The Dennis Jernigan Podcast

In this week's episode, Dennis Jernigan shares the story behind his song, "Warrior", from the album "The Chronicles of Bren: Captured – Songs for the Journey". That mp3 is available at https://www.thechroniclesofbren.com/store/captured-songs-for-the-journey-album/ The lyrics can be found below.

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 The song I am sharing on this week’s episode is called “Warrior”, a song I wrote for the book “Captured (Book 1 in the The Chronicles of Bren Trilogy). “Captured” is my life story written in allegory as a legacy to my children and grandchildren. As I wrote the books, I envisioned what it might sound like if Disney ever made a movie about them. I completed the songs or the first two books but never got around to writing songs for book three. That book is about my vision for my 9 children…and their real-life stories are still being written. They will need to write their own songs.

On that matter, before I go on, I have some great news. You can listen to the entire album for book one. It is called “Captured - Songs For the Journey” and it can be found on the website www.thechroniclesofbren.com. I encourage you to read the book “Captured” and then listen to the songs inspired by each of the main characters. For some reason, the song list is in reverse order, which means you need to listen from bottom to top. Try not to listen to each song until you are reading the chapter it goes with. You can simply click on the play button and hear the entire song. This album is meant to encourage young men to look past their shortcomings and failures and the lies of the enemy and see and be  who God says they are.
 Today’s song is called “Warrior” and it came to me sometime in 2015 or 2016. It is a massively hard-charging rock song meant to stir up the man that resides in every little boy. It was inspired by my childhood am my own lack of belief that I could ever be a man…that I was something less than a man…that other men considered me a sissy and a failure…and that I was certainly not a warrior.
 But God had other plans for me. When I had given up on seeing myself as a real man, the Lord met me in that place of defeat and began to defend me against the lies of the enemy. He gave me a brand new identity and then he taught me how to be the warrior he calls every man to be. He called me to battle and to wage war against the lies of the enemy and he equipped me with the weapons of spiritual warfare and with the armor of God.
 In the book “Captured”, Prince Leonolis finds himself taking part in the traditional rite of passage from boyhood into manhood but finds himself suddenly faced with the loss of his best friend and leads to him ultimately being captured by the deceiver, Lucian. Leonolis was held captive by the Liar, just as I was held captive by the liar in my real life as a boy. This song came about as a clarion call from the prince’s father and from his mentor to believe and receive who he was truly called to be. As I listen to it now after all these years, it gets my blood flowing and charges my spiritual batteries. Are you ready? Hold on to your seats!

SONG

2 Corinthians 2:14 NIV says 14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ's triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere.

2 Corinthians 2:14 NASB says 14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us reveals the fragrance of the knowledge of Him in every place.

As believers in Christ and as his followers, we have been given the heart of a triumphant warrior. Let us never pull away from the truth, but rather let us walk in the reality of what it means to be an Overcomer. yes, we were all once captured in sin and captured by the lies of the enemy, but when we were born again, that all changed. We were changed. Let’s walk in victory today. 

 I encourage you to read the book “Captured: the Chronicles of Bren Trilogy, Book 1” and then listen to each song as its character is introduced in the storyline. It is my belief that God can and will use imaginative storytelling to encourage us to stand on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ and his word.

The writing of these books proved to be cathartic and freeing to my heart and mind and helped me see my life and its many twists and turns, heartaches and failures, from a different point of view. My hope is the they would serve to do the same for you.

To learn more about the mystical land of Bren, hear songs inspired by the stories of Bren, learn how certain characters were inspired, and to see original character sketches created by yours truly, go to www.thechroniclesofbren.com. One more time, that’s www.thechroniclesofbren.com

As a bonus, I will include the lyrics from today’s song in the podcast notes below.

Warrior

Verse
He’s a warrior in the kingdom
That’s what they’ve told him
Since he was a boy
He’s a warrior in the kingdom
And that to lay down his life
Would be his honor and joy
His honor and joy

He’s a warrior in the kingdom
And now the darkness has come
But will he know what to do?
Oh, he’s warrior in the kingdom
Though he may be just a boy
The man inside’s coming through
Heart of a man breaking through

And now the fight has come to him
It’s up to him to sink or swim
And now the fight has come to him
But does he know that deep inside
That he is destined to win

Chorus
Oh, ride, boy! Ride into the fight!
Ride, boy! Ride with all your might!
Ride, boy! Ride with the heart of a warrior!
Ride, boy! Ride for what is right!
Ride, boy! Laying down your life!
Ride, boy! Ride with the heart of a warrior!
The heart of a warrior! Yeah!

Verse 
He’s a warrior in the kingdom
And now his friend is in need
In need of one to defend
Oh, he’s a warrior in the kingdom
And what is love if not laying
Down one’s life for a friend?
His life for a friend

He’s a warrior in the kingdom
And now he takes up his sword
Not knowing what he might see
Oh, he’s a warrior in the kingdom
And whether knowing or not
He rides into destiny
Right into his destiny

 And now the fight has come to him
It’s up to him to sink or swim
And now the fight has come to him
But does he know that deep inside
That he is destined to win

Chorus
Oh, ride, boy! Ride into the fight!
Ride, boy! Ride with all your might!
Ride, boy! Ride with the heart of a warrior!
Ride, boy! Ride for what is right!
Ride, boy! Laying down your life!
Ride, boy! Ride with the heart of a warrior!

Bridge
He’d go through darkness!
He’d go through flame!
He knows that his friend would do the same!
Though others see him as just a boy
He rides with honor!
He rides with joy for his friend!
For the Kingdom!
In the name of the King and for his friend!

Chorus
Ride, boy! Ride into the fight!
Ride, boy! Ride with all your might!
Ride, boy! Ride with the heart of a warrior!
Ride, boy! Ride for what is right!
Ride, boy! Laying down your life!
Ride, boy! Ride with the heart of a warrior!
The heart of a warrior!