Mark Bishop - Take Me Back To That Place Lyrics
Lyrics
Life was so simple then?I can remember when
I discovered a brand new friend?someone to love even me
When I fell down to pray?the greatest of all my days
How did I drift away? But you never changed Lord
You were always the same Lord
Chorus:
Lord take me back?to the place?where I first beheld your face
Where I first?discovered you?where forgiveness was brand new
Lord take me back?to the day?all my sins were washed away
Remind me Lord of where I was?before your mercy and your love,
Before your grace?take me back, take me back to that place
I was adrift at sea?lost as lost could be
When you reached down for me?I remember it well
When I first called on you?when it was all brand new
And I saw what love could do?it was so overwhelming?so overwhelming
(Chorus repeat)
Bridge: Make it brand new again?Lord make it brand new again
Help me remember when. Lord make it brand new again
Make it brand new again?Lord make it brand new again
Help me remember when. Lord make it brand new again
Remind me Lord of where I was, before your mercy, before your love,
Before your grace, take me back, (take me back), take me back
to that place?to that place
Video
Take Me Back To That Place
Meaning & Inspiration
Mark Bishop’s "Take Me Back To That Place," released in 2012 on his album *I Can Rejoice*, is a powerful devotional song that speaks directly to the soul of anyone who has experienced a spiritual awakening and subsequently feels the pull of life's distractions. The song isn't just a musical offering; it's a prayer set to melody, a deeply personal plea for a return to that initial, unadulterated encounter with God's grace. The narrative unfolds with a nostalgic yearning for a simpler time, a time when a "brand new friend" was discovered, and the profound experience of finding love, even when feeling unworthy. Bishop articulates a universal human struggle: the drift away from that foundational relationship with the Divine, a departure that occurs not through any fault of God, who is described as unchanging and always the same, but through the individual's own wandering path.
The chorus serves as the heart of this spiritual plea, echoing a desire to return to the very beginning of faith, "where I first beheld Your face." This is a poignant reflection of moments of deep revelation and profound assurance, much like when Saul encountered the risen Christ on the road to Damascus and was forever transformed (Acts 9:1-9). The yearning for forgiveness to be "brand new" again speaks to the initial cleansing and liberation experienced at conversion, a state of grace vividly depicted in verses like Isaiah 1:18: "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow." The prayer to be reminded of that pre-mercy, pre-love, pre-grace state underscores the magnitude of God's intervention. It's a recognition that without His intervention, the state of being "adrift at sea," lost and incapable of saving oneself, would be the permanent reality. This resonates with Paul's testimony in Ephesians 2:1-5, where he describes humanity as dead in trespasses and sins, yet made alive with Christ, saved by grace.
The song’s bridge intensifies this earnest petition, transforming the plea into an active request for renewal: "Make it brand new again." This isn't a desire to erase past experiences but to recapture the intensity of that initial devotion and clarity. It’s an aspiration to rekindle the fire of faith, to experience that overwhelming sense of love and purpose once more, as described in Revelation 2:4-5, where the church of Ephesus is admonished for leaving its first love and urged to remember from where it has fallen and repent. Bishop’s rendition offers a deeply encouraging reminder that the God who was found in that initial encounter is still present, ready to restore and to make all things new. The song ultimately serves as a powerful call to introspection and recommitment, inviting listeners to reflect on their own spiritual journeys and to seek that sacred "place" where grace first met them, and where renewal is always possible.