"Feels Good To Be Forgiven"

"Jesus proved it and I have found,

you can't keep a good man down!

Oh, Oh...feels good to be forgiven!"

Welcome to Obscure Music Monday #3!  This ongoing series seeks to expose my readers to classic Christian music that you may have forgotten, or (more likely) never knew about in the first place!  Today I am happy to feature Eddie Degarmo and his classic solo hit, Feels Good To Be Forgiven.

Dana Key and Eddie Degarmo were pioneers of Christian rock music.  They began recording in 1978 and for over two decades recorded and toured together.  I have to admit to not being much of a D & K fan; their lyrics were often a bit heavy handed for my taste.  But they were quite popular in the early to mid 80's, with songs like Destined To Win, Six, Six, Six and Boycott Hell.  In fact, Six, Six, Six was the first Christian music video I ever remember seeing on MTV.  The video was considered tooo graphic and violent and was actually banned for a period of time.  Imagine that...  Eddie and Dana (who passed away in 2010) would go on to make an enormous contribution to Christian music in the 90's with the founding of Forefront Records- the company that gave us (among others) dc Talk and Audio Adrenaline. In the late 80's they each recorded their own solo projects, and I fell in love with Eddie's 1988 song Feels Good To Be Forgiven. It was bluesy, soulful, and had a message we can all relate to.  Who among us doesn't need forgiveness- from our families, our friends and our God?  And oh by the way- it does feel good to be forgiven, doesn't it?

As we count down the days to Good Friday, it is important to remember that Jesus' trip to Golgotha was not about betrayal or governments or faulty Jewish leadership.  It was about mission.  Jesus came to earth to die...for US.  Even thought we didn't deserve it and we don't deserve and we never will earn it, Jesus gave us grace, taking the sins of the world upon his back on the cross. He conquered our sin, and three days later he would conquer death as well.  Remember that this week.  And remember that Jesus died for YOU, too.  Forgiveness is yours. And it feels good to be forgiven!  "And if you're not sure you can sing along, look down deep 'cause something's very wrong..."  Christ is risen- He is risen indeed!

Because of Jesus,