Last Sunday night, Crystal and I escaped all of the hustle and bustle of the holidays to see JOHNNYSWIM at the North Carolina stop of their Christmas tour.
It was magical.
Their lyrics, talent, humor, and romance swirled into a transcendent reprieve from to-do lists and inboxes, calendars and notifications. Their joy landed squarely on my thirsty heart. I held crystalgeorge in my arms during ballads that transported us to our Conquest Beach vows.
But I came alive when they got to their protest anthem, “Ring the Bells.” I didn’t just sing along. I shouted. I yelled with hands cupped around my mouth. I pumped my fist. It felt cathartic to release these words at high volume, to let them speak for my soul at the level I feel them.
The last two sentences of my most recent book are lyrics from this song: “Give back the pieces of my Jesus. Take your counterfeit to hell.” “Ring the Bells” gets partial credit for fueling three years of writing, editing, and wrestling with the manuscript. It gave language for what previously was only groans from within my rib cage.
When I’m most in love with Crystal, their other songs serenade our intertwined fingers. When I’m most connected to Jesus, their songs remind me how passionately love has pursued me.
