The Story Behind “The List Goes On” by Chris Sarver

One simple message. One lasting song. One reminder that Jesus is still enough.

Words have power.

Sometimes the words we share in a simple text thread, a prayer group, or a passing moment of encouragement can go much further than we ever expect. We may not know who is reading. We may not know who is carrying the message with them. We may not know what God might choose to spark through one sentence spoken in faith.

For Chris Sarver, that is exactly how “The List Goes On” began.

Years ago, Chris was part of a men’s encouragement and prayer text thread. Like many group threads, it included close friends, friends of friends, and a few names he did not really know. Chris admits he was usually quiet in those kinds of threads unless something was truly pressing on his heart. But he read. He prayed. He paid attention.

Then one morning, a friend from church named Jordan Hanks shared a message that stayed with him.

Jordan wrote about the weight of the past — the kind of weight Jesus has already lifted, but that sometimes tries to creep back into our lives. He talked about how, when that old heaviness returns, he reminds himself of the names Jesus has earned in his life.

He is Healer.

He is Redeemer.

He is Deliverer.

And, as Jordan wrote, “the list goes on.”

The moment Chris read those words, he heard a melody. He heard lyrics. He could not wait to grab a guitar. When he did, the song began to pour out.

That text became the foundation for “The List Goes On,” a worshipful and deeply personal reminder that when shame, weakness, and old burdens try to speak again, the believer can answer with who Jesus is.

The song opens with a powerful honesty:

“The chains are gone sometimes I still find that I can feel their weight”

That line captures something many Christians understand well. We can be free in Christ and still have days where the old battle feels close. We can know the truth and still need reminding. We can believe He saves and still need to call His name again.

That is where the heart of the song rises:

“So I call Him Healer
Ransom Redeemer
He’s my Deliverer
The list goes on and on and on”

At its core, “The List Goes On” is not just a song about struggle. It is a song about remembrance. It is about preaching the truth to your own soul when your emotions are loud. It is about standing on the character of Jesus when the enemy tries to drag yesterday into today.

Chris says that when listeners look at the message featured in the album artwork, they will notice that the ideas in the lyrics came directly from Jordan’s original text. So much so that Jordan is listed as a co-writer on the song.

At the time, Chris barely knew him. Since then, they have become friends. And according to Chris, this kind of encouragement is simply who Jordan is. He sends words like that all the time. He had no idea what that one message would become.

The original group thread no longer exists. Chris never even learned most of the names in it. But one message left a permanent mark.

Now, through “The List Goes On,” that same encouragement is reaching listeners Jordan may never meet.

That is part of what makes the song so meaningful. It was born from something ordinary: a man sharing encouragement in a group text one morning. But God used it to plant a song that would later become a testimony.

For Chris, the message is clear: when the past tries to push its way into the present or rewrite the future, we can stand on who Jesus is.

He is Savior.

He is Redeemer.

He is the One who took our burden and gave us His.

He is Deliverer.

He is Healer.

And the list truly does go on.

“The List Goes On” also reflects the ministry heart behind Chris Sarver’s music.

Chris has been writing music and spoken word poetry for more than fifteen years, with a desire to create songs and words that help bring people closer to God. Born and raised in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Chris often writes for The Vineyard Church as a form of encouragement to the congregation.

His hope is that his music would help people encounter God in a real and tangible way, leading them into worship with reverence, awe, and conviction.

This song does exactly that.

It reminds us that freedom in Christ is not fragile. The old weight may try to return, but Jesus has already spoken a better word. His names are not just titles. They are testimonies.

And sometimes, all of that begins because someone took a moment to share what God placed on their heart.

So say the thing.

Write the thing.

Share the thing.

And watch what God does.

Because the list goes on.

Written by kingdomchorus