This song is about an incident that occurred in New York City in the summer of 1970. Three young men ages 19,24 and 27 left Florida to visit NYC. The 2 older young men knew some people in the city and that's where they all stayed. Everyone was into drugs there marijana, heroin and speed etc.
Well, one night they are all in the basemnt apt. and a woman offered the 19 year old a drug which looked like a ball of clear wax with flecks in it. She said it was the same thing as truth serum and that he should try it. The 19 year old took the drug. When the he started feeling the efects of the drug his 2 friends and one other person stood around him and told him that he should give his soul to the one that they held allegiance to.
When the young man heard this he felt an evil presence all around him. One of the men who was kind of the leader said the he needed to give him self over to the one that they worshipped. At that moment the young man screammed,"I don't want to die, I don't want to die!!!
("Screaming that I don't want to die") And then he said "Is this really real"
They said yes this is really real.("Wondering if it is really real") The men that surrounded him said that you need to give your soul to the one that we follow. The young man screamed and said, "yes, I'll give you my soul but please don't
kill me, you can have my soul but please don't kill me!" ("You can sell your soul but don't you sell it too cheap"). The whole time this was happening to him he was thinking about all his family and friends ("thinking bout the people gone by") and how he would miss them if he were to die.
The young man who was being persecuted looked at his older friend and said, "I thought that you were my friend" "You betrayed me!" ("Thinkin bout betraying a friend") The man replied, "A lot of you long hairs (hippies) are joining us"
When this hapened the young man's upper lip swoll up like a balloon from the stess of his situatiom.
After a while everyone backed off from the young man and left him alone. After a few minutes the young man bolted from the apartment and jumped in his car and went back to florida leaving his so called friends behind.
The boy returned home and knew he had sold his soul to an evil power just to save his life. He decided to join the service right after that. Before he went in the military, about 6 monthas after the incient, he was riding in a friends car and they were listening to the radio and the song "Hang on To Your Life" came on.
When the young man heard the words it was an exact description of what had happened to him 6 months prior.
He was shocked to hear the lyrics and now he knew that he had sold his soul for sure and panicked.
The young man remembered that the 2 friends of his really liked the Guess Who. Now he put it together in is mind that he had some kind of evil supernatural experience. Theyoung man went on with his life for 11 years thinking that he had sold his soul and tried to forget about it. In 1981 he was befriended by a Christian and the Christian told him to read Psalm 22. When the young man read it he realized that Psalm 22 was what was at the end of the song "Hang on to Your Life".
The Christian told the young man that Psalmm 22 foretold the cruicifiction of Christ a 1000(?) years before it happened. The young man became convinced of the existence of Jesus and that Jesus was and is the Son of God. The Christian then led the young man in prayer and unto salvation thus ransoming the young man's soul unto the Lord God.
There is a Psalm, Psalm 35, which depicts a similar incident that happened to King David when he was betrayed by a friend. "I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother, I bowed down heavily as one that mourneth for his mother. But in my adversity they rejoiced and gathered themselves together against me. Yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me and I knew it not, they did tear me and ceased not. With hypocritical mockers in feasts they gnashed upon with their teeth. Lord,how long will you look on? Rescue my soul from their desctuctions, my darling from the lions.
In gratitude to God for saving him he also said in Psalm 35: "All my bones shall say, who is like unto you which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yes, the poor and the needy from him that robs him"
The Lord God is the only one that can take a soul--not anyone else, and no matter what you have done, the Lord God will save you if you want to be saved and sometimes He will save you even when you don't want to be saved!
I don't know if your story is truth or fiction, but if it isn't true it should be. This song was of the things which led me back to a strong Christian faith. Thanks. famousspear
I don't know if your story is truth or fiction, but if it isn't true it should be. This song was of the things which led me back to a strong Christian faith. Thanks. famousspear
This song is about an incident that occurred in New York City in the summer of 1970. Three young men ages 19,24 and 27 left Florida to visit NYC. The 2 older young men knew some people in the city and that's where they all stayed. Everyone was into drugs there marijana, heroin and speed etc. Well, one night they are all in the basemnt apt. and a woman offered the 19 year old a drug which looked like a ball of clear wax with flecks in it. She said it was the same thing as truth serum and that he should try it. The 19 year old took the drug. When the he started feeling the efects of the drug his 2 friends and one other person stood around him and told him that he should give his soul to the one that they held allegiance to. When the young man heard this he felt an evil presence all around him. One of the men who was kind of the leader said the he needed to give him self over to the one that they worshipped. At that moment the young man screammed,"I don't want to die, I don't want to die!!! ("Screaming that I don't want to die") And then he said "Is this really real" They said yes this is really real.("Wondering if it is really real") The men that surrounded him said that you need to give your soul to the one that we follow. The young man screamed and said, "yes, I'll give you my soul but please don't kill me, you can have my soul but please don't kill me!" ("You can sell your soul but don't you sell it too cheap"). The whole time this was happening to him he was thinking about all his family and friends ("thinking bout the people gone by") and how he would miss them if he were to die. The young man who was being persecuted looked at his older friend and said, "I thought that you were my friend" "You betrayed me!" ("Thinkin bout betraying a friend") The man replied, "A lot of you long hairs (hippies) are joining us" When this hapened the young man's upper lip swoll up like a balloon from the stess of his situatiom. After a while everyone backed off from the young man and left him alone. After a few minutes the young man bolted from the apartment and jumped in his car and went back to florida leaving his so called friends behind. The boy returned home and knew he had sold his soul to an evil power just to save his life. He decided to join the service right after that. Before he went in the military, about 6 monthas after the incient, he was riding in a friends car and they were listening to the radio and the song "Hang on To Your Life" came on. When the young man heard the words it was an exact description of what had happened to him 6 months prior. He was shocked to hear the lyrics and now he knew that he had sold his soul for sure and panicked. The young man remembered that the 2 friends of his really liked the Guess Who. Now he put it together in is mind that he had some kind of evil supernatural experience. Theyoung man went on with his life for 11 years thinking that he had sold his soul and tried to forget about it. In 1981 he was befriended by a Christian and the Christian told him to read Psalm 22. When the young man read it he realized that Psalm 22 was what was at the end of the song "Hang on to Your Life". The Christian told the young man that Psalmm 22 foretold the cruicifiction of Christ a 1000(?) years before it happened. The young man became convinced of the existence of Jesus and that Jesus was and is the Son of God. The Christian then led the young man in prayer and unto salvation thus ransoming the young man's soul unto the Lord God.
There is a Psalm, Psalm 35, which depicts a similar incident that happened to King David when he was betrayed by a friend. "I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother, I bowed down heavily as one that mourneth for his mother. But in my adversity they rejoiced and gathered themselves together against me. Yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me and I knew it not, they did tear me and ceased not. With hypocritical mockers in feasts they gnashed upon with their teeth. Lord,how long will you look on? Rescue my soul from their desctuctions, my darling from the lions.
In gratitude to God for saving him he also said in Psalm 35: "All my bones shall say, who is like unto you which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yes, the poor and the needy from him that robs him"
The Lord God is the only one that can take a soul--not anyone else, and no matter what you have done, the Lord God will save you if you want to be saved and sometimes He will save you even when you don't want to be saved!
I don't know if your story is truth or fiction, but if it isn't true it should be. This song was of the things which led me back to a strong Christian faith. Thanks. famousspear
I don't know if your story is truth or fiction, but if it isn't true it should be. This song was of the things which led me back to a strong Christian faith. Thanks. famousspear