Lyrics
Been takin' chances with my life but that don't move me no more
Been takin' chances with my life but that don't move me no more
I got to tell you devil you ain't welcome round here no more
I got my heart in a sling, won't you mend it up with your love
I got my heart in a sling won't you mend it on up with your love
I got to get on my knees ask help from the Lord above
Been takin' chances baby
Been takin' chances baby
Been takin' chances baby
Way too many chances baby
Been takin' chances Lordy but that don't move me no more
Once I was blind but now I see again
Once I was blind but now I see again
I got to shout it from the mountain I've fallen in love again
Those funny little footsteps I don't do that dance no more
Those funny little footsteps I don't do that dance no more
I been jivin' so long I forgot what your love was for
Throw my cards down on the table
Put my dice back in the can
Can't take it off the shelf then put it back again
Been takin' chances Lordy but that don't move me no more
Been takin' chances Lordy but that don't move me no more
Been takin' chances with my life but that don't move me no more
Been takin' chances with my life but that don't move me no more
I got to tell you devil you ain't welcome round here no more
Those funny little footsteps I don't do that dance no more
Those funny little footsteps I don't do that dance no more
I been jivin' so long I forgot what your love was for
Video
Meaning & Inspiration
"Been Taking Chances" uses the language of gambling and restless movement to describe a life that no longer satisfies. Cards, dice, and repeated risks become images of destructive habits being abandoned. The singer rejects the devil’s welcome, admits the need for help, and turns toward the Lord in prayer. That movement gives the song a clear pattern of repentance: recognition of danger, refusal of the former way, and dependence on divine mercy.
The declaration about once being blind and seeing again echoes the testimony of the healed man in John’s Gospel, while also suggesting renewed spiritual perception. References to a wounded heart being mended and forgotten love being recovered add a theme of restoration. The song does not portray change as self-made resolve alone; kneeling to seek help from the Lord places grace at the center of recovery. Its blues-inflected repetition strengthens the contrast between past instability and a new refusal to return to old patterns, ending with a firm boundary against the life that came before.
Related Scripture
- John 9:25 The healed man testifies that he was blind and now sees.
- James 4:7 The passage joins submission to God with resisting the devil.
- Psalm 147:3 God is described as healing the brokenhearted and binding their wounds.