Then Sings My Soul Saturday: How Deep The Father’s Love For Us.

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

I’ve been singing this all week, rehearsing. The Praise Team will be singing it for the first time on Sunday. (I am SO happy we are singing a song with WORDS! and they’re not all the SAME! And they MEAN something!)

I love this version by Phillips, Craig and Dean. The bongos are such a peaceful addition. It’s been like a mini-devotional for me. Multiple, multiple, multiple times a day. Every day. Especially with all I am thinking about this week.

“How deep the Father’s love for us,
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss,
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the chosen One,
Bring many sons to glory

Behold the Man upon a cross,
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,
Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection”

Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom
(REPEAT)

For more Saturday music, check out Then Sings My Soul Saturday every Saturday hosted by Amy at Signs, Miracles and Wonders.

tone, pace and accessibility.

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

Rehearsal last night wasn’t as bad as I expected. The music is definitely repetitive, and the lyrics sometimes mean abso-flippin-lutely NOTHING, but thankfully, this group didn’t repeat stuff more than 3 or 4 times. That said, there’s a new unexpected problem I have with the music now.

Tone and pace.

The tone is LOUD and the pace is FAST.

And I’m not saying that because I’m old and I just don’t like the music. I listen to a contemporary Christian radio station (Z88.3). I actually like punk rock to some extent. And our vehicles both have a preset to the classic rock station. One of my favorite walking songs is Dude Looks Like a Lady by Aerosmith. (GREAT walking beat). I’m not saying LOUD and FAST because I like soft and slow. Anne Murray is not on my mp3 player.

So, that established. The tone and pace of the music is LOUD and FAST. What does that do for a church service? It’s choppy. There’s no time for reflection. There’s no transition from the hectic world they just drove through to get there and the inside of the sanctuary. The walk through the narthex is too short for that. It needs to happen DURING the service. Is there a reason they call it the “Praise” team at this church and not the “Worship” team? Because those two words are not interchangeable.

FirstHusband was a music minister for over a decade in the first part of our marriage and he’s participated in planning more than a few worship services. One of the pastors taught him about tone and pace. Personally, my focus has always been on matching the music with the message as much as possible. I’ve taught speech, so the emphasis for me is supporting the message. “Supporting materials” as we call it in speech. So every time I’m asked to sing, I look for songs that enhance the message.

But FirstHusband is more about tone and pace. Flow. A warming up, a building up, a peak, a cool down. For example, throwing the announcements in the middle of the service always screeches the pace to a halt. I get it a little. I’m learning. And last night was a big data point for me. This music is so fast it’s sometimes difficult for me to keep up – if I want to breathe correctly. I breathe using my diaphragm when I sing and after two hours of rehearsal, I’m physically tired. Singing is almost like exercise when you do it properly. I was working extra hard last night.

Will the congregation keep up? I’m going to be watching to see if they do. Because another thing FirstHusband said was that the music has to be “accessible” to the congregation. I TOTALLY get that. Last Sunday, I sang the first verse of “I Can Only Imagine” by Mercy Me. (That one wasn’t too fast.) It was a praise team song, leading the congregation, but the congregation wasn’t singing. They were just watching, like I was singing a solo. After the first few words, I actually had to SAY, “Join Me.” to get them to sing.

Tone and pace. Accessibility. This is making a lot of sense.

I wonder what the new music minister will do.

I’m giving a gift. I’m giving a gift. I’m giving a gift.

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

I have to keep telling myself that. Over and over and over again. The repetition is important.

I’ve been singing with our church’s praise team. This Sunday, Palm Sunday, will by my fourth week. This is a big deal. I have a big HUGE problem with much of today’s worship team music. Often – VERY often, the music either says NOTHING or it says the same thing over and over and over and over and over (how many is that?) and over again. Six. This Sunday (and rehearsal tonight), that’s how many times I have to sing:

“Open the eyes of my heart, Lord.
Open the eyes of my heart.
I want to see you.
I want to see you.”

Six. times. With the chorus after four and then this verse again twice. Oh, yes. THIS is the verse. Just because it’s the SAME verse over and over and. okay. I’ll stop. But seriously. It’s actually more than six all together because it repeats AGAIN. I Googled the lyrics and THIS actually appears at the end:

(Repeat five more times)

ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

Another song for this week?

“Forever God is faithful
Forever God is strong
Forever God is with us
Forever
Forever
Forever God is faithful
Forever God is strong
Forever God is with us
Forever
Forever
Forever

His love endures forever
His love endures forever
His love endures forever
Forever
Sing praise, sing praise
Sing praise, sing praise”

and mix up and repeat ad nauseam.

again. ahhhhhhhh!!!!!!

Why am I singing with the praise team if the music makes me this crazy? It started with a phone call from someone who usually begins with, “Hey, Julie, How are you?!” This phone call began instead with “WE NEED YOU. Can you sing with the praise team for the next two weeks?” I didn’t have a reason to say no. So I said yes. We’ve been going to church at the 9:30 a.m. contemporary service instead of the 11:00 a.m. traditional service. Kinda nice to get out so early. Not so easy to skip church either. My daughter loves having mom sing “up there.” My son isn’t embarrassed. (Hey, I’ll take it.) My husband tells me the music is better with me up there. But. The music.

It’s not just Thursday night rehearsal and Sunday morning performance for me. I sing it all week in the car because I rehearse more than enough to be able to sing it without sheet music in front of me on Sunday morning. Because if I’m going to do this, I’m going to give it my best. And because for as much as these songs repeat, they repeat in a certain order. I’ve downloaded them from Amazon and made a playlist on my mp3 player for the praise team so I can just listen whenever I’m in the car. And I’m a mom. I can spend some serious time in the car. I’ve been singing this music for one to two hours a day. I can’t listen to it any more today. I just can’t. It’s a praise sucker for me at this point.

I shared my problem with the person who asked me to help in the first place. She understands. She didn’t pick the music. A few days later she offered me this: “I may not like every song we do, but someone in the congregation might really love it. So I give that to them as a gift.”

Well.

A gift.

I suppose I can do that.

But can’t we just limit the gift to one a week? (yes. that was my whining voice.)

So again. Why am I still singing with the praise team? I was asked to sing for two weeks. This week makes four.

I’ve decided to stick it out until the end of April because the church is in musical transition. They just hired a new worship leader. He starts in May. My surgery is on April 30th and I’ll miss church for at least two weeks.

So.

I’m praying for direction. And I’m waiting. Serving. Giving a gift.

Then Sings My Soul Saturday: Susan Ashton

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

I’ve been flashing back to the 80’s with my TSMSS posts recently, but this week, I’m not going back quite that far. Actually, “So Far: The Best Of Susan Ashton, happens to be in my van’s CD player right now. This song is set on repeat because I’m learning it for performance.

LOVE this message. And WHERE IS SHE NOW?!

For more Saturday music, check out Then Sings My Soul Saturday every Saturday hosted by Amy at Signs, Miracles and Wonders.

Then Sings My Soul Saturday: Leslie Philips

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

Continuing in my trip down musical memory lane, here’s another artist I listened to. I tried to find “Strength of My Life” which is the song I used to perform way back in the day, but I only found a live concert performance (the second youtube clip below). I loved this song because I would sign it while I sang. The sign language for it is beautiful.

This first song is contagious.

For more Saturday music, check out Then Sings My Soul Saturday every Saturday hosted by Amy at Signs, Miracles and Wonders.

Then Sings My Soul Saturday – Larry Norman

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

Larry Norman (April 8, 1947 – February 24, 2008)

A few weeks ago, when I posted a Petra song for Then Sings My Soul Saturday, I got a hankerin to search youtube for other Christian groups and songs I listened to “back in the day.” Eventually, I got around to Larry Norman, who some call the father of Christian rock music. None of my friends were that into him, but I went right out and bought the cassette “Only Visiting This Planet. My favorites were:

“Why Don’t You Look Into Jesus”
“I Wish We’d All Been Ready”
“I Am Six O’clock News”
“Why Should The Devil Have All The Good Music”

In my reading, I learned that one of my FAVORITE all time Selah recordings, “Sweet, Sweet Song Of Salvation” was written by none other than Larry Norman. I had no idea.

The song, “I Wish We’d All Been Ready” was one of the solos I sang in high school – when kids were still allowed to sing Christian music in public school.

This is a compilation of Larry Norman song clips:

For more Saturday music, check out Then Sings My Soul Saturday every Saturday hosted by Amy at Signs, Miracles and Wonders.

This post brought to you by the letter “H”

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

Lisa at Lisa Writes, asked for participant’s in this particular meme and, always looking for a reason to beef up my “little known facts” page, I volunteered!

So, ten things I love that start with (the letter she assigned me) the letter “H” are:

I love my HUSBAND. He’s my best friend. The bonus? He loves me back.

I love my HOME. Because it is within our means and a cozy, memory making, safe, happy, comfortable blessing. I am SO thankful, that a few years ago, when the real estate market was going crazy, we didn’t buy a house we really couldn’t afford. Our daily lives would be very different. Our house would own us.

I love The Hallelujah Chorus. Every year, I have to go to EPCOT for the Candlelight Processional and get my annual Hallelujah Chorus fix. I try to go when Marlee Matlin is narrating. The year before last, we sat in the front row, near the musical sign language interpreter. Marlee, front and center, signing the Christmas story and an extremely talented sign language interpreter practically right in front of me, signing the music. INCREDIBLE.

I love the song “Hip to Be Square” It’s my ringtone. It’s my motto. What’s a motto? Nothing. What’s the motto with you? (movie trivia again. where’s it from?)

I LOVE the sound of Happy Children. Especially my own. My daughter. Singing at the top of her lungs. Her own made up songs. Without a care in the world. My son. Singing to whatever is on his itouch. When he thinks I’m not listening. If you are out somewhere trying to shush a loud child, don’t ever do it on my account. I knew kids were loud before I had them myself.

I love my Honda Odyssey. Because it’s paid for. And it starts EVERY time I turn the key. Do I want a different/new vehicle? No. And again NO. Because I would have to pay for it.

I love strong, tight Harmony. The harmony that comes when people are perfectly in tune. When they know and sing their own unique part, smooth and steady, while at the same time, they listen and adapt to blend . . . just right. I LOVE harmony. Musically and otherwise. I prefer harmony over unison. Musically and otherwise.

Heat. DRY heat. Specifically, the 6 x 4 foot cedar sauna in my garage. I bought it on eBay over 6 years ago. Someone won it at a home show and didn’t want it. I was digging my heels in at the expense, but FirstHusband strongly encouraged it. I haven’t gotten tired of it. I used it today. And I’m already planning on using it tomorrow.

Health. I’m so thankful for it and I’m not taking my health or the health of my family and friends for granted. I do NOT want a handicap sticker for my car. NO THANKS. I’m getting stronger. I’m walking. I’m eating healthier.

I got stuck here at the end. Do I cheat? Something like, “Honkin Big Pile of Books” or “Huge cup of coffee?”

I asked FirstHusband what he thought. He immediately said “Hope.” I asked him what he meant and he said, “Whenever you run across someone who is in, what they believe to be, a hopeless situation, you don’t accept that the situation is hopeless. You encourage them to consider an option or a path they hadn’t considered before. You love hope.

He’s right. I can be annoying that way. I was talking with FavoriteSon just yesterday about a problem he had and I clearly remember saying:

“I’m not saying I know what you should do. I don’t have the answer right now. I just believe there IS one.”

Hope. He’s right. FirstHusband is my density.

Want to participate in this meme? Write about ten things you love that begin with the first letter of your MIDDLE name. Then come back and comment on this post and link up to yours!

Then Sings My Soul – All Over Me.

Posted on by Julie Stiles Mills

I listened to Christian music before it was cool. I listened to Christian music in high school. And in college. In 1986, a group called Petra came out with an “album” (long play record, cassette) entitled “More Power To Ya”

I remember BLASTING this song in my car. Singing at the top of my lungs. Onlookers be ignored.

I’m sorry the sound level of this youtube video is so limited. This is so much better when it is so loud you can’t hear ANYTHING else. My recommendation? Download this song. BLAST it in the car, sans kids. Bond with me.

For more Saturday music, check out Then Sings My Soul Saturday every Saturday hosted by Amy at Signs, Miracles and Wonders.