‘Victory’ speaks to life’s struggles

The Worship Collective has recently released their newest single “Victory,”a song that speaks triumph to the struggles that students are currently facing. 

The popularity and impact of the release of “Victory” in the past few weeks were unexpected by the Collective. Fiona Bosca and Judson Harris, both seniors and members of the Worship Collective, were blown away by hearing so many testimonies through Instagram. Harris said he did not expect the music video to rack up so many views. 

For Bocsa, the number of video views are not important – what is important is that those views mean “Victory” is ministering to people. 

 Both Harris and Bocsa’s passion for songwriting shares similar origin. Both can recall the intense need to scribble down lyrics or sing a melody into their phones between classes in high school. 

“Both of us were kind of songwriters before we came to the Collective,” Harris said. “Writers, in general, have to get (their thoughts) on paper in order to process.”

After joining the Collective, Harris and Bocsa were encouraged to stretch their skills by learning to co-write. Through scheduled sessions with professional songwriters, they would brainstorm with other Collective members, and one evening, the beginnings to “Victory” began to form. 

“We started by just sharing where we were at because you have to write from a place of sincerity and from your heart,” Bocsa said. 

Along with Harris and Bocsa, alum Rachel Halbach and advisors Jacob Sooter and Meredith Andrews helped to flesh out the song. Harris added that as they came together with their ideas, it was clear that the theme of victory was on everyone’s mind. This was not just coincidence, though.

“Midterms were coming up, and we were all tired and just were like ‘I really need to sing a song that reminds me of truth,’” Harris said. 

After almost four hours of working on the piece, “Victory” began to come together as a song that proclaimed that triumph comes from God, regardless of how little humanity brings to the table.

“I remember we took a break; I went to the bathroom, and I came out with the bridge,” Harris said, laughing. 

(Photo by Nathan Spencer) 

Alana Rivera, another senior on the Collective, said “Victory” describes the heart of the Worship Collective and Liberty University as a whole. 

“Our victory in Christ is not reliant on us, but on what Christ did, and what He’s doing,” Rivera said. “This song really screams out Christ’s heart for us.” 

Bocsa and Rivera described a similar sense of duty that comes with the call to write songs for a congregation – whether in church, or around students.

“As a songwriter, you are responsible with building up someone’s theology through song,” Bocsa said.

Rivera added that with anxiety and fear being common issues that students at Liberty deal with, this song could not be timelier. 

“There’s no one that knows our students better when it comes to where we are than the people who are walking beside them,” Rivera said. “How amazing is it that we get to write for our students, to sing over our students in the season that they’re in?”

 Bocsa hopes that this song helps others begin to speak out the promises of God and communicate with Him more freely. Harris said that if “Victory” can build community and resonate with the hearts of students, it is fulfilling its purpose. 

“There’s something so humbling about standing on a stage and hearing the words God gave you in an intimate moment being sung in extreme intimacy,” Harris said. 

Bocsa and Harris believe “Victory” should not just be their own expression of worship to God; they want it to be an anthem that all Liberty students can hold on to. 

As the Collective continues to write and release music, Rivera emphasized that it’s a privilege to write music that ministers both to students at Liberty, and strangers around the world. 

 “We’re excited that God decided to use us,” Rivera said. “Because He could’ve used anyone, but he chose this moment, this time, this place.”

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