Song Stories for Mountains Fly?
Mountains Fly?
I remember sitting at a piano meeting with God a year and a half before writing this song, I felt a strong need for community when I sensed God wanted me to check on a possibility of having a young adult retreat soon after New Years. Twelve or so of my friendship joined us for that weekend. The next year, that group reassembled to meet in Lake Geneva. We had some 80+ of our friends up for a weekend up in Lake Geneva, WI. I wrote this song soon after that retreat because I really sensed that God was able to move mountains. I had just seen him work in an amazing way, bringing together a team of friends to coordinate and lead their peers. While that experience of having God move me to do something was great, this song reminds that I can constantly hear his voice if I sit still long enough to listen to his written word.
Psalm 95
In college, I had always a hard time writing actual words to songs, so I decided to use somebody else's-in this case, David's words of Psalm 95. I wrote the chords right in the Bible. The chorus is upbeat and singable. We usually sing the chorus with the congregation and let someone solo on the harder-to-sing verses. The first verse is simply praise to the God of all creation. The second verse is a warning to trust God after having heard him and seen him work. The Israelites were the example in this case when they distrusted God and Moses in the desert, after having seen God part the waters and marching across dry land.
We Come Together
The original plan was for this to be an upbeat song about the miracle of the church. Unfortunately, it ended up being more about my frustration with people in the church who didn't seem to communicate their care for me. Many I knew didn't know how to deal with conflict very well, either. The chorus speaks of the ritual Christians follow, that if actually lived out everyday would change the world. We come together, have communion, and desire to believe what is right and do what is right. I end with the thought that the dream of Acts 2 could actually happen-when young and old would work together, envisioning and dreaming about the kind of life God wanted them to have.
Life Again
I remember standing in a farmer's field south of Chicago reading Psalm 104. The awesome picture of God caring for and watering the entire earth overwhelmed me. All of nature is dependent on God to provide water, light, air. Even when I re-read the passage just now, I want to study biology and be further amazed by the complexity of it all. Without God, creation dies. With His Spirit, we live. This song personalizes God's intense involvement in the world, even taking it to a political level. At the time of writing, our legal system was going to embarrassing levels to reveal the depths of depravity in our president. It seems that we live in times where no one really wants to say they were wrong, much less turn to God about their wrongdoing. The truth of the song lies in our experience of real life when we willingly to turn to God.
Follow Me
This song reveals my fascination with how the scripture records Jesus called normal, everyday Jewish men and women to follow him. The same call goes out to us today. The questions in verse two (Money to buy a car, family reputation) give rise to small costs when compared to what Christ gave up for us (comfort of heaven, his life).
Straining at the Oars
A few years ago our church staff was on a retreat studying Mark and examining how Jesus did ministry. I became intrigued by Mark 6:48 and how the disciples were working so hard to accomplish so little. During a retreat break I went out and wrote verses that told the story. I later paired those verses to a chorus I'd written while praying and worshiping at Moody Bible Institute for a vision for my life. I want Jesus to be my vision for my life and the ministry I do. I want to be centered around Him, using His methods, His ways, always trusting Him.
Source of All
During my recording internship project for Moody, I sat in my second story apartment and felt that most of my songs were old. I wanted to write something new. I also worked with a ministry group called "Source Network," so I wanted to work that concept into a song. Needless to say, there's some cheese in this song and I'm proud of it.
Fatherless
I grew up in a single parent home without a dad around. I played this song once at a Border's coffeehouse once and remember a man telling me how he could relate to losing his dad. I've met many people since who've lost their dads and were comforted by the fact that I'd bring up this subject. I'm very thankful and blessed by many men in the Church who stood in at fatherly moments for me. Through them I've seen God as the ultimate Father. In any case, I am convinced that God has a special place for people like me in his heart and is slyly working to heal me and grow me up in the midst of loss.
Good-bye for Now
During my youth ministry internship days, I lost a good friend and fellow youth pastor, Tim Yetter, to the same disease that killed Walter Payton. Tim was a pretty straight shooting guy who really cared for his kids and had a great sense of humor. I miss him and his partnership. I'll see him again, though. This song is centers on the hope of life believers in Christ have after death.
Been There Before
I wrote this one at one of my lowest moments during my internship days. I'm not sure if I wrote it so that others would know how much Jesus cares for them, or because I just needed to hear that message myself. In either case, I know I am in good company when I suffer either when I've done something wrong, been wronged, or am simply lonely. Jesus can relate to every human emotion. He was a friend to the friendless and sinners. He proclaimed a kingdom for the poor in spirit.
Plans
At one point, while working with a newly planted church, our team had been asked to leave the school and the park district in the town we were ministering in. The Catholic church graciously let us use their building for meetings. It meant we would meet on Sunday nights. I remember how nice it was to have Sunday mornings off!! One morning, I sat on the floor, debating whether to go buy a newspaper or go to another church called "Hope" church. I decided to write a song about "Hope" instead. Based on Jeremiah 29:11-13 (the chorus is straight scripture), this song looks at two individuals who are reflecting on their lives, successes and failures and wondering about the future. God meets them in the moment reminding them of the promise of this verse. Rather than just thinking we have a passive hope in Christ, this song clearly notes that we only find God (and, subsequently, our hope) when we seek him with all of our hearts.
Home of Faith
I wrote this song in preparation for my friends Tom and Holly's baby dedication. Here I am, a devoted fan of adult-believer baptism about to participate in the baptism of a baby. I decided to write a song about the essence of what we did that day-we prayed for this baby and his family--that one day Ben would choose to follow Jesus. The song also challenges parents to follow Deuteronomy 6 in living out the life of faith before their little one, thus making that choice a little more appealing. It was my pleasure to play this song recently at my nephew's dedication.
Jesus, Your Words
I wrote this song for one of our services, partly just to be original. It took on more meaning when I went to India and found that the children in the schools actually knew the beatitudes (and they were Hindu), and I couldn't say that I did. If I ever redo this song, I want to expand on the persecution idea, simply because those same Hindu kids, if they do choose to follow Christ, would suffer for their beliefs in ways that I never have.
Isaiah 12
This song was commissioned by my brother and sister-in-law for my little niece, Emiyah. They chose this passage of scripture for her dedication. The song brought me tears as I wrote it, thinking of how God wanted to bless Emiyah and how much she blesses us. I also pictured her seeing the greatness of God one day and praising him as she realizes all that she had been given. For now, she's two and she dances a lot and even prays. She's very cute.
Psalm 15
Another scripture song. This one speaks of the standards God has for those who want to live in his presence. Having had many roommates myself, I think these are pretty good standards.
Peace on Earth
No words for this version of my first Christmas song. I wrote this at camp while I was in high school. I had no idea that I would grow to enjoy songwriting or that I would get to share those songs with others. I hope to record this song with a choir, flute, and a couple of vocalists in the near future.