With a musical journey that has crisscrossed all kinds of rock music, folk music, and electronic music, he carries a songwriting sense that aims to capture dense images of life with God,
in compositions that can be carried with the listener. He aims to tell the old story of the Gospel in an ever-shifting world, without resorting to easy truisms, or lazy language. His new collection of songs, The Bright Sadness, echoes a journey pressed to the chest of God, joyful and sorrowful at once, with God's heart clear and pulsing in each note and word. It wraps liturgy with the unexpected, and daily mundanity with daily surprise.
As many of the Passion collegiate gatherings were recorded live, Hall was quickly dubbed "a voice" for the Passion movement, performing on all eight Passion albums, which have sold more than one million units.
Charlie expresses the desire to be "honed into God, where I'm not part of a culture where I'm trying to make the people around me think, 'Hey, that's a good Christian.' I'm just trying to pursue God and not pursue being accepted into a club...I'm more honed into my pursuit of God in Christ and how he's forming me and changing and helping me love him and know him.
Renewing and encouraging local churches, engaging young and old with social justice action, widening hearts to see God at work in the whole world, spurring local artists on to imaginative and creative expression, and offering songs of rest to those who are simply tired are some of the hopes of Charlie, and his band of gypsies. Hall's band, in which he performs vocals and guitar, consists of Kendall Combes (electric guitar), Brian Bergman (keyboard), Dustin Ragland (drums), and Quint Anderson (bass guitar).
Swimming From The Shipwreck
Charlie Hall Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause I'm tired of sinking down
Take the rope now off my neck
Swim away from this shipwreck
Simplify my life by letting go
I want to yield and burn with truths I know
I'm learning how to lose myself again
We had followed Him for days
People walked when He turned to say
"Sink into My life, drink from My cup
Take no one over Me in love," hey
You call me, come and die, oh
A life that's crucified, in You
Where would I go, You're the Christ, my life
My life, my life, You're my life
Back to You, back to You
Away from me, yeah, away from me
In "Swimming From The Shipwreck," Charlie Hall is reflecting on his desire to simplify his life in order to draw nearer to God. He begins the song by acknowledging that there are things in his life that are weighing him down and preventing him from moving forward. He uses the metaphor of a shipwreck to describe this feeling, as though he is drowning and needs to swim away from the wreckage in order to survive. He wants to let go of the things that are holding him back and surrender himself completely to God's plan for his life.
Throughout the rest of the song, Hall talks about the importance of losing oneself in order to find God. He references a Biblical story about following Jesus and the radical call to love Him above all else. He acknowledges that this is a difficult path to follow, but ultimately it is the only way to truly live. He ends the song by repeating the phrase "back to You, away from me," emphasizing his desire to place God at the center of his life and willingly give up anything that distracts him from that goal.
Overall, "Swimming From The Shipwreck" is a powerful song about the struggle to let go of the things that are holding us back and surrender ourselves fully to God. It speaks to a universal human desire to simplify our lives and focus on what really matters, and reminds us that in order to do so, we need to be willing to "lose ourselves" and give up everything for the sake of the Gospel.
Line by Line Meaning
Cut the things that slow me down
I am removing anything that causes me to move slowly or stagnate in my progress
'Cause I'm tired of sinking down
I do not want to be weighed down by any circumstance or hardship that drags me into failure or despair
Take the rope now off my neck
I want to remove any form of restraint or bondage that limits me or impedes my progress
Swim away from this shipwreck
I am moving away from any situation of chaos or misery that I find myself caught in
Simplify my life by letting go
I want to uncomplicate my life by surrendering any control or clinging to things that are ultimately fleeting
I want to yield and burn with truths I know
I seek to submit and be consumed by the truths I hold dear to my heart
I'm learning how to lose myself again
I am re-acquainting myself with the humbling practice of putting others before myself
Swimming back to You (You)
I am moving in the direction towards God and hoping to regain my proper bearings and direction
We had followed Him for days
We had been following Jesus for a while
People walked when He turned to say
Many people gave up on Jesus when his teachings became more difficult to follow
"Sink into My life, drink from My cup
Jesus invites us to fully immerse ourselves in his message and to draw strength from his teachings
Take no one over Me in love,' hey
Our affections for others should be secondary to our devotion to God
You call me, come and die, oh
Jesus invites us to follow him even to the point of giving up our very lives
A life that's crucified, in You
A life centered and immersed in the teachings of Jesus
Where would I go, You're the Christ, my life
I have nowhere else to turn because Jesus is the sole purpose and center of my life
My life, my life, You're my life
Jesus is the essence and foundation of my life
Back to You, back to You
I am returning my focus and attention to God
Away from me, yeah, away from me
I am letting go of my selfish desires and moving away from anything that keeps me from embracing God's will and purpose for my life
Contributed by Nicholas G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.