First Man Standing, a song

When writing a song, sometimes the whole thing comes to you in a single flash, and it's simply a matter of getting it down clearly. Other times the song sort of reveals itself to you as you're writing it and you have no idea where it's going to end up when you're done. This song was more of the later. When I started it, I had it in mind to write a sort of Chrsitian version of that classic Meatloaf song "Bat out of Hell." Musically, I mean, not thematically. I've always loved the breakneck piano riff that opens the tune, and the chaotic structure of the song, shifting between verses and bridges and choruses and solos with narry a nod to the traditional pop-song format. It didn't take long to realize how far beyond me it was to write something that came anywhere near to approximating Jim Steinman's genius, but I kept at it until I had a piano riff that captured as best I could the uncontainable energy and wreckless abandon I feel when I listen to that 70s rock masterpiece.

After I had the music, I was scrolling through an old file on my phone where I'd written down some bits and pieces of ideas for song lyrics, and I came across the phrase "First Man Standing," a little play on the expression "Last Man Standing," that I'd jotted down in 2018. It brought to mind for me the line in Philippians 2:10-11, how every knee will bow when Christ returns. This image of Christ, the only one standing amid a countless throng of kneeling worshippers, stuck in my mind, and after a dozen or so discarded drafts, I'd penned some words that I thought had enough energy to keep up with the music.

Here's the song I eventually arrived at, after that long and winding creative journey:



After the stars fall and after the earth quakes
And after the powers of heaven are shaken
And after our sorrows are beaten to plowshares
At the final tomorrow, You will be standing there

With the firm foundation
Of new creation beneath your feet

You’ll be the first man standing
At the last sunrise
When the angels bow before you
And your glory fills the skies
After every knee is bended
And the heavens all declare
That you alone are worthy
You are worthy of standing there
On that dawning day
You’ll be the only one standing there
We fall on our knees
And you’re the only one standing, there

After the darkness is bleeding with daybreak
And after your mercy has healed every heartache
And after your passion has dried every tear
When the last word is spoken, You’ll still be standing there

With a firm foundation
Of new creation beneath your feet

You’ll be the first man standing
At the last sunrise
When the angels bow before you
And your glory fills the skies
After every knee is bended
And the heavens all declare
That you alone are worthy
You are worthy of standing
Worthy of standing
Worthy of standing there

Holy, holy, holy all creation sings your praise
Just one glimpse of your glory and we’re falling on our knees
Holy, holy, holy, all creation sings your praise
Just one glimpse of your glory and we’re falling, falling

You’ll be the first man standing
At the last sunrise
When the angels bow before you
And your glory fills the skies
After every knee is bended
And the heavens all declare
That you alone are worthy
You are worthy of standing there
On that dawning day
You’ll be the only one standing there
We fall on our knees
And you’re the only one standing, there