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I went to hear my brother Stephen Gates play some tunes last Friday evening at a restaurant, and one of the songs he played that caught my ear was a cover of "Before and After" by Jimmy Needham. I had never heard of Needham before, but the song was a real blessing. Here it is:
The story behind the song is given by Needham on his website:
The big, dark secret of my past was my addiction to pornography. Since the age of nine, I had been an addict. I didn't become a Christian until my sophomore year of high school, but the battle with porn didn't conclude there. In fact that is where it started. I hated it, yet I kept returning to it. It was such a time of frustration, shame and disappointment in myself. One night after stumbling yet again, I fell to my knees in my room calling out to God, trying to tell him how sorry I was, and that I knew I had let him down. In that moment I had a vision. I saw the LORD kneeling beside me. Slowly He slipped His hand onto my back. He didn't say a word, but He was there, and I knew that He was loving me through my struggle. That moment gave me a new sense of hope and eventually led me to be completely free from pornography later in college.Praise the Lord that He is able to deliver! I ended up downloading Needham's entire album today, and would commend it to you. The music is fresh, and the lyrics full of truth. And what's more, you can currently download the entire album from Amazon for $1.99! That, my friends, is tough to beat.
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