A Personal Testimony | Posted July 17, 2012
After a five-year hiatus due to personal reasons, Timothy Brindle returns with his personal testimony of God's restoration of his life. This is an extremely personal reflection of the restoration power of the cross. All 19 tracks on the album speak of the theme of restoration and the gospel of grace. Never has an album been so aptly titled: The Restoration.
"The Ruin" opens the album with a monologue by Brindle of how he was ruined in his sin, and that is the only word that can describe where he was. The track also contains some old-school mixing with record scratching that will take you back to the '90s/early 2000s.
"The All Sufficiency of Christ" features brooding lyrics and a nice touch of piano that adds to the feeling of the song. This is offset with the dancehall vibe in the featured vocals of Tony from Hazakim.
With "The Darkness of My Heart," Brindle speaks of where he was at his the depth of his sin and how he chose sin over God to kill the pain in his heart. It is dark and it is real. "The Compassion of Christ" speaks to how Christ is responsible for bringing him back from the brink and restoring life.
"The Compassion of Christ" shows how Christ is there for you, knocking at your heart. It doesn't matter where you are in life, if you open your heart to Chris, He will make it His home.
Shai Linne features on the next track. "I'm the Problem" speaks to how when we are in sin, it is no one else's fault, yet it is ourselves that is the problem. "The heart of the matter is our heart is the matter." That lyric sums up all that needs to be said.
"The Pharisee and the Tax Collector" features the lyrical talents Phanatik and Json. It replays the parable in Luke 18:9-14. A parable that tells off what true repentance is and how our works are not enough, but we have to come completely honest, and broken before God to receive His grace in our lives.
"The Means of Grace" once again features shai linne and a mini-sermon by Pastor Lance Lewis. It revolves around Acts 2:42, the word of God and the fellowship and the prayers and the breaking of bread. These are the means of grace that focus you on Jesus Christ.
"Lily (Floriana)" is a track about Brindle's relationship with his wife and the restoration God brought to their marriage after his sin was revealed shortly after they were married and had their first child. This is deeply personal and some may think of Floriana as a weak woman for staying with her husband after what he did, but it was Christ's strength revealed through her that was key in the restoration of the marriage.
Closing Thoughts:
I'm not too sure as to what Brindle's sin issue was; lust, sexual immorality, drugs or gambling. All I know is that with this album he has shown that God can indeed restore the dead back to life and can use a formerly broken life to show the beauty of the love and compassion of Christ. Lyrically, the album is challenging, musically, the album seems to go back a few years to the last time Brindle had an album. I took some guilty pleasure in Brindle's flow and the old school DJ style and what seemed to be a complete absence of autotune. The honesty within the lyrics and the vulnerability shown by Brindle make this album stand out. If you or a friend has a sin issue, get this album, be ministered to and understand "The All-Sufficiency of Christ in the Gospel of Grace to Restore Ruined Sinners to Himself for their Joy and His Glory."
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