Think BIG

2016 SW 300dpi Cover2 (2) (1)When getting ready to play “My Praise”… think BIG… then make that a little bigger… and then slow it down. This song is really meant to get a big spacious feel to it. One of the ways this is accomplished is by bringing the tempo of the song way down. So if your drummer has one… you may want to set the click track in their ears, just to keep from rushing.

This song does work well as just an acoustic or piano and vocal song. However, I think the real magic happens when the entire band is playing along. Feel free to let your lead guitarist fill in the spaces with some great impromptu riffs… this song begs for it:) Overall, you want to really feel the entire congregation settle into a big feel when worshiping with this song.

Liturgical content for “My Praise”.

2016 SW 300dpi Cover2 (2) (1)“My Praise” Starts right off with a great verse from Isaiah 41:10 “ So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (NIV). I’m sure you will hear that message in the first verse;) From there we go into the main idea for the song at the chorus. This features scripture from Jeremiah 17:14. Really the chorus is almost a direct lift from Jeremiah and is an absolutely amazing verse to know. This verse is one of my favorite verses to think about if I ever need reassurance.

The song then continues into the 2nd verse; Psalm 20:6 and into a strong bridge, Psalm 18:2. Although I strongly considered changing the words of the bridge… I finally decided to leave the scripture text alone, and trust that God sent us the correct version. Overall this song is full of strong scripture readings that should help to inspire anyone who needs reassurance that God is the one for our praise.

Liturgical content for “Draw Near”.

2016 SW 300dpi Cover2 (2) (1)As always, “Draw Near” is full of liturgical content that makes this song a great choice for worship services who want to stick close to scripture. The chorus of the song, and main idea, comes from Psalm 65:4, “Blessed are those you choose, and bring near to live in your courts! We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.” (NIV). This matches directly with the chorus of the song; “How Blessed have I been Lord, You choose to draw me near, You give me all of your grace and blessing.”

The first verse of “Draw Near” comes from Isaiah 55:6­-7, and the second verse comes from James 4:8. Both of these verses discuss how we are cleaned as we draw near the Lord. I think this is a natural progression of salvation for us to go from unclean to clean as we draw near the Lord and become “filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple” Psalm 65:4 (NIV).

Listen to “Draw Near” on YouTube.

“Draw Near” in your worship service.

2016 SW 300dpi Cover2 (2) (1)As you may guess… “Draw Near” is not only the first song on Summer Worship 2016, but it is also written as a gathering song for you worship service. It is meant to have a big and exciting sound, while still being easy to sing. I have found that is can be tricky to find songs that are energetic but still singable by an average congregation. The fast energetic songs are also, often, in a higher register, have too many words, or are just difficult to keep up with… Hopefully this song can help you fill that gap.

Draw Near” is great for younger congregations or especially youth events. The overall feel of this song really has an all out rock sound to it. Although you are never too old to rock out… The energy of the song will probably lend itself to a younger crowd really well. Additionally, this song would be great for a congregation that will get up and move around. If your congregation is stuck in fixed pews they may not be able to really get into this song. Try to have space available for folks to move around while playing this song. It is certain to inspire some energy with both the congregation and worship band.

Listen to “Draw Near” on YouTube.

Playing “Go Out in this World”.

2016 WW album cover2 (2)Although I specifically try to write easy songs to play, I have heard that some drummers have a difficult time figuring out what to do with “Go Out in this World. I had an idea this may happen when I was recording the parts… but they just sounded so fun. The drum set is a variation on your typical Bossa Nova drum beat. If you’re not sure what that is, look up some Bossa Nova drum beats and get your coffee pot ready for a long night of playing:) I also added a lot of shakers and hand drum parts to give the song a lively feel. However, this song can be played with just drum set and/or just hand drums.

As with the other songs on this album, I played the guitar parts with a capo on the 2nd fret and wrote out the chord charts for non-capo instruments. Hopefully that will make playing this song easy for all chord instruments. Additionally, take a close listen to the bass part… I recommend listening to it, because it is really just a fun octave slide part that doesn’t necessarily follow the chord progressions. I decided to just do octave slides on the “E” with a hold on the “B” at the verses. This was not only really fun to play, but it gave the entire song a great vibe. However, playing the chord progressions on the bass works too.

Go out in this World

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Liturgical content for “Go Out in this World”.

2016 WW album cover2 (2)As always, these songs are written directly from bible verses. The chorus of this song comes directly from Mark 16:15-16. In actuality, this song is written so we can follow the command of this bible verse. I thought a great way to get folks to follow the bible… is to write a song that is fun and easy to sing!

Other bible verses that I used for the verse parts of the song are Ephesians 2:8 and John 1:12. After writing the chorus I figured, I should justify why we should proclaim God’s name. It is hard to find better reasons to proclaim his name than; receiving perfect love, receiving the gift of grace, and being a child of God. These are some of the greatest gifts we receive from God. If we are going to proclaim Him, then let’s let the world know why God is sooooo great!

Go out in this World

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Singing “Go Out in this World”.

2016 WW album cover2 (2)Just like singing the other songs on the 2016 Winter Worship album, singing “Go Out in this World should be easy and fun. The range of the song should be very comfortable for everyone to join in with, and the main melody is low enough on the staff that it should be easy to find harmonies that don’t get too high.

Possibly the most difficult part of singing this song would get just getting the right feel and rhythms down. I struggled at first with this song because I know a lot of singers will see triplets and want to go straight to another song. However, writing the lead sheet with triplets made the most sense. If you are shy with reading and counting this type of rhythm… then just take a listen to the recording and let your ear guide you. The song is really easier to sing than it may look on paper. Additionally, you may hear some words that I sang with more of a staccato feel and other words that are more legato. This is just the playful character of the song. Feel free to have a lot of fun with this one… the more the singers enjoy it, the more the congregation will walk out the door singing it!

Go out in this World

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“Go Out in this World” in your worship service.

2016 WW album cover2 (2)Go Out in this World” is written to be a celebration and reminder as your congregation is leaving your service. One way I know I’m going to go back to a church, as a visitor, is when I leave energized. That is exactly the feel of this song. I wanted to write a song that will energize the congregation as they prepare to leave the church and go back to their lives. Putting this song right at the end of your worship service will help give everyone a little more… pep in their step as they are heading out the door.

Adding “Go Out in this World” is also a reminder that we have the responsibility to proclaim the name of Jesus to the entire world. Church doesn’t stop when we leave the building… we are the church and we have a 7 day week. This song will hopefully remind folks of what we receive in God, and how we are charged with spreading that message. So, let’s go out in this world and proclaim His name, Jesus you are my God!

Go out in this World

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Playing “Overcome My Sin”.

2016 WW album cover2 (2)As I previously mentioned, while talking about singing this song, this song is meant to have a relaxed feel to it. The song is to compliment the practice of communion, not overpower it. If this song is performed right… you will hopefully see the congregation groove with you as they receive the body & blood. Try to not rush the song, infact, feel free to slow it down if you feel right.
Percussion does play an important role in adding motion to the song. It is a repetitive song… so find ways to separate the verses with bringing in or taking out instruments (especially percussion) on this song. Just having the bass drum on the last verse and some hand percussion, I think, adds a sense of motion and finality to the song. However, use the percussion you have available to create differences between the verses.  

Overcome My Sin

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Liturgical content for “Overcome My Sin”.

2016 WW Here We Come.YTThere are lots of scripture readings that this can relate to. The two scriptures that I focused in on where; Luke 22:17-20 and 1 Corinthians 11:17-34. I think these readings not only tell us how important communion is, but it also speaks towards how we are to come together. Our approach toward communion is something that, I think, many Christians get lost on. Communion is a time for our self-reflection, and also a time for us to understand how we are one church, who is meant to come together. Especially during our current time, where there are many questions in the public about the church, using communion as a bridge to bring Christians together is vital. God’s knowledge is beyond our understanding, but we are called to work together for Him… let’s put our differences aside and follow what the scriptures tell us to do.

Overcome My Sin

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