How Can I Keep from Singing?

Analysis Method: "MALL"
Key -
M = What is the meaning of the lyrics?
A = The lyrics are clearly against Biblical teaching.
L = I don't know what the Bible says about these lyrics.
L = I can glorify God when I listen to these lyrics.
Some of my thoughts are included in gray.

Verse 1 

There is an endless song echoes in my soul 

I hear the music ring 

And though the storms may come I am holding on 

to the rock I cling 

Chorus: 

How can I keep from singing Your praise 

How can I ever say enough, how amazing is Your love 

How can I keep from shouting Your Name 

I know I am loved by the King, and it makes my heart want to sing 

Verse 2:

I will lift my eyes in the darkest night 

For I know my Savior lives 

And I will walk with You knowing You’ll see me through 

And sing the songs You give 

Chorus 

Bridge: 

I can sing in the troubled times sing when I win 

I can sing when I lose my step and fall down again 

I can sing cause You pick me up sing cause You’re there 

I can sing cause You hear me Lord when I call to You in prayer 

I can sing with my last breath sing for I know 

That I’ll sing with the angels and the saints around the throne 

Chorus

This song was submitted as a student request, and I thought it would be a good entry to get back into writing after the break. This song is clearly written from a Christian perspective, and I don't see any problems with any of the lyrics. What I was surprised to learn in researching this song;s lyrics were inspired by a much older "How Can I Keep from Singing." Written by an unknown author and set to music hymn composer Robert Wadsworth Lowry in the late 1800s, that version of the song begins with "My life flows on in endless song; Above earth's lamentation."

A danger in a song like this that I see is for people to sing it over and over and completely miss the implications of the words. The first verse expresses powerful awareness, leading into the rhetorical questions of the chorus. Then, the second verse and bridge are responses to the beginning. If there is a King who loves us and a "rock" strong enough for us to hold onto, then the reasoning is that no circumstances should be beyond what we're given the strength to handle. Unfortunately, there are those who don't want to talk about struggles or challenges, and that outlook misses out on the beauty of this song.

Musically speaking, I hear a stirring melody in this song that I think causes a lot of people to feel passion as they sing it. The melodic contour (or direction) is very sequential and effectively varies the parts that are stepwise and the parts that move by skip. The movements of the verse remain relatively small, whereas the chorus introduces much larger jumps - again, contributing to the emotional aspect of this song.