The year is 2011 and Alisa is back with a new group, GIRARD, comprised of herself, her sisters Kristin and Nikki, and her nieces Lauren and Kailyn. They are all beautiful, modelesque women, as can be seen by looking at the photos included with this project on which Kristin and Alisa write the majority of the songs.
'All for You' is upbeat and would fit nicely on a ZOE GIRL project. It is a song of total surrender to God: "I will cast down my crowns/Take my life and lay it down/My heart says this is all for You/Take my hopes and my dreams/All for You I live and breathe/My heart says this is all for You." 'His Eye is on the Sparrow' was originally written in 1905 by lyricist Civilla D. Martin and composer Charles H. Gabriel. Here it is known simply as 'Eye is on the Sparrow'. Some of the original melody is kept, and it extols God as Protector: "I know who is in control/A refuge greater than my foes/Nothing's stronger than this hope/That Jesus is my portion/A constant friend is He/His eye is on the sparrow/And I know He watches me/I have a Savior who will never let me down." 'I Need You' sounds happy and speaks of wanting to share the Gospel message: "I want to tell all the world of Your goodness/'Cause You saved me from my sin/I need You, I want You/Lord, light Your holy fire in me/To burn for all to see/I love You, I praise You/And 'cause Your light has shined on me/Your love is all I need." 'Nearer, My God, to Thee' is a nineteenth century hymn oft credited to Sarah F. Adams and Lowell Mason, and based loosely on Jacob's dream in Genesis 28:11-19. Here the song is called simply 'Nearer my God'. It showcases nice harmonies and has the ladies longing for a closeness with the Lord: "So draw me nearer Lord to You/I want to know Your ways in everything I do/I surrender all my ways/To live for You for all my days/So draw me nearer Lord to You/Nearer, nearer, nearer/We draw nearer/Nearer, nearer, nearer/We draw nearer to You."
'Jesus is the Way' is a great ballad that builds. It starts with these very down to earth lyrics: "Maybe you've got a sickness/Maybe you need a friend/Maybe you've lost somebody/You thought would be there to the end/Maybe you've been abandoned/Maybe you've been abused/Maybe you gave your heart to somebody/Who gave it right back to you." The song points to this hope: "I know it sounds so simple, maybe that's because it is/Jesus came to save you/Won't you give your heart to Him? (2x)" 'I Love You' features a strong vocal delivery and is a song of thankfulness: "In this great romance, You gave a second chance/You have made a way for me to be with You/In spite of my mistakes, You bled to hear me say/I love You, I love You/Because You loved me first." 'God who Saves' is pleasant sounding and reminds me of ZOE GIRL. It praises God for His goodness: "Name above names/You calm the wind and waves/You are the God who saves/The road was closed and broken/Your love has made it open/You took the night and turned it into day/My heart was scarred and wounded/You healed and saw right through it/You are the God who saves." 'New Song' is an anthem that sounds anointed. It acknowledges that there is a spiritual war in the heavenlies between good and evil and has the family siding decidedly with the former: "We will cast down our idols and we put down our pride/Nothing will stand in our way/We will break through the darkness with a sword in our hand/By Your Spirit we will take back this land/Oh praise Him (4X)/We lift our voices, we sing praise to You/We are singing a new song, we sing praise to You."
'Alleluia' is a simple song good to listen to in your devotional time: "Alleluia (3X)/Praise His Name." 'Rescue Me' is about being abused and finding healing in Jesus, and is appropriately mellow: "Haunted memories of an innocent child/How could this have happened to me?/Scared and lonely, there was no one around/Yet I knew that Your eyes were on me" and "I'm so tired of living a life that I can't leave behind/I'm so scared, I can't fix it myself, Jesus I need Your help/So I lay it down at Your feet/There You hold me as an innocent child/And You dry every tear from my eye/And I'm washed in the flood of Your life giving blood/Your love has paid my price." 'Only One' shares a desire for oneness with God: "We bow before Your presence, Lord we pray/You alone are holy/Create in us a hunger for Your ways/As our hearts cry out to You/We surrender to You our will in all that we do/There is no other way." Chuck Girard's 1975 classic 'Sometimes Alleluia' closes the album. It speaks of a desire to let our praises to God be a witness to unbelievers: "Let the sound of praises fill the air/Oh let us sing the song of Jesus' love/To people everywhere/Oh let our joy be unconfined/Let us sing with freedom unrestrained/Let's take this feeling that we're feeling now/Outside these walls and let it rain."
It is exciting to see this group of young ladies using their talents for the Lord. I'm sure Chuck must be very proud! GIRARD is a contemporary pop album that will appeal to fans of Point of Grace, Carried Away, and ZOE GIRL. Alisa wrote to me saying: "No plans for a follow up...this was just a fun thing we did as a family." I'm rating this project released by Calvary Chapel Music 83%. For more info visit: http://www.chuck.org/, http://www.thechapelstore.com/, http://www.alisachilders.com/, or like GIRARD on Facebook!