PowerSource was an American

contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and ...

group from

Bedford, Texas Bedford is a city located in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, in the "Mid-Cities" area between Dallas and Fort Worth. It is a suburb of Dallas and Fort Worth. The population was 46,979 at the 2010 census. Bedford is part of the Hurst-Euless-B ...

. The group was associated with a music ministry known as Gospel Workshop for Children, and is best known for the song "Dear Mr. Jesus" (written by Richard Klender), which crossed over to

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

radio and reached the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in December 1987. The lyrics of "Dear Mr. Jesus" deal with

child abuse Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to ...

and are sung from the perspective of a girl writing a letter to

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

, expressing her concerns after seeing a news report about a "little girl beaten black and blue" by her parents. At the end of the song, the narrator concludes her letter saying, "Please don't tell my daddy, but my mommy hits me too." Recorded in 1985, "Dear Mr. Jesus" featured group member

Sharon Batts Sharon ( he, שָׁרוֹן ''Šārôn'' "plain") is a given name as well as an Israeli surname. In English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name. However, historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In I ...

, then 6 years old, on lead vocals. The song appeared on PowerSource's 1986 album ''Shelter from the Storm'', but did not break through to pop radio until 1987, when it was played on Tampa radio station

WRBQ-FM WRBQ-FM (104.7 FM, "Q105") is a commercial classic hits music formatted radio station in Tampa, Florida. Owned by Beasley Broadcast Group, its studios are in St. Petersburg while its transmitter is in Palm River-Clair Mel. History Top 40 (197 ...

. Other stations, including New York's

WHTZ WHTZ (100.3 FM) is a commercial top 40/CHR station licensed to Newark, New Jersey and broadcasting to the New York metropolitan area. Owned by iHeartMedia, WHTZ is the flagship station for ''Elvis Duran and the Morning Show''. The WHTZ studios ...

, began to play the song as well, some reporting hundreds or thousands of requests per day for it. The song's popularity was timely, as it came shortly after the story of Elizabeth "Lisa" Steinberg, a 6-year-old New York girl beaten to death by her adoptive father

Joel Steinberg Joel Barnet Steinberg (born May 25, 1941) is a disbarred New York City criminal defense attorney who attracted international media attention when he was accused of rape and murder and was convicted of manslaughter, in the November 1, 1987, beating ...

in November 1987, became national news. "Dear Mr. Jesus" (credited to "Powersource (Solo...Sharon)") peaked at #61 on the Hot 100 in January 1988, spending seven weeks on the chart. The album ''Shelter from the Storm'' reached #10 on Billboard's Top Contemporary Christian Albums chart.

Allmusic.com AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the datab ...

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References

External links

"Dear Mr. Jesus"
''Time'' magazine, December 21, 1987 American gospel musical groups American Christian musical groups Child musical groups Musical groups from Texas {{US-band-stub