I’m always in awe of the power of music, and I’m always thanking God for Spotify that allows me to save and discover so many wonderful songs. I know I’ve said it before, but listening to music has helped me in so many ways as it does for many people, and that’s the beauty of it, how everyone can have their own taste, style, and preferences that characterize their life, or the same song can mean and evoke such different things in people. I’ve written several posts about music and my favorite songs, and today I want to share, specifically, some of the songs I find relatable to me, my faith, or other things I’ve shared here on my blog. I’m not going to run out of these types of posts anytime soon; my playlist just keeps growing, and I love creating different playlists for certain things. Someday when I have movies for my books, I would love picking out the music for all the scenes I envision. I seriously can’t imagine my life without my music. I’m sure I’ll follow up on this post in the future, too, with more relatable songs, but let’s get straight into some of my favorites recently.
“Our Song” by Anne-Marie and Niall Horan
You guys, Niall Horan has been my jam lately… He’s really grown up! His voice is better than ever. Anyway…this song doesn’t fail. This is a new one I found, but I can relate to the emotional ties of a song and the longing/wistfulness that oftentimes creates. This is fun to listen to but also has a meaningful message.
“Days Go By” by Keith Urban
This is a fun song I’d dance to if I could, but I was originally drawn to it from the lyrics. Days really do go by, and this song made me grasp that. It’s another great one about just living, getting in the moment, and enjoying life as it is now.
“Just Want You” by Sarah Reeves
I fell in love with this when I heard it on the radio. It’s absolutely beautiful; the soft, moving melodies carry the depth and rawness of this message perfectly. This one is specifically a Christian song, and it’s a reminder and feeling I have constantly: to just want Him. If life feels complicated, it’s often because we’re not focusing on Him and how badly we need Him. This song is perfect at reminding you of what really matters.
“Mr. Perfectly Fine (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” by Taylor Swift
I couldn’t not include a Taylor Swift song! I fell in love with this one right away once she released it. She’s in the process of rerecording her old albums, and this was a song that never made it to one of them. I’m so glad she put it out now, though; not only does it sound amazing like always, but I can definitely relate to the lyrics! I think we all have people in our lives who have hurt us deeply that don’t seem to care or be affected in their lives at all, but ultimately the message of this song ends up being one of hope, which makes me love it all the more.
“Love Has Won” by Citizen Way
Oh my gosh, this was one of my favorite songs over this past school year that I’d hear in the car when I was running around dropping off and picking up Mom and Hunter. I specifically remember sitting in the middle school parking lot one day while I waited for Hunter to come out and just let its lyrics sink in. This is also a wonderful Christian song, very touching and soothing. The lyrics are relatable for people going through any sort of heartache. For me, as I looked over at the empty, barren playground where I used to walk around with friends I no longer had and was reminded of this school where my loneliness began, the lyrics that specifically talked about loneliness resonated with me, and so did the powerful, peaceful message through them all.
“Make You Mine” by PUBLIC
This just showed up in one of my Spotify playlists one night, and originally I was intrigued by the pretty visual they had attached to it, but I soon realized I adored this song, both its beat and lyrics. I definitely relate to this longing to make a certain person yours and really believing they are the one for you and then realizing they’re not. It’s a touching, poignant song about loving someone, and sometimes it doesn’t work out with the one you think it will.
“My Heart is Yours – Live Version” by Passion and Kristian Stanfill
I hope I haven’t mentioned this song in another post already since I try to constantly share new songs, but this one is worth sharing again otherwise. I listened to this A LOT throughout senior year. Not only is the music phenomenal, but I really would cling to the lyrics when my heart felt overwhelmed with lust or desire for a guy or other distractions. It helped me remember that at the end of all my intense desires and frustrations with them as a result, that ultimately I was longing for Him, and I needed to continually focus on enjoying Him.
“I Just Can’t” by R3HAB and Quintino
I might have shared this one already, too, but this is an awesome dance track I found in one of my workout videos. It’s another one with lyrics depicting the rush of feelings you get when you like someone, which I could obviously relate to at that time and still probably will a lot. The sounds make it seem deeper than it is, but I think that adds to its appeal because it blends some of that depth and longing we all have when it comes to wanting love.
“Nightlight” by ILLENIUM and Annika Wells
This is another dance one I know I have not shared, and this one is a lot more low-key and brooding than the first, but the message is inspiring. While the song refers to probably a romantic person being their “nightlight” to help them through the dark times of life and how they need them, I think of that being God since our romantic relationships depict His love anyway. There’re numerous love songs that if they weren’t marketed to a general audience could easily pass as Christian songs because the lyrics depicting what people long for in love is exactly what we were created to love God for.
“Your Love Defends Me” by Matt Maher
Lastly, this is another great Christian track I’ve played a lot. This one is especially encouraging to me in times when I do feel afraid or uncertain of what might play out in life, and once again, the music accompanying the lyrics make it so good and seem to complement the overall theme and its assurance perfectly.
I’d love to find new songs, so share some of your favorites with me! Let me know which of these inspire you the most.
