Slave no more

Written by Madeline Twooney

I don’t know about you, but l have a fantastic relationship with my doctor. When l was living in Cologne, Germany, for 17 years, Dr. Reiner Frenken was not only my physician for this period, he also became a trusted friend.

Reiner Frenken is a multi-talent: He is a medical practitioner as well as a rock musician, who writes, sings, and produces his own songs. He has brought out four albums Utopia I, II, III, and IV, the proceeds of which all go to supporting “Doctors without Borders”.

About three years ago, Reiner asked me if l would be interested in writing some lyrics for an album he was working on at the time, Utopia III. I had written reams of poetry during high school and university, so l was interested in discovering whether l could reawaken the dormant bard within. Thus, l agreed.

One of the lyrics l wrote for Reiner was for a song he had composed titled “Slave no more“. As a Christian, the title evoked my experience of coming to Christ and how He broke me free of the chains of my past. I wanted the lyrics to reflect this.

This is what l came up with:

Slave no more

I’m a slave
Trapped in chains,
In the spaces of my mind
Searching for peace l cannot find
Won’t let the darkness smother me
No more
I wanna break free
l gotta break free

No more a slave, no more a slave
The taste of freedom is what l crave
I’m no slave, l’ll be saved
No more a slave, that’s the promise You gave

I’m a slave
Head bowed low
Living in sorrow, bearing the shame
I need You to take away the pain
Only Your love is my breakthrough
I know it’s true
I wanna break free
Help me break free

Take me to a place
Where the sunlight reaches me
Where l feel my spirit’s free
Touch my heart from deep within

Accept my fall from grace
Only You can break these chains
Raise me to my feet again
Your love is power, l just can’t explain.

Reiner amalgamated these lyrics to the melody he had written, and the song “Slave no more” became a part of the album Utopia III. You can listen to the song here.

If you would like to find out more about Reiner Frenken’s music and charity work, then visit him on Facebook or click on his YouTube channel.

Photo credit:  Grant Ritchie on Unsplash