Stars Go Dim, a recent addition to the Word Records roster, released their self-titled debut album Stars Go Dim digitally last fall, with physical copies just made available January 29. Although their partnership with Word is brand new, all of the members of the Tulsa-based band (Chris Cleveland, Michael Cleveland, Kyle Williams and Josh Roach) have been involved in music for years, primarily through worship leading. They've been making music together for three years leading up to this 14-track studio debut.

Stars Go Dim has made waves already through spots opening on Winter Jam, where you can hear them sing their powerful radio single "You Are Loved." I had the chance to speak with Chris Cleveland and Michael Cleveland in person at Winter Jam in Reading, Pennsylvania about "You Are Loved."

Please tell me the personal story behind this song.

Chris: We both lead worship at our churches at home. When you say that people sometimes remember songs longer than a sermon, you are completely right. When I sing songs for my congregation at home, the words that they sing become what they believe, which then affects how they live their lives. 

In writing this song, at first it seemed like a simple message: you are loved. How simple is that? It was almost in hindsight that we started really understanding the gravity of it and seeing how the song is affecting people's lives in so many ways. The song is meant for people to know their worth and their value. I know you have three daughters, and Michael also has three daughters. I have a little boy and a little girl. I think about society and how many things young women are being told, that they aren't good enough and they need to look and act and dress and feel all these things in certain ways. Unfortunately, they are not being told that they are worthy, that they are good enough, that they were made for a purpose, on purpose. 

God loves you and cares for you. That's really the basis of this song. It's taken on more life as the story continues to grow and people connect with the song.

Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song?

Song of Songs 4:7 (NIV): "You are altogether beautiful, my darling; there is no flaw in you."
 
Psalm 139:17-18 (NKJV): "How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You." 

Psalm 139:13-14 (NKJV): "For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well."

Ephesians 2:10 (NLT): "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago." 

2 Corinthians 12:9 (NKJV): "And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

What is the takeaway message?

Chris: I received a message from a girl who heard the song. She said she came to the concert and expected to leave feeling the same way as when she came in, that nobody cared about her. After she heard the song, she said she knew that God loved her. For me, the message is so simple. You almost don't remember that not everyone knows that they are loved.

Michael: It speaks to both someone close to God who has a relationship with Him, and to someone who doesn't. Recently in speaking with a Pastor's wife who is battling with cancer right now, she said that when she goes for chemotherapy treatments, this song is the first song she listens to on her playlist every time she goes in. She's been a woman of faith for as long as I've been alive, she has kids and grandkids and she's teaching about faith and shepherding a church with her husband. To hear her say that this message is speaking to her is special, as she's the type of person I want to hear from. It is humbling that this simple message is encouraging so many people.

Chris: I was asked about the theology behind the song, and we firmly believe that there's a time when God is going to bring Heaven to earth, and He's going to make all things right and all things new. We are not there yet. We are in-between. When Jesus returns, He will make all things new. We firmly believe that. We have a hope, and it's bigger than what the world is telling us. Our hope is in Jesus. That's what it's all about.

Lyrics:
We hide pain in the weirdest places
Broken souls with smiling faces
Fighting for surrender
For now and the after
Just look around and you'll see that people
Are scared to say how they really feel, oh
We all need a little honesty

You are loved
If your heart's in a thousand pieces
If you're lost and you're far from reason
Just look up, know you are loved
Just look up, and know you are loved
When it feels like somethings missing
If it hurts but you can't find healing
Just look up, know you are loved
Just look up, know you are loved. ooh

We're not made to be superheroes,
Photoshopped, all size zeroes
We're a light not expected
But not quite perfected yet.
Look up see the sun is shining
There's hope on a new horizon
Calling you, calling...

You don't have to prove yourself
Don't try to be someone else

In his book "The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God" Tim Keller states: "To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us."

Stars Go Dim has delivered the ideal song to minister to anyone struggling with identity issues. I've been married for 21 years and have three young daughters, and this entire album really ministers to me and my family. My daughters are more precious than anything in the world to me, and to their Heavenly Father, and this song is a great anthem to celebrate the biblical Truth from Psalm 139 that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made." As a Christian father, I want my daughters to all know that they are beautiful just the way they are, and they "don't have to prove themselves or try to be someone else."

I relate to the message that God created us to have value. I look at my wife and I hope she is secure in my love for her. I look at my daughters and I hope I am communicating to each of my girls that she is beautiful, that she is valuable, and that she is a blessing to me. God feels that way about men as well. We are valuable to God. As men, we are appointed by God to take care of and partner with the women in our lives. I believe men also need to hear this song. The song is a great reminder of the kind of heart we should have both as people valued by God and as Christians who can communicate our value to other people. 

The Good News of the Gospel which this song perfectly portrays it is that God accepts us no matter what we've done. A quote that connects to this song is "Comparison is the thief of joy," as stated by President Theodore Roosevelt. As the song says, "We're a light not expected, but not quite perfected yet. Look up see the sun is shining, there's hope on a new horizon, calling you, calling... You are loved." Amen to that!

Listen to the song below.