Ever heard of the game “God or Girlfriend?”
Of course not, I just invented it!
Don’t worry, though, it’s easy to play. All you do is take the lyrics of a popular song and ask yourself, “Is this singer talking about God or Girlfriend?” (You can play “God or Boyfriend” with Florence + The Machine.)
Today’s song? “I Will Wait” by Mumford & Sons.
This one is a little tricky because they’re clearly not a worship band, so you’d think, “This song is about lead singer Marcus’ girlfriend who he recently married.” But, not so fast, his parents are the national directors of the Vineyard Church in Great Britain.” As far as I’m concerned, he’s a pastor’s kid.
But don’t listen to me. Let’s look at the lyrics.
God or Girlfriend? Mumford & Sons Edition
“Well I came home”
Clearly this is a Prodigal Son reference.
“Like a stone”
Probably referring to the stone that was rolled away from the tomb.
And I fell heavy into your arms
Not sure, could be a girlfriend or God. Although it’d have to be a strong girlfriend to catch you if you fell that heavy. Probably does P90X. Or it could be about doing a trust fall during a youth group retreat. Too close to call.
“These days of dust”
This is about God and Adam, we all come from the dirt.
“Which we have known
Will blow away with this new sun”
Psalm 68:2 As smoke is blown away by the wind, may you blow them away. I’d feel better if the word “sun” was in that Bible verse, but close enough.
“But I’ll kneel down”
What do you do when you pray? You kneel! This song is about God!
“Wait for now”
Next to journaling, “waiting” is Christianity’s favorite verb.
And I’ll kneel down
Know my ground
And I will wait, I will wait for you
And I will wait, I will wait for you
“So break my step”
God is our shepherd. One of the things shepherds sometimes do with a wayward sheep is break his leg and then mend it. It helps the sheep stay close and learn. Don’t make me quote Isaiah 19:22, “The LORD will strike Egypt with a plague; he will strike them and heal them. They will turn to the LORD, and he will respond to their pleas and heal them.” Plus, this has to be about God. If you told a girlfriend, “So break my step,” she would sweep your leg and yell, “There is no pain in this dojo!” That relationship would be horrible.
“And relent
Well you forgave and I won’t forget”
Seriously, do I have to explain this one to you? This clue is 7 times 70 easy! Who is all about forgiveness? God!
“Know what we’ve seen
And him with less
Now in some ways
Shake the excess”
Not going to lie, this one is tricky. I think he’s saying. “You know what we’ve seen, we’ve been to the Grammy’s. I wore pants made of gold and unicorn manes.” And the him in “him with less” is referring to all of mankind, those of us who do not have access to pants woven from unicorns. He is asking God to shake the excess lifestyle from him, but saying “I don’t want to wear golden pants” would make for a really dumb lyric.
cause I will wait, I will wait for you
And I will wait, I will wait for you
And I will wait, I will wait for you
And I will wait, I will wait for you
“Now I’ll be bold
As well as strong”
Deuteronomy 31:6. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” (This is practically a VBS song at this point!)
“And use my head alongside my heart”
So obvious, this is Marcus Mumford singing about taking something from your head to your heart, the hardest 12 inches to travel.
“So tame my flesh
And fix my eyes”
2 Corinthians 4:18. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
“A tethered mind freed from the lies”
You say tomato. I say tomato. You say “tethered.” I say “yoked.”
“And I’ll kneel down
Wait for now
And I’ll kneel down
Know my ground
Raise my hands”
A subtle reference to singing with your hands raised during church.
“Paint my spirit gold”
Wow, I should practically get seminary credit for listening to this song. Here we go with Job 23: 9-10
When he is at work in the north, I do not see him;
when he turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of him.
But he knows the way that I take;
when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
“Bow my head”
Bow my head? Could this song be more about God?
Keep my heart slow
’cause I will wait, I will wait for you
And I will wait, I will wait for you
And I will wait, I will wait for you
And I will wait, I will wait for you
This one feels pretty easy. Roughly 82% of the Bible was referenced in this one song. But what do you think?
Question:
God or Girlfriend?
