Karaoke Tuesday: Hope Now by Addison Road

So it's after Easter... everyone has had their fill of marshmallow Peeps, jellybeans, and Cadbury eggs. You may have brought your kids to the obligatory Easter Egg Hunt... you've undoubtedly taken your Easter Photos with them dressed up in their new spring clothes. Hopefully, you found a moment to reflect on the meaning behind Easter... the part that is deeper and more important than visiting with the Easter bunny. So what now?

I was struck by a new(ish) song I heard on 93.3 recently by Addison Road called Hope Now. Take a look at the lyrics below:

If everything comes down to love
Then just what am I afraid of
When I call out Your name
Something inside awakes in my soul
How quickly I forget I'm Yours

I'm not my own
I've been carried by You
All my life

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down
Your love sets me free

When my life is like a storm
Rising waters all I want is the shore
You say I'll be ok and
Make it through the rain
You are my shelter from the storm

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down
Your love sets me free

I am not my own
I've been carried by you all my life

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down

You've become my hearts desire
I will sing Your praises higher
Cause Your love sets me free
Your love sets me free
Your love sets me free


It reminds me of 1 Corinthians 13:13. After the widely-used wedding verses on Love Is..., comes this sentence:

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.
But the greatest of these is love.

After the betrayal.

After the pain.

After the sacrifice.

After the Cross... comes Faith, Hope, and Love.

As the story posted on Easter Sunday said, we are not just celebrating "Easter" once a year. Easter is every day. Every day, we reap the benefits of Jesus' sacrifice and blessings. We may dig out the plastic eggs, bunny ears, and baskets in March and April, but it is through all seasons that we should be cognizant of the marvelous gift we were given. As the song says, it is the Love of Jesus that has set us free.

I attended an Episcopal school from grades 4-8. We had Chapel services each Thursday, and at the end of the service, the Pastor would say, "Go in peace... to love and serve the Lord" and we would reply, "Thanks be to God." While I enjoy much more the unscripted church service we attend now, I do think that farewell is fitting for this post. The best way to show our gratitude for the blessing of Jesus' sacrifice is, indeed, to go in peace... to love and serve the Lord.

Thanks be to God. ♥