They were
three friends who lived in the Nashville area, and each brought a passion for
worship to inject into something they would write in 1998. “Lord for Your Glory”
was how they felt and expressed themselves when they talked to God, though each
was trying to use different gifts to relate to Him. There must have been particular
circumstances that brought David Hampton, Matt Huesmann, and Grant Cunningham
to that occasion, but one overriding motivation was perhaps the operative factor:
they all loved God and the music medium He created to say what was inside of
them, to offer Him the best they had to give. That part came through clearly in
their poetry. (Update: On 1/31/2023, David Hampton gave this blogger some meaningful
words that I share below, in italics. Thanks David Hampton!)
Here's what David Hampton has to say, in his own words about the song: I was serving as Dir. of Worship Arts Ministries at Christ Community Church in Franklin, TN at the time. We were working on putting out another of our Re:Awakening CDs for Christ Community worship songs and my friends and producers of the project, Matt Huesmann and Grant Cunningham invited me to come in for a writing session with them one evening…. We got together at Matt’s studio in his home in Franklin and Grant shared with us an idea he had for a lyric… Eventually, we landed on the verse and eventually the chorus that Grant always said he wanted to “soar” melodically and musically….. The thing that makes this song so deeply special is that not long after this was written, and before our CD was completed and released we lost Grant in a soccer playing accident….. I began to think of all the ways Grant had encouraged me and impacted me and this song came to my mind. I realized that the words were eerily the way Grant lived his life as I went over them in my mind. He truly believed that the work he did in the Christian Music industry was to see God glorified, made accessible, and made real to the listener. This song is Grant’s heart. I well up inside every time I hear it sung because I remember Grant and all he meant to so many of us. And I feel so privileged to have been able to have a peek into that place he went when he was creating.
Do you imagine that David and Matt, and those of us who appreciate music-writing and the power of the Spirit in those special musical creation moments, will ever think the same about ‘Lord for Your Glory’ now? Could any of these three friends have suspected what would transpire shortly after they finished crafting the song’s words? It is a little eerie, and frankly a little scary, isn’t it? All three of them brought lots to the table, and you can see some of these details in the links at the end of this blog entry. They’re all three pretty special guys; especially for Matt and David, they remember Grant fondly, and look forward to the heavenly reunion.
When they were in that creative moment, and perhaps not even fully appreciative that they were touching something of heaven in their music, David, Matt, and Grant did not need to embellish what they wanted to say in “Lord for Your Glory”; they just felt a need to act upon their feelings for God, apparently. Their expressions were in many verb-forms throughout the song’s lyrics -- ‘praise’, ‘honor’, ‘magnify’, ‘lift (hands)’, ‘give (hearts)’, ‘bring (blessing)’, ‘worship’, ‘offer’, ‘lay down’. Perhaps they just felt it was easier to say how they wanted to respond to God, versus trying to enumerate all the various ways He’d blessed each of them. Is it really much different for any of us? He certainly wants me to be aware of the blessings – a biblical concept, after all -- and to say ‘thanks’ (Ephesians 1:3). It’s just hard to pin down each one, and to find an end to such a list. They are worth appreciating anew each day (Lamentations 3:23), because as Grant could probably tell all of us today, you just never know how and when that transition to the eternal new day will begin. On that day, we’ll have so much more time to do all that Grant’s, David’s, and Matt’s words have us do here in this brief moment on earth.
The words David B. Hampton shared with this blogger were via an email received on 1/31/2023. Thanks David!
See here for some brief information about one of the songwriters: https://www.24symbols.com/author/david-b-hampton?id=1062183#
See one songwriter’s official website here: https://www.davidhamptoncprc.com/
See here for songs by primary songwriter: https://songselect.ccli.com/Search/Results?List=contributor_P403662_David%20Hampton&PageSize=100&CurrentPage=1
See here for information on one of the co-authors: Matt Huesmann | Directory | Lipscomb University
See here for obituary of one of the co-authors: Grant Cunningham Obituary (2002) - Oklahoma City, OK - Oklahoman (legacy.com)
