Brandon Heath, five-time Grammy nominee, eight-time Dove award winner and BMI 2014 Songwriter of the Year, knows his musical talent and success are gifts from God. But he still struggles with fear and concern of not being good enough.
Heath’s new album, “Enough Already,” releasing April 22, addresses these and similar issues many wrestle with.
One of the tracks, “He is Not Worried,” deals with fears Heath has about the future. During 2021 when COVID-19 was still a large threat, and there was conflict in Afghanistan, the Nashville native knew there were many things in the world to fear.
“I tend to be afraid,” Heath acknowledged. “I struggle a lot of times with fear. I literally asked the question, ‘I wonder if God’s worried — if He’s worried about us?’ I laugh now but it was a real question then.
“I was able to pretty much answer the question, not that I speak for God, but God wrote history. He is all-knowing and all-seeing and knows what’s down the pike for us. He knows the ending.
“I don’t think it’s in His nature, as God, to worry,” Heath added, “because He knows how it’s all going to end. If He is not worried, I’m not worried.”
‘Enough Already’
The title track, “Enough Already,” tackles Heath’s battle with feeling that he’s unworthy of love. His father wasn’t around much when he was a child, and that absence created wounds that made it difficult to trust others. Ironically, Heath’s musical ability and achievements have made it even more challenging.
“Do they like me for me — in all of my faults? Do they find me to be genuinely funny or are they just laughing to appease me?” he reflected. “That takes a lot of energy if you think about that. It kind of robs you of joy. You can’t really settle into friendships. That would be more my struggle — am I good enough on my own?”
However, Heath found a new view of how God sees him through his own Platinum-certified hit, “Give Me Your Eyes.”
“When I wrote, ‘Give Me Your Eyes,’ it was, ‘God, how do You see the world? Show me how You see people,’” Heath explained. “Now, ‘Give Me Your Eyes’ has a new meaning for me — ‘God, how do You see me as Your son?’
“It’s evolved for me a little bit,” he said.
Heath is excited about the new album, his first in five years. He recently signed with Centricity Music and credits them with allowing him freedom to be creative and try new things. He also acknowledged that being a father has given him a new perspective.
“A lot of times I write from wherever I am — in the season of life that I’m in,” Heath said. “Certainly, being a dad has been an inspiration, but also kind of like the lens I’m looking through right now. It’s caused me to think about how God looks at me. I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately, about what gives me worth and purpose.”
Heath travels almost every weekend, but when he’s home he goes to West End Community Church in Nashville. In the past he led worship there, but as his travel increased he couldn’t be there enough.
Four things
Throughout his successful career Heath has learned a lot, he said. One thing is how important community is. He has always felt supported by friends and family and recognizes that it makes every moment richer.
Another is that life includes both highs and lows, but the journey is what’s important.
“I think thirdly the thing that I have learned is that it really isn’t about record sales or No. 1’s,” Heath added. “For me, when I see the impact that my creativity has had on other people — it’s been like medicine. That gives me great fulfillment that I’m able to help people with my creative process and the things that are in my heart to write into a song.”
Finally, Heath said he has discovered truth about God’s love using 1 John 4:7 as an anchor.
“One of the things that I was mistaken about God was that His love needed to be earned,” Heath recalled. “That taps into my performance thing and being good enough to be an image-bearer. But there’s nothing that qualifies me other than Jesus. I am made in God’s image, so I am an image-bearer.”
He said he realized God “is love above all things. Sometimes love looks like consequences. Love doesn’t always look like romance and soft, fluffy bunnies. Sometimes love is really hard.”
“Again, I’m going back to put my dad-hat on. I have to discipline my girls sometimes but it doesn’t mean that I love them any less. It might not look like love to them, but it’s love. Later on they’ll thank me for it. I feel like God is very similar.
“That’s something I have to remind myself about … a lot — that He’s love above all things.”
Heath’s latest album will be available April 22. It can be found wherever music is streamed or sold. To learn more about his ministry and music visit www.brandonheathmusic.com.
