
With every breath You are reviving These burning lungs You keep me going When I can’t run God be my strength Till the work is done, done
I won’t let the race overtake me Won’t let anxiety faze me Whatever comes, count me in Count me in Oh, even when my legs are weary I’m not gonna give up that easy Whatever comes, count me in Count me in
Count me in Count me in Count me in Count me in
Oh, I won’t let the race overtake me Won’t let anxiety faze me Whatever comes, count me in Count me in Oh, even when my legs are weary I’m not gonna give up that easy Whatever comes, count me in Count me in
Closing Thoughts
"Count Me In" represents the victory that we have over our battles before we even know the earthly outcome. Trust that God goes before us. And, know that He wins. If you think about the type of faith we're called to have as believers, it's described as the faith of a mustard seed. Being a Christian means that we walk by faith, not by sight. Faith requires people to rely on the unseen. The beauty of walking by faith and not by sight is that we can learn to more fully trust God with our lives.
God tells us in the Bible that with faith, we can do anything in Christ. I'm completely convicted by the strong lyrics and find immense comfort in this song filled with biblical truth. We can face our daily battles with more courage and strength because we know that whatever the outcome, He'll be present to help us. Romans 8:28 says it best: "God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."
We're all in need of our great God to fix our messes and turn them into messages in some way. This is grace. Grace is not something we deserve or earn. It's a free gift from our great God. So many people can relate to the message of this great song. He is a God of infinite second chances.
"Count Me In" is a comforting message that there is always hope. Know that God's hope will turn whatever you're going through into something different for His glory. God's mercy is new each day. It's not based on our performance, or what we can do for God. He pours out His mercy despite what we've done. There's nothing we can do except trust in His Son Jesus.
This song is an anthem of praise. It's a daily prayer that asks God to come and change our hearts and our lives in such a way that our behavior and lifestyle flow from Him. What a powerful expression of what it means to accept that God never leaves or forsakes us. He is all we need.
Many of my favorite songs are based on the joy and themes of trusting in God from the Psalms and Proverbs. So many people struggle to apply God's Word in their lives. If we learn to build our lives on scripture, we would all have a rock as our foundation in how we navigate our lives.
The Good News of the Gospel, which this song perfectly portrays, is that God accepts us no matter what we've done or what we're going through. "Count Me In" gives me more conviction to not feel worthless or afraid. With many areas in our lives, especially as we’ve faced this coronavirus pandemic, we spend a lot of time worrying, living in fear and anxiety. We need to let that go and allow the Lord to be our redeemer.
You'll be blessed by this powerful standout anthem with a convicting declaration: “I won’t let the race overtake me/Won’t let anxiety faze me/Whatever comes/Count me in.” Amen to that.
NRT Lead Contributor Kevin Davis is a longtime fan of Christian music, an avid music collector and credits the message of Christian music for leading him to Christ. He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and three daughters.
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