They Have Created A Special Delivery!
There is a vulnerability that comes through in Christian music where you can discern if the message is authentic in the creation or not. Before knowing any of the history behind lead singer Darren Mulligan, Glorified Pitstop caught We Are Messengers opening up the pre-jam session at the The Winter Jam Tour last month in Cincinnati, Ohio.
I picked up a genuine spirit of restoration in their delivery that night and it's no wonder after learning where God has brought him from why that radiates out of their performance. Darren met his wife Heidi over a decade ago on the streets of their homeland in Ireland. His early love of American rock and roll lead him on a spiritually broken journey chasing a dream in the industry as a heavy metal guitarist travelling throughout the United States.
Though he left his girlfriend of several years that he loved behind, seeking his passion for music on the run, she patiently waited for him to return and little did he know that was God's plan for him all along. While he was seeking fulfillment in heavy metal music, she found fulfillment in a relationship with Christ. When she called to let him know of the joy she found in God he couldn't figure out why she sounded so happy while he felt so miserable.
Darren returned to Ireland shortly after that an atheist and asked Heidi to marry him. Lo and behold three weeks before their wedding he had a life changing encounter with the Lord that began to transform him from the inside out. "I felt so wretched, so dirty. I could feel my skin crawling. God seemed so real that night. He seemed so Holy. There was a huge chasm between Him and me. I could feel it- this crushing weight of guilt and conviction- so I gave my life to the Lord that night. It took me a few months of reading the Bible to really understand what I had done and what that meant. I fell in love with God over that period and gradually learned to see myself as He sees me- clean, a son of the King."
 |
| Members From Remission (2012-2014) |
After he was offered a major Christian label contract he and his wife packed up their three babies and stepped out in faith together once again reaching for a dream. The rock-n-roll fantasy had long ago faded and was now transformed into using his artistry to reach the lost and broken for Christ. A life he himself used to live but by and through the grace of God had been set free and set on a course to shine a light wherever he could reach.
The Self-Titled debut album set to release on April 22, 2016 consists of fourteen tracks selected out of hundred or more Darren began to create after settling in Franklin with his family. Among those that made the cut is the opening track and currently thriving radio hit, Everything Comes Alive (video below). An exuberant testimony of the restoration that is birthed in our lives when God finds us at our lowest points and begins to transform our heart.
Darren has come a long way from Ireland to share the passion he discovered in his gift many years ago. I'm On Fire is a perfect anthem that shares the sentiment he found from the moment he fell in love with Jesus.
"It still feels like I can't contain Him in my flesh, that I need to speak about Him. He is a burning fire deep inside my bones." -Darren
So often people think we give up our freedom when we surrender to Christ, only if they knew that's when we truly find it. Though it is difficult to explain to someone who has not experienced it for themselves; all we can do is try to shine that light bright enough for them to desire what we have found. Thankfully, the same way his wife did for him.I'm not sure if she is the one singing background with him on I Want You, but I'm pretty sure it is a reflection of their relationship. Chasing after all that matters now, going half-way across the globe together allowing themselves to dream. It's a very simplistically uplifting song that made me want to grab my husband and run off into a field of daisies dressed like hippies and dance hand in hand. It stylistically reminded me of I Am They, who I have also come to know and love.
As you listen to this album, you will notice an eclectic sound as if a melting pot of Crowder, For King & Country, NeedtoBreathe and Jordan Feliz were tossed into a musical blender. However, this smoothie goes pretty deep into the lyrically poignant places of one's soul and can tug at some serious places of your heart. One may either remember being brought out of that place or currently seeking a way out of an emotional state of mind or stronghold.
Dancing In The Dark is a case in point which portrays where God finds most of us spiritually before we know Him. It's an earnest recognition of sinking into the dark shadows of one's heart and God coming into that place with you and sparking new life into your spirit to live again. It's message is simplified in one verse, "Even the broken can dance in the light."
There are three similar messages about growth and surrender that are imploring to the spirit of God to stand in between the battle of flesh and spirit to defeat our old ways. My Ghost, Shadows and Giants Fall are all about walking through a personal journey of 11 Corinthians 5:17.
Many times after becoming a new creature in Christ the enemy will try to resurface by reminding you of the person you used be and try to pull you back, or make you feel unworthy. My Ghost stands up to that stronghold, while Shadows searches out the legitimate joy we find in an intimate relationship Christ walking in unwavering faith. Giants Fall solidifies that we cannot live by feelings but only through true surrender fighting a war only won on our knees. "Come wash me clean and set me free. I want to see these giants fall. My arms are open in surrender, I wave my white flag high. You alone are my Savoir, I want more than to survive."Magnify, Give It All,Wildfire and The River I will categorize as having an excellent vibe both melodically and lyrically. Though I believe this whole album will speak volumes to people on many different levels, for many I believe these will be among fan favorites. The River is like a introspective testimony of realizing who one belongs to regardless of what anybody else says or does. A marker of confidence splashed across the canvas of one's soul being renewed. "My soul is parched and my lips are dry. All I wanna taste are the rains from the sky. Break through the swell, where the waters are deep. Where I can be free and I can be clean."
Magnify is a catchy mellow tune that carries the heart of a new believer to the next level. The desire to silence everything within themselves that is not aligned with the spirit of of God. "Be greater than the worries in my life. Be stronger than the weakness in my mind. Be louder, let your Glory come alive, be magnified." Followed by Give It All, which attributes the laying down of one's life to become a reflection of Christ to others.
If King David were to write a psalm today I believe it would be similar to Wildfire. It's an exuberant plea for purification from the hand of God upon one's life. "You're a wildfire, you are the one who lights up the dark with a furious love. Take my ashes and turn them to gold, sweep over me with a furious love." This song will get stuck in your head, be prepared for that.
Sometimes being a Christian means that others think that we have all the answers to life and the pains and heartache that comes with it. Though none of us can give a reason for everything that happens we can be a hand to hold, a shoulder for them to cry on just be present with them in their time of sorrow.
There were many bands at Winter Jam this year that I love, but when this talented young man sang I Don't Have The Answers during offering I was floored. So many times I have encountered this heart wrenching emotion unable to find the words to say to those I love seeking reasoning when I could give them none. He gave such a raw performance that it ripped at some of the deepest most sorrowful places of my heart. It reminds us at times all we have to offer is the beacon of our love and friendship along with prayers for comfort during deep valley's of sorrow.
When things seem to be going well we can lose sight of where our help comes from when hard times surface. I Look Up is about walking through the valley and holding to the promise that He is right there with us. The peace that surpasses all understanding knowing that He suffered much more than we ever will and He will carry us through. "Love is a man hanging on a tree, with His Heart pouring out for me. Love is a King watching over me and when I look up He is all I see."
Point To You is hands down my personal favorite on the album. From the melody, to the lyrics and within the background singing on the chorus it's simply an amazing song. It's about how God wants us to come to Him exactly how we are no matter how hurt or broken or scarred His arms are open wide to begin the fulfillment of our soul. One of my favorite lines that really hit me the first time I heard it choked me up. "People say I've lost myself. I say I'm found in you. People ask, where does my story end. I say it starts with you."
We often listen to these bands and singers that we have come to love the music of without taking the time to learn about them or their testimony in their walk with Christ. I would suggest you Pre-Order your copy of their debut album because We Are Messengers are carrying spiritual mail right into your ears. Coming from a heart transformed through the light God shined through Darren's wife that brought him to the foot of cross, these songs will minister to your soul.
Darren has much to be thankful for these days as he is now living his dream of being a musician but now he does it all for the glory of God. While celebrating life with his beautiful family and bride Heidi, who stood by his side long before God intervened in both of their hearts. He has been travelling with the largest Christian music line up this year and Tour plans for the remainder of 2016 seem to continue to grow. Let's all join together and lift them up in prayer as they are about the Father's business sharing their gift with the world.
One of the missions we strive to accomplish is expressing the importance of sharing our testimonies with the world. If you have a testimony you would like to share how God has impacted your life through We Are Messengers or any other Christian group please create a 2-5 minutes video testimony and share on our page. It can also be how He ministered to you through a certain author, speaker or personal revelation of the mighty power of our Heavenly Father. Remember someone's victory could be waiting on the other side of your obedience!
"And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and the Word of their testimony; and they did not love their lives to the death."- Revelation 12:11
No comments:
Post a Comment