After playing nearly 150 shows per year for the past several years, Children 18:3 is showing no signs of slowing down whatsoever. They continued to hit the road in support of 2010's Rain's A Comin' playing not only in the United States but across Europe as well. In the midst of this busyness and traveling, they managed to write their third full-length record On The Run.

Children 18:3 are a Christian punk band from Morris, Minnesota. The band is composed of home-schooled siblings David, Lee Marie, and Seth. The lead vocals are shared between David and Lee Marie with their brother Seth on the drums. Aptly named, On The Run is the perfect display of Children's determination and joy that they show in their career. The two brothers and sister have managed to create a fresh sound with this record, complete with punk hooks and soaring melodies.

The idea of changing for the better and transitioning towards the next level plays into the On the Run album title, though Children 18:3 has never specifically defined an album title or song, leaving fans open to their own interpretation. Nonetheless, the band does notice a general thread of encouragement running throughout the disc, especially on tracks like the lead single "Moment To Moment" and "Why Are You Afraid of the Dark?"

"Being Christians is really our identity and it's who we are," asserts Seth. "Bottom line, that's what's important and we want to do the best we can with the platform we've been given to inspire people and bring them to the Lord. At the same time though, there are different levels to our lyrics, and while some songs are about faith, there are also songs about how we struggle just like anyone else, what's going on in our lives, and stories that don't have anything specific to do with the Lord at all. The whole point is to take from it what you can, like when we've had people say a song helped them through a difficult season even though it may have been inspired by something completely different for us."

I had the great opportunity to interview Lee Marie Hostetter in-person at Creation Northeast about their current single "Moment To Moment." (You can read my review of the Creation NE festival including Children 18:3's set here.)

Please tell me the message behind the song "Moment To Moment."

I was just reading in 1st Corinthians earlier today and Paul talks about eating food sacrificed to idols and other topics. His conclusion was, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." Everything you do from the moment you wake up every morning. The theme of this song, and a lot of the songs we write as a band, is to not waste your time. We write about how valuable your time is, and how much we don't realize that we are wasting our time every day. Even sleeping, you need to commit that time to the Lord. Half our time is spent sleeping. Maybe for us as a band, that's about a fourth of our time that we spend sleeping.

Did you base the song on any Bible verses? Any life verse?

1 Corinthians 10:31: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."

… and Matthew 25:23: "His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'"

The band name is based on Matthew 18:3: "And He said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'"

What's the take-away message for listeners?

To me, I think about the positive message of this song. I don't like to focus on negative messages, because I think if you speak negatively towards someone, they won't be as stoked to listen to what you have to say. If you speak positively to someone, they will be encouraged and go for it. I like to get to know someone and speak about how faith shapes their identity. For this song, rather than talk about the time we waste, I want people to think about every effort they make--whether it is just a thought, or you tried to be nice to someone, or you bit your tongue instead of saying something mean to someone. Stuff like that counts, and the Bible tells us that we will be rewarded in Heaven. Jesus sees our struggles and He knows how hard it is, and I think we will be surprised at how faithful Jesus has been to count even our slight attitude changes. He calls us to be humble. You might think God will only tell giants of the faith, "well done, good and faithful servant." The Word says that our daily choices matter so much and God is with us.

Lyrics:
I know a story,
and if you lend me an ear and a halfway open-mind,
you may discover
something about yourself.

I see you're distracted,
you said the carnival-master had put him down to the broom
I should have been pushing
and he gently took me aside.
And said;

"Every task before you
is a challenge to succeed."
Oh, moment to moment,
like every breath is a step to forever.
Oh, moment to moment boy,
and you don't give, give up, you don't give it up.

I remember it passing,
but the fool that I was couldn't see for the next ten years.
Until I discovered
like waking up from a dream.

Instead of a master
o'er the flying trapeze I was down here pushing a broom.
And watching the actor's
And I heard again his words.
Saying;

"Every choice before you
was a challenge to succeed."
Oh, moment to moment,
and every breath is a step to forever.
Oh, moment to moment boy,
and you don't give, give up, you don't give it up.
You won't give up, give up, give up, give it up.

Da-da-da-da-da-da;
And it's too late, Is it too late to remedy?
Da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da;
Will you teach me, will you teach me?

"Every choice before you
was a challenge to succeed."
Oh, ohhh, oh, moment to moment,
and every breath is a step to forever.
Oh, moment to moment boy,
and you don't give, give up, you don't give it up.
You won't give up, give up, give up, give it up."
Oh, moment to moment,
and every breath is a step to forever.
Oh, moment to moment boy,
and you don't give, give up, you don't give it up.
You won't give up, give up, give up, give it up,
you don't give, give up, you don't give it up.

On The Run by Children 18:3 is without a doubt the top punk rock album of the year. I can't get enough of this album, which is one of the catchiest and most hope-filled emotional rock albums I've ever heard. If you haven't jumped on Children's bandwagon, don't wait any longer. This album will stay in heavy rotation for me all year. Similar to House of Heroes, this album is loaded with incredibly tight guitar riffs and amazing harmonies. This album is by far the catchiest, most energetic and emotionally engaging alternative rock album this year.

I've very quickly added this incredible, practically perfect, and completely infectious release to my most played and admired albums of the year. From the opening hooky notes and punk rock tempo of the first track and lead single "Moment to Moment," I knew I was in for a treat. The mix of tempos is pure perfection, and the drum, guitar, and bass syncopation is a thing of beauty. The best aspect of this album is the blend of David's and Lee Marie's harmonies layered over one catchy song after another. There are several songs that I can't stop playing or get out of my head.

I love the pre-chorus: "every choice before you was a challenge to succeed" from "Moment to Moment," which challenges me to think about the daily choices I make, such as in Proverbs 12:9: "Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment." Many people rationalize sinful behavior by thinking little white lies don't matter, but biblically, and in the song, I think about how God is with His children all the time. That's a great challenge when you listen to this song. Stop to think about your daily choices and how to best walk with God "moment to moment." The song is filled with the biblical truth of 1 Corinthians 10:31: "whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." Amen to that!

(Watch the music video here.)