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Thursday, October 8, 2020

Music Review: Reorder by Jason Gray

Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Seven tracks filled with Godly truth
Cons: All cons have been reordered
The Bottom Line:
Seven track EP
Reminds us God is working
As life reorders



Reflections when Life Gets Reordered

Over the last fourteen months, Jason Gray has released a trilogy of EPs with the theme of Order, Disorder, Reorder.  The premise is that this is the cycle God uses in our lives to refine us and make us more like Him.  We’ve now reached the final EP in the series, so we are focusing on Reorder.

I wasn’t too surprised to find that the first track was “What the Hard Times Taught Me.”  Jason has turned the one-minute teaser that was the final track of Disorder in a full song, which was exactly what I expected.  While the teaser had an adult contemporary feel to it, this track is soft rock.  The lyrics we got before are the chorus of this track as Jason reflects on the fact that the hard times have put him exactly where God wants him.  That’s a constant theme of the songs there.

Next up is “Glory Days,” which finds Jason reflecting that his glory days aren’t the days in the past when his life was perfect by his estimation but where God has him after going through trials.  This is a fun, upbeat track.  And I have to laugh at the fact that he makes reference to “California dreaming” at one point taking about the days he dreams of.  As a California native, I can guarantee you that we have bad days here, too.

“Bring it All” looks at the fact that our weaknesses are what God is using in our lives.  Jason draws on his own life as an example here as he talks about his own struggles performing on stage.  (And if you don’t know Jason’s testimony regarding that, you need to look it up.  Or attend one of his concerts, which are always wonderful.)

“Tethered” is quickly becoming my favorite song from this project.  It’s a reminder that no matter how much we go through or how far we try to run from God, we are tethered to His love and grace.  It reminds me very much of Psalm 139, so the idea isn’t new at all, but the picture he paints here brings it to life in a new way.  It’s got a stripped down almost acoustic feel to it that I also really enjoy.

“Again and Again” is a prayer in the form of a anthem that God will help us rise from the ashes of what life has dealt us every time we go through hard times.

The only truly slow song here is “Right on Time.”  This is a very contemplative piece that reminds us that, while God doesn’t provide the answer we need when we think we need it, it is always right on time because God is in control.  It’s a moving song.

The final track is “Every Moment Belongs.”  We’ve got another great anthem here to close things out.  It’s a simple idea – both the good and bad are needed in our lives to make us who God wants us to be.

As I said, there’s really only one slow song here, which makes sense.  Reorder is a time in your life when things are going well again, so having the majority of the songs be upbeat fits the theme.  As always with Jason, the lyrics are the key.  There are some good truths in these songs to contemplate and remember no matter which season of life you find yourself in.

I’ve got to confess that the last couple of weeks, on top of the last few months, have been very wearing on me.  I was not ready to meditate on Reorder when this EP was released.  But, this is Jason Gray, and his songs are always excellent, so I started listening.  No, my life hasn’t magically gotten better.  But the songs are reminding me that this is a season, and I need to turn to God and trust Him.  So that is what I am trying to do more with each time I listen to the disc.

If you are like me and generally don’t pay attention to or buy EPs, you’ll be pleased to know that Jason is planning to release a full version with all three EPs on one disc in the next few weeks.  I couldn’t have waited this long to hear the songs, and I’m glad since I’ve been meditating on the truths over and over again over the last few months.  But if you have yet to buy any of these projects, be on the look out for that.

Whether you wait for the full version or get these songs now, I can’t recommend Reorder highly enough.  It closes out this cycle in high form and gives us important truth to remember no matter where we fall in the Order, Disorder, Reorder of life.

CD Length: 26:24
Tracks:
1. What the Hard Times Taught Me
2. Glory Days
3. Bring it All
4. Tethered
5. Again and Again
6. Right on Time
7. Every Moment Belongs

1 comment:

  1. Sounds excellent! And what many of us could use these days. Thanks for the review.

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