Sometimes an album doesn't live up to the hype after an excellent album like Wide-Eyed And Mystified,, but every song on Ending Is Beginning is amazing. As a major fan of the Canadian band Downhere since their Dove Award winning debut in 2001, this band has only managed to get better this decade putting them in the ranks of my other favorite bands Jars of Clay, MercyMe and Sanctus Real. Their Brit-Rock sound is a blend of all of these great CCM artists and also the driving alternative rock that has made Coldplay an international sensation.

Ending Is Beginning is my top album of 2008 and the album immediately grabs you with the opening track “Bleed For This Love,” written from the perspective of Jesus. It is a moving portrayal of His sacrifice and Love. The first single from the album, “Here I Am,” is based on my favorite passage of the Bible and my life verse, Isaiah 6:8: Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?" Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!" (NASB) This verse stirs me to answer my calling as a Christian to do God's will.

I got the chance to speak with Jason Germain of Downhere about “Here I Am” and this is what he shared with me. You can listen to the entire interview here.

What is the main message of the song, "Here I Am"?

For me, the biggest obstacle in being available to be used by God is my own suspicions and doubts about who I am. I often feel like I need to reach the next plateau in my study or in my relationships or in my career in order to be used by God.

Most of us deal with some level of doubt in regard to our abilities. For many of us, it is a strong negative force and at times, it can be debilitating. It is pride in its truest form.

To me, one of the beautiful things about the Gospel of Christ is that we come with nothing to offer--we come as beggars. It may sound like some sort of twisted glory in shame, but all that can be restored in our lives is from a power that is not of our own. God restores our dignity, insomuch that our broken story becomes our ministry! He uses the terrible and misplaced and severed places in our lives to showcase the attributes of His personality and power.

I take a lesson from Moses’ pride. When God asked him to speak for the Israelites, he doubted God’s choice. He believed that his effectiveness in his calling was directly proportional to his skills and qualification. But God has never asked anything more of anybody than to have faith and to walk through the doors that are open. In other words--to trust. To trust that He’s got it under control. The leadership we have to offer the world cannot be attained by climbing some sort of ladder. No amount of seminars, or expensive clothing, education or success without God can change the world for the ultimate good. What an amazing God we serve who would reverse the most shameful and tragic things in our lives for the purpose of joy. The kind of joy that only comes in following the prompting of the Holy Spirit. I want the kind of faith that calls out through the darkness of this generation, “Here is my misplaced intentions, Here’s my life, Here’s my story, Here I am send me!"

Here are the lyrics to “Here I Am”

Sometimes your calling, comes in dream
Sometimes in comes in the Spirit's breeze,
You reach for the deepest part of me,
And call out for the things of eternity.

But I'm a man, of dust and stains,
You move in me, so I can say,

CHORUS:
Here I am, Lord send me,
All of my life, I make an offering,
Here I am, Lord send me,
Somehow my story, Is part of your plan,
Here I am

When setbacks and failures, and upset plans,
Test my faith and leave me with empty hands,
Are you not the closest when it's hardest to stand?
I know that you will finish what you began.

These broken parts you redeem,
Become the song, that I can sing
(chorus)

Overwhelmed by the thought of my weakness,
And the fear that I'll fail you in the end,
In this mess, I'm just one of the pieces,
I can't put this together but you can.

After I finished studying the book of Isaiah, I became so moved by the idea of God asking me directly, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” I'm consistently praying that I have the courage to say, “Here I am, Lord send me” when God calls me. This song is a great prayer and answer to that call. What is one area in your life that you feel God may be calling you to exercise faith, even though you doubt your strength?

You can listen to the song here.