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Christian Artist Chris Renzema Calls Faith ‘A Narrow Road’

Christian Artist Chris Renzema Calls Faith ‘A Narrow Road’

By Movieguide® Contributor

Christian artist Chris Renzema is sharing the inspiration behind his latest album, “Manna.” 

“This is probably the closest to a concept album that I’ve actually ever landed on because it does feel like every song comes back to pretty much this idea of faith in the desert,” he explained while appearing on “The Matthew West Podcast.” “If you go through the songs, there’s this very consistent reference to the Exodus story and this idea of a miracle.”

Renzema also shared how he came up with the album’s title, saying, “Manna is the bread of heaven, given to the people of God from the wilderness….that’s astounding and miraculous.”

However, he added, after decades of receiving manna, many would probably become numb to the miracle of getting bread from heaven. 

Renzema said that, after seeing many of his friends leave the church, he found himself asking, “Why am I still here?”

“I can be cynical, and I can be skeptical, and I can be disappointed and maybe have completely forgotten what it feels like to see the deliverance of the Lord,” he continued. “If it was up to me to hold onto Jesus…I don’t have the grip. But He has the grip, so Him holding onto me is the only explanation I can say that makes any sense of continuing when it can feel so punishing to keep going.”

He concluded, “This is a narrow road. It is an often lonely path. But it is a path of Jesus, and that’s worth it.”

“Manna” has been well-received by critics and fans alike. The Anchor wrote, “Chris Renzema continues to demonstrate why he is one of the most exciting artists on a spiritual music scene that is sorely in need of music with this level of emotional honesty and maturity.”

Renzema has also shared some insight into the role faith plays in his writing process. 

“Writing is really good for me because it helps me unearth things I don’t think I fully grasp about myself the rest of the time,” he wrote on Instagram, sharing a snippet of a track he wrote inspired by the story of the prodigal son. “The fact is God’s grace is massive and encompassing: I’m the one who counts myself out from it. The beauty of the heart of the younger brother in that story is he actually believes the father loved him, and opted for accepting grace vs trying to earn it. I want to be more like that.”

 


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