Main Point: This song features a dialogue between Florida Georgia Line and Bebe Rexha that talks about relationships. We see one side wanting to just let the relationship take its course, and the other side saying she’s tired of what’s fake and wants to believe in someone. The question here is, who is right? Should people just let relationships take their course in the world of Netflix and chill? Or is there a better approach?
Vital Info Before You Get Started: The following info should help you contextualize this very popular song so you can have a great discussion about it with your kids.
- IMPORTANT NOTE TO PARENTS: We at The Source for Youth Ministry believe that certain elements in our youth culture can serve as good discussion jump starters with students. At the same time, we would never hope to introduce teens to a negative influence that they haven’t already encountered. This balance is a delicate one. In our experience most teens, churched and unchurched, keep pretty current with music and music videos like this one. Thanks to YouTube, MTV.com, and iTunes, the most popular music videos and songs are free to access only a click away. If you decide to use this, do so by catering it to fit your family’s needs.
- Brooklyn born Bebe Rexha was working at a New York recording studio when she met Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy fame. After a couple years working together on an experimental project band called Black Cards, Rexha signed with Warner Brothers as a solo artist.
- After writing songs for artists such as Eminem and Selena Gomez, in 2014 Rexha released her debut single “I Can’t Stop Drinking About You” which rose to 22 on the Billboard Top Heatseakers chart.
- Bebe has since collaborated with artists such as G-Eazy, David Guetta, Cash Cash, and Louis Tomlinson, and now Florida Georgia Line.
- Don’t appear as if you have a “canned” discussion in your head and rattle off questions like a teacher giving a pop quiz—your kids get enough of that in school. This is a guide, primarily—not a verbatim script. Just familiarize yourself with the content here and start a conversation in the most natural, unforced way you know how.
Introducing the Song: Rexha herself says of the song that when she wrote it, she was going through heartbreak…and it makes me feel better and like there’s some type of destiny and if something doesn’t work out then, there’s something better waiting for you,” she says. “I think that’s something we need more than ever with all the events going on in the world. People want to feel safe and like everything’s going to be okay. Rolling Stone magazine called Meant to Be an antidote to hard love. The song is a fun collaboration between gifted artists, but is the message truth?
The Music Video: The music video can be viewed for free at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDo0H8Fm7d0
Baby, lay on back and relax
Kick your pretty feet up on my dash
No need to go nowhere fast, let’s enjoy right here where we at
Who knows where this road is supposed to lead?
We got nothing but time
As long as you’re right here next to me, everything’s gonna be alright
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby, just let it be
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby, just let it be
So won’t you ride with me, ride with me?
See where this thing goes
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby, if it’s meant to be
[Bebe Rexha:]
I don’t mean to be so uptight
But my heart’s been hurt a couple times by a couple guys that didn’t treat me right
I ain’t gon’ lie, ain’t gon’ lie
Cause I’m tired of the fake love, show me what you’re made of
Boy, make me believe
[Florida Georgia Line:]
Oh, hold up girl, don’t you know you’re beautiful?
And it’s easy to see
[Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line:]
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby, just let it be
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby just let it be
So won’t you ride with me, ride with me?
See where this thing goes
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby, if it’s meant to be
So c’mon ride with me, ride with me
See where this thing goes
So c’mon ride with me, ride with me
Baby, if it’s meant to be
[Bebe Rexha (Florida Georgia Line) {Both}:]
(Maybe we do)
Maybe we don’t
(Maybe we will)
{Maybe we won’t}
[Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line:]
But if it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby, just let it be
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be (c’mon)
Baby, just let it be (let’s go)
So won’t you ride with me, ride with me?
See where this thing goes
If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be
Baby, if it’s meant to be
[Bebe Rexha (Florida Georgia Line) {Both}
(If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be)
{Baby, if it’s meant to be}
(If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be)
{Baby, if it’s meant to be}
Want help getting your teenager engaged in conversation? CLICK HERE for a helpful article from our “Parenting Help” page providing you with 3 Essentials to Talking with Today’s Teens.
Transitional Statement – Say something like this:
We live in a time where relationships are becoming more casual. It’s not uncommon for young people to act as though they are in a relationship but define it as “talking” or “friends with benefits.” It seems there is a resistance to labels as a “go with the flow” approach becomes more mainstream. Should teenagers view relationships as “if it’s meant to be, it’ll be” or is there more to it than that simple phrase?
Let’s talk about this a bit and then look and see what God’s Word says on the subject.
More Discussion Questions:
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: What do you think the song means when it says if it’s meant to be, it’ll be? Do you think this is a legitimate approach? Why or why not?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: As you look around you, what do you see in teenage relationships that you think is being done right?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: Why do you think people are hesitant to label their relationship as dating even when they are acting like a dating couple?
- HAVE ALL YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS ANSWER: Do you think God has one person picked out for you? Why or why not?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: When Bebe Rexha sings cause I’m tired of the fake love, show me what you’re made of, boy make me believe, what do you think she means?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: Do you think sex is an expression of real love? Why or why not? (NOTE TO LEADER: this could lead to a tangent about whether sex is okay outside of marriage. We advise only touching on that answer briefly and staying on subject. We mention it again, provide a brief scripture, and a link to a sex talk in the wrap up.)
Read the following passage from the Bible:
1 John 3:18
Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: Looking at this verse, what is the difference between loving someone with speech and loving with actions?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: Why do you think John adds in truth after he says with actions?
- HAVE ALL YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS ANSWER: Thinking of teenage relationships in general, in what ways have you seen this verse not lived out among your generation?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: Which lyrics of the song do you think go hand in hand with this verse?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: What would it look like for people to approach relationships with this verse in mind?
- ASK A FEW FAMILY MEMBERS: If someone is acting in a way that goes beyond friendship, but not making a commitment, would you say they are loving with actions and in truth? Why or why not?
Wrap Up:
During this time, we listened to Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line sing a song about relationships. They propose if it’s meant to be, it’ll be, so the right approach is to let it be. We looked at God’s Word to see God’s heart is for love to be demonstrated with actions and in truth.
In a world where we often see people love with words more than actions, many can relate to the desire for something real.
Cause I’m tired of the fake love, show me what you’re made of, boy, make me believe
If someone is approaching a relationship with the if it’s meant to be, it’ll be mindset, does it seem they are loving with actions and in truth?
(Pause and give them a moment to consider this question.)
When Rexha says to make her believe, it seems that she is saying to prove that you care about me by the things you do. Respect me. Invest in me. Know me. Don’t just let things flow, but be intentional about making sure your actions follow what your words are saying. Do you think this reflects God’s heart for relationships?
(Pause and give them a moment to consider this question.)
To love with actions and truth means we go beyond the apathetic or self-focused approach in relationships but instead demonstrate our love for others by treating them in a way that honors God. Too often we focus on sex as the goal of a relationship, but God has said that we should enter into marriage before having sex. Hebrews 13:4 says that marriage should be honored by and the marriage bed kept pure. [For a “ready made” sex talk, CLICK HERE] Love is patient. Love does not push for its own agenda. If we are willing to take that step, to show what we are made of in our actions, we can move forward in relationships with integrity and hope, instead of trusting some random chance or fate. Instead we can trust a God who calls us to go beyond our words and prove in our actions that we have truly taken to heart who He has called us to be.
CLOSE IN PRAYER
Rob Chagdes
Rob Chagdes is one of the pastors at Prairie Lakes Church in northern Iowa. In the years since he met Jesus as a sixteen year old, Rob has spent his life working to raise up the next generation to love God and invite others into His unending story. He spends most of his free time with his wife Leslie, their three amazing daughters, and their energetic dog Jedi. You can reach Rob at chagdeswrites@gmail.com
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