A Believer Such As I (Lyrics)

A song about suicide that took a Christian turn in the first few lines (which is weird because I'm agnostic, I suppose).

(sung by a full choir, harmony most pronounced on last syllables of each line

slow and somber, but hopeful)

 

(acapella)

(verse 1)

Put my affairs in order, and give away my things

For tonight I go to heaven, where we'll all live like kings

God said He'd protect me, but I guess He's busy too

So I've lived and I'll die for the two of us, wouldn't you?

 

I've been shackled to this cold life, when I know one lives beyond

I never thought I would be happy, unless I was dead and gone

So I've gone to meet my maker, and I'm fine, so don't you cry

There's no hell for a believer such as I!

 

(music starts, and a woman soloist takes over, the choir providing backup)

(chorus)

I've been lost, and I have sinned, but what is there to gain,

From staying far from my Lord, from fighting all this pain?

I have gone to bask in glory, in that kingdom in the sky

There's no hell for a believer such as I!

 

(verse 2, soloist at the forefront, with the choir occasionally coming in)

Divvy up my old possesions, my money is all yours (all yours)

For I've gone to an oasis that's not bound by walls or floors (no no)

I've started on a journey, and to do that I must die(note carried by chorus),

So don't grieve for me, and never say goodbye...(music crescendos)

 

(chorus again)

I've been lost, and I have sinned, but what is there to gain,

From staying far from my Lord, from fighting all this pain?

I have gone to bask in glory, in that kingdom in the sky

There's no hell for a believer such as I!

 

(verse 3, choir alone)

You might not understand conviction, but I'll tell you from the start

That my God's telling me to go to him, I know it in my heart

So tonight when I meet Jesus, I'll wear a smile and my Sunday best

And know that I must be truly blessed...

 

(sudden explosion of sound, as the soloist takes the stage)

I've been lost, and I have sinned, but what is there to gain (to gain?)

From staying far from my Lord, from fighting all this pain? (no more pain!)

I have gone to bask in glory, in that kingdom in the sky(choir holds the note)

There's no hell (pauses at each syllable) for-a-be-lie-ver (pauses completely) such as I!

(the sound takes flight and fills every crevice around it, as the singer holds the high note for an impossibly long time before cutting with the rest of the choir)

 

(quietly)

There's no hell for a believer such as...I...

(fades away)

Author's Note

I'd do anything to be this sure that everything would be okay.

Reviews

[Lyzzy Redd]

I have to admit that though I'm atheist, the lyrics are really nice to this tune and fit together well. It has a nice meaning.