This song, a song that isn’t overly aggressive in its instrumentation and more of a ballad-style song represents the poignant cry of every believer in Christ—“Lord I Need You.” There are many times we fall apart. Sin has had our souls rapped in a dark place for long amounts of time. This song is simply saying “Lord, I come. I confess.” It is a cry of “Uncle” of sorts, the uncle being Jesus. This is an appeal to the Lord most high saying that “Every hour I [we] need you.” We need Jesus Christ more than we need anything else. That’s the message of the entire song. It also lifts souls up in encouragement saying that where sin abounds, grace is definitely more. We are not under the yoke of enslavement or sin. We simply have to come to the cross and accept the grace that God freely gives and allow Him to lead us and to change us. It is the modern cry of the believer clinging to Jesus when times are very dark. Even in good times, we still fail and need Him. The song says He’s our “one defense—our righteousness” and then another plea: “Oh God, how I [we] need you.” It’s a good song to pray to and to seek the presence of God in. It is tastefully done and not blasting as much as other songs. It is intimate and quaint like a relationship with Jesus is supposed to be.
It may not be a celebratory song, but it’s a song of remembrance of our fallen state and the fact that we need a savior to help us. We all do. Matt Maher was the original artist on this one. From here, several different artists have gone on to cover the song including the very popular Chris Tomlin. Which is the better version? You decide. The song touches many hearts and continues to bring down the walls of dissension between Christians and non-Christian friends who hear the gospel for the first time. It is definitely a gem that one can remember while going about their daily lives. I remember almost weeping when I first heard the song in its beautiful yet sobering tone. I have played this song on a number of occasions with the worship band at my church. It has truly touched my heart in a lot of ways and it is how the Lord seemed to get through to me. May there be many more like this one in the days to come.
