Third Day - Offerings II: All I Have to Give (Essential)

Sounds like … more worship music from Third Day and their signature southern-fried roots rock sound, mixing studio tracks with their potent concert experience.

At a Glance … split between a half dozen brand new tracks and six more culled from the Come Together tour, Third Day follows up their first Offerings album with additional inspiration and excitement.

While Third Day could easily have taken a break after their Time recording and subsequent tour, the fans' demand for new music and continual concert appearances was so verwhelming that it wouldn't have been the wisest move. The idea of recording a worship album was on the band's mind, but their demanding schedule could never warrant enough studio time for a full-length release. Instead, Third Day reached a compromise by releasing Offerings: A Worship Experience in 2000, which features both newly recorded praise material and worshipful selections taken from their previous tour. The rest, as they say, is history, with the album reaching gold-selling status.

Naturally, a sequel beckoned, as it did for Michael W. Smith, who followed up his best-selling Worship recording with Worship Again to additional attention and acclaim. Is there any doubt that Third Day will be greeted by similar success with the release of Offerings II: All I Have to Give?

Starting with the studio tracks found on the album, all are steeped in Third Day's ability to write a catchy pop/rock song, along with their anointing to truly invoke a worshipful response in listeners. The Brad Avery-penned "Anything" and Mac Powell's "May Your Wonders Never Cease" are the project's primarily rock and rollers, recalling the era of '70s southern rock that birthed the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd and Molly Hatchet meshed with contemporary, alternative undertones. Thematically, the songs respectively speak of believers' complete dependence on the Lord and the fact that despite our sinfulness, he still chose to give his life away.

Cuts such as "Offering" and "The Everlasting" can easily be added to the category of signature Third Day songs, as both resound with unhindered spiritual dynamics and chilling instrumentation. Backed by the band's mid-tempoed rock beat and the glow of the electric organ on "Offering," Powell lifts up: "Magnificent Holy Father, I stand in awe of all I see / Of all the things you have created, but you still choose to think of me / Who am I that you should suffer, your very life to set me free / The only thing that I can give You is the life You gave to me." The comforting acoustics and melodic contributions by fellow band members on "The Everlasting" further support Powell as he offers: "Through the raging of the seas, the hills proclaim your majesty / All these things created for the glorifying of the Lord / We praise Your name forevermore."

There is also plenty of room for celebration amidst such introspection, such as the acoustic jingle "Sing a Song" and the retro electric guitar/organ-based "You Are So Good to Me." The pair is congregational in nature, as they both lead listeners to raise their hands and lift their voices with glorious thanksgiving. Waterdeep fans in particular will appreciate Third Day's vintage preservation of the latter cut, continuing the song's legacy after its appearance on both their worship album of the same name and the Enter the Worship Circle project....

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