Matthew West – Day One

American Contemporary Christian artist Matthew West started his career in 1997.  He released twelve albums one EP, including:

• September Sun (1997)
• Every Step of the Way (1998)
• Sellout (2002)
• Happy (2003)
• History (2005)
• Something to Say (2008)
• The Story of Your Life (2010)
• The Heart of Christmas (2011)
• Into the Light (2012)
• Live Forever (2015)
• All In (2017)
• Brand New (2020)
• Walking Miracles (EP; 2020)

West earned three Dove Awards, including Recorded Music Packaging of the Year (Happy, 2005), Special Event Album of the Year (Music Inspired by The Story, 2012), and Songwriter of the Year (2018).

Lyrics can be found at https://genius.com/Matthew-west-day-one-lyrics.

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1. What message does the song communicate?

West is looking to press the reset button on life.  He knows that self-pity is not helpful and wishes to avoid it.  He acknowledges that he doesn’t measure up to a high and lofty standard of morality and that not one person is keeping track of his mistakes.  West changes direction by remembering “Your” grace and mercies, and focusing on “You”, marking the beginning of his new life.

Who is “You”?  West hasn’t told us.  We could probably presume God based on the capitalization and connection with grace and new mercies, both of which are oft-used Christian statements.  I can’t think of a good reason to assume anyone else fits the bill.

My biggest criticism is that West did not set realistic expectations for his new “best life now”.  Christians who are saved by grace through faith apart from works will have bad days.  Some will lose jobs.  Others will lose loved ones.  Still, others will experience divorce, kidnappings, and abuse.  What makes life with God our “best life now” is not that God rescues us from tragedy (though sometimes He does), it is that we know Christ (Philippians 3:8).  Despite these critiques, West’s advice will help us through current and future trials and tribulations when we experience them.

Score: 8/10

2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?

Almost all of it is Biblical, except that West is unclear about what he means by “best” in Hook.

[Verse 1]

Lines 1-8: West is still wallowing in his past, wishing he could clear his memory in much the same way as a computer reboot erases short term storage.  He recognizes that he doesn’t measure up to God’s standards (Genesis 3:22, Genesis 8:21, Job 15:14-16, Psalm 14:2-3, Psalm 51:5, Proverbs 22:15, Jeremiah 17:9, Romans 3:10-18, Romans 5:12, Romans 6:23, and Ephesians 2:2-3).  West longs for a better future than his dark past.

[Pre-Chorus]

Lines 1-3: West acknowledges with his lips that his sin is as far from him as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12), but his heart finds it difficult to accept.

Lines 4 and 5: What will West do about it?  Let’s find out.

[Hook]

Lines 1-6: West is taking a new direction, claiming that today he will change from focusing on his problems to something else.  What is this “something else”?  He doesn’t tell us until Verse 2.

I also have a question about line 2.  In what sense will West’s life be the “best”?  Better relationships?  Better lifestyle?  Better walk with Christ?  West doesn’t tell us.

[Verse 2]

Lines 1-8: Rather than fixing his eyes on his past, West’s center of attention is God (Hebrews 12:2), that West is no longer dead in sin, but made alive in Christ as a new creation (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24).  West shifts from a pessimistic outlook on life to optimism.

[Bridge]

Lines 1 and 2: That is, the light of God, washing over West and breaking through His darkness (Psalm 107:10-16, Luke 1:79, John 1:1-13, John 12:46, Ephesians 5:8, Colossians 1:13, and 1 Peter 2:9).

LInes 3 and 4: Borrows from Lamentations 3:22-23.

Lines 5 and 6: Combines the “every morning” portion of lines 3 and 4 combined with Hebrews 12:2.  This is West’s plan to fight his past: focusing on Christ.

Lines 7-9: Repeats lines 3-5.

Line 10: That is, the start of West’s new life (Revelation 21:5).

[Outro]

Line 1: Rewords the song’s theme, that West is changing direction.

Lines 2-7: Essentially repeats line 1.

Score: 8/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

Though I find it unlikely for Christians to interpret this song as a boyfriend/girlfriend, those outside the camp of Christ may have different ideas.  Unless they know what “grace” or “new mercies” are, hear this song in a religious setting (church, youth group, etc.), or understand who Matthew West is, it seems easy to come to this conclusion.  After all, there are no attributes of God, no acts of God, and no explicit references to God or Jesus.

Under this interpretation, a boyfriend/girlfriend becomes the driving focus that pulls one out of their funk.  This is a worldly message that I don’t believe West intended as it leads to idolatry.

Score: 3/10

4. What does this song glorify?

While it glorifies God that West’s advice to fix our eyes on Jesus to push through past experiences, his unrealistic expectations of a pain-free life will lead some to disappointment, snatching some of it away.  Still, if they continue with West’s advice, they will experience abundant life with God.

Score: 8/10

Closing Comments

Matthew West’s Day One is average.  While it will inspire many believers to focus on God, that God’s grace and mercy are higher than our problems, West’s failure to address trials and tribulations amid his “better life” may lead to unrealistic expectations about their future.  Though unbelievers may misinterpret this song as a boyfriend/girlfriend, those of us who comprehend West’s message will find his advice sound if we follow it.

While inspirational, these issues make it difficult for me to recommend for corporate worship.

Final Score: 7/10

Artist Info

Track: Day One (listen to the song)

Artist: Matthew West

Album: Live Forever

Genre: Pop

Release Year: 2015

Duration: 3:29

Agree?  Disagree?  Don’t be shy or have a cow!  Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.

Updates:

03/25/2021 – Updated per repetition announcement.