"They're just a one-hit wonder."
In the music world, a "one-hit wonder" describes an artist who achieves mainstream success with just one popular song before fading into obscurity. Music historians point to songs like Lillian Briggs's "I Want You To Be My Baby" in 1955 or The Champs' "Tequila" in 1958 as early examples of this phenomenon that has defined pop music for decades.
However, in the world of contemporary Christian music, few artists demonstrate the opposite of this phenomenon better than Chris Tomlin. Tomlin's songs have been sung by hundreds of millions of people around the world for over 25 years, including "How Great is Our God," "Our God," "Good Good Father," and "Holy Forever."
In an interview with Spirit 105.3 FM in the Pacific Northwest, Tomlin made an interesting observation to the host.
"So much of my music is filled with God's word. I can tell you - I can go song by song of any song that's had any kind of lasting impact through the years of mine. I can tell you where the Scripture is in that and where it came out of that." - Chris Tomlin
Tomlin's new song, "How Good It Is," continues in that tradition, bringing together a variety of references from the book of Psalms. The song invites listeners to remember how good it is to worship God - to direct our attention away from the worries of our day and towards praising God's name and character. In a world where so many bands are one-hit wonders and the temptation exists to write songs oriented towards ourselves, a relentless focus on God's goodness and glory can bring a staying power that avoids a flash followed by a fizzle.
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Later in the same interview with Erica from Spirit 105.3, Tomlin pulls the curtain back on "How Good It Is" and the specific passages that inspired the lyrics to the song. " It's what the psalms do so well. They're our reference - our calls to worship…Psalm 92. What I love is that it says how good it is to sing praise to the Most High. Think of his faithfulness in the morning, his love in the morning, and his faithfulness in the evening, Psalm 113 - from the rising of the sun to the setting of the same, the name of the Lord will be praised. Psalm 100 - enter his gates with Thanksgiving, enter His courts with praise. We pray all those songs…That's what this song is. It's a song of celebration, a song of declaration of praise."
After listening to Tomlin share about those songs, I wanted to go find the specific references. Psalm 92:1-2 states, "It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to the Most High. It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your faithfulness in the evening." Psalm 100:4 calls us to, "Enter his gates with thanksgiving, go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name." Psalm 113:3 reminds the whole world of this call to praise., "Everywhere—from east to west— praise the name of the Lord."
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This biblical foundation for worship that Tomlin draws from speaks to something deep within us. The experience of gathering with other Jesus-followers to praise and worship God has a physical effect on us. When we raise our voices together, we feel different afterwards. Perhaps this is why videos of 50,000 college students worshiping at a Passion Conference go viral. Maybe that's why moments of voices-only singing a hymn within a worship concert or Sunday morning service at our local church can move us so profoundly.
In the chorus of "How Good It Is," Tomlin sings about the goodness of our worship and the greatness of our God.
"Oh, how good that it is to sing praise to the Lord
Oh, how great is the name above all names
From the rising of the morning sun
To the setting of the same"
It can be incredibly tempting to say something new and lose sight of saying something true. Songwriters like Tomlin, who seek to put the words of Scripture to song and declare those words back to God, can chart a career that spans four different decades. Worshipers struggling to find language to describe their praises and pain to God can find those words in the pages of Scripture. As someone who was first led in worship by Chris Tomlin in 1997 as a teenager, I'm so grateful for his faithfulness and consistency in writing God-oriented songs, as well as the continued joy that is present in his music.
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If you haven't heard "How Good It Is," then you need to check out this new song from Chris Tomlin. If it has been a long time since you were present and engaged in worshiping God, this song is full of important reminders of why this practice is essential for us as new creations in Christ. In a world full of so much that is bad, it's good to pause and take time to worship God!
Scott Savage is a pastor, author, and speaker with the best last name in the world. Scott’s writing helps people transform difficult circumstances into places where they can thrive. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona, and loves watching movies with his wife and three kids. You can begin Scott’s life-changing project, The 21 Day Gratitude Challenge, today.
