Ten Songs Only Christian Kids Growing Up in the '90s Will Remember [VIDEOS]

Carman Licciardello

There was a time when knowing the words to these songs was like knowing the password to a secret clubhouse that only you and your youth group friends knew about.

1. "If This World" - Jaci Velasquez

With its ubiquitous "na-na-na's" and "oooooh-yeahs!," this song about being lonely and finding identity in Christ was the perfect pop anthem for middle-school girls to practice belting in their bedrooms. When this song was released by Myrrh Records, sixteen-year-old Jaci Velasquez was the fresh-faced and gorgeous answer to secular pop icons in the same age bracket.

2. "In the Light" - dcTalk
Warning - the below video of a youth group miming "In the Light" will bring back memories:

"In the Light", off of dcTalk's self-titled, double platinum, 1995 album, was actually recorded originally by Charlie Peacock (Charlie Peacock, incidentally, probably wrote or co-wrote your favorite Christian song, having worked with everyone from Twila Paris to Switchfoot.) While it's easy for preteens and teens to identify with the words ("What's going on inside of me?"), the not-yet-familiar rasp of Toby McKeehan, soaring vocals of Kevin Max and rock-and-roll/serious soul of Michael Tait's voice were all showcased to their fullest potential on this single.

3. "Love Song for a Savior" - Jars of Clay

"I want to fall in love with you. I want to fall in love with you. I want to fall in love with you. I want to fall in love with you." Seems like the perfect refrain for high schoolers scribbling their crushes' names all over their composition notebooks (and maybe it was), but it's actually the chorus of one of Jars of Clay's first hits, released in 1994. The song, with its light melody and whistles in the background, describes an overpowering desire to fall in love with Christ. It was extremely popular with Jars of Clay's first audience, their college classmates.

4. "Shine" - the Newsboys

What exactly were the words to the verses in this song? "Fire the army, teach the poor origami"? What did it mean? Nobody cared, that's how catchy this song was. Off of the Newsboys second studio offering, Going Public, the song encouraged every Christian kid that felt like they might, possibly, be a huge weirdo, to own that weird and reflect Christ in daily life with its chorus: "Shine, make "em wonder what you got. Make them wish that they were not on the outside looking bored." It didn't hurt that Christian parents preferred the Newsboys to all the other synth-grunge on the radio in 1993.

5. "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" - Delirious?

The song that ushered in an era of worship renaissance in Contemporary Christian music. "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" was recorded and released by English band Delirious? in 1994. The song has been covered by many major CCM players, most notably, Sonicflood. The simple harmonies make it perfect for a backyard worship session or stripped-down acoustic style youth retreat post-altar call praise song (side note: if you know about the youth retreat post-altar call praise song, you are definitely a '90s Christian kid.)

6. "Circle of Friends" - Point of Grace

Christian girls in the 1990s attempted four-part harmony as best they could to try to recreate this song about fellowship and sisterhood. Despite tying together themes of evangelism, discipleship, and the autonomy of God, the lyrics manage to be surprisingly simply and airy. "We share this prayer: that every orphan soul will and all will enter in to the shelter of this circle of friends."

7. "God" - Rebecca St. James

Rebecca St. James loves a good one-word song title (other hits include "Pray" and "Reborn"). In 1996, the then teenage singer from Sydney, Australia released the single "God" about the nature of God. Her pumped up, convincing delivery of the lyrics combined with her energetic music video made Christian kids all over feel like wanting to know and express love for God was totally cool.

8. "Place in this World" - Michael W. Smith

For anyone that felt like they had no idea who they were yet but were trying really hard to act like they had it all figured out (read: every single kid in the '90s), the ageless Michael W. Smith got down in the trenches with them in this confessional ballad. "Looking for a reason, roaming through the night to find my place in this world." Being that most Christian kids had a curfew of 9:00 pm, they weren't exactly roaming through the night, but the rest rang true.

9. "The Champion" - Carman

It seems like every Christian kid in the '90s attended at least one Carman concert in a huge amphitheater. Carman Licciardello (who knew he had a last name) originally released "The Champion" in 1985. The song became the subject of a popular mime performance featuring Jesus boxing with the devil (seriously, what wouldn't Christians in the 90s mime to?) and eventually, in 2001, Carman released a movie in which he plays a boxer named Orlando that must compete in one last fight, against his doctor's orders. That's sixteen years of interest and longevity for the song, which may even now be being mimed somewhere.

10. "I Will Be Here" - Steven Curtis Chapman

Released in 1989, this song's staying power was fueled in part by its almost obligatory presence in the playlist of every wedding DJ hired for a reception at a fellowship hall from 1990 to 1999. The romantic lyrics accompanied by Steven Curtis Chapman's breathy vocals this song a hit in both Christian and secular markets. Adolescent teenage girls all over the nation dreamed of the day their own prince charming would deliver his vows with the fervor and sincerity expressed in this song. Though the lyrics are not overtly Christian, with the exception of the final lines: "I will be true to the promise I have made to you and The One who gave you to me," the song earned a place in CCM music history.