God's Blessings

So...it's been a while since I've posted anything. I want to let you all know how much Katie and I have appreciated your prayers and support through this time. For those that don't know, in addition to expecting our son Levi to arrive any day now, we also made the decision to close the doors of our small business. Tomorrow will be our last day open. (You can read more on Katie's blog www.katelikesthis.blogspot.com)

To call God "good" during this time would be the understatement of the year. Over and over again He has shown that He is in control, that He provides what we need (physically, emotionally, financially and especially spiritually) and that opening ourselves to His will is always the best and easiest way in the end.

As I await my little boy coming to this world, I know that the lessons I have learned in the past year will serve me well. I hope that I can pass those lessons along to him as well, though if he's anything like his father, I'm sure he'll have to learn some of them for himself.

On Sunday, Ron talked about God's judgement and how it still exists even if we don't believe it. But there's also the flip side to that. Even when we can't see or don't believe that we are receiving His blessings, they are most definitely still there.

Hosea 6:1-3

Every year, each member of the El Camino staff picks a verse for the upcoming year...one to live out, one to remind them of something through the year, etc. Usually, I start looking around September or October for something that might interest me but I have a feeling my verses for 2012 will be Hosea 6:1-3:

Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.

 

He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day, That we may live before Him.

 

So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD. His going forth is as certain as the dawn; and He will come to us like the rain, like the spring rain watering the earth.

 

What great promises about God's faithfulness to us in time of need. It is as certain as the dawn so let's presson to know Him.

An Eternal Perspective

Katie and I were talking the other day and she asked me if I thought the angels were praising God in heaven using my songs. Hmmm...I hadn't ever thought about that. I know the Bible doesn't give us all the specifics about what heaven is like so I doubt a verifiable answer could ever be found out. I suppose it's something we'll find out when we get there.

But it did paint an interesting picture in my mind. One of angels getting excited when little old me writes a new song. "Woohoo!!! That song glorifies the Name of God!!! Let's go sing it to our Lord!!!" What a responsibility I now feel thinking that there is even a possibility that this is true.

But it's the same responsibility that we all share. Imagine when you are doing your personal devotion and come across a little nugget in Scripture, something perhaps that few people have ever thought about in the way that you do. No one who has ever lived has ever had the same exact relationship with God that you do. Think about that as you go through your prayer life this week and as you speak with the people around you.

Psalm 17:15

So, I've been meaning to post this one for a while now. Psalm 17 was the most recent song I recorded and posted on here. Lyrically, it is becoming one of my favorites. The last verse is the one that has spoken to me most over the past few weeks. The psalmist cries out for God to confront his enemies and the wicked that is surrounding him. For 6 verses, he is in despair but then, in the final verse of the psalm, he says:

 

As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake.

 

Katie and I talked about what this verse really meant. The thing that I kept coming back to was an analogy of a father and his child. When a little one has a nightmare and wakes up screaming and crying, seeing a father's face brings comfort. So, in the same way, when we are beset on all sides by the evil of this world, we can see our Father's face and be at peace knowing His righteousness.

Psalm 17

A new piano song that I can't get out of my head for the past couple of weeks. As I was writing the lyrics, they came out of me very methodical in their rhythm so I put more of a traditional feel to the music. When I sang it to myself, I thought something was missing and then realized it needed a gentle female vocal with it. Enter my beautiful wife Katie...She provided the lead vocal while I did a little harmony on the chorus. I think it makes it much more tender and prayerful. I'll provide some more observations from writing this song a little later on.

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse 1: I have called for You will answer
Bend Your ear, hear me speak
Show Your lovingkindness to me
May Your hand defend the weak

Chorus: Hide me in the shadow of Your wings
Keep me as the apple of Your eye
I'll behold Your face in righteousness
When I wake up from the night
When I wake up from the night

Verse 2: You have proved my heart Jehovah
Try me now, cleanse me Lord
I hold to Your paths before me
With my mouth I sin no more

Psalm 17:3, 5-8 & 15 "Though You probe my heart and examine me at night, though You test me, You will find nothing; I have resolved that my mouth will not sin. My steps have held to Your paths; my feet have not slipped. I call on You, O God, for You will answer me; give ear to me and hear my prayer. Show the wonder of Your great love, You who save by Your right hand those who take refuge in You from their foes. Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings. And I—in righteousness I will see Your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing Your likeness."

Psalm 17:6a

I am currently working on recording a song Psalm 17 and I have been thinking a lot about the first part of verse 6. The psalmist says:

 

I call on You, my God, for You will answer me.

 

This became exceedingly relevant as it was National Day Of Prayer yesterday. Notice the verse doesn't say "for You might answer me" or "for You'll probably answer me". It says "for You WILL answer me". Not only can we be confident that God hears our every prayer but that He will answer our every prayer.

Miracles

This past Monday, my wife, Katie, and I found out that God is blessing us with a baby boy. His name is going to be Levi Joseph (God has joined together in harmony and will increase). As I sat watching the ultrasound I thought about the miracle of birth. How so many things have to go right at every stage. How the female body adapts to having a whole other person inside of it. How the baby's body grows and matures as the weeks go by.

 

There are some that say miracles no longer occur. I say they are fools. There are 6 billion people on earth right now because of 6 billion miracles.

 

Not only is our first birth a miracle, but our rebirth as well. That the Holy Spirit can change my heart and mold my life according to the purpose of the Lord is nothing short of miraculous.

 

How many miracles have you seen this week, this month, this year?

Psalm 23

So...we arrive at the most well known psalm of all. This was a hard one to write in a way though God was good in gifting me with the idea. I wanted to use the whole psalm (I normally use a a few verses that I find key or that speak personally to me), and I wanted to write something that was in my own style (so many people have written songs to this psalm that I wanted to make sure I did my own). I went back to my roots with just me and my piano on this one. Happy Easter to all!

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

You are my shepherd, I shall not want
You make me lie down in green pastures
You lead me beside still waters
You restore my soul.
You guide me in paths of righteousness
You guide me in paths for Your Name's sake
Even though I walk through shadows of death
Through shadows of death
You are with me.
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me
You prepare me a table before mine enemies
You anoint my head with oil
My cup runneth o'er, my cup runneth o'er
Surely goodness, love and mercy
Follow me through all my life and I
Will dwell with You forever, forever
Forevermore.

Psalm 23: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

Easter Song

So here's a really quick version of Easter Song. Just putting this up on the site so those on our Modern Team can listen to it. I'll eventually be redoing this with the full band sound. I'm not one for remaking songs but back about three years ago, there was a request of me to have this song played during Easter. I wasn't a big fan of this song to begin with but there are great versions (look up Keith Green) and super cheesy/campy versions (look up Glad). I am not a big fan of remakes unless you make it your own so I completely redid the chorus to modernize it a little bit. Please note I do not take credit for writing this song. That honor belongs to Anne Herring.

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse 1: Hear the bells ringing
They're singing that we can be born again
Hear the bells ringing
They're singing Christ is risen from the dead

Bridge: The angel upon the tombstone said
He is risen just as He said
Quickly now go tell His disciples
That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

Chorus: Joy to the world
He's the risen Lord, we sing alleluia
Joy to the world
He's the risen Lord, we sing alleluia

You Are God

So I realized I haven't posted anything in almost a month. Tsk, tsk. I'm going to spend some time recording this weekend I think, so keep an eye out for at least one new song. Well, here's another older recording of a piano song I wrote called "You Are God". I don't usually have an intent when I begin writing a song; it usually kind of writes itself. However, with this one I wanted to write something so simple and easy to remember that people wouldn't have a hard time with the melody and/or lyrics. Two of my models for this song were "Isn't He Beauitful?" and "I Love You Lord"...simple songs that everyone knows and loves. Anyway, many thanks to Deb Acker for doing the lead vocal.

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse 1: You are God
You and only You
Praise be to You, O God

Verse 2: You saved me
You and only You
Praise be to You, O God

Chorus: For You alone are He
That makes my life complete
And I long to be with You, God

Verse 3: I will follow You
You and only You
Praise be to You, O God

Psalm 4

So it's been a while since I've been able to post any music. Who know that preparing for a baby would take so much work. Anyway, I found some old recordings I did about two years ago. I'll eventually re-record all of them but thought I'd upload them for some fun. This is one that we've played a lot in our Modern Service. A good full band song with lots of energy. Thanks to Rob McCreight for drumming.

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse: Answer me when I call to You, O God
Give the peace I need to carry on
I offer a sacrifice of praise that's true
I put my trust, my faith, my hope in You

Pre-Chorus: You have filled my heart with greater joy
More than earthly things can do
I lay down and sleep in peace, O Lord
In a peace that comes from You.

Chorus: Let the light of Your face shine upon us
Let Your mercy and grace reign down
Let the light of Your face shine upon us
Let Your mercy and grace surround me

Psalm 4:1, 5, 7 & 8: "Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer. Offer right sacrifices and trust in the Lord. You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound. I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety."

God Knows Our Deepest Desires

Just a word of encouragement to anyone out there that might be experiencing some struggles.

 

I've been discovering lately that God has given me exactly what I have asked for. It has not been in the way that I expected, the way that I planned or the way that I desired. But He has been faithful to me and He will continue to bless me with what I need. It may not come in the neat little package that I've asked Him for, but it WILL come. Thank You Lord.

Integrity

Some of you might know that I am a huge sports fan, especially when it comes to college basketball. On Sunday, Pastor Ron taught about maintaining integrity. He used several sporting examples of a lack of integrity (Tennessee basketball coach Bruce Pearl, Auburn quarterback Cam Newton, NBA ref Tim Donaghy). I wanted to share a story about the BYU basketball program. Now I know that the people involved believe some very different things than I do, but I still think we can learn a lesson.

 

For those that don't follow college basketball, BYU has a very good team this year. They whooped up on the U of A when they played early in the season, they have a national player of the year candidate in Jimmer Fredette and recently reached #3 in the rankings. But a couple of days ago, they dismissed their leading rebounder for violation of the school's honor code. It was just announced today that it was because the player had premarital sex with his girlfriend. You see, BYU makes every student, athlete or not, sign a covenant stating they will be abstinent (students are also not allowed to do drugs, drink alcohol or caffeine among other things). The student owned up to it, apologized to his teammates and is not appealing any action by the school at this point.

 

The thing that struck me was the school's response to this whole ordeal. They immediately removed the player from the team...a player that could be argued was their second most important...no questions asked...in the middle of a national championship caliber season. The landscape of college basketball and sports in general currently is to kowtow to the athletes. DUIs, drug charges and domestic abuse occur frequently and teams continue to let their players play so their team's record is not affected. A college baseball player was recently allowed to continue his run at the consecutive game hit streak record even though he has rape charges currently in the Bahamas (I'm happy to say, he fell 2 games short).

 

What set BYU apart from all of this? It was Pastor Ron's second point in his conclusion. True integrity is not influenced by circumstances. Many other schools would have kept it internal and withheld disciplinary action or at least waited until season's end. But they didn't. They did the right thing even when it truly hurt. How do we apply that? Psalm 15:4b says that one of the criteria for those worthy to live in God's sanctuary is to keep his oath even when it hurts. It's easy to have integrity on a sunny day, but it means so much more when we maintain it through the storm.

 

Hoss

4' 33"

For anyone wondering about the title of this post it is "4 minutes 33 seconds". This is the title of a "song" by "musician" John Cage. It is a 3 movement piece where the orchestra sits silent for 4 minutes and 33 seconds and the audience is made to listen to the sounds around them...shuffling feet, people clearing the throat, the air conditioner in the theatre. You can watch this on Youtube in several different venues (and be bored to tears I might add).

You might be thinking, what a strange subject to write about. But I use this example to arrive at a quote of Mr. Cage's that I wanted to share with you:

"The highest purpose is to have no purpose at all. This puts one in accord with nature, in her manner of operation."

This is what the world wants us to believe. If we have no real purpose, then nothing matters and we can act however we want. Mr. Cage presupposes that by having no purpose, we will be like nature. But I beg to differ:

"The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands." - Psalm 19:1

"The people whom I formed for Myself will declare My praise." - Isaiah 43:21

It seems Mr. Cage is 100% wrong. Allow me to write my own quote:

"The highest purpose is to declare the glory of God. This puts one in accord with nature and, more importantly, into obedience of its Creator." - Hoss

El Camino Blog

So for those that may not read it, El Camino Baptist has a blog (http://www.elcaminochurch.blogspot.com/) where the 5 ministry leaders put down some thoughts each week (or as often as I can coerce them to). So I thought I would also share my posts on this blog as well. I find it really cathartic to put into writing what God has been doing in my life. I suggest it to everyone, even if no one reads it. It's just one more way to capture yourself in the promises of God:

I have been re-reading Matthew during my morning devotions and I came across this passage from chapter 5, verse 48:

"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

That is one heavy command. But, think about the wording of that first phrase. We are to be perfect. He doesn't say we will be perfect. He doesn't say we can be perfect. If we were able to achieve perfection then we wouldn't have a need for our perfect Heavenly Father. God wants us to strive toward righteousness and holiness. If we are going to be a light to our world, will that be better accomplished sitting in the comfort of where we are spiritually or having a constant and burning desire for purity? Romans 6:18 has the answer:

"and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness."

Baby Hoss

So as some of you may know, Katie and I are expecting our first. What you may not know is that I finished writing my lullaby for Lindsey's kids at about 10 p.m. on January 9th and we found out we were pregnant on January 10th. Just one more of those funny little things that God does...Anyway, I can't wait to raise my child in the Lord. Isaiah 43:21 says that we are formed by God to declare His praise and I'm going to make sure that my little one loves God as much as I do.

Mac Users

So I've added .mov files in addition to the .wmv so Mac users can now listen as well. Perhaps now they'll stop looking down their noses at this poor, pathetic PC user. (You know who are...)

Wordle

So one other thing that I'm doing...When you click on a link to listen to a song, you'll be taken to the El Camino website (it was easiest to have my songs hosted through there). Now, on each psalm you'll see a "word cloud", something my mother-in-law introduced me too. You take a bunch of text, input it at www.wordle.net and it generates a random "word cloud". So I've chosen the 20 most repeated words in each psalm (minus "the", "and", etc.) so you can see at a glance what that psalm was talking about most.

Psalm 18

I really love the beginning of this psalm (I used it for the chorus). David goes through a bunch of adjectives/Names of God, all of them dealing with God's strength and unchangingness. But my favorite line comes from verse 31, "For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God?"

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse 1: The earth trembled at the voice, the voice of the Most High
The foundations shook at the sound of my God and Savior
I will give thanks, I'll sing praise to Your Name for Your lovingkindness
The Lord lives, the lord lives

Chorus: I love You, Lord, You are my Strength
You are my Rock, my Fortress and Refuge
You're worthy of praise, my Stronghold and Shield
You're my salvation, You are my Strength

Verse 2: His way is blameless, His Word is true, a shield about me
He gives strength to me and his hand, His hand upholds me
You train me for battle, who is God but the Lord, who's a Rock but our God?
And Your gentleness makes me great

Psalm 18:1-3, 7, 13, 30-32, 34, 46 & 49: "I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies. The earth trembled and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains shook; they trembled because he was angry. The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded. As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior! Therefore I will praise you among the nations, O Lord; I will sing praises to your name."

New Post

So I wasn't able to post any new material this week but I did notice that in an effort to boost the volume on the songs, I overdrove it a little and some things were coming out a little distorted...whoopsy. I returned everything to their proper level so it should be better.

I'm also excited because the next 2 Sundays we are introducing 2 new songs to the Modern Service (hint: one of them is on here). Let me know what you think of the arrangements we did.

When I Kiss You Goodnight

So reading the lyrics you may notice that this isn't a praise and worship song. A little story behind that:

I work as Business & Technology Director at El Camino and each year we have a staff Christmas party. This year, instead of a "traditional" white elephant, Pastor Ron decided that all staff members should a love language gift (this is from the "5 Love Languages"...words of affirmation, acts of service, etc.). I decided that for mine, I would write a song on the subject and in the styling that the person wanted. One of our Children's Ministry assistant directors, Lindsey, wound up with mine and she asked for a nice acoustic song for her kids, Alayna and AJ.

Being as God has not yet blessed me to be a father, this song has been the hardest to write so far. However, I thought back to my childhood and remembered that I always loved when my parents tucked me in at night. I'm sure that must be a really special time for parents as well so I based my song around that idea.

Lindsey, I hope you enjoy the song and that it's something you and James can sing to Alayna & AJ. Merry Christmas!!

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse: Go to sleep my child, rest your weary head
Close your eyes, let your worries fade far beyond your bed
Today is gone but tomorrow brings another gift
And I don't want to miss a second
So I'll be right here waiting for you

Chorus: Cause when I kiss you goodnight and pray God keeps you safe
When I hold you in my arms until you're fast asleep
When I sing you a lullaby though I don't know the words
When I kiss you goodnight, I'll stay till morning breaks

Bridge: And I, I wanted you to know
That I, I love you more than my words can
Describe, so I'll sit and sing you this lullaby

Problem Solved

So I was able to find a work around for the QuickTime/ITunes problem so all songs should now be listenable by everyone.

Psalm 20

Brand new song that I just came up with a couple days ago and just had to get recorded. Some acoustic finger picking.

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse 1: We'll rejoice
In Your Name
And in Thy great salvation
We'll rejoice

Chorus 1: They fall down
But we rise in the Lord

Verse 2: Now I know
That the Lord
He saves His anointed
Now I know

Chorus 2: Some may boast in this world
But I will boast in the Name of the Lord

Psalm 20:5-8: "We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests. Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed; he answers him from his holy heaven with the saving power of his right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm."

Psalm 15 Video

So I was a little bored the other day and decided to make a video for this song. I have a few more good ideas that I will be putting up in the next few days, if I can ever find the time to record. I've also heard that some people are having trouble listening to the songs because of QuickTime/ITunes. I'll be working on a solution for that too.

Lord You Are

So not all of my songs are based on psalms. Here is one called "Lord You Are" that we sing at El Camino on a regular basis. I find my wife singing this one sometimes when she is scrapbooking or cleaning around the house. I always feel blessed that she is having a little time of worship with God and just happens to be using one of my songs to do it. A very simple song with acoustic guitar, bass and drums.

Click here to listen

Lyrics:

Verse: Lord You are, You are
More beautiful than words
Lord You are, You are
More beautiful than words can say

Chorus: And I'll love You with all my heart, all my soul
And I'll love You with all my strength and might

Ending: Lord You are, You are
More beautiful than words can say
More beautiful than words can say