Channel: Dan Stevers

Category: Entertainment

Tags: inclusivitylgbtqiachurch

Description: Our value is so often defined by the expectations of the status quo; we are told how to be successful and how to be accepted. And so we build lives that hide away our truth, ashamed of our struggles, our doubts and mistakes, instead choosing to build the impression of a life deemed worthy of this world. Yet deep within, we find ourselves longing for an acceptance and love that is unconditional, that values us not according to the world’s definitions, but according to who we uniquely are. To show this video in your church service and to help us continue making resources you can purchase a download here: danstevers.com/store/revealed REVEALED It feels like I’ve spent my whole life trying to be someone else In this world of expectations Where value lies in what others want you to be I’ve become everything this world demands of me And so I’ve buried my truth I’ve hidden my soul away I’ve hidden my deepest urges Stilled the dancing in my feet Hushed the music that swells through my spirit Ignored the dreams that cry to be free I’ve locked up my struggles for fear of upset Cast off my honesty in case I offend Covered up my questions with fervent prayers Filled the silence with resounding songs Denied my pain Stopped my tears Silenced my screams In a world that deems them indecent I’ve patched up my brokenness with busyness Gagged my fears with postures of faith While in reality my head is swimming with doubts And I hide, I hide Pretending to be someone who’s got it all figured out But when the doors are closed And the pressures flee There is One who comes to me Calling to those places I’ve buried and erased Where my longings lie tethered in my shame And the voice that’s forgotten how to speak And my shattered self-belief And my broken soul crying to be free And it is here that Love breathes on the embers of a fading flame Draws the mask from my face Speaks my true name And calls to my soul To rise again Because Love doesn’t cover up weakness But embraces those that life has beaten Love lets tears flow freely Love laments richly the pain of living Love speaks out fears with no fear of opinion Love accepts that sometimes love is forsaken Love wears the wounds As signs of greatness Love holds the wrongs Love sings its true song Love dances like a child Love dreams fiercely, wildly, with no need to impress For Love knows its magnificence and shows it to the world Love holds me Speaks to me And this is what Love says: “I want you as you are Child of grace Come out from the shadows And show me your face Look into my gaze And see yourself Revealed My perfection”