All The Glory

Building 429's “All The Glory” is a rock song about God using weak people for his purposes. It starts by saying God turns the world upside down and inside out, takes the least and makes them first, and pours himself out on those who thirst.

The singer says God uses him because he is weak, and that is where he finds he is lifted up only so that God can be lifted high. The chorus makes the point directly: it never was about me, you get all the glory. If he stands, it is only because he is in God's hands. The next lines call God the author of it all and say the singer lives to make him known. If he is last or low, God will make something beautiful out of it. The bridge sets God's way higher and his will above the singer's own, and says that his glory is greater and his story will be told. The theme runs against the usual wish to be recognized, and the hook lets a congregation give up that wish in song. Building 429 writes in a driving style with guitars out front, and the lyrics are easy to follow. The song would fit a time of commitment at a conference or retreat, and a team about to go on a service trip could use it for focus.

God sharing his glory with no one is Isaiah 42:8. Power made perfect in weakness is 2 Corinthians 12:9, and the last being first is Matthew 20:16.