Verse 1
Extreme heat, heavy pressure
Melted steel around my skin
Hard on the outside, Lord knows
It never softened what’s within
This body and mind been tested
By the grind of borrowed time
Came out weaker, came out stronger
Somewhere crossed that crooked line
Verse 2
I’ve walked through wages of war
Paid in blood and broken vows
Seen some things I can’t forget
Still see ‘em when I close my eyes now
Some memories come back laughing
Some come back just to cut
They rattle like loose shells inside me
Like rusted scars on iron and gut
Chorus
But I keep marching on
Through the blood, sweat, and tears
Every dawn’s a quiet reminder
Of the oaths and the fears
Yeah, my heart’s been torn wide open
By the lines that I swore
The wages of war keep calling
Lord, they always want more
Verse 3
I hear the echoes of my brothers
Drifting through my mind at night
Ghostly hands upon my shoulders
Pulling me toward the light
Or maybe toward the edge of nothing
Whispering I’ve had my run
Some days I don’t know which way’s up
Some nights I’m loaded with a gun
Verse 4
I fight depression and my anger
With a bottle and a pill
Lying awake for endless hours
Waiting on a sudden chill
Every promise feels like bait now
Every hope comes with a knife
I’ve been gambling with my spirit
Just to make it through this life
Chorus
Still I keep marching on
Through the blood, sweat, and tears
Every dawn’s a quiet reminder
Of the oaths and the fears
Yeah, my heart’s been torn wide open
By the lines that I swore
The wages of war keep calling
Lord, they always want more
Bridge (Gospel lift)
But my spirit, bruised and tattered
Still reaches for the flame
Looking for some kind of meaning
Looking for a name
In the sleepless dark of midnight
When the shadows have their say
I hear a voice that keeps on telling me
Child, don’t fade away
Final Chorus
So I keep marching on
Though the road don’t bend
The bravest live in shadows
Fighting wars that never end
And when my final breath meets
That last red sinking sun
The battle in my bones may rest
Even if it’s never won
Outro
Yeah, the wages of war are living
They don’t fade, they don’t stay dead
They walk beside the weary souls
Where angels fear to tread
TheWordwithTobie
