She has always been an old soul.

From her recording debut at age 1… Read Full Bio ↴She has always been an old soul.

From her recording debut at age 14, Bethany Dillon was one of those rare young singer/songwriters who did not fit the status quo. Her songs possessed a lyrical depth that belied her age. Her carriage, sense of composure and way of looking at the world revealed a certain maturity, disarming for one so young.

So it almost seems a given, seven years later, that 21-year-old Bethany Dillon—now married and living in Dallas with her husband, Shane Barnard (Shane & Shane)—would be officially grown up.

That she has something even more complete and compelling to say is a given, too. Major life moments have a way of doing that to anyone.

“The last year has been the sweetest year of my 21...” Bethany says, “There are so many layers to it, and I don’t always feel like a grown up, but it’s been a really sweet time of learning. I can see the grace of God in it. So much has come to the surface.”

Stop & Listen, Bethany’s fourth release on Sparrow Records, reveals a young woman coming to terms with God’s grace in a new season of becoming.

“This record is probably the most confessional record I’ve ever made,” Bethany says. “These songs feel a little more raw to me than usual. It’s probably just true the more life goes on, the more aware you are of your failures and struggles. And with that, in a believer’s life comes—odd as it is—a deeper joy.”

Produced by Marshall Altman (Brooke Frasier, Warren Barfield), a Los Angeles-based producer who persistently sought Bethany out after hearing her acoustic EP, Stop & Listen is a call to peace in the middle of life expectations and the day-to-day chaos that all too often takes over.

“Most of the songs are about the not-so-simple ideas of stopping, listening and waiting,” Bethany explains.

The title track—which she co-wrote with Joy Williams and Ben Glover—sets the tone. “I’m a to-do list person,” Bethany adds, “but I’m still called to know God and have an intimacy with Him, even in busy seasons. That Bible story of Mary and Martha has always bothered me. There’s Martha working so hard to get everything right and Mary sitting at Jesus feet. And Martha, in all her frustration, saying ‘Don’t you care that I’m doing all this?’ And Jesus replying, ‘You’re anxious about a lot of things, but Mary has chosen the one thing necessary...’ That’s such a hard thing for anybody to hear. That haunting call of the Lord... When I see Him face to face, I want to know Him. I’m called to know Him.”

“The Way I Come To You,” perhaps as much as any song on the CD, reflects this singer/songwriter’s spiritual journey as of late: “I love being married to Shane for lots of reasons—one being, how much I’ve learned about loving Jesus from him. He is constantly talking about the glory of God in the death and resurrection of Jesus. The more time I spend with him, the more I’m hit with the reality... the forgiveness and reconciliation found in Jesus is staggering. The freedom that we who are in Christ have is ETERNAL!”

“Get Up and Walk,” a song inspired by stories of healing throughout the New Testament, is a powerful reminder that God still restores the broken: “The promises in the Bible that grip me the most are the ones of contrast,” Bethany explains, “turning ashes into beauty, heaviness into a garment of praise, being transferred from the domain of darkness to the Kingdom of light. The words of Jesus ring true today, that he (or she) who’s forgiven much, loves much.... I’ve been forgiven of much; I was deaf, blind, and completely lost. But He broke through my deafness, and has forgiven me of much, and I can’t help but love Him much in return.”

“Reach Out,” continues the thread, inspired by an outcast woman in the Gospels (Mark 5; Luke 8). “What’s so moving about her story for me is her abandon,” Bethany says. “She had reached this point, this depth of need, that she was willing to risk her life to get healed by this man named Jesus. Her urgency is tangible on those pages—she couldn’t reveal her presence there, so she pushed her way through until she could just touch [Him],
...she took advantage of being in Jesus’ presence.” Such a story, she says, begs the question of us: are we desperate enough to have that kind of faith, to pursue Jesus at any cost?

Always one to push herself to write deeper and truer songs, Bethany says Stop & Listen is a big step forward. “I’ve always felt a sense of direction and focus in my writing, even back at age 14 and 15,” she says, “but I think even that has been honed and sharpened. The things I want to write about, the desire to tell a complete story, I think that’s really fresh.” The result on this record, she says, has been in being able to push through the anxiety that plagues the process and instead, relax and stretch.

Longtime producer and co-writer, Ed Cash collaborated with Bethany on two songs, including the first single, “Everyone To Know,” a simple, carefree song that sticks with you, long after the track is over.

I want everyone to know, everyone to know
I wanna tell the world about your love

“We wrote it in two hours... very simple, played the melody on the piano, and I was so drawn to it,” Bethany says. “It’s about how my life is so different, what I thought was freedom wasn’t... I remember chasing after things that didn’t satisfy me, and how now, being in a simple place, learning how to depend on God, I can finally see how much freedom there is. This song seemed like such a divine appointment, a reminder that the love of God in Jesus is so satisfying. Honestly, its one of the first singles I’ve felt really connected to.”

Sonically, Stop & Listen takes a decidedly different turn as well, not completely removing Bethany from the acoustic pop space she’s settled into, but giving her songs the layered, detailed attention they deserve. “Production-wise, a lot is going on,” she says. “But Marshall was really drawn toward the songs more than production, so there isn’t much in the way of huge dynamics—ear candy, strings, etc.—but rather simple, five or six instruments playing on a song. The players were so good, they spoke the same vocabulary to each other, and they really listened to the lyrics.”

“You hear every word to every song, and nothing gets in the way of the lyric. The sound is beautiful and honest and simply produced...more like a piece of art. That’s what I was pining for, to make a record that was more artful, more singer/songwriter than pop/folky....”

Her desire was to nurture her music, like her life, to a whole new place. To be intentional with every step. To stop and listen to what’s been growing in her soul and give it a life of its own.

And inspired by grace in this new season of becoming, so she has.

Exodus
Bethany Dillon Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Come, come fallen ones, dance in the healing stream
He has faithfully kept you, brought you out of captivity
Rejoice, rejoice with all your hearts, sing Him a new song
That's heard high on the windswept mountains, it will resound

Lead, Lord, with unfailing love
Those that You have ransomed
And we will sing out as we go on

Our God is faithful, our God is faithful

Reflect, reflect on all your days, you weren't so free then
Once you were all called slaves but now, blessed children
Move, move your feet, dance before the Lord
On to the promised land, on to your reward, sing

Lead, Lord, with unfailing love
Those that You have ransomed
And we will sing out as we go on
Our God is faithful, our God is faithful

Our enemies are at the bottom of the sea
Our enemies
Our enemies are at the bottom of the sea
Our enemies

Lead, Lord, with unfailing love
Those that You have ransomed
And we will sing out as we go on
Our God is faithful

Lead, Lord, with unfailing love
Those that You have ransomed
And we will sing out as we go on
Our God is faithful, our God is faithful
Our God is faithful

(Our God is faithful)
Our God is faithful

Overall Meaning

The song "Exodus" by Bethany Dillon is a celebratory hymn that focuses on the theme of God's faithfulness and redemption. The lyrics encourage people who have been through times of captivity and struggle to rejoice and dance in the healing stream that God has provided for them. The words draw inspiration from the story of Moses leading the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt and into the Promised Land. The song urges listeners to reflect on their own journey and remember how they were once enslaved but have been redeemed as blessed children of God.

The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "Lead, Lord, with unfailing love, those that You have ransomed" as a reminder of God's steadfast love throughout the journey of redemption. The verses encourage listeners to dance and celebrate in the presence of God and to keep moving forward to the promised land and to their reward. The last verse triumphantly declares that our enemies are at the bottom of the sea, a reference to the story of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea with God's help and watching their oppressors drown.

Overall, "Exodus" is a powerful song of celebration and faith, encouraging listeners to trust in God's love and faithfulness throughout all of life's challenges.

Line by Line Meaning

Come, come fallen ones, dance in the healing stream
Invite those who have fallen to dance in the healing stream

He has faithfully kept you, brought you out of captivity
The Lord has kept faith with you and freed you from captivity

Rejoice, rejoice with all your hearts, sing Him a new song
Celebrate with all your heart and sing a new song to the Lord

That's heard high on the windswept mountains, it will resound
Your song will reach the windswept mountains and echo around

Lead, Lord, with unfailing love
Guide us, Lord, with your unending love

Those that You have ransomed
Those whom you have redeemed

And we will sing out as we go on
And we will sing as we move forward

Our God is faithful, our God is faithful
Our God is trustworthy and true

Reflect, reflect on all your days, you weren't so free then
Consider all the days when you were not free

Once you were all called slaves but now, blessed children
Once you were all slaves, but now you are blessed children

Move, move your feet, dance before the Lord
Dance and move your feet before the Lord