Michael Knowles (2:15)

I'm desperate, which I like.

Song Narrator (2:19)

So go ahead and come on in so go ahead in Come on in so go ahead and come on in.

Song Vocalist (2:36)

OCD is worse than ever. Hands are bleeding. Maybe I should take the pillstone Know what's going on with me? Some days I actually think I might be scared so frantic poly now but even writing this is making me begin to spiral. Oh God. Made a promise to myself I wouldn't let the fear back in but then I told the world that I was sick of running Then went back to running what a joke. Disappointed. Yeah, me too. I thought I finally had finally made a breakthrough.

Song Narrator (3:02)

Guess not.

Song Vocalist 2 (3:06)

It's the same song.

Song Narrator (3:07)

In dance you have seen me before.

Song Vocalist 2 (3:10)

Darkness holds out his hand Then we.

Song Narrator (3:12)

Walk to the floor Every decision made isn't mine anymore Like a puppy with.

Song Vocalist 2 (3:19)

Strings I just don't have a choice what's the truth? What's a lie? Help me, God Help me, Lord Face your fears Dry your eyes Grandma died, what's the point? Lost the keys Lost my hope Lost my will Lost my joy Lost a friend Lost my hope Lost my faith Lost my voice.

Song Narrator (3:53)

Ding back Watching my man shine Burnt to ash While I hold the gas can Asking God if he started this far.

Michael Knowles (4:19)

Put a pause here. Very interesting line. So he opens up, you know, it's kind of happy, little folksy song. Hello, darkness, my old friend Line from Simon and Garfunkel, but done in a. I don't know, like a folky Mumford and Sonsy kind of way. He says, you know, usually I lock the doors to keep the darkness out, but today I'm gonna let it in and I'm gonna look at it right in the face. And he's tempted to go back to his drugs and his pills and, you know, he thought he finally had made a breakthrough. But it's there, you know, Sin is still there, crouching in the corner, waiting to devour him. And then he's in a church and he's washing his hands in water. It's a symbol of baptism. But you're getting another image, too, which is gasoline. So is it the water that will save him, or is it the gasoline that's going to burn everything down? He's standing back, watching his mansion burn to ash while I hold the gas can, asking God if he started this fire. Which at first glance seems ridiculous. It seems as if he's pointing out, no, no, my problems are my own fault. I'm doing this. I'm the one holding the gas can, I'm burning the mansion down, and I'm blaming God. Isn't that so ridiculous? I need to take responsibility for my own actions. But it does raise a question about causality. The reality of the concepts of your question are just as questionable as what you're questioning. Well, God made me, and God made the world, and so why do you make me like this? Why do you make me like this? Why do you make the world like this? Why do you make a world in which Adam and Eve had the free will to abuse their freedom and to kick us out of the garden and to leave me right here. Now, should I blame God? And the answer is no. But that's when you let the darkness in a little bit and you really face that question. It's a little more complicated. There's a couple of Mysteries in that question. Who's to blame here? What's the relationship between Will and Grace? Not the 90s sitcom, but what's that relationship? How much freedom do I really have? Go to preborn.com knowles A recent Danish study found something deeply concerning. Just one year after an abortion, women were 50% more likely to need psychiatric treatment and 87% more likely to experience personality or behavioral disorders. These are not just statistics. They represent real women facing real struggles. That is why preborn takes a different approach. When a woman walks through their doors uncertain and afraid, she finds something she may not have expected. Support through an ultrasound. She meets her baby for the first time. And suddenly what felt like an impossible situation begins to look different. But preborn doesn't stop there. When a woman chooses life, they walk alongside her for up to two years, providing practical help like maternity clothes, diapers, ongoing counseling and emotional support. It is care for the whole person, addressing her physical needs, her mental health and her future. As you think about your year end giving, consider the greatest investment you could ever make. The gift of life. £250. Say keyword baby b a b y that is £250 keyword baby or visit preborn.comknowles all gifts are tax deductible. Preborn is a five star rated charity. I personally donate to preborn and I recommend you do as well. It's a great charity. Preborn.comKnowles Canada wles to make a difference for generations to come.

Song Narrator (7:26)

Is this what you want now?

Michael Knowles (7:29)

Is this what you wanted? Is this what you intended?

Song Narrator (7:34)

Make all my hopes and my dreams come to life just to play them.

Song Vocalist 2 (7:39)

To press Is this what you wanted? Is this what you wanted?

Song Narrator (7:50)

Give me a false sense of peace Just to show me what peace really.

Song Vocalist 2 (7:54)

Is Is this what you want now?

Song Narrator (7:59)

On the verge on the edge Is.

Song Vocalist 2 (8:01)

This what you want now? Petrified, scared to death Is this what want now? Praying to God Desperate Is this what you want now? What you wanted? Is this what you wanted? Hanging on by a throne Is this what you wanted? Empty heart, nothing left Is this what you wanted? Breaking down sparkling Is this what you wanted? What you wanted? Is this what you wanted? Who Is this what you wanted? What you wanted? Is this what you wanted?

The Replacer (9:17)

What is this?

Michael Knowles (9:18)

Wow. Yeah. It was really quite good for a pop song. It's quite good. You even get that image at the end. You know, the image at the beginning is, am I gonna start popping my pills again? And then you go on this whole journey and he's in the church and he's trying to wash his hands in the water. But then there's the. The flip image of the gasoline. And he burns it all down, and he himself catches on fire. And then he ends up stumbling and crashes onto the rug. And you think, oh, he just did a bunch of drugs. It's all been a kind of a weird trip. And the final question that we have pertains to God's active will and his passive will. Because God creates everything. He sustains everything in a certain sense. You know, he wills the bad things to happen, but he doesn't actively will the bad things to happen because he gives us free will. And so we play a role in creation. And he passively wills for that to be the case, but he actively wills our good, so he doesn't create evil. Evil's a privation of the good. And it's very good, this song. I don't listen to a lot of pop music, but this song is without question a kind of work of Christian art. And it's much, much better than, like, any modern Christian music. It's quite good, actually. Yeah. Good job. Good job. Okay. I'm Michael Noll. See you.