Did you ever attend a church where “In The Sweet By and By” was part of the praise and worship time? I did. And I think, if I close my eyes and listen real close, I can almost hear my Grandmother singing it in her kitchen. In The Sweet By and By There’s a land that is fairer than day, And by faith we … The rest of the story…
Category Archives: praise and worship
This might come as a shock. But over the course of my songwriter life I wrote some of my songs for girls. (gasp!) I know. What a sexist, toxically masculine thing to do. Right? But seriously, you gotta play to your strengths, as they say. But what most people don’t know is how I rewrote some of my original love songs lyrics and sang … The rest of the story…
I’m a dwelling place. And that’s not a typo. I didn’t mean to say I have a dwelling place. I said what I meant. And I meant what I said. But when I think of me as a dwelling place, one question comes up. A one word question. Why? Or it could be a two word question. Why me? And there’s no mistake. The … The rest of the story…
Back when I was the praise and worship music leader for a church in the Denver metro area, I remember announcing, with a quip, a song we were about to sing. I said something like, “This next song is called My Father’s World. But I don’t think this is our Father’s world. Because it’s filled with evil and rebellious people.” That’s what any praise … The rest of the story…
I’m gonna share a post I made about my “Raise The Praise” collection of praise and worship music. And you’ll notice I mentioned the CD or the downloadable versions of this uplifting music. But disregard those old school options. Because I’ve got a better, much cooler old school deal for you. Here’s what I said… “Most of the time, here on my website, I … The rest of the story…
I remember singing what we called “old spiritual songs” way, way back when I was in choir in high school. One, that always comes to mind, said “soon ah will be done uh wit da troubles of da world. Goin’ home to see my Lord.” And my high school was composed of 99.99% latte toned people. I can only recall one or two chocolate … The rest of the story…
Just before the dawn of the twenty-first century, I wrote a song about this very day. No, not April 4, 2021. I’m talking about Resurrection Sunday. Also known as Easter. But, believe it or not, there are still people who don’t know what it means. And they don’t understand the way it all came about. So, my resurrection song is about that…  I … The rest of the story…
Sometimes people ask me why I spend so much effort writing “Christian stuff” instead of just writing “more popular music.” And the short answer is, because there’s so much of the “popular stuff” that’s anti-God. So, there’s an urgent need to offset it with strong Christian words and music. The longer answer is “Christian stuff” will last a lot longer. Or at least consequences … The rest of the story…
Imagine you’re a sheepherder. I know it’s a stretch. But go with me on this for a couple of minutes. OK, you’re a sheepherder out in a field at night. And all is calm. All is bright…clear sky, big stars. And you start to get a little sleepy and your mind starts to wander. Somewhere deep inside your thoughts is some sort of memory … The rest of the story…
A praise and worship leader should follow THE Leader Maybe you already know this. But contemporary music, in church, started in the charismatic movement. And now it can be found in just about every kind of modern church in the world. More and more churches, regardless of their theology, seem to prefer praise and worship music that sounds like music of today. So that’s what … The rest of the story…