Lindsay McCaul has pure and strong vocals that remind me of Brooke Fraser and Audrey Assad, my favorite female vocalists of all time. Her Reunion Records debut If it Leads Me Back was one of the most captivating albums I've ever heard and one of my Top 10 Albums of 2012. After an almost three year wait, Lindsay has changed labels and returned with her Centricity Music release One More Step. The eleven vibrant and insightful songs made this one of my Top 10 Albums of 2014.
 
This entire album is loaded with relatable lyrics, incredible singing and prayerful themes about what it means to be a child of God. Every song is a great reminder for followers of Jesus wrestling with doubts and trying to live out their faith. One More Step is my inspirational album of 2014. The poignant and autobiographical story song "One More Step" is highlighted by introspective lyrics and, of course, Lindsay's great singing. She is an artist in every sense of the word. I had the chance to speak with Lindsay in person about the moving title track.
 
Please tell me the personal story behind this song.
 
I wrote this song based on a situation that started back in 2005. I received a letter from my dad, and he had written all 5 of his daughters. That's a lot of hairspray, yes. He had just been to the doctor, and the doctor had discovered that he had a terminal disease. He wrote us all this letter so that in years to come we would have something to look back on and read through to know that he was grateful that the doctors had found this disease, grateful that he could really learn to appreciate this moment and make every moment count.
 
I was shocked and devastated, and I immediately started praying for two things: that my dad was going to be with me to walk me down the aisle at my wedding, which was truly going to be a miracle because I was as single as a dollar bill, and then also that when my dad's time on earth was coming to an end, I would get to be there with him. I knew even as I was praying these two things that even if God didn't answer the way I wanted Him to, He would still be good, kind, compassionate and caring. I also knew that God says in His Word that "we have not because we ask not."
 
I asked and asked, and I prayed and prayed, and God really did perform a miracle for me. In September 2011, my dad was able to be there with me to walk me down the aisle on my wedding day to my husband Mark, and then a couple of short months later in February 2012, my mom called and said "you need to come now." I did, straight away, and I was able to be there with him in the room when the doctor said "this is it, this is the end."

Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song?

Psalm 90:9-12 (NIV): "All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan. Our days may come to seventy years, or eighty, if our strength endures; yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away. If only we knew the power of Your anger! Your wrath is as great as the fear that is Your due. Teach us to number our days; that we may gain a heart of wisdom."
 
Philippians 3:13-14 (NKJV): "Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
 
Philippians 1:6 (NIV): "being confident of this; that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
 
Lamentations 3:22-23 (NKJV): "Through the LORD's mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness."

What is the takeaway message?
 
I sat there on the hospital bed with my dad, and we just talked. I asked my dad what wisdom and what insight from all of his experiences he had to pass on from his life. He said "everybody knows that they are dying, but nobody thinks that they are dying." It made me think of Psalm 90:12: "Teach us to number our days; that we may gain a heart of wisdom."
 
If I learned anything from seeing my dad finish his race well here on Earth, it is that Jesus is present through the storm, and He is what we need through the storm. I learned that He really does answer prayer. I learned that I too want to make the most of my time here and make every moment and every second count. I am grateful to know that I will see my dad again. I wrote this song for him.
 
I hope this song brings hope to other people as well. Unexpectedly, I have been hearing stories about the way God used this song to mend relationships that needed mending. That is such a gift from the Lord. My prayer for this song is that it will encourage healing in the here and now. None of us know if we will see tomorrow.
 
Lyrics:
I was maybe 12 months old
Holding on couches letting go
Waving my arms, trying walk in that old video
You were reaching out your hands
Telling me to take a chance
You never left my side 
You never let me go
And then you said to me

One more step
One more try
Any moment you will find
You're falling less and standing more
Soon you'll run on this kitchen floor
It won't be long just try your best
One more step

Time flies
Like my heart that day
And my whole world about to change
I had my borrowed, had my blue
And a boy who had my heart
You told me don't forget the ring
And tried to soak in everything
And standing by my side you whispered
Look at where we are

One more step
Down this aisle
I will cry and you will smile
This little girl that once was mine
I'll walk you now to your new life
The future is as bright as your white dress
One more step

Always happens way too soon
The doctor leaves a quiet room
The first to find your voice 
You said I'm ready to go
You asked me what I thought it's like
Leaving this old world behind
And sitting by your side
I said you already know

It's one more step
Blink your eyes
You'll be home on the other side
Running down the golden streets
You'll hear a million angels sing

So one more kiss on earth is all that's left
Before the breath of heaven fills your chest
And you finally see His face 
And find your rest 
One more step
One more step
 
Lindsay McCaul writes and sings captivating and catchy songs filled with inspirational lyrics. This is a great new collection of heartfelt songs about the journey of life we are all on as pilgrims, keeping our eyes on the prize of eternal life in Jesus Christ. Musically, the album features a great mix of confessional ballads and singer-songwriter pop music. The stirring vocals, prayerful lyrics and musical arrangements are breath-taking. This is a Spirit-filled and emotional listening experience.
                                                                                             
I've personally been convicted by "One More Step" and the biblical phrase "teach me to number my days; that we may gain a heart of wisdom" from Psalm 90:12. It is a prayer for God to teach me to realize that this life isn't forever. Help me to realize what I'm living for. What am I wasting my time on? What am I doing with my life?
 
This captivating new song moves me emotionally and connects me spiritually to the truth behind the song about her father who passed away: "It's one more step, blink your eyes, you'll be home on the other side, running down the golden streets, you'll hear a million angels sing, so one more kiss on earth is all that's left, before the breath of Heaven fills your chest and you finally see His face and find your rest— One more step." That eternal hope is something we can all cling to as followers of Jesus.  Life is a vapor. Don't worry about tomorrow. God's strength is made perfect in us today. Amen to that!
 
(Watch the lyric video here.)