Keep Your Eyes Open

Well I'll start a thread then!

I absolutely love their new album, but I will not waste further space about my feelings like so many posts do on here. I don't think the message of this song is too difficult to interpret; keep your eyes open because if you give in to whatever adversity you're facing, you may miss the beauty in front of you. Or perhaps part of the beauty is experiencing adversity. I know nobody takes pleasure in experiencing pain and suffering, but sometimes God can make the most miserable things beautiful.

This is what I think when I read this verse:

"Just past the circumstance The first light... a second chance No child could ever dance the way you do Oh, tear down the prison walls Don't start the curtain call Your chains will never fall until you do"

In the story of Joseph from the Old Testament, Joseph was beaten, lied on, sold into slavery and betrayed by his own brothers, and imprisoned for not giving into seduction. When I'm struggling I try to remember how God used Joseph. In the end, he was made into a better man, forgiving his brothers and showing them love. Maybe we're not blessed with direct communication with God through many of our dreams, but when we look back in our lives and try to figure out where we are, how we got there, I cannot help but think someone has been dragging me on a rope, keeping my eyes open, telling me I'm strong, and never letting me fall apart. Perhaps Joseph may never have became Pharaoh had he not been enslaved, had he not fallen (hah literally--didn't he get thrown into a water hole?). But he persisted and kept faith. I think my favorite verse of the whole song is "Your chains will never fall until you do".

It's much easier to always look at the past to see how we've grown from adverse conditions. I think this song, however, is set in the present from reading the verse, "[t]he weight is unbroken" (and many others). But that verse in particular confuses me a bit. Now I understand the gist:

"Don't let the night become the day Don't take the darkness to the grave I know pain is just a place The will has been broken..."

However, what do you think about them specifically? Maybe "[d]on't let the night become the day", pleads with us to not let tomorrow come aimlessly. Don't let a second go by if you have an unaddressed hatred in your heart. Do the verses, "I know pain is just a place [t]he will has been broken", form one sentence? Surely we can still experience pain with a strong and unbroken will. Maybe it's two separate thoughts. Pain is just a place that we're in, a stage in our life. We have an eternity in heaven to look forward to, in the promise and gift from Christ. Maybe the songwriter is just describing the present state in the following verses, "[t]he will has been broken" and "[t]he weight is unbroken".

1 Corinthians 16:13-15:

"Keep your eyes open for spiritual danger; stand true to the Lord; act like men; be strong; 14 and whatever you do, do it with kindness and love. 15 Do you remember Stephanas and his family? They were the first to become Christians in Greece, and they are spending their lives helping and serving Christians everywhere."

First days of the war are gone: right after Jesus died

First light/Second chance: salvation; a reference to looking to the east for Jesus (see also their friends Colony House "with my eastern eyes open wide, waiting for a sunrise")

No child could ever dance the way you do : we are all special to God because we are all unique; no one can fill the purpose or the "plans He has made for you"

Show me your heart: "Keep a strong will. Act like men." (1 Cor)

Don't let the night become the day: do not be overtaken by evil ("Be not conformed to the evils of this world, but overcome evil with good")

Don't take the darkness to the grave: 1 Cor "Do all things with kindness and love" Do not let your suffering make you bitter, intolerant, or immune to the suffering of others

If you never leave home: Those forming the new churches at the time Paul rights had to leave home and let go of material things, family, in order to start the churches to serve others (1 Corinthians 15)

These guys know their scripture. Might be good to read it if you haven't. Good stuff.

that was a really good comment. i absolutely love needtobreathe's latest cd, and keep your eyes open is one of my favorite songs. i believe it's about standing with jesus even when the storm hits and fighting for your faith ( the first verse at least). if you never leave the place of complacency and fight for what you believe in, you'll never "make it to the great unknown". you have to keep your eyes open and keep holding on no matter what. my favorite line in this whole song is " no child could ever dance the way you do". i cried when i heard that. it let's me know that no matter how bad i fail at anything i do, how i fail to please him, he will still love me and find me special, and that's comforting to know.

When I heard this song, I honestly thought about someone who was going to committ suicide. Someone who was stuck in depression and being encouraged not to end thier life. In this line Cause if you never leave home, never let go You'll never make it to the great unknown till you Home was the depression and the singer was saying if you never get out, you will never know what you may have missed out on. I felt this song was begging someone to keep going and keep living with the words keep your eyes open meaning in death the eyes are nto open.

I think the song reflects the band's broadening of thought from their roots in the South. This may have evolved from their experiencing new people, ideas and cultures from touring ... making them realize the beauty of our differences and how these make us all human. This is a message to their traditional fan base ... "open up your eyes"!