Burn Them Bridges Down
Dedicated to Allison (Firstbrook) Nolasco
John 10:27-29
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Price: $25.00 US
The “words” clue in this song is a pun of sorts, and is found in the second line of the first verse: “The first stream you must ford” – it’s a play on Allison’s last name. There also is a “music” clue in the initial key signature of A-flat, which has the same initials as the song’s dedicatee.
This song is written as a black Gospel a cappella number. Each verse can be sung by a different soloist, with the final soloist having the opportunity to improvise countermelody to the rest of the choir. The lyrics speak of the general irreversibility of life and the need for us to live according to that irreversibility, hence the reference to burning bridges down.
You gotta burn them bridges down, You gotta burn them to the ground,
You gotta burn them bridges down, You gotta burn them to the ground,
You gotta burn them bridges down, You gotta burn them to the ground,
There ain’t no turnin’ back from the Lord! No turnin’ back!
When you put your soul in Jesus’ hands,
The first stream you must ford
Is the one that separates death from life
And takes you to the Lord.
No turnin’ back!
Now the Lord demands a life of dedications,
The second stream your must cross,
To present yourself a living sacrifice
And reach out to the lost.
No turnin’ back!\
When you’ve been baptized in the waters of the river,
It’s a crossing by which you say
You identify yourself with the Lord Jesus
And His resurrection way.
No turnin’ back!
One day we’ll cross the river together
To stand before God’s throne,
And that final bridge will lie a-smoldering behind us
When we’re eternally home.
No turnin’ back!
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