Lyrics

“By My Side” – by The Band Almighty

Hand me down shoes and a secondhand coat,
cafeteria laughter stuck tight in my throat;
home full of thunder with nowhere to hide,
I practiced being quiet and swallowed my pride.
Bus windows fogged as the daylight died,
my breath drew prayers I barely could write—
“Is there a hand for a boy this wide eyed?
Is there a Someone to walk by my side?”

Teenage and reckless, a runaway tide,
chasing the noise to hush what’s inside;
skipped all the warnings, said I was fine,
traded truth for a dare and nickels for dimes.
Sirens at midnight, excuses at nine,
broke a few hearts while I was losing mine;
stones in my pockets, a soul trying to hide—
alone in a crowd with no one to confide.

I ran out of answers, ran out of pride;
then somebody whispered of Jesus, the Guide—
“Read how He lived, let His mercy abide.”
I opened the pages… and hope walked inside.

When I let Jesus walk By My Side,
mercy rolled in like a turning tide;
chains hit the ground I could not untie,
fear lost its voice and faith learned to rise.
Work found meaning, my family revived,
love mended fences I’d long denied;
from the first moment I learned of His life,
everything’s better—’cause He’s By My Side.

At work I drowned in deadlines and doubt,
boss on my back when the numbers ran out;
at family dinners our tempers would rise,
we traded our stories for silence and sighs.
Friends turned to shadows I couldn’t align,
promises rusted like rails in the brine;
I slept with worry, woke to the cries—
a door with a lock and a soul in disguise.

Then reading His footsteps—the tears that He cried,
how He loved the broken and stood by their side—
something ignited, like dawn in my mind;
the yoke became easy, the weight re aligned.

When I let Jesus walk By My Side,
peace took the wheel and the storms complied;
I called up my brother, we healed what had dried,
held my wife closer and learned to be kind.
Bills still arrive and roads still divide,
but hope holds the center and grace is the guide;
from the first moment I learned of His life,
everything’s better—’cause He’s By My Side.

Mountains still mountain, valleys stay wide,
but smaller they seem when He matches my stride.
Nights can get long, yet I carry a light—
His word on my lips and His hand on my life.
I fail and I fall, but I fall into light;
I rise in His mercy again every night.
What used to own me loosens its ties—
I carry a cross, and He carries my life.

By my side—through the fire, through the flood;
by my side—washed and made good.
By my side—every mile, every line;
by my side—now the future is kind.

Now I walk with Jesus By My Side,
hope in my bones and a holy guide;
childhood shadows and teenage lies
fade in the blaze of His living light.
Work has a purpose, my family’s alive,
relationships mended, forgiven, refined;
this is the best that my life has been—
and it keeps getting better again and again,
since I let Jesus walk By My Side.

When the road turns dark and the daylight dies,
I whisper His name and I hear His reply;
from first morning breath to the last eventide—
I’m better than ever with Him By My Side.