Turning Loose the Debt

[Verse 1]
You leave the dishes in the sink
I keep a list inside my head
Tiny tallies
Tiny sins
All the words we never said
Then you touch my shoulder
Laughing
Like the past just never was
And I feel my own heart asking
Who am I to hold this grudge?
[Chorus]
So I’m turning loose the debt I’m owed
Letting every old hurt go
If I want a love like mercy
I can’t cling to every scar
If grace ever made its home
It would start right where we are
I forgive you
Like I’m begging heaven
To forgive my heart
[Verse 2]
You’re late again
The candles burn
I rehearse a sharper line
But your eyes walk through the doorway
Already saying “I’m sorry” this time
I could crucify the evening
On the cross of who was right
Or I could lay my pride there
Breathing
And choose you one more time
[Chorus]
So I’m turning loose the debt I’m owed
Letting every old hurt go
If I want a love like mercy
I can’t cling to every scar
If grace ever made its home
It would start right where we are
I forgive you
Like I’m begging heaven
To forgive my heart
[Bridge]
Teach me to be kind
When it’s not deserved
When it’s not returned
(oh, keep me soft)
Teach me to remember
All the times I’ve been held
When I should have been lost
[Chorus]
I’m turning loose the debt I’m owed
Letting every old hurt go
If we want a love like mercy
We can’t live by every scar
If grace ever made its home
Let it start right where we are
I forgive you
As I’m trusting heaven
To forgive my heart

Soft indie-gospel ballad, male vocals. Fingerpicked acoustic guitar and warm upright piano, subtle organ pad. Intimate verses in a hush; chorus blooms with stacked harmonies and airy reverb. Light brushed snare and mellow bass enter on second chorus for lift. Keep vocal front and vulnerable, tiny cracks and sighs left in the take.