In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Welcome to the planet
Welcome to existence
Everyone's here
Everyone's here
Everybody's watching you now
Everybody waits for you now
What happens next?
What happens next?
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Today never happened before
Welcome to the fallout
Welcome to resistance
The tension is here
The tension is here
Between who you are and who you could be
Between how it is and how it should be
Yeah
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Today never happened before
Maybe redemption has stories to tell
Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell
Where can you run to escape from yourself?
Where you gonna go?
Where you gonna go?
Salvation is here
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself
To lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Today never happened
Today never happened
Today never happened before
Welcome to existence
Everyone's here
Everyone's here
Everybody's watching you now
Everybody waits for you now
What happens next?
What happens next?
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Today never happened before
Welcome to the fallout
Welcome to resistance
The tension is here
The tension is here
Between who you are and who you could be
Between how it is and how it should be
Yeah
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Today never happened before
Maybe redemption has stories to tell
Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell
Where can you run to escape from yourself?
Where you gonna go?
Where you gonna go?
Salvation is here
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself
To lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Today never happened
Today never happened
Today never happened before
Lyrics submitted by messymiss9
Dare You to Move Lyrics as written by Jonathan Foreman
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Capitol CMG Publishing, Reservoir Media Management, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Page
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Awesome song, Jon Foreman is a genius. This song is about trying to live the perfect life Christ intended in the midst of imperfections.
The song is written from Christ's point of view, most likely speaking to a new believer (welcome to existence, resistance, fallout, etc.).
And trying to live the Christ life (AKA the "zoe" described by C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity) is tension ("the tension is here") between the sinful nature and the perfect person Christ desires. As C.S. Lewis put it, Christ does not wish to subdue, to mitigate, or to torment our old, sinful nature. Christ wishes to kill it completely. Christ demands perfection.
However we have been far from perfect in the past, and continue to be dreadfully lacking in the present.
The challenge (Dare you to move) is to have faith that Christ will rectify our shame as we boldly strive to live perfect lives, to become "who you could be." There is nothing we can do to earn forgiveness and nowhere we can "run to escape from ourselves." But earning salvation is not our job. Christ has already done it for us on the cross, "salvation is here". Our shame is paid for, "today never happened." Our job is to move, to "lift ourselves up off the floor" and strive to live the life Christ desires. It is Christ who gives us the ability to get up ("forgiveness is right where you fell"). We no longer have to live under the old law of sin and death, Christ has set us free and empowered us to walk. And now Christ dares us to move.
And to take from C.S. Lewis once again, we live the Christ life by allowing Christ to kill our old, sinful nature and fill the void with his own perfection. This is not a one-time happening. This is a war that begins anew everyday. "Welcome to resistance" is a call to put to death the things of the sinful nature and allow God to fill you instead. And it is from God's dwelling inside of you that you begin to become "who you could be," a process that continues to the end of our earthly lives and beyond.
"being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6
Well done.