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Third Day, the rock group who ignited the worship music torch with "Offerings – A Worship Album" and rekindled the Christian music industry in 2000, is back to its roots. And while that's a very good thing, they haven't left behind those who discovered contemporary worship songs through them.

Third Day (from left) Mark Lee, Brad Avery, Mac Powell, Tai Anderson and David Carr have been together 11 years singing of the power and unconditional love of Jesus Christ.

It was the fans, after all, who begged for an album of their concert worship set that sparked "Offerings" — and fans who saw to it that it was certified platinum with more than 1 million sold. All of their albums, with the exception of "Conspiracy No. 5," have been certified platinum, with more than 1 million sold, or gold, more than 500,000 sold.

Their newest release, "Wherever You Are," is the ninth album for the Atlanta-based band. It's a thoughtful collection of their trademark range – from the hard-driving "I Can Feel It" through the tender and consoling "Mountain of God" and through a journey of searing despair into unending hope in "Carry My Cross." The disc is awash with encouragement, having been put together following much sorrow in the band members' personal lives.

"We wanted to write a record that was going to touch people's hearts and encourage them in their relationship with God no matter where they are," Mac Powell, lead singer for the Grammy-winning band, says in a phone interview.

They hadn't planned on any particular theme when they began writing in 2005. "We just had some songs and I think it was God's sprit leading while we didn't realize it." Looking back at what they'd written for the release, "we started analyzing and realized that the thread through most of the songs was hope through diversity and time of struggle."

The album title bolsters the chorus of "Cry Out to Jesus." "There is grace and forgiveness/ Mercy and healing/ He'll meet you wherever you are/ Cry out to Jesus."

Powell, whose powerful and embracing voice is one of the monumental "instruments" of the band, says many of the members suffered the death of a loved one in recent years. The song Powell wrote to keep them focused wears well for others.

So what does he expect when he cries out to Jesus?

"I expect and hope for wisdom, encourage and strength. Sometimes I don't get that and sometimes I feel like my prayers fall on deaf ears. It's a lot easier said than done. You hear people say they have prayed and done everything they can to reach out to God in their struggle and they ask God to intervene and either He hasn't, or they feel like He hasn't. I don't pretend to have the answers by any means and I'm still trying to figure it out for myself. But there is the knowledge that He has proven Himself faithful time and time again. And maybe His timing is not the same as my timing, but I know I have a father in heaven who longs to hold us."

"Cry Out to Jesus" is grounded in the heartbreak he and his wife endured during their second pregnancy. They had already made it through the tenuous first trimester when they were told that the child they already knew and loved as their own had died. For Powell and his wife, Aimee, it was a "devastating time. We had to trust that God was sovereign and remember He works things out for those who love Him. We had to really trust that."

See them What: "Wherever You Are" tour featuring Third Day with special guest David Crowder Band. When: 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 19 Where: Convocation Center, Eastern Michigan University, 799 N. Hewitt, Ypsilanti Tickets: $28-$32, $23 groups of 15 or more Call: (734) 487-2282 or (800) 965-9324.

They've had two children since "but that's always in the back of your mind. You know your baby is with Jesus."

Crying out to Jesus has made a difference in his life, he attests. "No doubt I am the person I am because of my faith and for what Christ has done in my life. I know that without Him, I don't amount to much.

"And honestly, compared to so many of the people I'm singing about, I've been very blessed and protected. Some went through Hurricane Katrina, some have physical ailments and things not worth comparing my troubles to. But no matter what, things still affect us in a hard way and in a strong way. It doesn't matter what we've been through, we need Him."

The humanity of Jesus grew in meaning for Powell and his Christian bandmates, none of whom are Catholic, after watching "The Passion of the Christ." "Being given the visual, and imagining having been there, it was such a powerful thing to see," Powell says. It also inspired "Communion," a majestic and grateful benediction with "This is the body/ this is the blood/ broken and poured out/ For all of us."

The band's debut performance of that song was last summer for the 3,000 teens gathered for the 20th anniversary of Life Teen in Anaheim, Calif. "This is really our Catholic song," Powell says. "It really seemed to resonate with them."

That's part of the evidence of Third Day's staying power through what is now an 11-year career. From songs such as "My Hope is in You," "Agnus Dei, "Took My Place," "I Will Hold My Head High" and others, they've been able to cull and craft their own experiences into music where the listener can find a soundtrack to parts of his own life.

Third Day Interested in starting a Third Day library?Here's a good start. "Wherever You Are," Essential Records. Released Nov. 1, 2005 "Wire" or "Live Wire," Essential Records. Released 2004. "Offerings – A Worship Album," Essential Records. Released 2000.

Except for one thing. After all these years, Powell admits there's one part of his life he's not been able to find a way to write about – fatherhood. "People told me that you understand more of our Father in heaven's love for us when we see the love we have for our children," says the father of Scout, 6, Cash, 3 and Camie Love, 2. "And I've seen that and I understand that. But even more than that, there's a message that's not pretty – but really ugly. That's in how I've seen how selfish I am and how hard it is for me to sacrifice what I want in order to help my child, like even putting down the newspaper or a magazine at times and being with them. I'm not close to conquering it but I'm trying."

It's fairly certain that some day Third Day fans will be singing about this. It will be because Powell will find his way through and see that even in life's frustrations, God does love every one of us — "Wherever You Are."

Marylynn G. Hewitt, SFO, is the managing editor of The Michigan Catholic. Contact her at mgh@aod.org.