1) Petra is a Christia… Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one artist with this name:
1) Petra is a Christian Rock band formed in 1972 by Bob Hartman, Bill Glover, John DeGroff, and Greg Hough. "Petra" means "rock" in NT Greek, making the band name a triple pun. Rising from the Jesus music movement, and initially signed to [recordlabel]Myrrh Records[/recordlabel], they fought to gain acceptance and recognition in a church culture that at the time believed rock music to be off-limits. Over time they eventually won over most of their critics, thanks to a steady approach and some solid adult contemporary airplay hits like "The Coloring Song," outside of their usual rock fare. By the mid-80's, when lead singer Greg X. Volz left the band and was replaced by John Schlitt, Petra had solidified their place as the foremost Christian rock band in the industry with a string of hit albums and singles and strong touring. The release of Petra Praise: The Rock Cries Out marked a turn towards modern-sounding worship music that would soon explode into the modern worship movement.
Petra was nominated for and won numerous Grammy and Dove Awards. In 1991, after the release of their acclaimed Beyond Belief record, Petra became the first rock band ever to win for Group of the Year at the Dove Awards. They were also the first Christian rock band to be inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.
For three decades Petra continued to produce albums despite changes in their line-up as well as the genre and market. On May 24th, 2005 Petra announced their retirement after 33 years of ministry. They recorded one of their final performances in Franklin, Tennessee to release it as their last album, Farewell. Their last performance finished in the early hours of January 1, 2006 in Murphy, North Carolina. Bob Hartman and John Schlitt continue to tour under the moniker II Guys From Petra.
Lineups through the years:
Early 80's Captured in Time & Space lineup: Bob Hartman, Greg X. Volz, John Slick, Mark Kelly, Louie Weaver, John Lawry
Late 80's "Beyond Belief dream team" lineup: Bob Hartman, John Schlitt, John Lawry, Louie Weaver, Ronny Cates
Late 90's Petra Praise 2 - We Need Jesus lineup: John Schlitt, Louie Weaver, Lonnie Chapin, Pete Orta, Kevin Brandow
Farewell CD lineup: John Schlitt, Bob Hartman, Greg Bailey, Paul Simmons, with special appearances by Greg X. Volz and John Lawry
More members: Rob Frazier, Jim Cooper, David Lichens, Trent Thomason, Bryce Bell, Quinton Gibson, Justin Johnson
See also http://www.petraband.com/
Father Of Lights
Petra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You made the Moon to light the night
You made me your son to light the world
But I still need more of your light
Father of lights shine down on me
In all the dark places I'll never see
Only your light can take the night from me
There is no shadow under you
There is no place darkness has to hide
So search me and show me where you've never been
Help me let your light inside
So let it shine, shine, shine
And it will chase away the darkness
Let it shine, shine, shine
And it will chase away the night
Just when I think there is no more darkness
Just when I think I've seen all Your light
You show me a corner I've kept from you
My fear and pride keeps it out of sight
In Petra's song "Father of Lights," the artist recognizes the power of God to bring light to darkness, both figuratively and literally. The lyrics open by acknowledging God's creation of the Sun and Moon, highlighting the way that these sources of light are essential to life. However, even with these sources of light, the artist recognizes that they still need more of God's light in their life. The chorus calls for God's light to shine down on the artist, filling the dark places that they will never see and serving as the only force that can remove the darkness.
The second verse speaks to the artist's understanding that there is no shadow or hiding place that remains when God's light is present. The artist asks God to continue to search them and show them the places where God has never been, helping them to let God's light inside. The final lines of the song provide a recognition of the way that pride and fear can keep corners of our lives hidden from God. The artist recognizes that sometimes, even when they think they have seen all of God's light, there is still a part of our lives that is kept out of sight.
Line by Line Meaning
You made the Sun to light the day
God created the Sun to brighten the day-time hours
You made the Moon to light the night
The almighty God crafted the Moon as a source of light during the night
You made me your son to light the world
God chose me as his child to illuminate the entire world
But I still need more of your light
Nevertheless, I need more of your divine light to shower upon me.
Father of lights shine down on me
God, who is the source of all light, bestow upon me your radiance.
In all the dark places I'll never see
Illuminate every dark crevice and corner that may remain undiscovered by me.
Only your light can take the night from me
Only your holy light can disperse the darkness that surrounds me.
There is no shadow under you
There isn’t a single trace of darkness in the presence of God
There is no place darkness has to hide
Darkness cannot stay hidden when in contact with God's light
So search me and show me where you've never been
Reveal to me the unknown areas where God has never touched before
Help me let your light inside
Guide me and enable me to embrace the holy light of God within me.
So let it shine, shine, shine
Therefore, allow your light to shine, glow and shine perpetually.
And it will chase away the darkness
By doing so, light will diminish and ward off any lurking darkness.
Just when I think there is no more darkness
Whenever I dismiss the possibility of any residual darkness
Just when I think I've seen all Your light
and whenever I assume I've experienced the full spectrum of God's light
You show me a corner I've kept from you
God shows me an unexposed area I've tried to hide from God.
My fear and pride keep it out of sight
It's my apprehension and false sense of superiority that have kept that area obstructed from God's sight.
Lyrics © Capitol CMG Publishing
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Bethel Gospel Outreach Ministry
Absolutely beautiful song!
fishersofmenvideo
What a great tune! I'd never heard this one before, must be early Petra, right? Thanks very much for posting it.
Felipe Oliveira
What a creative kind of good song !
gingervytis
With Bob's typically lyrical and smooth guitar lines! - JSlick
Dude Muscle
GREAT JOB!
Lynny Cookster
Great band... The secret angel shredlord is strong
Michael Sarricchio
very intuitive lyric!
YouTube User
Reminds me of youth group back at Bristol Assembly of God 1980somethin😊🙏🏻
KOZMOGRAF/X motion & design
It's got a "Herman's Hermits" kinda vibe. :)
charlie50201
+Will Kozushko yea it does, they should of just let Hartman write all the songs. that;s a Steve miller riff there. Don't know which came out first.