Welcome Back!

I am currently on a mission to listen to only Christian music for 30 days, and you are wondering what might have inspired me to do this challenge, then I suggest that you go back and read my very first blog. If you are wondering as to what kind of effect that this might have been having on my life, then I suggest that you go and read any other blog that I have written. Now, let’s get into the blog for today.

Alright, we are almost caught up, and yes, this is my second blog post this morning. Again, I understand that it might not be morning when you read this, but I am going to say it again, Good Morning! I just finished a blog talking about a song from For King and Country, so if you are curious about that, then go read Day 23 of my blog. For this blog, I am going to spotlighting a little bit different of a song, and that is because this song is a Christian Rock song from a band called Ashes Remain. This is a band that I first hear on my all-time favorite radio station, which is a Christian Alternative station called Pulse 101.7 back home in Iowa. If you are ever in the Des Moines metro area, I suggest that you give this station a listen. Anyways, the band is very much a Christian rock band, and these guys know how to get after it. This is not metal however, but if you are into that, I do believe that these guys do make some of those kinds of songs. If you listen to them, it is quite obvious that some of their biggest influencers were 3 Doors Down, Rage Against the Machine, and 311. The song that I have chosen to spotlight was one of their first big hits, and it is called “Here For a Reason”. So without further ado, let’s get into the song.

The song starts off with a very nice combination of a piano, drums, and guitars, and it sounds amazing. Once the music starts really going, a chorus of “ohs” come in, and again, if you know me, I’m all about the “ohs”. Then the lyrics come in, and they go like this: “You are not forgotten, you’re not alone. You think you’re worthless, but you’re worth it, and he calls you his own. Made in his image, You were made for more, You think there is no plan, that it’s all by chance, but don’t believe that anymore!” It is quite clear from the outset that this is going to be a song of hope, and uplifting messages, and I think that there cannot be enough of those kinds of songs. As the lyrics state, you are not forgotten! God remembers you, and he even says so in his word. In Psalm 9:12, the psalmist says, “For he who requires blood remembers them; he does not forget the cry of the afflicted.” God loves you so much that he will never forget about you, or what it is that you are going through. Another lyric that I think is important is the part that talks about how we are made in his image. That is something that I think a lot of people forget about, because it is really easy to forget about how our bodies are designed to be reflecting the image of Christ. So we need to treat our bodies in such a way. In Genesis 1:27, the Bible literally says, “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them.” So because God created us in his image, then we need to remember to treat ourselves and each other as what we are, image bearers of God! And I think that this song does a great job of explaining that to the people in a way that many people will enjoy hearing. Now, let’s get back into the song, and dive into the main chorus, because that is the part of the song that is going to stick with most of the people.

The main chorus goes like this: “Every time that you wake up breathing, every night when you close your eyes, Every day that your heart keeps beating, there’s purpose for your life, So don’t give up, don’t lay down, Just hold on, don’t quit now, every breath that take has meaning, you are HERE FOR A REASON.” Wow, those are some powerful lyrics! I think that is something that we all need to remember! Sometimes it is easy to forget that God gives us each breath that we take, and if we have breath to take, then that means that God is not done with us on this earth. That means that there is a reason that we are still on this earth! Whether that means we are working our job in such a way that we are bringing blessings to others, or whether it means that we are trying to spread the good news of God’s word to others, or whatever your purpose is, there IS a purpose for your life. And God wants you fulfill that purpose! So we should not live our lives in a cloud of self doubt and insecurities, because we are made in the image of God, and because he keeps giving us breath, then we are going to be called to fulfill our prupose on this earth. Now, I understand that for some of you, finding that purpose is the hard part, but I trust that with God’s help, you will find what it is that you are called to do. However, I feel as though whatever your purpose ends up being, it is most likely going to be something that you enjoy doing, because God knows that a joyful worker, is a fruitful worker! So take heart in knowing that God has a plan for your life, and whatever that plan is, you are going to love it! So go out there, and find your purpose! Don’t give up on the plan that God has for you, because God will NEVER give up on you! You are never too far gone away from him that his grace can reach you! Thank you for reading this blog, and I pray that it has been an encouragement to you! God bless you!

Welcome Back!

I am currently on a journey to listen to nothing but Christian Music for 30 days straight, and this blog is dedicated to documenting that journey. I have been writing about my experiences over the last 3 weeks on this blog, and if you want to learn about what started this journey, or simply why I chose to do it, then I suggest that you go back to the beginning and read the very first blog. And if you want to see if this blog has had any impact on my life up to this point, then I suggest that you go and read any other of my blogs. Now, let’s get into the blog for today.

Good Morning! Now, I understand that whenever you are reading this, it might not be morning for you, but right now, as I write this in a Starbucks café waiting for my girlfriend to get done working, it is very much still the morning. And the reason why I am up this early is because I am trying to get caught up on all these blogs. If you didn’t know, I am a little behind because of life getting in the way, but I am going to spend the next hour and a half writing at least 2 blogs, and then possibly another one later tonight. so hold on tight, because we are about to dive in.

The song that I want to spotlight today is a song from a band called For King and Country, and to be honest, I am surprised that it has taken me this long to write about this band. This band is one of the biggest bands in the world right now, not just Christian music. They have been one of the only bands that I can remember of that has had mainstream success, and consistent mainstream success, yet has stuck with being a band that sings about the glory of God. So for that, I would have to say that they are an inspiration to many. Now, the song that I am writing about is not the song that many of you might be thinking of, which is joy. their latest single to have both mainstream and Christian radio success. However, you would be mistaken. Don’t mix that up though and think that I am saying that song is not worthy of your listen though, because it for sure is. If you have not seen that song, then I suggest that you go listen to it immediately and go watch the music video while you are at it. The song that I am highlighting today is actually the title track off their latest album, and it is called burn the ships. The reason that I want to highlight this is because there is a really cool history lesson that is tied into the theological lesson that they are singing about, which I find really cool. So if you are ready, we are going to dive into the song now.

The song starts off with a very sharp and distinct piano key, that almost comes across as poignant, but without the sad connotation. It is hard to describe the emotions that it evokes, but it is definitely a distinct chord that will make you feel something. The song starts off very mellow and slow with this chord, but as you will see throughout your listen through, the song will pick up and become more grand throughout the course of it’s play through. The lyrics start: “How did we get here? We’re cast away, on a lonely shore, it’s hard to take, for a moment more, we’ve got to, burn the ships, cut the ties, send a flare into the night, say a prayer, turn the tide, dry your tears and wave goodbye.” There are a few ways that you can interpret that verse, but I think that the main way two main ways to interpret it are a fractured relationship between a couple, and a fractured relationship between man and God. That is the beauty of this song, because it can be interpreted through those lenses the entire song. As the lyrics state, “How did we get here? We’re cast away, on a lonely shore.” it can sometimes be hard to figure out how you get to the place of disconnect where you might find yourself. The hard truth is that the disconnect is not something that happens immediately. It is usually a slow fade away from each other, whether that be with another person or with God. The “cause” for finding yourself on that lonely shore is usually a lack of intention, and disregard for the other person until you no longer feel connected with them. Now, I do want to say that when it comes to our relationship with god, that lack of intention and disregard for the other person is very one sided, and that one side would be us lacking intention in our relationship with God. I feel as though this blog has done a great job of explaining that God will never turn his back on his people, and because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, we are ALL his people. Anyways, getting back into the song, the lyrics continue by singing a line that you only hear a few times in the song, but it is the title of the song, and it is what I want to talk about next.

For those of you who read this blog, and have played sports, then you probably know the expression “Burn the Ships”, or if you are a big history buff, then you would know it as well. But for those of you who don’t know the expression, then let me enlighten you. The expression comes from the story of Hernan Cortez. Hernan was a Spanish conqueror in the 16th century, and he was in charge of conquering the Aztec empire, and claiming the land of Mexico for the Spanish empire. He understood the risk of this mission, and when his ships landed on the beach of the Yucatan, he wanted to let his men know that they did not have the option of retreating. He did not want them to have the idea in the back of their minds that if things got hard, then they could go back to the ships and go home. So he ordered the ships to be burned, so that his men were offered only two choices; conquer the land, or die. Now I understand that is a bit harsh and severe, but it got the job done, and I think there is a great lesson to be learned from this story that can relate to our lives here on earth, and our faith walk. The reason why Cortez burned the ships is because he wanted to remove any sense of safety or comfort that might have allowed the soldiers to hold back in the fight they faced. When you know that you have the option to retreat and go back to safety and comfort, that option is very, VERY, easy to take when things get tough. And I personally believe that is why a lot of people struggle to make a difference in the world today. Burning your own personal ships means that you are going ALL IN on whatever it is that you are doing. In the context of this song, the artists are talking about burning the ships of past problems and insecurities that might be holding you back from giving yourself over fully to your partner. Or maybe they are saying that the ships we need to burn are our need to control things in our life, and the idea that God can never fully forgive or accept us for who we are. Whatever your ship is that is holding you back, you will never truly experience the fullest of your blessing until you go All in, and burn the ship. Whatever is holding you back, and keeping you from committing fully to either your partner or God, that is the ship that you need to burn. And that is the main thing that I want to get out of this song, but I do want to talk about the main chorus as well, so let’s get into that briefly.

The main chorus starts right after the first verse finishes saying the last line. There is no musical build up to the grand crescendo that is about to happen, because that build up has been done through the way that the guys are singing the song. This is one of those songs where the main chorus BURSTS onto the scene, and the first lyrics of it are: “Step into a new day, we can rise up from the dust and walk away. We can dance upon the heart ache yeah, so light a match, leave the past, burn the ships, and don’t you look back.” As you can see, this just a triumphant declaration of the things that we already talked about. This song is a cry for us to get up on our feet, burn the ships of the things that are holding us to our past, and step into the light of the new day. Whatever is holding you back from your relationship with God, whatever your past trauma is, light the match, leave your past, burn the ships, and DON’T YOU LOOK BACK! Trust that God has a plan for your that is going to not only work out for your good, but also for his glory. I hope that you have found encouragement from this song, and I hope that you feel the inspiration to burn whatever ships are holding you back in your life. Thank you for reading, and may God bless you.

Welcome Back!

I am currently in the midst of a 30 day challenge to listen to nothing by Christian music. The idea behind the challenge is that it will help me grow in my faith, and in other things as well, but if you want to know more about why I am doing this, then I suggest that you go and read my very first blog. And if you want to know if this has had any effect on my life yet, then I suggest that you go and read any other blog of mine. Now, let’s get into today’s blog.

I told you so! These blogs are gonna be coming in hot, so I suggest that you try to keep up with me. This is the second blog today, and I am going to be talking about another song that I have been wanting to talk about. This song is a song that is taking over the Christian radio music charts, and it is easy to see why. Because this song has the Holy Spirit in it, and it is an inspiration to millions of people. The song is called “Stand in your Love” and it is by Josh Baldwin. The reason that this song is so good, is because it calls out one of the giants in our lives, the giant of fear, and let’s it know that it has no place. Another reason that the song is so popular is because it is one of those songs that seems old, even though it is new. It is one of those instant classic songs that everyone can sing along to the very first time you hear it, because you just know what the next lyrics are going to be. The song is very simple, but it is also very spiritual and deep, so it is an interesting song to spotlight.

The song starts off by saying “When darkness tries to roll over my bones, when sorrow comes to steal the joy I own, When brokenness and pain is all I know, I won’t be shaken. No I won’t be shaken.” Now, at first glance, I can understand some of you thinking that these don’t seem like to deep of lyrics. I mean, they are kind of bland, and seem like they are stereotypical words that you would hear in a song like this, but then you listen more carefully, and you see that there is a beauty interwoven in these lyrics. The beauty is that there is something coming to explain all the things unknown. So with these lyrics, they don’t tell you what is stopping him from feeling all those things, and why he won’t be shaken, but it builds up the anticipation for the main chorus, where the answers are revealed. And this is just the way that our faith works too. As Christians, we believe that there will be a second coming of Christ, and at that second coming, all will be revealed. As injustices will be made right, and every hidden dead will come into the light. So in a sense, we are all living in the first verse of this song, waiting for the main chorus to come in and give us all the answers that we have been longing for. Now, admittedly, this is probably not at all what the artist had in mind when he wrote the song. He was probably just trying to find a way to make the first verse sound good, while pointing towards the main chorus, but I believe that is was because of God that it worked out this, way. Now, let’s get into the main chorus, and see how this thing turns out.

The main chorus of this song is the thing that is going to probably stick with everyone who listens to it, and that is because it is a battle cry that we can stand by when we are struggling with the giant of fear. Now, if you don’t know what I mean by the giant of fear, then I suggest you go read Goliath Must Fall by Louie Giglio immediately, or you can just continue to read on. In his book, Louie talks about how there are giants all around us that impede and constrain our lives, and that the only way for us to defeat these giants is to let Jesus be the giant slayer that he is. So this song, and this main chorus, give us the answer to everything that built us up to this point, and that answer is simply Jesus! The lyrics for the main chorus go like this: “My fear, doesn’t stand a chance, when I stand in your love” That is all it is. It just simply repeats that line 2 or 3 more times, and then goes into the second verse. But what he is saying is that our fear does not stand a chance when we stand in the love of Christ. When we stand in God’s love, there is no giant that can stand up to him. There is nothing in our lives that can do anything to defeat the power of God and his love for us. So the next time that you hear this song, I hope that you remember that when you stand in the love of Christ, there is nothing that can come against you. For if God is for us, who can be against us? Thank you for reading, and have a blessed rest of your day.

Welcome Back!

In case you are new here, I want to let you know about a journey that I have been on. This journey is the journey to listen to nothing but Christian music for 30 days, and I HIGHLY recommend that you take the challenge too! If you are wondering why I am taking this challenge, or what it is that I am expecting to get out of this challenge, then I suggest that you go and read my very first blog post. And if you were wondering about the impact that this challenge has had on my life so far, then I suggest that you go and read any other blog that I have written. Now, let’s get into today’s blog.

Right away, I want to give an account for myself, and where I have been the last couple of days. If you have been wondering where I was, then I would like to thank you for caring first off, and secondly, I have been visiting my girlfriend in Charleston, SC. It has been an amazing trip so far, but it has also been packed so full of stuff to do, that I haven’t had the chance to write a blog yet. So this is my first opportunity to do it, and I am going to be cranking blogs out like it’s nothing over the next couple of days to get caught up. I want to go ON RECORD right now and say that I will be entirely caught up by Wednesday of this week, so hang with me because there is going to be a lot of good stuff coming out soon!

Phew, with that out of the way, now I can get back into what we are all here for, and that is the song spotlights. The song that I am spotlighting today is a song that I have been wanting to spotlight for a while now, but I haven’t found the right opportunity for it.. until now. The song is called “Raise a Hallelujah” and it is by Bethel Music. The reason why the song works for today’s blog is because of the sermon that I heard today at church. As I mentioned before, I am visiting my girlfriend in Charleston right now, and she attends a church called Seacoast, and I attended church with her today. The sermon that was preached was a “rehashing” of some of the things that this church believes in, and one of the big things that they believe in (as do I) is that we are CALLED to worship God. And because we are called to worship him, that should be something that we make a priority, and not become something that we avoid or see through merely an earthly viewpoint. Because we are called to worship our creator, we should seek out the opportunities to SING his praises! And this is something that is 100% confirmed in the Bible, because there is an entire book in the Bible called Pslams, which are literally just a huge collection of songs! This ties in with the song perfectly as you will see, because there is a line in the song that calls out worship a weapon.

Now, let’s dig into the lyrics, and the first lyrics that I want to talk about are actually in the first verse. The song starts out: “I raise a hallelujah, in the presence of my enemies, I raise a hallelujah, louder than the unbelief, I raise a hallelujah, our weapon is a melody, I raise a hallelujah, heaven comes to fight for me.” There is a lot in there that I want to unpack, so let’s start with the first line. The thing that you will immediately notice is how the artist repeats “I raise a hallelujah” and that is very deliberate. They are trying to ingrain that idea into your head, that no matter what happens, you should “raise a hallelujah”. Now, with that explained, let’s talk about the couplets that are paired with those refrains. The first one talks about how he praises God in the presence of our enemies. All throughout the Bible, and especially in the Old Testament, God talks about how he goes ahead of his people, and fights their battles when they fully believe in him. He commands his people to CRY out to him in those situations because he wants to deliver them out of their hard times. There is a story from the book of Joshua, that is very famous, that paints this picture beautifully, and if you will stay with me, I would like to examine the rest of this song with that story in mind. If you have never heard the story before, I suggest that you go read it in Joshua chapters 1 and 2. But if you don’t have the time right now, I will give you cliff note version. The people of Isreal had just been called to take over the city of Jericho, but they were afraid of the city because of it’s tall wall. So in order to test the people’s faith in him, God commanded the people of Isreal to march around the wall, singing songs of praise to him, and playing music for him. He had them do this for 7 days. Then on the 7th day, God had the people do this 7 times, and then after the 7th lap around the city, God brought the walls of the city down, and the people of Isreal were able to capture the city no problem.

Now let’s get back into the song. Just like in the Battle of Jericho, God still wants us to raise a hallelujah in the presence of our enemies. Can you imagine what it must have been like to be one of those people marching around the city? I can only imagine how it played out, but I assume it went something like this.. The guards of the city wall would stand at their posts and just watch the people marching on the ground beneath them, singing songs of praise to their God, and claiming that the wall was going to come down. Those guards probably thought that idea was hysterical, and I’m sure that some of those guards even laughed as the people of Isreal passed by them. That would have been an embarrassing and nerve-wracking thing for those Isrealites to have to see. I’m sure some of them even thought “Goodness, if this doesn’t work, then those guys up there are going to slaughter us if we try to take over the city.” But God had a plan then, and he has a plan now. He wants his people to raise a hallelujah in the presence of their enemies, because it shows those people that they are not mightier than God, and that no matter what happens, we believe that God is for us and he is on our side. The next line that I want to talk about is the third line, and it is the one that says “my weapon is a melody”. For those people marching around the walls of Jericho, their weapon LITERALLY was a melody! But for us in our day to day life, our weapon is a still a melody, because this is how we respond to God based on our faith. When we believe in God, and have a relationship with him, we can’t help but to respond in worship! It will just make you want to sing his praises from the mountaintops, because you want the world to know how amazing this God of yours is. And that praise, is a weapon against the unbelief and death that has corrupted this world. And then the last line that I want to talk about, is how it says that “heaven comes to fight for me” and I think that is awesome. For the early Isrealites marching around Jericho, heaven LITERALLY did come down and fight for them, on this and many other occasions. And in your life, I believe that God will do the same thing! When you call out in worship to him during the darkest times of your life, God cannot help but to feel compassion for you, and he WILL come down to fight for you. And that is something that we all need to keep in mind.

The last thing that I want to talk about is the main chorus, and it goes like this: “I’m gonna sing, in the middle of the storm, Louder and louder, you’re gonna hear my praises roar! Up from the ashes, hope will arise, death is defeated, the king is alive!” I think this is a beautiful thing, and is something that we should all feel inspired by, because the song speaks to this simple truth: When we call out to God in the middle of our storms, he will hear us, and come rescue us, because he was raised from the dead, and he has defeated death! Which means that sin has no hold on you anymore, and you can now join God in his presence! Now, I understand that is a lot to fully understand, and I don’t think that we will every fully comprehend that, but I would like to spend the rest of eternity trying my best to! So when things are going wrong in your life, turn to the one who hears you, and sing your praises to him. Then sing a little louder, and sing a little louder, and then sing a little louder, until you are singing with all that is inside of you! I pray that you will listen to this song on your own, because I don’t have enough time to go through the rest of this song, I pray that this song impacts you in the same way that it has impacted me! God bless you, and have a wonderful rest of your day.

Welcome Back!

I am currently in the midst of a journey to listen to only Christian music for 30 days, which has been a life changing event to say the least. If you are wondering as to why I decided to start doing this, then I suggest that you read my very first blog from this series. And if you are wondering if there has been any effect on my life yet, and you couldn’t answer that from my first sentence in this paragraph, then I suggest that you go and read any other blog that I have written. Now, let’s get into the blog for today.

For today’s post, we are going to look at a song that has a message that I don’t think many of you have probably ever heard of before, but I think is spot on! The song that we are spotlighting today is called “Dream Small” and it is by Josh Wilson. Now, I know what you might be thinking, and yes, dream small is definitely a weird thing to tell someone to do. We have been taught all of our lives to dream big, and shoot for the stars, so when Josh Wilson comes in here and tells us “No, you need to dream small”, of course that is going to ruffle some feathers. And that is exactly what this song did when it first came out! When people first hear the term “dream small” I don’t know what they think, but I thought that what he was saying was that we should dream small enough that we can accomplish the dreams that we make. And when I thought that I was like, “Yeah, that makes sense I guess. But I am not sure if I am sold on that or not.” But then I listened to the song, and I realized that is not at all what Josh is trying to say, and it was then that it hit me what kind of message he was trying to communicate. And it was also at that time that I thought, “Wow, that is exactly the kind of life that I am trying to live!” So to say that this song has had an impact on me would be an understatement! Anyways, let’s get into the lyrics of this song, so that I can show you why this song is so impactful.

The song opens up by painting a few different pictures of seemingly normal situations. However, these situations are much bigger than one might think, as we will see when we get to the main chorus. The lyrics open like this: “It’s a momma singing songs about the Lord, It’s a daddy spending family time, the world says he cannot afford. These simple moments change the world. It’s a pastor at a tiny little church, 40 years of loving on the broken and the hurt. These simple moments change the world.” Now, I realize that to many, a momma singing songs about the Lord to her children doesn’t seem like such a big thing. And a daddy spending family time with his family doesn’t seem like something that deserves a lot of recognition. Because after all, that is what you are expected to do right? Well too often in today’s world, those two things are missing in the lives of children, and that has an impact on them! And again, a pastor who has been at a tiny little church for 40 years might not seem like something that is front page worthy, but when you think about it, that pastor has had the ability to have an influence on COUNTLESS generations of people, and the fact that he has stayed at one church for 40 years is a testament itself! The thing that all these pictures have in common is that they all can have substantial, and profound impacts on the lives of the people they directly impact. A father playing with his kids is not going to cure world hunger, but what it is going to do is give those kids an example of how to love, and an example of what you do for people that you love. And the same can be said about the pastor! Yes, his congregation might not be more than a 1,000 people, and yes he might not get to attend Passion as a speaking pastor, but you know what he is doing? Making an impact on the lives of those that God has called him to make an impact on. And THAT is noteworthy!

The lyrics in the main chorus expand on this more when they say: “Dream Small, don’t by the lie you’ve gotta do it all, just let Jesus use you where you are, one day at a time. And live well, loving God and others as yourself, find little ways where only you can help, with his great love. A tiny rock can make a giant fall, so dream small.” Now, I don’t know about you, but those are some powerful lyrics to me! I love the idea of just doing what you have been called to do, and not buying into the lie that you have got to do it all. There are so many people, and I have been one of them before, who buy into that idea that they have to do it all, and they end up getting burned out. Instead, Josh offers the idea that we should just do what we have been called to do, and leave the rest up to God. I also love how he says that we should live every day one day at a time, and how we should find little ways where only we can help. That is how I want to live me life! And can you imagine? What would this world look like if we all lived our lives in this way? What would the world look like if everyone lived their lives looking for ways that they can help other people? I can tell you! It would look a lot more like Jesus wanted it to! And finally, I love how the main chorus talks about how a tiny rock can make a giant fall. I know Josh is not using the story of David and Goliath in the same context that we talked about it earlier in these blogs, or in the same way that my book talks about it, but I love how it works here. Josh’s message is that if we just do the little things, and we do what we have been called to do, then we will be able to use those little actions to take down a giant like Hate. I cannot agree more with him on this, and that is why I try to spend every day of my life living like this. And I hope that you do too. I hope and pray that you are living your life in a way where you are accomplishing what God has called you to do. Remember, there is nothing wrong with bigger dreams, just don’t waste the little dreams on your way to bigger things. (Actual lyric from the second verse) I hope that we all remember to “Dream Small” and I hope that God blesses you in your life today.

Welcome Back!

I am currently on a journey to listen to nothing but Christian Music for 30 days, and if you are curious as to why, then I suggest that you go back and read my very first blog post. And if you are wondering as to whether or not this has had any effect on my life yet, then I suggest you read any other blog post. Now, let’s get into today’s post!

Today’s some came to me when I was driving home from work today, and it could not have been a better time for this song to play. The song is a song that talks about the highs and lows of life, and how God is always there for us no matter which end of the spectrum that we happen to be on today. The reason this song was so inspiring for me today was because today was a VERY tough day at work. I am not sure if it was because it was cold and rainy all day, or if it was because I had my toughest class in the whole school first, but the day just didn’t go my way. It seemed like every plan that I came up with was being shot down by some circumstance, and then I had a parent e-mail me and complain about me playing music after school the previous day during car-line. So when I got in my car to head home, it is safe to say that I was beat by the day. But hearing this song gave me a lot of encouragement because it is good to be reminded that God is there for us when we are going through the valleys, and he is there with us when we are standing on the mountain tops!

If you haven’t been able to guess the song that came on yet, then now is the time that I tell you. The song that I heard is called “Hills and Valleys” and it is by Tauren Wells. Now, this is an interesting musical song, because there are actually like 4 different versions of this song, musically, so it is really up to you to pick your favorite. My favorite, and the one that came on the radio this afternoon, is the original one. The original one is a little bit more up-tempo and faster, which is why I like it, but the version that got the most exposure is the slower, acoustic version. So if you prefer a slower song, then I suggest you go check that one out first. The beauty of this song though, and the reason why you can make 4 versions of the same song and still have them all be great is because the lyrics for this song are so spiritual and lifechanging, that it speaks to all different kinds of people.

The song starts off: “I’ve walked among the shadows, you wiped my tears away. And I’ve felt the pain of heartbreak, and I’ve seen the brighter days. And I’ve prayed prayers to heaven, from my lowest place. And I have held your blessings, God you give and take away. No matter what I have, your grace is enough, and no matter where I am, I’m standing in your love.” From this first verse, it is very apparent what kind of picture that Tauren is trying to paint here. He is speaking from a place that many of us would be able to relate to, and that is a place of reflection, in seeing that we have all been in both the good and the bad times. And in both of those times, you can always see God is there. Even when we walk among the shadows, God is there to wipe away our tears. And when we feel the sting of heartbreak, God is there to pick us back up again. Conversely, even when we are feeling the joys of God’s blessings, he is with us then watching over proudly. There is no place we can run to that his love won’t be, and there is no action we can make that his grace is not enough to cover. I love where the song goes from here in the main chorus though, because it makes everything very clear to all who listen.

The lyrics of the main chorus are “On the mountains I will bow my life to the one who set me there, In the valley I will lift my eyes to the one who see’s me there. When I’m standing on the mountain I didn’t get there on my own, When I’m walking through the valley, I know I am not alone. You’re the God of the Hills and Valleys, Hills and Valley, god of the hills and valleys, and I am not alone.” I love the awareness that Tauren has here, and it is something that I pray we all can get to because that is the mindset of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Tauren speaks of how when he is on the mountain top of life, when everything is going right in his life, he knows that he did not get there on his own. It was all because of God’s love and plan for him that he is getting to experience this high! And then I love how he follows that right up with the declaration that when he is in the valleys in his life, and it feels like nothing is going right, then he knows he can lift his eyes up to the one who see’s him in his destitute. God is always there with him, even when he is feeling like a nothing, and like he can’t make it another day. That is the kind of focus that I want to have on God. I want to be like the person that Tauren is singing of in this song, and I want to be like the person who best lived this example in the Bible, Job. If you don’t know who Job is, I suggest you go read the first 2 chapters of the book of Job and get an understanding for the kind of person that Job was. And while you are reading that, try and tell me that he doesn’t sound like the person that Tauren is singing about in this song. God really is the god of the hills and valleys, and it is because he knows the impact that going through both can have on a person. Now, I am going to talk more about that in a later blog, but let’s just say that when things go wrong, God is not abandoning you. Sometimes God let’s you go through hard times, because he knows that the hard times are exactly what you need in order to grow in your faith. So I pray that you will listen to this song and be encouraged in the same way that I was today. Because I sure was feeling like I was in a valley after my day at school, but hearing this song really helped me to remember that God is still here with me, and he is never going anywhere. It really helped me to get my focus back on God, and that is what I needed today. Thank you for reading, and I hope that you have a wonderful day.

Welcome Back!

If this is your first time reading my blog, then I want to let you know that I am currently on a 30 day challenge to listen to nothing but Christian music. If you are wondering why I would want to do such a thing, or what I am hoping to get out of this, then I suggest that you go back and read my very first blog post. And if you are wondering as to whether this has had any impact on my life yet, then I suggest that you go and read any of the other blogs. Anyways, let’s get into the blog!

For today’s blog, I am going to be highlighting a very new song, so new in fact that it was just released a couple weeks ago. The song is a very catchy and fun song, but I am gonna be honest, the lyrics are a little confusing at first.. at least they were for me. But that is why I want to highlight it today! Because upon listening to it again, I think that I have stumbled upon a breakthrough! And I may have just cracked the code, and figured out what they are meaning when they say some of the words that they do in the song. Anyways, let’s get into the song.

The song is called “Lightning”, and it is the latest single from the band The Afters. The Afters is one of the biggest bands in the Christian music industry, and they have been one of the best bands at adapting their sound over the years to keep up with the way things have been moving. If you go back and listen to their first stuff, and then listen to this song or their last single, you are going to be surprised by what you hear. Anyways, this song is a very up-tempo, up-beat song, which makes it a prime candidate for being a song that I am going to like. In fact, I knew I was going to like the song almost immediately after it started playing because one of the first things you hear in the song is a “woooooooohoooooo” and anytime there is a “wooooooohooooo” in a song, I am basically guaranteed to love it! The song opens up with an infections clap track beat, and very up-tempo music, which is matched by the extremely catchy way they sing “Lightning, Lightning”. It is almost impossible for someone not to love this as soon as they hear it. The first verse of the song really sets the scene for where we are though when it says: “I haven’t always lived in freedom, I used to wear the chains of shame and doubt, inside my heart was like a desert, waiting for your rain to come down” As you can see, the band is setting the scene by letting you know that they have not always lived in the freedom that they are singing about, and something changed that allowed them to break free from their chains of shame and doubt. It is at this point that the music of the song starts to pick back up, and the pre-chorus verse starts with: “And like a freight train, your Holy Ghost came, shaking the ground underneath my feet, Your mercy rolled in, my chains were broken, And I’ve got joy ’cause you set me free.” This paints a beautiful picture of what it feels like when the Holy Ghost takes over you! It really is like a freight train that you feel like you have no power in stopping. And although I don’t feel like I am fully there yet, I can testify that that is exactly what it feels like!

Now we have reached the main chorus, and it wasn’t until recently that I have kind of gotten an idea as to what the song might be talking about when it says: “You came like Lightning and saved my soul, rolled in like thunder and shook my bones, Now I’m dancing in the rain since you called out my name, you came like lightning and saved my soul” Now of course I understood that what they were trying to say was that God came in and changed their lives and he saved their soul, but what confused me was why they would choose “lightning” as their metaphor. This was not something that I had ever heard of before, so it was confusing to me at first. But after thinking about it, I think that lightning is a wonderful metaphor for what it feels like when the Holy Spirit invades your life, because a lightning strike is something that happens quite unpredictably, leaves a HUGE impact on its impact, and injects a lot of electricity into whatever it strikes. And if you have every been struck by the Holy Spirit, then you can testify that that is kind of how it feels. Not every person in the world has the Holy Spirit living inside of them, and a lot of other people do have it living inside of them, but they just don’t realize it. That was how I was just recently in fact! But when the Holy Spirit invades your life, if is just like a Lightning strike because things will never be the same. It is something that happens in an instant, and you really can’t know when it is going to happen to be honest. Just like a lightning strike, you can’t do anything to make it happen. However, there are things that you can do to increase your odds of it happening, such as putting yourself in the right environment, and using the right tools. And once that lightning strike happens, you just feel invigorated with energy that you just want to direct at God! That is why I think that the use of lightning as their metaphor for what it feels like to experience God and the Holy Spirit is actually a perfect one. I am going to stop the blog here today because that is really all that I wanted to say, and the rest of the song continues in the same way. I personally would like to dare you to listen to this song once and not have that “Lightning, Lightning, wooooohoooo” part stuck in your head! And if you do give the song a listen, then I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did. Thank you for reading, and have a blessed rest of your day.

Welcome Back!

I am currently in the middle of a journey to listen to only Christian music for 30 days. This has been a rewarding journey so far, and I can say that I am really feeling my faith coming along better than it has been! But if you are wondering what inspired me to do this challenge, or if you wanted to know what I am hoping to get out of this journey, then I suggest that you go back and read my very first blog. If you want to know if this has had any effects on me yet, then I suggest you read any of my other blogs. Now, let’s get back into the blog!

Alright folks, we are back to our regularly scheduled programming, with another song spotlight. Today’s spotlight is actually the song that I was going to spotlight yesterday, but didn’t end up having the time to go back and add that second blog in. The song is a song that I first heard at church and admittedly, was not one that really stuck out to me that much. I mean, I liked the way the main chorus flowed, but it never really moved me.. that is until yesterday. Yesterday was the first time in a long time that a song and a sermon moved me in the way that it did. In fact, the song moved me so much that I went and looked it up after the service got out, and listened to it for my bed time song last night (Yes, you read that right. I listen to a song every night before I go to bed in order to help me get to sleep faster. I call it my bed time song. It’s cute, I know!).

The song that I am spotlighting today is actually a song from the Passion conference this past year, and it is by Melodie Malone. The song is called “Fade Away” and it is a beautiful song that talks about putting God first in our lives. However, I want to spend a second to explain what the Passion conference is for those of you who might not know, because I think this is an amazing opportunity that maybe one of you might be able to take advantage of. The Passion conference is a weekend long Christian conference that is held in Atlanta, Georgia every year, and it only happens for one weekend. The conference is age restricted though, because it is only for young adults between the ages of 18-25. However, that age restriction does not mean that the conference has a tough time drawing people in! In fact, the conference typically draws around 50,000 people each year, making it the largest conference of it’s kind in the nation! Each year, some of the biggest names in Christian Music, as well as the biggest names in the Christian church scene come to the conference to speak and play for the students. If you ever get the chance to go, I highly recommend that you take the opportunity! I personally have never been, but my girlfriend has, and she cannot say enough amazing things about the conference. In fact, she loved it so much, that she refers to all of my football coaching clinics as being kind of a like a football Passion clinic..

Now about the song, the song is a beautiful song that starts with a soft piano playing a simple melody. The wonder of this song is not the music though, it is the lyrics. The song starts off by saying “Speak to me/ You’re the only voice I want to hear/ Walk with me/ Show me who you are, as I draw near.” Right off the bat you can see what this song is about. The song is a cry to God to let him know that he is the only thing that we want in our lives. Now I am going to be honest with you, that is probably why this song didn’t stick out to me right away. Because I was not at a point where that was all that I wanted. However, I felt something change yesterday, and I still feel it today! Which might not seem like much to you, but that is a big deal to me! So all the glory goes to God for that!

Getting back into the song, I would say the best part of the song is undoubtedly the first two lines of the main chorus. The way that the singer ties the two lines together with the way that she is singing is simply beautiful, and it is extremely easy to get that part stuck in your head all day. The lyrics are “If you’re not in it, then I don’t want it. Let all else fade away.” That should be our motto, each and every day of our lives. Now, I know that believing that is hard, and living it is even more difficult, but if we are to ever become that shining city on the hill, then that is the place that we are going to have to get to. The next lines in the main chorus are “Take the whole world, But give me Jesus, Let all else fade away.” Again, this is how I want to live my life, and I hope that this is how you want to live your life too. The song is not super deep like many of the other songs that I have talked about, but it is still super important and impactful because the spirit of God is in it. You can tell that this was a song that was written with the Holy Spirit’s backing! And that is really all that I have for you today. I know that today’s blog is shorter than usual, but there is not much more that I want to say about this song other than to just make more people aware of it. I think that this is a beautifully simple song, that was made with the Holy Spirit’s help, and it is one that I believe can have a huge impact in your life if you let it. So I pray that you will try and live your life in the way that the song sings about. Thank you for reading, and may God bless you.

Welcome Back!

I am currently on the journey to listen to only Christian Music for 30 days, and to see what kinds of effects that if can have on my life. If you have any questions about what inspired me to do this, or if you want to know what I am expecting to get out of this, then I suggest you go back and read my very first blog post from this journey. And if you want to know if there has been any effect on me at all, then I suggest you read this post, and any other post that I have made. Now, let’s get into the blog!

Today’s blog is going to be something different. It is not about music at all, and instead, it is going to be about the sermon that I heard at church this morning. Now, I will mention one of the songs that was played during the worship section of the service, but the vast majority of the post is going to be about the sermon and how it both convicted, and inspired me in my walk with Jesus.

For those of you who don’t know, I go to Calvary Church and have been for a few years now. What is special about our church is that we are a church that is very much a church that is big into preaching through the Bible verse by verse. There is a term for that, but I can’t think of it right now.. Anyways, the book of the Bible that we are working through right now is the Book of John. We just started this series a few weeks ago, so we are still in the first chapter. Today’s passage was John 1:29-34, and it talks about when John the Baptist first declared that Jesus was the savior that the people have been waiting for. He didn’t use those words though. What he said was “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.” The wording of that statement was very intentional. As our pastor put it, the term “Lamb of God” is something that might not mean a lot to people on the outside, but it is of great significance to the Jews. It’s kind of like how the end credit scenes to Marvel movies don’t make any sense on their own, but if you are in the know, then you eagerly look forward to them at the end of each movie, because you know that they are going to give you a taste of what is to come. And that is basically what was happening here. In the Jewish faith, the “Lamb of God” was the one who was going to come and provide a sacrifice for all the world so that they can finally come near to God. This was something that was foretold in the book of Isaiah, as well as numerous other books. So when JTB (John the Baptist) used that term, he knew that the people would take that seriously.

Now, that is all the stuff that happened in the first 15 minutes of the sermon, but the part that really convicted, and inspired me the most was the stuff that came after it. In the text, John (The author) describes how JTB baptizes people with water, but then how Jesus would come and baptize people with the Holy Spirit. I will admit, at first glance, that doesn’t sound like it would be too convicting or inspiring, but stick with me and I will try to help you see. After reading this passage, Josh (our lead pastor) talked about what baptisms are, and why they are important. So for those of you who don’t know, I am going to try and explain it to you as best I can. Basically, a baptism is an outward show, of an inward faith, and we are called to get baptized when we come into the faith so that we may be “born again”. Some of you may be asking what the big deal is about being “born again” and what that exactly means, so I am going to try my best to explain that too. Being born again means that you have died to your sin, and instead of living for the world (or any impulse that comes your way), you are now living to glorify God. And because you have this relationship with God, and you no longer have the desire to live in the ways of the world, then you have basically been “born again” into the new person that you have become. Getting baptized is supposed to be a lifechanging event, because it is supposed to mark when you become a Christian, and when you started living your life in such a way that brings glory to God. With that cleared up, we can now dive into the reason why the difference in how you are baptized is important.

Before Jesus came into the picture, people would only be able to be baptized with water, but that water really didn’t do anything. It was basically just there for show. People still had to offer sin sacrifices, and the people still had to basically earn their way into heaven by living perfect and holy lives. However, that was not something that was possible, so God knew that he had to come up with a way to offer atonement for the people’s sin, while still making a way for people to draw near to him without having to live perfect lives. That is where Jesus comes into the picture. Jesus was created to be the Perfect Lamb that could be sacrificed so that EVERYONE in the world could be made new. Without Jesus’ death and resurrection, then we would have to live perfect lives in order to get into heaven. Thankfully, Jesus did die and rise again on the third day, so we can draw near to God, because every thing that we have ever done wrong has been washed white as snow. Here enters the biggest stumbling point for many people though. Many wonder, that if because Jesus died for all our sins, does that mean we can go on sinning and still be with Jesus in heaven when our lives end? The answer to that is obviously no, and the reason why not is what convicted me and inspired me today. The reason why we can’t go on sinning and living how we want to, and still make it into heaven, is because of the Holy Spirit. If we have been baptized in the Holy Spirit, then that means the Holy Spirit has come down on us, and that it is the Holy Spirit that makes the act of baptism such a life changing event.

In his message Pastor Josh talked about how when we accept Jesus into our lives, we are also accepting the Holy Spirit into our lives, and the Holy Spirit is not a passive thing that just sits around in our hearts and watches us live our lives. Instead, the Holy Spirit is something that consumes us, and takes over our lives. When you get baptized in the Holy Spirit, then you become immersed in a deep and pervasive Spirit that changes your whole life. You no longer want to do those things that were bringing death and destruction in your life. Instead, everything that you do, you do because you feel it will bring God glory, and that is all that you want! I am going to be fully honest with you right now, and tell you that is not where I am at in my faith.. yet. But it is where I want to be. I’m sure that you have met some people in your life who live their lives with the Holy Spirit guiding them, and you can see it in them the second you meet them. Those people are different from the rest of us. You can just see it in them in every interaction that they have. And that is how I want to be someday! I want to get to a point where I am so intertwined with the Holy Spirit that people look at my life and say “Wow, God is doing something big with his life!” Towards the end of the message, Josh described the Holy Spirit in one of three ways. He said that the Holy Spirit is our GPS, because it guides us along the road of life. It is the thing that lets you know that you are heading the right way, and it is also the thing that makes you feel guilty and convicted when you know that you are going the wrong way. But it is always there to help you get back on track. He also talked about how the Holy Spirit is our muscle, because it is what gives us the strength to fight those battles with our giants that we wouldn’t be able to fight alone. And finally, he talked about how the Holy Spirit is our reminder, because it always reminds us of who we are living for, and why we are doing what we are doing. Hearing those words made me feel very convicted, because I know that I am not on the right track, but it also left me feeling very uplifted because it meant that I did have the Holy Spirit inside me! If I was feeling the way that I have been feeling, then it means that the Holy Spirit is trying to perform a course correction in my life, and I need to follow it to get back on track! So that is going to be my focus for this week! I want to live my life in accordance to what the Holy Spirit is leading me to do, because I know that is what is going to help me grow closer to Jesus in my faith.

I hope that this has helped you in some way, and I want to apologize for not talking about any songs during this post. I was going to at the end here, but then I realized that we are already in the midst of an extremely long post, so I don’t think that I should make it unreadable by making you devote a few hours of your day to read it all. If you want a song suggestion, then I suggest you listen to “Holy Spirit” by Jesus Culture because that was the song that they played after the sermon was over. Thank you for reading, and I hope that God uses this post to help draw you near to him. Have a wonderful day.

Welcome Back!

I am currently working my way through an entire month of listening to nothing but Christian music. So far, I have grown a lot, and learned a lot about myself. But if you were wondering why I chose to start this, or if you want to know what I am expecting to get out of this, then you should go back and read my very first post. If you would like to know whether or not this challenge has had any effect on my life yet, then you should just read any other blog that I have posted. Now, let’s get into today’s blog!

Alright guys, it is finally here! Today is going to be the first day that I write about a Christian hip-hop song. Now I know, I have already written about it in a way, back when I was describing the diversity of the Christian music genre.. but that is not what I am talking about today. What I mean is that today is going to be the first time that I highlight a specific hip-hop song for you all to look up and listen to. To be honest, I am a little surprised that it has taken me this long to go over a hip-hop (or rap, for simplicity’s sake). Christian Rap, and rap music in general, always has some of the best writing that you are going to find anywhere. And the reason for that is because at the heart of rap, is wordplay, and how a rapper is able to connect words and ideas in clever and creative ways. Before I get started though, I should say that I completely understand if there are some people here who don’t like rap music and it doesn’t matter what they are talking about, and that is fine. It is not for everyone! However, you are missing out on some dope beats, and REALLY clever wordplay, but if it is not your cup of tea, then so be it.

The song that I am highlighting today is called “Light Work” and it is actually by a combination of some of the best Christian Hip-hop artists to ever do it. These guys actually are all apart of the same recording label, and they like to come together every now and then to release a song under the mantra of 116. So that is who is credited for the song, 116. The reason that I chose this song today is because there is a line in the song that gets me so pumped every time that I hear it, and I think that it is a line that more people need to hear about. One last thing before we start breaking down the song, I will not be going word by word throughout the song as it progresses, just because there are so many words/verses to cover, that if I were to breakdown them all, I would have to publish this post and put it in a paperback book. So I will do my best to give you an idea of where you can find the lyrics that I am highlighting, and I will also break down the main chorus for you.

Now, the first thing that you are going to notice about this song is the beat. The beat jumps out at you immediately, and it is something that definitely gets my adrenaline going. That is why I LOVE listening to this music when I am working out. And that is actually how this song came to me today! I was working out, and it came on my playlist. Getting back to the beat, it starts off a little strange, but then, the beat drops just as Andy Mineo starts the first verse, and you can almost feel your body getting in tune with the rhythm of the rhythm. It is really a special thing, and it is honestly one of my favorite beats that I have ever heard. It is also in Andy Mineo’s verse that you can find my favorite line in the whole song. Andy starts off the song by doing something that not a lot of mainstream rappers do, and he praises his wife. I love this because it spreads a good message about how to treat women, as opposed to the horrible womanizing message that is put out by mainstream rap as a whole. The lyrics for Andy’s verse are: “Yeah, this just something light, like I look to my life, I look to my wife, like I did something right, look I’m not switching my price, baby I know what I’m worth, I be like “Thank God it’s Monday”, I get to get back to work!” It is that last part that I love the most! For those of you who know me, you know that I am an elementary P.E. teacher, and a high school football coach. And for those of you who know me, you also know that when I say that I am living the dream, I am not kidding! I absolutely love my job, and I genuinely resemble this sentiment! And each time that I hear it, I can’t help but think about how God has called me to be doing what I am doing right now, and I GET the opportunity to go out each day and have an influence on countless children’s lives! Sometimes it is hard for me to wrap my mind around that fact! But whatever it is that you are doing, I hope that you are doing your calling! I hope that you love what you are doing, and you see your profession as the calling that God has for you, because I believe that is where we can make the most impact in this world. If you are not, then I pray that someday you will be able to get there. And I pray that someday you will be able to get to the point where you are saying, “Thank God it’s Monday, I GET to get back to work”.

Now that was a lot longer than I originally had planned for, and that wasn’t even all of Andy’s verse.. So I think I am just going to summarize the rest of the song, and explain what the title means and why they chose it. That way people actually read this and don’t see page 1 of 47 and exit out. The title “Light Work” is actually a play on words itself. What the group is saying is that they are all called to spread God’s light to the darkened places of the world, which is exactly what Jesus called his disciples to do when he commissioned them to go an make more disciples out of the people. Jesus said: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” This was said in Matthew 29:19. So the idea is that we are all light bearers, carrying the light of Christ inside us, and we have been called out to go make disciples of others. That is our “Light Work”. Where the wordplay comes in is that “light work” is a modern day slag for something that is easy. So what they are saying is that this work that we have been called to do will be easy if we have God with us. So throughout the whole song, the group talks about ways that they have tried to spread the message of Christ to those around them. However, none of the them do as great of a job of sharing that as Lecrae does in his verse. If I had more time, then I would dive more deeply into the it, but I highly suggest that when listening to this song, you listen carefully for Lecrae’s verse. And if you don’t know who Lecrae is, he is the person who raps in the 5th verse. There so much in this song that I would love to unpack, but I am just going to have to suggest that all of you go and listen to it for yourselves, because it truly is an masterpiece of a song. I pray that you and I both are able to spread the light of Christ, just as we have been called to do, and I hope that we are able to do so through what God has called us to do! Thank you for reading, and God bless you.