For worship leader and speaker Tasha Layton, the journey to discovering her artistry has been long and exhilarating. Her path, marked by challenges and triumphs, has taken her from small-town beginnings to touring with Katy Perry and working as a sought-after session singer in L.A. before she moved to Nashville to record her debut Christian album, Love Running Wild, in 2019. Tasha’s story is as vibrant and resilient as her voice.
Her follow-up release, Into the Sea, featured the stirring title track, "Into the Sea (It’s Gonna Be Ok)." She returned with the full-length album How Far, including the hits "Look What You’ve Done" and "How Far." This album offers an intimate, personal worship experience with an uplifting, inspirational tone, telling a story of redemption and trusting God’s higher plans. Each song feels like a Psalm-like prayer, reflecting Tasha’s deep spiritual connection.
She continued to captivate listeners with her hit singles "Never," "I Lay it Down," and "Worship Through It," combining engaging music with thought-provoking lyrics. I spoke to Tasha about her powerful single, "I Lay it Down."
Please tell me the personal story behind this song.
We’re called to lay down a lot in Scripture: our burdens, our pride, our crowns, even laying down to rest. Laying down is a theme in the Bible. When we lay down what we’re carrying, our hands are open. And when our hands are free of the things that burden us and weigh us down, we are set apart from the worry and fear that plague the culture. We’re free to take the hand of another or offer help to those around us—to walk in freedom.
Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song?
Lamentations 3:22-24 (MSG): “God's loyal love couldn't have run out, His merciful love couldn't have dried up. They're created new every morning. How great your faithfulness! I'm sticking with God (I say it over and over). He's all I've got left.”
Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV): "You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart."
Philippians 1:6 (NIV): "Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:13 (NKJV): "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
2 Corinthians 12:9 (NKJV): "And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, most gladly, I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me."
Philippians 4:6 (VOICE): “Don't be anxious about things; instead, pray. Pray about everything. He longs to hear your requests, so talk to God about your needs and be thankful for what has come.”
Philippians 4:7 (NKJV): "And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
John 16:33 (NIV): "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."
What is the takeaway message?
Sometimes, laying it down doesn’t mean that circumstances change when you're living through life's burdens. What it does mean, however, is that you are trusting God. He offers peace, hope, and strength as you live from a place of trust and rest instead of striving.
Throughout my music ministry, I have continually trusted God’s timing rather than my own. Through the waiting, miracles happen. I think there are seasons for songs, and timing is essential. God is good like that. Even the timing of starting my career a little later couldn’t be more perfect for me. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Lyrics
The weight of the world It feels like mountains But You move mountains Yes, You do
To those who are thirsty You’re a fountain And living water It flows from You
I got your invitation That You could set me free I can’t believe You’d do that for me
You say your yoke is easy You say your burden’s light You take a soul that’s weary Give comfort every time And when my heart is heavy I know without a doubt There’s nothing You won’t carry So oh Lord I lay it down
I lay, I lay it down I lay, I lay it down Oh Lord I lay it down
The devil he knows He can’t touch me ‘Cause Lord, You bought me With your blood
The guilt and shame They roll right off me ‘Til all I carry Is your love
You say your yoke is easy You say your burden’s light You take a soul that’s weary Give comfort every time And when my heart is heavy I know without a doubt There’s nothing You won’t carry So, oh Lord I lay it down I lay, I lay it down I lay, I lay it down Oh Lord I lay down
I lay, I lay it down I lay, I lay it down Oh Lord I lay down
What could I do if my hands were open? Who could I be if I was really free? What if I trusted what you have spoken? What could it change if I believed?
What could I do if my hands were open? Who could I be if I was really free? What if I trusted what you have spoken? What could it change if I believed? Yeah!
You say your yoke is easy You say your burden’s light You take a soul that’s weary Give comfort every time And when my heart is heavy I know without a doubt There’s nothing You won’t carry So, oh Lord I lay it down
I lay, I lay it down I lay, I lay it down Oh Lord I lay it down
Closing Thoughts
“I Lay it Down” is a daily prayer asking God to come and change our hearts and lives so that our behavior and lives flow from God living inside us. Only Jesus can give us our identity. What a powerful expression of what it means to accept that God never leaves or forsakes us. He’s all we need.
Worship is about giving God our best and offering all ourselves to Him. All we can do is submit to Him and give everything we have to Him. So, rather than run to what hurts us, let’s run to God.
When I read the Bible, I’m strengthened by the truth that fear, worry, and anxiety are not God's plans for my life. So, trust God's Word. Jesus commands us to trust His Word completely—no matter the circumstances.
Jesus died on the cross to set us free from the battle of our minds, from sin and death. Our thoughts are constantly under attack by the enemy. So, it’s hard to know which voice in our head we can trust. The Bible says to trust what God says about us, no matter how we feel about ourselves.
God knows us intimately. Because Jesus died for us, He sees us as holy, righteous, redeemed, chosen, fully known, and forgiven—no matter what we've done. If you've put all your hope and trust in Jesus, nothing can separate you from His love.
I hear a sincere yearning for God and thankfulness in Tasha's vocals for God's mercy and grace. Followers of Jesus can show non-believers the upside-down Kingdom of God by living out the words of this song and demonstrating supernatural inner joy. This can show observers that Christians, walking through valleys, have the hope, happiness, and love of God and are living out His plans without forsaking Him.
God doesn't promise to spare us from pain, but we must trust Him and wait for Him to orchestrate the plans for our lives, as we have nothing to bring to God. We expect something in return instead of realizing that nothing compares to the greatness of knowing Jesus.
Faith is when we are empty of ourselves and filled with Him and His Holy Spirit. Being a Christian means that we walk by faith, not by sight. Faith requires us to rely on the unseen. We all walk by faith every day. The beauty of walking by faith and not by sight is that we can learn to trust God with our lives fully.
The most inspiring part of "I Lay It Down" is the message that I don't have to be perfect but that God knows and loves me just as I am. That is a celebration because we all have the freedom to be ourselves and know He has great plans for us as His children.
Tasha hopes to pass on the life-giving message of Jesus Christ, so sing along: “What could I do if my hands were open?/Who could I be if I was really free?/What if I trusted what you have spoken?/What could it change if I believed?” Amen to that.
NRT lead contributor Kevin Davis is a long-time Christian music fan and an avid collector. He 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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