Charles Jenkins + Fellowship Chicago - Can't Turn Back Lyrics

Album: Can't Turn Back - Single
Released: 25 May 2018

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Lyrics

I rose this morning in my right mind

Brand new mercy came right on time

Claiming right now "victory is mine"

Hand me a stick so I can draw the line

I can't let it bring me down

I can't let you turn me around

'Cos I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

Well I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

No I can't (can't turn back)

Well I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

I've been praying, I've been giving

I've been serving, I've been praising

I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

Well I've come too far for a stop sign

Holding on 'cos Jesus is mine

Waiting on God to blow my mind

I can't let it bring me down

I can't let you turn me around

'Cos I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

Well I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

No I can't (can't turn back)

Well I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

I've been praying, I've been giving

I've been serving, I've been praising

I've been praying, I've been giving

I've been serving, I've been praising

I've been praying, I've been giving

I've been serving, I've been praising

I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

Everybody clap your hands

Clap your hands

Everybody clap your hands

Get it proper, get it mother

Clap your hands

Everybody clap your hands

I can't turn back(can't turn back)

Ready to give my mind

(Can't turn back)

A long time ago (can't turn back)

I can't turn back(can't turn back)

I can't turn back (can't turn back)

I've been blessed (can't turn back)

I've been kept(can't turn back)

God's been good(can't turn back)

I can't turn back(can't turn back)

I can't turn back (can't turn back)

Ohh nooo (can't turn back)

Ohh no (can't turn back)

No no no no

No no no no no

I can't turn back(can't turn back)

Well I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

Well I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

Well I've got God on my side

And I (can't turn back)

Everybody clap your hands, ehh

Put your hands together

Clap clap clap clap clap your hands

Clap clap clap clap clap your hands, ehh

Clap your hands

Y'all ready, Y'all ready

Say wooh oooh (wooh oooh)

Wooh oh (wooh oh)

Say wooh oooh (wooh oooh)

Wooh oh (wooh oh)

Say wooh oooh (wooh oooh)

Wooh oooh (wooh oooh)

Now everybody say

Woo oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh ooh oh oooh ooh

Oh oooh oh ooh ooh ooh ooh woooh ooh ooh ooh

Your turn

Woo oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oooh oh oooh

Ooh oh oooh oh ooh ooh ooh ooh woooh ooh ooh ooh

Everybody you say

I know he's alright

Everybody you say

I know he's alright

Look at somebody and testify, you say

I know he's alright

Look at somebody else, everybody you say

I know he's alright

Find somebody else, you say

I know he's alright

Everybody clap your hands

Clap your hands

Let's get outta this, let's get outta this

Well I've got God on my side

And I can't turn back

Video

Charles Jenkins, Fellowship Chicago - Can't Turn Back

Meaning & Inspiration

Charles Jenkins and Fellowship Chicago have built a track that is, by all accounts, a high-octane energy injection. It’s built to move a crowd, to get the hands clapping, and to leave no room for silence. But when I sit with the lyrics, specifically the line, "I rose this morning in my right mind," I find myself staring at the wall instead of clapping along.

It’s a nice sentiment—the classic testimony of the early riser who feels clear-headed and ready to go. But what happens when you don't wake up in your right mind? What about the mornings—and there are plenty of them—where you wake up and the anxiety is already clawing at your throat before your eyes are even open? Or the Tuesday morning after a layoff, where "right mind" is a luxury you can’t afford because you’re busy trying to figure out how to pay the rent in thirty days?

When a song leans this hard into the "victory is mine" narrative, it can feel like a gauntlet. If I’m not feeling victorious, am I doing it wrong? Am I failing the test of faith because my morning feels like a slog through grey water?

There’s a tension here that we often gloss over in the name of a good "Praise Party." The lyrics pivot to, "I've been praying, I've been giving, I've been serving." It sounds like an itemized list of transactions. If I do these things, I get to keep God on my side, and thus, I can't turn back. But the book of Job—and frankly, the entire history of those who actually suffered—tells a messier story. Sometimes, you can do all the serving and praying, and the house is still silent. The kids are still sick. The bank is still calling.

If our faith is only valid when we are "in our right mind," then we’re building on sand. Romans 8 tells us that nothing separates us from the love of God, but Paul isn't talking about when we’re winning—he’s talking about famine, nakedness, danger, and the sword. That’s the reality of the "right mind" when the world is actually falling apart. It’s not about the clarity of my thoughts; it’s about a God who stays when my thoughts are anything but clear.

I’m not saying we shouldn’t celebrate. But there’s a difference between a hype-man’s rally and a grounded, brutal, honest faith. If you strip away the beat, the clap-along instructions, and the "wooh oohs," you’re left with a choice: are you holding on because you’re strong, or because you have no other place to go?

I suspect the "can't turn back" line carries more weight if you acknowledge that, some days, you really, really want to. You want to quit. You want to turn back because the road is jagged and the "brand new mercy" feels suspiciously thin. Honesty isn't the enemy of worship; it’s the prerequisite. Without it, we’re just singing greeting cards to each other while the floorboards rot.