Above All Else -- Kirk and Deby Dearman

Kirk and Deby Dearman were missionaries in Brussels, Belgium in 1988, during the time that “Above All Else” was written and published. So, they were seeing the world, perhaps as they’d never seen it before. Placing oneself and family in a vocation with a mission for the Lord…can you imagine another profession with more commitment to the cause of Christ? There’s lots of imagery in the song that conjure up mental pictures of warfare, suggesting it was a difficult period for them, whether physical or otherwise. Here’s what they say was going on, writing in their own words (although in the third person), which they shared with me on March 6, 2010.  

Above All Else came spontaneously - at least the first part! - while Kirk & Deby were living as "musicianairies" in Europe. The dollar had dropped suddenly and they had just lost their main source of support in the same month. So they had to move out of their apartment, stay with friends, and store belongings in the friend's garage. Not long after, the garage flooded in a heavy rainstorm and most of their belongings were damaged. Among those belongings was their electric piano. Then the call came to write for a worship project. The only piano they could get to was an old clunky, out of tune relic. Kirk sat down and began to pray for God's heart in the midst of their own turmoil. Deby started praying and then singing, "You are exalted, Lord, above all else. We place You at the highest place, above all else." Kirk said, "Wait! Sing that again!" She did . . . and the rest of the song was quickly written on the spot. Kirk and Deby then began singing the song in outdoor concerts- most notably in the downtown city square of Brussels, Belgium, the capital of Europe, where they lived, as a declaration of God's sovereign lordship over every city and nation, and over their own lives and circumstances.

I have been a foreign missionary just once, for a week. It was exhausting, at least partially from the lack of sleep I got that week. But, it was also a little scary to know I was seen everywhere I went, because of the reputation of the on-site missionaries, as a visiting ‘ambassador for Christ’. A misstep wasn’t really allowed, at least in my mind. To exalt the Lord ‘above all else’, and ‘so the world will know’ who God is – that’s a pretty BIG responsibility. Can I say that every day where I live? Everywhere I stand, and everywhere I go, as the song has me vocalize? Some might say Europe has become darkened and cold to Christendom in the modern age, in contrast to earlier times. Genuine armor is something I’d be looking for, but the Dearmans’ words indicate they held out the Lord as their standard for protection. God comes through for us, the Dearmans’ song reminds me. Nothing can withstand His light and the saving blood of Jesus. In most battles I can think of (the movie ‘Patton’ is on the tube as I write this), more blood is spilled by the losers (like the soldier in the picture), while the victors try to minimize this. Jesus did the opposite. Jesus’ mighty warrior status prevails precisely because He bleeds for me. Now, how can I fail to place Him, the eternal soldier, above all else ?

Biographic information on Kirk and Deby Dearman and their music ministry can be found at the following site: http://www.cometothequiet.com/aboutkirk.cfm