North Point InsideOut is a ministry out of North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia. The band recently released their first live project in partnership with Centricity Music as a follow-up to their Nothing Ordinary studio release. 

Nothing Ordinary LIVE Part 1 features five songs that were written and performed by North Point InsideOut worship leaders, musicians and songwriters, including a powerful live version of the popular "Death Was Arrested," which has also been recorded by Aaron Shust and Laura Story. I had the chance to speak with Brett Stanfill about "Sons and Daughters."

Please tell me the personal story behind this song.

This song was the exception to most songs, as most of the time we get in a room with a few people and slave over the song, and it can take weeks or months to finish. With this song, it was birthed from what God had been teaching me for years beforehand. For a few years I battled with depression, and it was very much rooted in lies about my identity. I needed to really believe in who I am in Christ and that I'm loved by Him and I'm ultimately His child. 

I had been learning that and experiencing freedom in the truth of my identity. I was sitting at my piano at home with my headphones on and I starting singing the chorus, and it took about a half an hour. The bridge took longer to write. The song pretty much came out in that one sitting. That was the first version. It was birthed from a very deep place of walking in that truth and experiencing the truth of what the song says: that we are children of God.

Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song?

1 John 3:1 (NLT): "See how very much our Father loves us, for He calls us His children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don't recognize that we are God's children because they don't know Him."

1 Peter 2:9-10 (NKJV): "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy."

Deuteronomy 31:6 (NKJV): "Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you."

Galatians 4:4-6 (The Voice): "When the right time arrived, God sent His Son into this world (born of a woman, subject to the law) to free those who, just like Him, were subject to the law. Ultimately He wanted us all to be adopted as sons and daughters. Because you are now part of God's family, He sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts; and the Spirit calls out, 'Abba, Father.'"

Proverbs 18:10 (NKJV): "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe."
 
Romans 8:31 (NKJV): "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?"

Romans 8:38-40 (NKJV): "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

What is the takeaway message?

When I first started writing the song, I started singing the words of 1st John 3:1. That's the biblical passage where the song came from. 

Emily ended up singing this version on this latest project after we released a previous version on our last album called "Hear," where I sang the song. When we knew we were going to record a new live album, some of these songs come out of our high school student ministry at our church. Our students have really latched onto this song. We decided to put a more stripped down version of the song on this album, a bit more acoustic-driven, and have Emily sing it. It's my favorite version of the song. 

The impact of the song in the InsideOut ministry is that it has been incredible to put these truths in the hearts of our high school students. That was my heart when I wrote the song, that they would sing the song and declare the truth about who they are and what God says about them. If there's one thing I want them to know, it's that they are loved and children of God, and nothing can change that. It is based on the truth of Scripture and what God says about us.

Lyrics:
Before He spoke creation
The God of Heaven knew our name
And formed in His reflection
We are His glory on display

And His heart is good
He's always kind
With the cross He proved
He's on our side

We are the sons, we are the daughters of God
No matter where we go we're close to the Father's heart
And though we stumble, He will not let us fall
Because we are the Lord's and He will never forsake His own
We are the sons, we are the daughters of God

The love He lavished on us
He called us children of the King
And in His love and kindness
He chose the lonely and the weak

And His heart is good
He's always kind
With the cross He proved
He's on our side

We are the sons, we are the daughters of God
No matter where we go we're close to the Father's heart
And though we stumble, He will not let us fall
Because we are the Lord's and He will never forsake His own
We are the sons, we are the daughters of God
Yes, we are

So in the light speak louder than the truth
Remind me that I belong to You
And when I can't see past the dark of life
Would You remind me You're always by my side?

You're by my side
We are the sons, we are the daughters of God
No matter where we go we're close to the Father's heart
And though we stumble, He will not let us fall
We are the Lord's and He will never forsake His own
We are the sons, we are the daughters of God

I have had the chance to worship along with this entire album, and it flows nicely with a mix of upbeat and more reflective songs, reminding me of Passion, Bethel Music, Jesus Culture and the various Hillsong music ministries. The message of this song compels me to think about where God is calling me to go for Him. The harvest is plenty, but the workers are few. As His sons and daughters, we need to take God's love with us. No matter what you are going through in life, God's promise to His children is that you are loved. 

Knowing God "will not let us fall because we are the Lord's and He will never forsake His own," and knowing from Romans that "if God is for us, who can be against us" assures us that there's nothing to fear. This song helps remind me of the biblical truth that God sent His only begotten Son Jesus to Earth to seek and to save the lost. No matter where you are in your walk with Jesus, this song is a salvation message that Jesus, through The Holy Spirit, is by your side.

Proverbs 18:10 tells us that the Name of the Lord is a strong tower. This is a truth for believers to cling to. We're not supposed to hope it is true, or turn to the Lord as only our last resort, but daily be washed by the Truth of the Word of God. If we learn to build our lives on Scripture, we will all have a Rock as our foundation in how we navigate our lives. This song is a great reminder: "Because we are the Lord's and He will never forsake His own, we are the sons, we are the daughters of God." Amen to that!

Listen to the song below.