Laura Kaczor is a Nashville-based singer/songwriter, worship leader and speaker. Her new album, Love Enough, had its national debut to stores in the fall of 2010 through Universal Music Christian Group/Fontana Distribution. Her first single from Love Enough, "Alive In You," helped Laura make a huge breakthrough on Christian radio climbing into the Top 20 on the Billboard Soft AC/Inspirational chart.

 

Laura's most recent single is the wonderful song of praise, "Yours Forever," which is an up-tempo worship song that belongs in any modern worship band's repertoire, as it is catchy, imminently singable and properly focused. "Yours Forever" is full of energy, praise and purpose. I had the privilege to interview Laura about the song.

 

 

We wrote this song as a corporate worship song to sing at the LifeThirst Conferences I conduct across the country. We wanted a celebratory song with vertical lyrics that proclaims our identity in Christ. I've been talking a lot about finding our identity in Christ, especially in my ministry with teenage girls. That was the theme that started the song--that we are His forever, and to celebrate the fact that Jesus is where we find our identity and our worth. 

 

"Yours Forever" is a modern rendition of Psalm 100. It's a call to worship--a reminder that we are His people, "the sheep of His pasture," forever. And it reminds us that the only reason we can enter into His presence is because of what Jesus did for us on the cross--"while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." He paved the way, and ultimately our response has to be one of complete surrender, embracing the new identity that He has given us in Christ as His people, forever!

 

 

Psalm 100: "Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is He who made us, and we are His we are His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the LORD is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations."

 

 

Everyone seems to love singing this song. It is biblical Truth being proclaimed in a song. I love the second verse, because our response to what He's done for us is a joyful declaration of gladness and overwhelming gratitude. 

 

We sing "we are Yours forever" because of what has been done for us on the Cross. One of the number one issues facing young girls are images from pop culture of what they should look like and act like, and they lose their focus on their identity in Christ out of a desire to be accepted by the world, to feel like they have a place. Your whole perspective changes when you realize that as a Christian, your identity is secure. You are beautiful in Christ, and you have purpose. 

 

That message is life-transforming, and the love of God is overwhelming and life-changing when you really embrace it. There's no need to feel fear or insecurity. Those are attacks from the enemy. There's empowerment in knowing you are Christ's. That's the main focus of the girls' conferences. I know exactly what it feels like to want to feel validated by the world. Christian music is what I wanted to do as my career after I experienced the power of worship. I was always a singer and wrote songs and performed on stage in musicals, but it wasn't until my senior year of high achool when I experienced the power of worshipping God in music that I realized that's what I wanted to communicate in my songs.

 

 

Asbury's Bible commentary: "Judging from these hymns, no other feature of Israel's faith was more foundational than its trust in Yahweh God as Creator of all that is. Understanding of Yahweh's very deity builds from here: Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us. Thus a startling range of claims about God cluster around faith in Yahweh as Creator, either directly linked as faith correlates or closely associated by context. Strike this plank from Israel's faith, and biblical faith exists no more."

 

If you like Francesca Battistelli, Britt Nicole and mainstream pop music, then you'll love Laura Kaczor. She has delivered the ideal album to minister to anyone struggling with identity issues. I've been married for almost 18 years and have three young daughters, and her 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."

 

Laura's enthusiastic and reverent style of writing and singing praise and worship songs is a draw for me. Her prayerful sentiments are consistently filled with her personal adoration of God. "Yours Forever"  is no exception. 

 

What I really love about this song is how it is a call to sing out  "All of who we are we bring You, All of who we are, For we are Yours forever, All of who we are we bring You, All of who we are, forever more." 

 

God is worthy of proclamations of joy! It is a sweet sound for God to hear us proclaim that we are "Yours Forever." We should not be ashamed to sing of our dependence on God and show Him reverence. This is a great new worship song for the Church, and I love how the song proclaims the biblical Truth of Psalm 100:3: "Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us." Amen!

 

(Check out the video for the song here.)