Matthew West – It’s Now, Or Never

CCM: Last time we talked was about the book, and we asked you about writing for CCM Magazine back in the day, and to that you said, “I was amazed at how many parallel paths there were between the journey of a songwriter and the person trying to write the song of their life.” With this particular album release at this time of your life, where do you see God leading you in these moments?
MW: That’s a big question. I think I’m sort of feeling that this may be why I called the record All In? I feel like there’s this sense of my life, which feels like “now, or never.” Like, I have this heightened awareness to a window that exists where I’ve got an eleven-year old daughter who’s not yet in high school but will be soon. This is your window where you’ve been married for fourteen years. God’s blessed you with your best friend, but have you treated her like your best friend? Have you put her needs before your own?

This is my window to make sure and to decide, “Is my marriage going to be good, or is my marriage going to be unbelievable for the long haul? Is my relationship with my kids going to be average, or is it going to be a special bond that lasts for a lifetime? Is the music that I make going to be run-of-the-mill rah-rah that gets the Christians encouraged, but never really moves the needle in terms of real cultural impact—or is it going to be different, and is it going to be motivating and inspiring the people?”

I guess I’m at a point where I’m thinking a lot about legacy. What’s my legacy going to be as a father, as a husband, as a human being, as a follower of Christ? I guess I’m just realizing that while music is an important part of my life and a gift that God has given me, there’s so much more to my legacy than that.

There’s a lyric on the record, it’s a song called “The Beautiful Things We Miss,” and it probably most accurately sums up my heart right now and around this entire album. It just says, “I don’t want to miss it. I don’t want to look back some day and find everything that really mattered was right in front of me this whole time. Open up my eyes Lord. Keep me in the moment just like this before the beautiful things we love become the beautiful things we miss.”

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