Rebecca St. James, GRAMMY Award winner and nine-time Dove Award winner, has a unique story in the music business. Many know her best because of the wide-reaching impact she had on the first two-decade run of her career. From the early 1990s, she had been releasing music, touring, and overall, singing nonstop. However, the experiences were no longer worth the toll it was taking on her physical and emotional health. St. James stepped off the stage for a nine-year hiatus and focused on her family until a moment a few years ago reignited the spark inside of her to share her praise of God through music.
Since then, she has returned to the scene with fresh wisdom and peace accompanying her gift for music. One EP and several singles later, St. James has been leading up to her full-length album, Kingdom Come, set to release on March 25. I got the opportunity to dive into two songs off this record that she has released as singles ahead of time. Read on to find out more about this accomplished artist and the message behind her lyrics that has done anything but fade over time.
NEW: "Kingdom Come"
Your hands are healing, Your heart is hope Your word is freedom for all of the world You are redemption, You are our help We need You with us
One of the things I found most interesting about St. James is her connection to the musical duo, for KING & COUNTRY. Luke and Joel Smallbone are actually her brothers, a discovery that makes this song captivating.
God is truly incredible. He leaves me speechless time and time again because his goodness is so prominent that it causes the rest of the world around me to fall away. I need nothing other than His all-encompassing love and that is a solid fact no matter where I am in life. I have witnessed His palpable joy when I stand on the highest mountain, my radiant smile matching His fatherly love. Then, I sometimes find myself descending to the lowest valley, and yet again He follows me. He shows me compassion and forgiveness enough to motivate me to get to my feet again for a brand new day. And honestly, on days like today, when I'm somewhere in the middle of my happiness and sadness, it's God who whispers down to me that it's okay to feel that way. I am blessed to have a Heavenly Father who guides me every day and I urge you to remember that as you sing of His goodness with this song.
NEW: "Praise"
Our praise will rise to you
Louder and louder, louder and louder,
Our praise will rise to you
Higher and higher, higher and higher
Sometimes we get so caught up in the songs begging God for intervention in our current circumstance, that we forget about the purity of worship. While there is nothing wrong with those moments, balancing them with melodies that solely proclaim God's name is important. Just His name with no hesitation, and no terms of agreement. "Praise" is the perfect epitome of this type of song.
God offers us a white flag, a pass to enter into His presence just as we are. Why can we not grant Him the same opportunity? He is so many things, more positive adjectives than I could ever articulate. Praising Him is the one thing I can do to show Him the love I am reciprocating. It is the best feeling in the world to bask in His presence and just sing of how good our God is.
Selena Schulz is NRT’s youngest staff contributor. She loves God, music, reading, and writing.
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