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As Long As You Need Me
Wendi Foy Green
From Contemporary Christian Singing Group “Sierra”
As a songwriter, most of the songs I’ve written have come from my own life. However, on occasion, I will write a song that reflects someone else’s experiences. This song came from a difficult situation for a very special friend of mine.
My dear friend, JoDee, had been away on vacation and asked her mother, Charlene, to come and stay with her three-year-old son while she was gone. On this particular day, JoDee’s little son accidentally knocked over a can of gasoline in their garage. Charlene took him outside in the yard to play, and then went back into the garage to clean up the spill. However, while she was in the garage, the gasoline spread and was ignited by the hot water heater. In an instant, their house exploded and her life was taken. When JoDee called to tell me what had happened, she spoke through uncontrollable tears.
Charlene was very special to me. In fact, she and JoDee had been at the hospital with me for the sixteen hours I labored to give birth to my son, Cooper. JoDee asked if I would come to the funeral and say a few words about her precious mom. I flew to Texas, where they were from, and attended the service with JoDee and her family. When I got home, I wrote the words to this song, because it was really one of those moments in life when words were so hard to come by. All I could do was just hold JoDee, cry with her, and pray that the supernatural comfort of the Holy Spirit would be with her and her family during that very difficult time.
This song is hard to sing because I tell the story of JoDee and Charlene, but it is also one of the most moving and wonderful times in our concert. I always tell people that this is a song of friendship, about being there for one another in all situations. All of us have been on one side or the other of a very painful time. We need to be the kind of people who will be there for each other – to cry with, to pray with, to sit in silence with, to love well. I hope that this song inspires us to do that!
As Long As You Need Me
Didn’t have anything that I could say
There were no words to make it go away
Didn’t have the answers to give you
No rhyme or reason made it less true
Can’t hide the sorrow in your eyes
Sometimes healing just takes time
As long as you need me
I’m gonna be here
I’ll bring some laughter to dry your tears
As long as you need me
You just hold me near
‘Til the pain disappears
You know I’m here
Life can be hard, so hard to bear
And sometimes living is so unfair
There’s nothing to blame, just the way it is
One season fades and another begins
Can’t hide the sorrow in your eyes
Sometimes healing just takes time
Love saves a heart that’s torn
And hope can be reborn
Words by Wendi Foy Green/Contemporary Christian singing Group, “Sierra” as recorded on the album, Change.
Submitted by Richard
Wendi Foy Green
From Contemporary Christian Singing Group “Sierra”
As a songwriter, most of the songs I’ve written have come from my own life. However, on occasion, I will write a song that reflects someone else’s experiences. This song came from a difficult situation for a very special friend of mine.
My dear friend, JoDee, had been away on vacation and asked her mother, Charlene, to come and stay with her three-year-old son while she was gone. On this particular day, JoDee’s little son accidentally knocked over a can of gasoline in their garage. Charlene took him outside in the yard to play, and then went back into the garage to clean up the spill. However, while she was in the garage, the gasoline spread and was ignited by the hot water heater. In an instant, their house exploded and her life was taken. When JoDee called to tell me what had happened, she spoke through uncontrollable tears.
Charlene was very special to me. In fact, she and JoDee had been at the hospital with me for the sixteen hours I labored to give birth to my son, Cooper. JoDee asked if I would come to the funeral and say a few words about her precious mom. I flew to Texas, where they were from, and attended the service with JoDee and her family. When I got home, I wrote the words to this song, because it was really one of those moments in life when words were so hard to come by. All I could do was just hold JoDee, cry with her, and pray that the supernatural comfort of the Holy Spirit would be with her and her family during that very difficult time.
This song is hard to sing because I tell the story of JoDee and Charlene, but it is also one of the most moving and wonderful times in our concert. I always tell people that this is a song of friendship, about being there for one another in all situations. All of us have been on one side or the other of a very painful time. We need to be the kind of people who will be there for each other – to cry with, to pray with, to sit in silence with, to love well. I hope that this song inspires us to do that!
As Long As You Need Me
Didn’t have anything that I could say
There were no words to make it go away
Didn’t have the answers to give you
No rhyme or reason made it less true
Can’t hide the sorrow in your eyes
Sometimes healing just takes time
As long as you need me
I’m gonna be here
I’ll bring some laughter to dry your tears
As long as you need me
You just hold me near
‘Til the pain disappears
You know I’m here
Life can be hard, so hard to bear
And sometimes living is so unfair
There’s nothing to blame, just the way it is
One season fades and another begins
Can’t hide the sorrow in your eyes
Sometimes healing just takes time
Love saves a heart that’s torn
And hope can be reborn
Words by Wendi Foy Green/Contemporary Christian singing Group, “Sierra” as recorded on the album, Change.
Submitted by Richard
