Terribly Interesting

I stumbled across this album somehow and it quickly escalated to one of my very favorites. To my knowledge, no one has combined scripture and gorgeous lullaby music before this group. They have brought this project together masterfully. To be completely candid, I abhor most all music geared for children. It's whiny, incessantly peppy, and poorly made. I can make it through one or two songs and then, I need some music therapy. This is completely different. Each night we signal the transition to bed time with soft music. We listen to classical, to Jewel's lullaby cd, etc. I have been long searching for music that would be soothing and sing scripture over them. The artists who put this album together have written hundreds of songs for people like Trace Adkins, Marc Broussard, Francesca Batistelli, Mandisa, Clay Walker, Brandon Heath, and many more. I think the genius here is undeniable. My husband and I love it just as much as our girls do. We have both volumes. You can...

I recently read In My Father's House by Corrie ten Boom. In it she tells of the beautiful receptivity of the mentally handicapped people she led Bible studies for and visited with. One was of a young boy that attended her Bible study. She went to visit him at his home and found him in his room kneeling in front of a chair singing the lyrics to this powerful hymn. She also saw the same lines repeated by a dying child in a hospital. May we all experience such trust and deliverance in our personal worship. "Out of my bondage, sorrow & night, Jesus, I come;   Into Thy freedom, gladness & light, Jesus, I come to Thee. Out of the depths of ruin untold, into the peace of Thy sheltering fold, Ever Thy glorious face to behold, Jesus, I come to Thee."

I was touched by watching Aaron's video on YouTube. It really gave me a lens to view this project through. Watch it if you are able. There is a richness to what he is lyrically proclaiming in the face of a grave illness that overtook his son. God is glorified and exalted in this project. You can see His goodness in the midst of trial.  Hope is offered to the listener in the lead single "My Hope is In You." I was touched by this line, “My hope is in You Lord/  all the day long/  I won’t be shaken by drought or storm/  the peace that passes understanding is my song/ and I sing/   my hope is in You alone."   The gospel is clearly laid out for us throughout the entire project. Christ is seen. Christ is called upon.  Somehow, he made an upbeat, contemporary album very restful and peaceful. It's the kind of music you could listen to all day and not grow weary. It gives rest to the spirit of a person. Check out his new album .

I am reviewing this album and will post the review on the release date. I just thought this was a beautiful testimony of God's love. 

Last year, I came across a scripture that spoke to me in a very painful time in my life. It seemed a bit obscure. It was not the common topical scriptural antibiotic we apply to pain. It reminded me of a lesson I had learned about God many times during trials in this life. In 2 Chronicles 20:22, God instructs the Israelite forces to praise His name and He turned their opposing armies against each other. Then Israel just stood there staring at their corpses. When we praise God, He defeats our enemy. During a period of deep grief and turning the other cheek, God reminded us to focus on Him and allow Him to take care of the rest. We wrote the words to give those in great despair words to praise with when nothing would come. Revelation 12 tells us that we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. This is our testimony of God's goodness in grief. God gave me a poem some time ago that was written by 19th century poet John Greenleaf Whittier. There is a line in it ...

I was sitting at lunch with a few pastors the other day. They were recounting their horror stories of multiple children to me and how it took so much away from their lives. Remember, I am pregnant with my second child. Internally, I was trying not to laugh at their insensitive statements. Later that night, at worship, I was dancing with my daughter who fell asleep on my shoulder. I nuzzled my face down into her neck and I just recalled how quickly time had already passed. In that moment of abandoned love, I poured out my love to the Father with deep thanks. In a few years, I would not be able to hold her like that any more. May we each enjoy the deep love that God has trustingly laid out for us and imbibe of the delicacies of His passion toward His children. Drink love deeply. ©stephaniecherry.com

When I first started wanting to review books and music, I would search the web for other reviews and see how people went about the reviewing process. Most of what I found was boringly long, technical, and didn't make me want to read or buy anything. If you are wanting to know this kind of thing, I will ask my husband for you. As for me, I don't care. What I care about is if it told a story. Did it make me yearn to sit at the feet of God and enjoy Him?  I must confess that I have not listened to Andrew Peterson before now. It is a shame. I loved this album. It made me want to curl up in my rocking chair on the porch, coffee in hand, and just enjoy God's creation. His mellow, folk story style made me feel at home. In fact, I think he might have a little bit of Austin, Texas flair in him. Reading about the stories behind each song was deeply stirring to my spirit. Mostly, I loved watching him talk about the making of the album in this video. His natural posture of intimacy...

I was recently given the opportunity to review new music for Centricity Music. Several of our amazingly gifted friends write for Centricity and I am blessed to get to review new music for them. I was given the opportunity to listen to the new album by Sixteen Cities this past week. They are an up and coming group out of Portland. The music was excellently produced. All of the songs posses a driving beat and gifted musicians. Winter is one song in particular ministered to me. I thought you might enjoy the lyrics and will include them in this post. The song is deeply thought provoking and a humble cry to God. Check out Sixteen Cities . Winter by Sixteen Cities How did I ever get this broken? I never meant to fall this far. I feel like I'm completely frozen. Can I find a way, back to where you are? Cuz I've been searching for the sun, but I don't know if anyone, can tell me how to find my way home. All the things that I've become, are all the things I'm ru...