The Father's House

Cory Asbury's “The Father's House” is an invitation to people who think they have failed. The first verse admits that on the road “I get lost in my mistakes,” and says what looks like weakness “is a canvas for His strength.” The singer insists, “My story isn't over, my story's just begun, and failure won't define me, 'cause that's what my Father does.”

The chorus calls the listener inside: “Lay your burdens down, here in the Father's house. Check your shame at the door, 'cause it ain't welcome anymore.” The second verse says arrival is not the goal: “You never wanted perfect, you just wanted my heart,” and “failure's never final when the Father's in the room.” The bridge lists what happens there: “Prodigals come home, the helpless find hope, prison doors fling wide, the dead come to life.” The cynical find faith, and “the Jericho walls are quaking” as love breaks through.

The returning prodigal is Luke 15:20, with the father running to meet him. The Jericho walls are Joshua 6:20, and laying burdens down echoes Matthew 11:28.