Greetings, friends, and welcome to another Gospel According to post, where we connect the best stories and songs that humanity has to offer with deeper truths from Scripture! It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these, and it feels good to be back. I can think of no better way to jump in than with the GOAT, Owl City, and one of my favorite songs, “Meteor Shower.” Hope you enjoy!
Fandom: “I can finally see/ that You’re right there, beside me/ I am not my own, for I have been made new/ please don’t let me go, I desperately need You…” – Owl City, “Meteor shower
Verses: Job 42:1-2, 5, Psalm 42:1, 7-8, John 10:27-30
Truth: We all need Jesus to satisfy the deepest desires of our hearts — and He will always be there to do exactly that!
fandom
I can finally see
That You're right there, beside me
I am not my own
For I have been made new
Please don't let me go
I desperately need You...
-Owl City, "Meteor Shower"
This song has got to be one of the shortest (at least in terms of lyrics) that Adam Young has ever written. I absolutely love it though, and always have. I love the way that the music builds for the first minute (at least) of the song, from a simple piano line to a nuanced and multi-layered track whose instruments I can’t entirely identify.
One of my favorite things that Adam does in this song is the super-impactful, quiet-on-the-first-verse-then-hit-you-with-full-volume thing that he also does in “If My Heart Was a House” and “Be Brave” (two of my other favorites, incidentally, each with their own blog posts as well). I used to think this song was a love song, but now I’m convinced it’s one of the subtly Christian songs Adam used to make on a semi-regular basis. Here’s why!
verses
Then Job answered the LORD and said, “I know that You can [do] all things, And that no plan is impossible for You… I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; But now my eye sees You…
Job 42:1-2, 5 NASB20
This passage is the first one I usually think of when I hear this song. In context, the book of Job explores both the sovereignty of god and our struggles with suffering. Job has just spent several chapters lamenting the tragic things that have happened to him, and then been confronted with the absolute majesty and supremacy of God. While questioning God wasn’t a sin in itself, he finds his perspective has been corrected, and that’s what prompts him to say the verses above. In short, this passage comes to mind with the first line of “Meteor Shower”. I can finally see… That you’re right there beside me. Sometimes, it takes a difficult season of life for us to truly understand who God is and how He has provided for us.
As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, God.
Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls; All Your breakers and Your waves have passed over me.
The LORD will send His goodness in the daytime; And His song will be with me in the night, A prayer to the God of my life.
Psalm 42:1, 7-8 NASB20
Psalm 42 is one of the ones that feels melancholy and bittersweet, which also makes it a perfect fit for this song. It expresses the same kind of longing that “Meteor Shower” does, and I believe that both singers are directing their longing towards the same Person. I just love the way that God is called “The God of my life,” as in “The God who gives me life, without Whom life would have no meaning for me.” It definitely goes with the I desperately need You piece of the song.
Side note: the I am not my own, for I have been made new line is probably a reference to 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, “Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body.” So this line is probably a reference to Adam’s own faith and salvation in Christ.
“My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;
and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
“My Father, who has given [them] to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch [them] out of the Father’s hand.
“I and the Father are one.”
John 10:27-30 NASB20
I’ve thought about this song many times over the years, but this piece of it just came up for me a couple days ago actually. Please don’t let me go; I desperately need you… Is there anything in the world that would make Jesus let go of us? These verses show that there is absolutely nothing that can take us away from Him, and nothing that can make Him give up on us either. Praise God!
application
In response to the verses above, here are three “I will” statements that we can seek to live out IRL:
- I will acknowledge my need for Jesus in every moment, even for every breath
- I will trust that he is with me and will never leave or let me go
- I will try to point others to Jesus when they struggle with loneliness and longing
the gospel according to “meteor shower”
I believe that the Gospel message, or the steps of becoming a believer and receiving the gift of salvation, can be broken up into three parts:
- I am. Who is God? What is He like? Who are we, and why are we here? Is there more to life than just the time between our birth and our death?
- God is the Creator and Lord of everything that we know. He is light, He is absolutely perfect, and He is all-powerful and all-knowing. He is also love, and He created each and every one of us to live in relationship with Him. We, on the other hand, are hard-wired to resist that relationship. Because of the rebellion of the first humans, our nature is to resist God’s rule, and we are therefore separated from Him. This separation is called sin. Our sin causes us to feel a void or emptiness that we try to fill with other relationships or pursuits (like pleasure or success), but that can only truly be filled with the relationship with God that we were meant to have. For more thoughts on this, check out this post.
- With you. How can I “fix” my sin problem and find joy, peace, and a relationship with God?
- There is only one way to restore the relationship that we were always meant to have with the God who created us, and that is Jesus. As we already discussed above, Jesus, the Son of God, came as a human to rescue and restore us while we were weak, helpless to fix ourselves. He showed the love of God for us by subjecting Himself to all of the indignities and suffering of the Cross, and died a criminal’s death, even though He had done no wrong. Because of His perfect sacrifice, Jesus was able to end the eternal separation between us and God, and now gives us the choice to receive His gift of salvation and eternal life. For more thoughts, see this post.
- Always. God shows His faithfulness and steadfast love for His people (originally Israel, now including all who believe in Him) throughout Scripture. He will always be with us, and gives us reminders of His presence and His truth through Holy Spirit, who inhabits every believer. Through Him, we have eternal forgiveness of sin, access to His throne room through prayer, and the ability to grow into the people we were always meant to be, free from the power of sin. After we die, we have the promise of Heaven, where we will see our Lord face to face and never have to suffer or be separated from Him again. For more thoughts, see this post.
If you’re reading this and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord, what are you waiting for? You can have peace and confidence knowing that your past, present, and future are secure. Click on any of the links above to find out more, or feel free to email me at thefangirlfulfilled@gmail.com or DM me @the.fangirl.fulfilled to talk about it more. I’d love to share with you!
If you do have a relationship with Jesus, here’s how you can use this song, “Meteor Shower” by Owl City, to tell others about Him:
- I am: Deep calls to Deep… we were created with an innate longing to know and be known by our Creator (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Only Jesus is capable of truly satisfying this longing, and He is ready and available to do so! All we have to do is call out to Him
- with you: In Christ, we are secure– even when we aren’t aware of Him, He is always with us and will never let us go
- always: We should practice looking to our Creator above anything else to satisfy the longings of our hearts, moment by moment and breath by breath
my journal pages
free printable!
conclusion
I hope you’ve enjoyed this exploration of “Meteor Shower” by Owl City. What’s your favorite song? I’d love to listen to it!
Happy fangirling!
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