Through her music and message, singer/songwriter Dara Maclean desires to help audiences find freedom, forgiveness and fulfillment in Christ.
With her hit song “Suitcases,” Maclean encourages people to release the heavy burdens they have been carrying and surrender those issues over to the Lord.
The song was inspired by her own personal journey and spiritual growth.
“My parents were teaching a class at church and I had just finished leading worship,” Maclean recalled. “I was doodling in my journal and my dad randomly said, ‘You can’t run when you’re holding suitcases.’ That really struck me. The chorus came together and it was a picture of me attempting to walk through life with these huge, bursting bags.
“One bag flies open and a baby blanket falls out. It’s a metaphor of fears, rejection, hurts and insecurities. A picture of an ex-boyfriend falls out and I’m thinking, ‘just let go.’ The point of baggage is to weigh me down and actually stop me from walking in the fullness of what God has in store. I hope this song encourages people to collectively set those bags aside and discover there’s so much more offered through Christ.”
Strong calling
At a young age Maclean dedicated her life to the Lord and felt a strong calling to use her musical gifts for ministry.
“I grew up doing music and ministry in church — singing, writing, dancing and acting — anything and everything that revolved around a platform,” Maclean said. “From a very young age I really felt called to perform. At 7 years old, I remember running into my dad’s office and singing a song that I had written about the walls of Jericho falling down. It probably wasn’t a very good song but my parents have always been so supportive and encouraging.
“I started leading worship when I was a teenager and began understanding not just the genre of worship, but worship as a lifestyle. I started leading worship for my youth group when I was 13 and kept leading until I was about 22 years old. That really set the tone for what I do today as an artist. I’m a worshipper — that’s where the music comes from and the purpose of it.”
While traveling and performing across the country, Maclean enjoys meeting people and hearing stories about how the Lord is working in their lives. Her concerts also help raise awareness and financial support in the battle against human trafficking.
“I want people to experience and encounter the love of God,” Maclean said. “I believe that the real love of God as described in 1 Corinthians 13 has the power to change a person from the inside out. I want people to walk away knowing and realizing that there is something more as a child of God. There is life more abundantly. In Ephesians 3:20, it talks about exceedingly, abundantly, above and beyond what we can ask or think. Have we even scratched the surface of that? Maybe not, but together let’s discover what is available through Christ.
“The purpose of music is to reach people and it has nothing to do with me. I always want to keep my motives in check — asking God for clean hands, a pure heart; seeing people how He sees them and sharing His love.”
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