Some time ago I listened to the audio book The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. original recordings of MLK himself with additional readings by Lavar Burton.
I loved hearing the heart and mind of the man through his own voice. The audio book also won a Grammy. To understand Kings perspective and vision in his own words made a great impact on me.
Music for times of loss
The first two Saturday’s of the new year I’ve attended a funeral. Sadly, both times, of someone far too young.
I have a collection of songs composed either in response to, or anticipation of, death and loss. I’m gathering these together in a collection called “For Those Who Mourn” (free download).
Today’s song is “Requiem for Ben”. Other songs in the project include “Dash on A Tombstone” and “No Easy Answers”, plus some others.
Hit the play button and listen as you read along.
Today’s post features the song “A New Day” and was inspired by a really nice tweet I received yesterday.
@robstill Your What Words Can’t Say album is perfect for the start of a new year – it’s a new day!
You can get a free download of the song this week on my bandcamp page here.
This video features sunrise photos I post frequently on Facebook. The song story and lyrics and follow below.
I wrote this song with the idea of keeping “Christ” in “Christmas”. Lyrically, I’m trying to summarize the Incarnation story. Musically, I was in a piano-playing-Billy-Joel-meets-Beatles = how-many-chords-and-modulations-can-I-put-in-this-song frame of mind.
Free download the month of December. Here’s a video.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1
Today’s free song download is “Faithful” from my first CD “A Friend of John’s”.
Hit the play button and listen as you read along.
The chorus is based on the idea that God is faithful, even when we are unfaithful:
If we are faithless,
He remains faithful,
for He cannot disown himself.
2 Timothy 2:13
Practical Theology Of Worship Series
A Time for Repentance
The God of time and space is into calendar. He invites us to experience living in His story through the patterns, rhythms and seasons of life. That’s why the Christian calendar can help us grow in our relationship with Him.
Observing the calendar gives us opportunities to consider more deeply the truth of His story.
The Christian calendar is rooted in the Jewish calendar of the Torah or Old Testament of the Bible.
Today is the Jewish high holy day of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It’s a day of fasting and prayer, and is the annual opportunity to repent of sins, seek forgiveness in relationships and start anew.
I’m not doing an in depth discussion of that here , but I think it is important for Christians, and worship leaders in particular, to have some understanding of the Old Testament holy days and their relevance to us today. You can google more info on that or read more on Rosh Hashana here on Lara Riggs blog.
This weekend marks our 29th wedding anniversary!
To commemorate, I’m posting a song I first wrote for my brother-in-laws wedding, “Unity”. I’ve sung this at my parents 50th anniversary and other weddings too.
This is just a demo recording, but it gets the idea across. It’s today’s free download.
Practical Theology Of Worship Series
This video is a very simple explanation and demonstration of “psalming”, singing scripture spontaneously.
The Hebrew word for singing scripture is “Tehillah”.
Last night I played at the Jesus Is Lord Concert, It was a multi-racial benefit concert for the American Negro Playwright Theater.
The occasion reminded me of this week’s free song I wrote inspired by Martin Luther King Jr, “Never Alone”
I cry every time I listen to this speech “A Knock At Midnight.” It’s an incredible story. Living everyday under the threat of death and extensive criticism left him discouraged and full of doubt, then he had a profound encounter with God at his kitchen table. “I discovered then that religion had to become real for me and I had to know God for myself, I bowed down … and then the Holy Spirit revived my soul”
The lyric idea is a mashup of Solomon’s perspective in Ecclesiastes and thoughts from the book ”Failing Forward” by John Maxwell ["Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes into Stepping Stones for Success ]
