Dear god, I'm trying hard to reach you
Dear god, I see your face in all I do
Sometimes it's so hard to believe in
Good god I know you have your reasons

Dear god I see you move the mountains
Dear god I see you moving trees
Sometimes it's nothing to believe in
Sometimes it's everything I see

Well I've been thinking about,
And I've been breaking it down without an answer
I know I'm thinking aloud but if your loves
Still around why do we suffer?
Why do we suffer?

Dear god, I wish that I could touch you
How strange sometimes I feel I almost do
And then I'm back behind the glass again
Oh god what keeps you out it keeps me in

Well I've been thinking about,
And I've been breaking down without an answer
I know I'm thinking aloud but if your loves
Still around why do we suffer?
Why do we suffer?


Lyrics submitted by splitintwo

Dear God (Sincerly M.O.F.) song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

19 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +2
    General Comment

    One reason I like this song so much is that it means whatever you want it to mean. I am a believer and it is perfectly natural to have doubts about God, like, why is there suffering if God loves us? This song is about observing truths (like the fact that there is suffering, and that believers claim God is all-loving and all-knowing) but doesn't lead to one conclusion or another. To believers, this song is about staying faithful even when life gives us doubts. To Atheists, it's just reiterating the viewpoint that God doesn't exist.

    And besides, the song is beautiful.

    Jungleman1on October 08, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    You guys are all obsessed with Conor, and sure he is cool but this band is nothing without Jim James. Conor has nothing on Jim's guitar or voice. And Conor was way better as an obnoxious Atheist.

    michaelbelongon October 06, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    i dont know guys. i feel like yes, they are recognizing a god, but its not in a praising kind of way. so conor's atheistic ways could still be incorporated. the song is questioning why he's even "around," if all we do is suffer.

    i dunno, just how i took it.

    bowie89on October 06, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    It's not a horrible song it's just not the style of music you expect out of these guys. Also I never really knew Conor to be an Atheist, maybe Agnostic. I wouldn't hold it against him if he's Atheist he's undoubtedly the greatest songwriter out there today but being Atheist and flat out not believing in any higher power what so ever is such an radical way of thinking and kind of depressing really. In the song Road to Joy he says "My parents they have there religion but sleep in separate houses" which might be thought of as Atheist but I thought of it as more of a stab against Hypocritical Evangelists. Also in the song I'll never be happy again he talks of Lions Laying down with Lambs and skeletons coming back to life which is straight from the book of revelations in the bible so he's apparently been to church or at least read some of the bible. Another lyric that i like allot is from The Mystic Valley Band's Nicorette when he says "There's nothing more sad then a lynching mob for the rational man who believes in God" which says to me it's not a black and white situation and it's okay to believe in god but not take every last word of the bible literally and still question things kind of like in the movie Dogma, after all even Mother Teresa questioned her faith at different points of her life.

    AndTen06on November 26, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Finally, a MOF song with a decent portion dedicated to Conor's hauntingly beautiful voice..

    AliElGiganteon August 01, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    On second thought.. it was too short. I hope there are a couple songs with mainly conor's vocals :) Great song nonetheless.

    AliElGiganteon August 01, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Agreed. Always glad to hear Conor.. Plus a song that's more thoughtful than his most recent stuff. I'm excited to hear M's stuff too, so far so good.. :)

    forgetmynameon August 04, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    It seems like a lot of people don't like the music to this (not on here, just in general)...I like it musically, but lyrically I think it could be better. It doesn't really compare with XTC's Dear God for me. I mean..."I know you have your reasons?"

    sadowlon August 11, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    i honestly was surprised to hear conor singing about god. because he used to be openly atheist and such a harsh critic of christianity. but he did have some sort of a spiritual awakening over the past few years after visiting cassadaga. :)

    lizberryon August 11, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    the entire album is genius. i've been following Conor since A Collection of Songs and i've loved everything he's ever done. when i found out that Bright Eyes was breaking up i nearly cried but then a friend of mine told me she'd heard a rumor about Conor and Mike working on a side project with M. Ward.

    i really love this song. anyone can relate to the lyrics and their voices melding together is fantastic.

    :]

    ThatGouletKidon September 17, 2009   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
Blue
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Album art
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Album art
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it. “I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
Album art
Sunglasses at Night
Corey Hart
In the 1980s, sunglasses were a common fashion for people who wanted to adopt a "tough guy" persona (note all the cop shows from that era -- Simon & Simon, Miami Vice, etc. -- where the lead characters wore shades). So I think this song is about a guy who wears shades as a way of hiding his insecurity after learning that his girlfriend is cheating on him. He's trying to pretend that he's a "tough guy" to hide the fact that his girlfriend's affair is disturbing him.
Album art
Indigo
Of Mice & Men
This track is about is about questioning why the sky would choose to be blue if it had the choice to be anything else, “blue also meaning sad,” states frontman Aaron Pauley. “It's about comforting a loved one in a time of loss by telling them you feel blue, too.”