“Vertical Church Band is framed around the idea that church isn't about us. It is about God,” states Luke MacDonald, Creative Director of the Vertical Church Band, and son of senior pastor James MacDonald. “The best songs we can sing aren't about our experience with God or our love for God or hopes for our relationship with God, but when we sing to God about God.”
That God-centered focus anchors each song on the 13-track CD that features Vertical Church Band worship leaders Andi Rozier, Meredith Andrews, Lindsay McCaul, Jacob Sooter, Seth McConkey, Kyle Fredricks and Heather Headley. Recorded at Harvest Bible Chapel's historic downtown Chicago campus, the project was produced by Paul Mabury (one sonic society, Hillsong United) and Jason Ingram (Tenth Avenue North, one sonic society, Chris Tomlin). James MacDonald served as executive producer.
Pastor MacDonald’s new book “Vertical Church: What Every Heart Longs For” (David C. Cook, August 2012), will be issued the same day as Live Worship From Vertical Church. “Our church is been going for almost 25 years and has planted 80 churches or so around the world,” says Luke. “This book really is the encapsulation of everything that we’ve learned and everything that we’re trying to be about.”
Live Worship From Vertical Church captures the passion for worshipping God and for spreading the gospel that has made Harvest one of the fastest growing churches in the country. Luke has fond memories of the snowy night the album was recorded in the historic location. “It’s an old cathedral in downtown Chicago, two blocks off Michigan Avenue, and it’s one of only a few buildings that survived the great Chicago fire in 1871,” he shares. “We gathered all of our worship leaders and all of our bands from several campuses together, 700 or 800 of the most fired up worshippers in our church. We just blew the place out for four hours singing these songs and I just remember everybody coming away from that feeling like---even if the album never amounted to much---having this night together to worship God was enough. It was worth it, just for that.”
“It was a really, really powerful time,” says Andi Rozier, who was recruited from the U.K. 11 years ago to serve as Harvest’s senior worship leader. “We were in this building that withstood the Chicago fire and we filled it full of people and the sound was just huge. We were just lifting up the name of the Lord in worship and it was a really, really powerful moment. It really was less about an album recording and more about our church getting together to worship God in a building that God had given us for the advancement of his kingdom.”
The presence of the Holy Spirit can be felt throughout every song, including the powerful lead single “All Glory,” led by Tony Award winning vocalist Heather Headley. “I absolutely love it. Andi wrote such a great song,” says Headley, whose soaring vocals lead the congregation on the passionate worship anthem.
“My favorite lyric is in the end when it’s like ‘All glory, all honor/All wisdom, strength and power/All glory, all honor/Are yours alone forever.’ When the church sings it, it’s an amazing thing. It gets me all teary.”
Headley, an acclaimed gospel artist and Broadway star who won a Tony Award for her lead role in Aida, has been attending Harvest Bible Chapel with her husband for eight years. “She came in and actually auditioned to be a part of the worship team. I was like, ‘You probably could have just sent us a picture of you holding your Tony award and that would have been enough,’” Luke says with a laugh. “That’s the kind of person she is.”
The Vertical Church Band is filled with those kinds of people---extremely credentialed, talented individuals with servant hearts. The collection opens with the rousing new anthem “Open Up the Heavens,” led by Rozier and Andrews and written by Rozier, Andrews, Ingram, Stu G and James MacDonald. “I’m a worship leader myself and I can tell you that worship leaders are always at a loss trying to find new fresh up-tempo songs,” Luke says. “‘Open Up the Heavens’ is a really exciting, intense up-tempo song about asking God to bring his glory down. I’m getting tweets almost every single day now from people around the country that are starting to teach that song. I think it will find its way inside a lot of churches.”
“Word of God,” led by Rozier, is another soul-lifting up-tempo number that is fast becoming a favorite among worshippers. “That’s one of my favorites because I have an emotional attachment to the song,” says Rozier, who co-wrote the tune with Brenton Brown. “We started talking about things that we don’t have in our vocabulary of worship. One of things is we don’t sing about Jesus being the word of God because we don’t want to sing a song about the Bible. We don’t want to worship the Bible, but in scripture, Jesus tells us that He is the Word of God.”
“We started talking about things that we don’t have in our vocabulary of worship. One of the things is we don’t sing about Jesus being the word of God because we don’t want to sing a song about the Bible. We don’t want to worship the Bible, but in scripture Jesus tells us that He is the word of God. We wrote the verse to the song in about 45 minutes and then spent about 14 months working on the chorus and the bridge. We wrote six different choruses and it was a really fun experience because Brenton and I are both like to make sure our i’s are dotted and our t’s are crossed when it comes to songwriting.”
One of the most compelling moments on the album is “Not For a Moment,” led by Andrews and Sooter, who co-wrote the song with Mia Fieldes. “Her passion and her intensity for the Lord is just so evident,” Luke says of Andrews. “She’s not just a great leader and not just a great singer, but she’s also a really great writer. She had a hand in most of the songs on the album. Every song she writes comes out of her authentic intense relationship with the Lord.”
Live Worship From Vertical Church is filled with memorable worship songs. “The Greatness of Our God,” led by Kyle Fredericks and Lindsay McCaul is a soaring, emotional anthem that celebrates the majesty of God. “I Believe in You,” penned by Matt McCoy and Chris Moeller, is an infectious song driven by a catchy melody and penetrating lyric. Seth McConkey leads as the congregation jubilantly sings “Jesus, the One, the One who saved me You are the King, forever reigning.” Written by Ingram and McCaul, “Who Will Rise Up” is a poignant ballad underscored by McCaul’s beautiful lead vocals.
“This is about us wanting to open up a window to what God is doing in our church,” Rozier says of the album. “It’s not about Harvest Bible Chapel and it’s not about Vertical Church Band. It’s about Jesus Christ and it’s a huge honor for our worship ministry to be given this opportunity to do this. If you come to our church, you’ll hear on stage exactly what you hear on the record.”
Luke agrees. “These weren't songs crafted for an album,” he says. “They are the songs we sing week to week. We are trying to talk authentically about what our church is really like. The book and music both support that. This is who we are. We are hoping it draws people toward their own vertical experience with God.”
In their time with Essential Records, Vertical Church band has released ''Live Worship from Vertical Church'' on July 31, 2012'' Vertical EP'', on May 7, 2013 through Essential Records, the album ''The Rock Won't Move'' on October 29, 2013 and ''Church Songs'', on January 20, 2015.
I Will Follow
Vertical Church Band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When I feel Your favor flood my life
Even in the good, I'll follow You
Even in the good, I'll follow You
When the boat is tossed upon the waves
When I wonder if You'll keep me safe
Even in the storms, I'll follow You
I believe everything that You say You are
I believe that I have seen Your unchanging heart
In the good things and in the hardest part
I believe and I will follow You
I believe and I will follow You
When I see the wicked prospering
When I feel I have no voice to sing
Even in the want, I'll follow You
Even in the want, I'll follow You
I believe everything that You say You are
I believe that I have seen Your unchanging heart
In the good things and in the hardest part
I believe and I will follow You
I believe and I will follow You
When I find myself so far from home
And You lead me somewhere I don't wanna go
Even in my death, I'll follow You
Even in my death, I'll follow You
When I come to end this race I've run
And I receive the prize that Christ has won
I will be with You in Paradise
I will be with You in Paradise
The song "I Will Follow" by Vertical Church Band speaks about the unwavering faith that the singer has in God. The lyrics reveal the singer's dedication to following God throughout all aspects of life, even in the good and the bad. In the first two verses, the lyrics describe how the singer remains steady in their faith even in moments of calm and moments of trouble. The third verse is particularly powerful, as it speaks about following God even in the face of adversity, when wickedness is flourishing and there is little hope. The final verse speaks about following God all the way to the end, through life and even in death, knowing that paradise and eternal happiness awaits.
Throughout the song, the central message is the power of faith and how it sustains the singer through good and bad times. The lyrics are a call to action for listeners to believe and follow God with the same unwavering dedication that the singer has. The song also touches on themes of hope, perseverance, and trust.
Line by Line Meaning
When the sea is calm and all is right
I will follow You even when everything is going well and there are no problems in my life.
When I feel Your favor flood my life
I will follow You when I am experiencing Your blessings in abundance.
Even in the good, I'll follow You
I will follow You through the good times in my life.
When the boat is tossed upon the waves
I will follow You through the rough times in my life.
When I wonder if You'll keep me safe
I will follow You even when I am unsure if You will keep me safe and protected.
Even in the storms, I'll follow You
I will follow You through the storms and trials that I face in my life.
I believe everything that You say You are
I believe that You are who You say You are.
I believe that I have seen Your unchanging heart
I believe that I have witnessed Your consistent and unwavering character.
In the good things and in the hardest part
I believe in You through the good times and the struggles.
I believe and I will follow You
I will follow You because I have faith in You.
When I see the wicked prospering
I will follow You even when I observe the success of people who do not follow Your ways.
When I feel I have no voice to sing
I will follow You even when I feel like I cannot sing out to You.
Even in the want, I'll follow You
I will follow You through times of need and lack in my life.
When I find myself so far from home
I will follow You even when I feel lost and far from where I should be in my life.
And You lead me somewhere I don't wanna go
I will follow You even when I am directed towards a place or situation that I do not want to be in.
Even in my death, I'll follow You
I will follow You even to the end of my life, and into eternity.
When I come to end this race I've run
When I am at the end of my life's journey.
And I receive the prize that Christ has won
When I am granted the reward that Jesus has earned for me.
I will be with You in Paradise
I will be with You in heaven, in eternal fellowship.
Contributed by Molly P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Truth Seeker
When the sea is calm and all is right
When I feel Your favor flood my life
Even in the good, I'll follow You
Even in the good, I'll follow You
When the boat is tossed upon the waves
When I wonder if You'll keep me safe
Even in the storms, I'll follow You
Even in the storms, I'll follow You
I believe everything that You say You are
I believe that I have seen Your unchanging heart
In the good things and in the hardest part
I believe and I will follow You
I believe and I will follow You
When I see the wicked prospering
When I feel I have no voice to sing
Even in the want, I'll follow You
Even in the want, I'll follow You
When I find myself so far from home
And You lead me somewhere I don't wanna go
Even in my death, I'll follow You
Even in my death, I'll follow You
When I come to end this race I've run
And I receive the prize that Christ has won
I will be with You in Paradise
I will be with You in Paradise
Lennox Pierre
This song makes me want to see my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Just to be in his Glorious presence.
Paul Braddy
"In the good things and in the hardest part...I will follow you!"
m haynes
Beautiful. The Presence of God. God I just can't image the Beauty and Glory of you presence.
Michael C
This song gives me the goosebumps every single time I hear it or play it. Such a good song dudes. Thank you and Thank God for you!
lisa deason
It’s my favorite hymn. First time back to choir today and they sang it. I knew I was in the right place.
lilrebaah
So true I get goosebumps every time
arbre tree
This song is so beautiful! God is always good whatever circumstances we may face in life.
Truth Seeker
When the sea is calm and all is right
When I feel Your favor flood my life
Even in the good, I'll follow You
Even in the good, I'll follow You
When the boat is tossed upon the waves
When I wonder if You'll keep me safe
Even in the storms, I'll follow You
Even in the storms, I'll follow You
I believe everything that You say You are
I believe that I have seen Your unchanging heart
In the good things and in the hardest part
I believe and I will follow You
I believe and I will follow You
When I see the wicked prospering
When I feel I have no voice to sing
Even in the want, I'll follow You
Even in the want, I'll follow You
When I find myself so far from home
And You lead me somewhere I don't wanna go
Even in my death, I'll follow You
Even in my death, I'll follow You
When I come to end this race I've run
And I receive the prize that Christ has won
I will be with You in Paradise
I will be with You in Paradise
Alanda
This is such an awesome song! LOVE this band and the vocals… (thank God for YouTube). As we face a very uncertain future, especially here in the Middle East and across many parts of the world, we can be sure that He is there, leading and going through every trial right with us. Pray for those who are facing death for their faith that they will stay strong…This song is such an encouragement!
Ishmael Ngala
In Jesus name, they will be made strong. Let's keep on praising our Living GOD