Strong God {Album Review}

ALBUM TITLE: Strong God

ALBUM ARTIST: New Life Worship

FAVORITE TRACKS: Victorious God, All To Him, Strong God, Unassailable, Love Divine

RATING: 5/5

New Life Worship is one of my favorite worship movements, and I am so happy and excited to review this newly released album Strong God.They have become a big part of my journey as a lead worshipper and as a Christian. Our church used to sing their worship anthems including Here in Your Presence, Counting on God and their trademark I Am Free which has been our local church’s favorite.

In our present time, it’s undeniable that the world is rapidly changing. There’s crime, violence, trafficking, corruption, and it seems that they’re getting worse every day. When you open the television—there’s bad news, surf the internet—it’s bad news, the radio—still bad news. Then you open the Bible, and there’s good news! In the Book of Psalm chapter 68 verse five to six, David declares: “A Father to the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in His holy habitation. God setteth the solitary in families: He bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.” There’s a hope and strength in our God; and He is telling us right now; “The world may get insane but I, the Lord your God is your refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble, for my strength is made perfect for your weaknesses!”This is what clearly captured by the New Life Worship Team in their latest 12-cut album (10 tracks, two reprises) recorded LIVE at New Life Church in Colorado. Its purpose is to bring healing, comfort and restoration to those that suffered loss from the most destructive fire in Colorado’s History.

Unlike their previous albums, this is a collaboration of well-seasoned leaders and writers including Michael Farren, Jason Ingram, Cory Asbury, Meredith Andrews and Mia Fieldes, together with NLC’s very own worship pastors Brad Parsley and Jon Egan of Desperation Band. Jon opens the album with Jesus Reigns in an echoing sound of guitar. With its simple and easy to follow lyrics and arrangement, it’s awesome to hear various voices in proclaiming the Name that’s above all names! Another Jon Egan-led song is the title track Strong God, the ultimate worship song in the album. Jon passionately delivered every inch of the song with high conviction.

With their rich and diverse musical quality and instrumentation, Victorious God and Alive &Free stand out in energy and enthusiasm. Both led by Brad Parsley, he really has the same voice timbre with his brother Ross. I love the message of these worship anthems; rejoicing in the victory God has won and living out the freedom brought by our Victorious God.

Another song that stands out is Cory Asbury’s All To Him, its instrumentation is familiar with me; partly parallel to Citipointe Live and partly with Worship Central. People’s participation is highly manifested and its plonking piano adds an excitement throughout the song. Ascribe is another Cory-led, before listening to it, I am expecting to hear Cory’s 2009 song with the same title, and then suddenly I’m wrong. It’s a new anthem penned by Him. This folky, acoustic based song is perfectly captured in a solemn atmosphere. In a stunning worship duet, Abby Merkel and Nico Perez delivered More Than Enough. Inch by inch, the song increase on its intensity, then in silence they passionately sang the reprise.Jon Egan is here again with Unassailable,a Hillsong-like song but special on its own way. The reprise is very heart-pounding where Jon boldly proclaimed the Lordship of Jesus Christ and He encouraged the crowd to worship: “To the One who gave His life... to the One who gave it all, to the Unassailable, You cannot be defeated...” More worshipful moment come with Brad Parsley’s Who Compares. Nothing is greater than hearing people singing-out God’s praise in a nice orchestration. Another worship duet is Rachael Kiehne & Jonathan Moos’ very intimate Love Divine. It started very solemn then at the middle point it shifted to a spirit-moving grand instrumental part that will surely carry you along. 

Strong God is another great and anointed album and I could see that many lives will be touched by the songs captured in this record, and I pray that people would see how great God is, that in Him we can find strength, hope and courage as we walk in this life with Him.

ABOUT NEW LIFE WORSHIP

One of the most important things we do at New Life Church is to come together every week and experience the power of God's presence. People from different backgrounds and generations join as one to engage in worship as a family. It is there that we are refreshed and realigned. From the place of corporate worship, we go into our homes, schools, and workplaces as carriers of the joy, hope, and life found in presence of God.

That's what worship is all about. And that’s why the heartbeat of New Life Worship is to help people experience the presence of God and develop a life of worship.
Every CD, every resource, every facet of our ministry is designed with that end in mind. So, as you browse this site, keep your heart open. God is near and He wants to engage you in an all-consuming, life-long conversation called worship.

Follow him on social media sites:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/newlifeworship

Twitter: @NL_Worship

See more at: http://www.newlifeworship.com/

ABOUT INTEGRITY MUSIC

Integrity Music is a division of David C Cook, a leading nonprofit global resource provider serving the Church with life-transforming materials. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Integrity’s resources are distributed in more than 160 countries and sold worldwide. Originally founded as a direct-to-consumer music club in 1987, Integrity grew into one of Christian music’s biggest success stories and in the process helped ignite the widespread popularity of contemporary praise and worship music. Integrity Music’s roster includes: Lincoln Brewster, Paul Baloche, Rend Collective Experiment, All Sons & Daughters, Brothers McClurg, Daniel Bashta, Gateway Worship, New Life Worship, Christine D’Clario, ALM:uk, Planetshakers, Worship Central, Brian Doerksen and GRAMMY Award winners the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir and Israel Houghton.

See more at: http://integritymusic.com/

Disclosure: I received free review copy of the album in exchange of my honest review and opinion. Special thanks to Ms.S.Walker

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Destination Success: A Map Living Out Your Dreams {Book Review}

 BOOK TITLE: Destination Success: A Map Living Out Your Dreams

BOOK AUTHOR: Dwight Bain

SOFT COVER: 225 Pages

ISBN: 978-971-789-227-6

THEME: Self-help

RATING: 4.8/5

No matter where you are in life right now, you can be in success!

Are you living the life you really want? Are you reaching your goals? Are you able to recover from setbacks and move on? Life coach and counselor Dwight Bain shows you how to:

                >find direction and purpose

                >live out the seven secrets of success in daily life

                >bounce back from crisis and grow stronger

                >break free from self-destructive patterns of behavior in business, finances and relationships

                >gain unshakeable confidence to accomplish your dreams

No matter what odds or obstacles come your way, you can meet your potential!

My Thoughts:

In this changing world, people would say that it’s impossible or it’s hard to reach success.Full of discouragements, hopelessness and then you just felt like giving up; but this book will help you to get up and to get back your motivation and determination! It’s very helpful to living a life that is headed to success, don’t just read it, feel it, make it your own and live it out.Success can’t be done overnight. It’s not a one-time destination, it’s a lifetime journey.

I recommend this to beginners—students like me, to those that are discouraged and hopeless and to those who are longing for success.After reading this, I felt more determined, more motivated, upward, straight-headed and optimistic. What struck me is Bain’s definition of success, that it is a mindset. It’s managing your mood and mastering your motivations; managing your moods requires discipline to control your impulses while keeping a positive attitude no matter what happens. Success—it’s rare, it’s real, it’s obtainable, it’s worth the effort and IT’S WAITING ON YOU! After reading this book, stand up and live out your motivation, move in the right direction and handle failures wisely as you navigate to success!

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“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

-Jeremiah 29:11

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dwight Bain has spoken to thousands of groups—including Toyota, AT&T, Campus Crusade for Christ and the United Way—about the key elements needed to achieve personal and professional success. He and his family lives in Florida.

ABOUT THE CLC PUBLICATIONS

CLC Publications (formerly Christian Literature Crusade) is the English language publishing house for CLC Ministries International. Headquartered in Fort Washington, PA, CLC has published books for the Deeper Christian Life for over 50 years. Our focus has been to publish books by trusted authors with a clear and timeless message. Some of our better known authors from the past include Watchman Nee, Corrie ten Boom, Amy Carmichael, Andrew Murray and Roy Hession. Today we are also publishing books by well known authors like Warren Wiersbe and Michael Catt.

Many of our books are influenced by the message of the Keswick movement starting in 1875 in England and therefore some of our older authors have British origins or spoke on the Keswick stage at one time or another. While we do not limit our publishing to the theology of this movement, we are certainly excited to be able to convey the message of the Victorious Christian Life to a new generation.

As a part of CLC International, our books are sold and distributed in countries all over the world including but not limited to the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, India, the West Indies, and the Philippines. We are committed to being a significant part of fulfilling CLC’s international purpose of making evangelical Christian literature available to all nations so that people may come to faith and maturity in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Disclosure: A review copy of this book is provided for review by CLCPhilippines

For more info. visit: http://www.clcphilippines.com/

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The City Harmonic's HEART {Album Review}

ALBUM TITLE: Heart

ALBUM ARTIST: The City Harmonic

FAVORITE TRACKS: Here & There, Praise the Lord, Alive, Alive, Glory

RATING: 4.8/5

Multiple-award winning Canadian Band The City Harmonic recently released their highly anticipated sophomore album Heart. After the release of their debut album I have a Dream (Feels Like Home), The City Harmonic became the subject of Christian forums, garnering numerous nominations including their recent four GMA Canada Covenant Awards (happening Nov. 6 at Burlington, Ontario) as the Artist and Group of the Year, Praise and Worship Song of the Year and Music Video of the Year for their epic song Holy (Wedding Day). Reflecting life lived by the band members since their full-length debut, the new album shifts from the dream of what could and should be to the complexities of how to follow the true humanity of Christ’s example in the world.

HEART starts with an elegant piano orchestration Here & There. You can feel a heavy and very thick emotion, then in a sudden drop Elias Dummer entered in a soft voice. Its poetically-written lyrics will amuse you with its depth: “The heart is like Pandora’s box with just a crack it’s opened up to beat anew when all is lost to run, crawl, come home,” it describes a new life in Christ—who brought us into light, having a heart that is broken & contrite in repentance.There’s a grace for today so Praise the Lord; a song that reminds us to praise the Lord, rain or shine, whether you’re in darkness or light, in good times & bad—in every circumstances, because Jesus Christ is Lord. Its excellent packaging has been their signature along with their radio single City on a Hill; a clear exhortation of the Beatitudes/ Sermon on the Mount found in the book of Matthew chapter five. The piano-oriented Strong is birthed in the middle of Eric Fussilier’s battle with cancer he co-penned this anthem with Elias. The theme of God’s light shining in the darkness is one of the noticeable attributes of the songs throughout the album.

We all live in a fallen world; full of sorrow, pain and desperation, and no one is exempted to this. We can feel it all and sometimes we’re being discouraged and in doubt of God’s power. But Jesus said in John 16:33:”Take heart, for I have overcome the world!” it is the reminder of the song Take Heart, to re-affirm our trust and faith in Him. With the same message comes the upbeat Alive, Alive; an assurance in Him that though we walk through the valley (Psalm 23), He’ll never leave us for He’s alive that’s why we’re alive. Acoustic-based Love, Heal Me is a humble prayer for healing, honest and straight from the heart of the bassist Eric. Its instrumentation is somehow parallel to NeedToBreathe’s Lay ‘Em Down. The 28-second rhyme Songs of Longing, Joy and Peace is a prelude to Glory; an excellent expression of worship to Jesus the glory of God. The synths and lively beats will excite you

Love is highlighted with the songs Live Love& the rarely titled 1+1. Respectively, the one conveys the message of the extravagant love of Jesus, to make it the foundation of our lives, and the other one is about marital love. Long Walk Home is gorgeously presented in an acoustic plus maracas ensemble. It describes the journey of the prodigal son home to his father. Another acoustic-based song Brand New is a message of need of a Savior and Redeemer that He alone can make us brand new. To conclude the album, there’s their harmonious & ethereal cover of the classic hymn My Jesus I Love Thee; any listener would love to join the chorus together with the choir on proclaiming our love to Him our Savior.

Heart is simply honest and raw. This jam-packed 14-track album is a rousing journey of faith, hope, love, healing and grace found in Jesus. Breathed upon by God, all of the songs are straight from the heart. A wonderful reminder and help for us to imitate Jesus. No wonder why The City Harmonic garnered lots of nominations and awards from various giving bodies! Open you heart and listen to the beat of the Heart!

ABOUT THE CITY HARMONIC

2011 Breakout Artist of the Year The City Harmonic barreled its way from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada onto the music scene with Introducing The City Harmonic, an EP featuring “Manifesto,” which soared to No. 5 on iTunes and captivated over a million viewers on YouTube. Top that with becoming the best selling new artist on Billboard’s Top Current Digital Sales Chart (over 80K downloads), and it’s enough, among life’s crazy distractions, to get your attention.

But this band—vocalist/songwriter and pianist Elias Dummer, bassist Eric Fusilier, guitarist Aaron Powell and drummer Josh Vanderlaan— isn’t content to feed the machine or build a fan base so much as to build upon a dream. And not a dream as in a fairy tale. But THE Dream. These four guys grapple with the tension of this world, crafting it into anthems of longing, hope, and love—songs of light for ‘seeing through a glass darkly.’ The City Harmonic makes music that makes you reconsider what you really believe… about yourself, your world and your God.

Follow him on social media sites:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecityharmonic

Twitter: @TheCityHarmonic

See more at: http://www.thecityharmonic.com/

ABOUT INTEGRITY MUSIC

Integrity Music is a division of David C Cook, a leading nonprofit global resource provider serving the Church with life-transforming materials. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Integrity’s resources are distributed in more than 160 countries and sold worldwide. Originally founded as a direct-to-consumer music club in 1987, Integrity grew into one of Christian music’s biggest success stories and in the process helped ignite the widespread popularity of contemporary praise and worship music. Integrity Music’s roster includes: Lincoln Brewster, Paul Baloche, Rend Collective Experiment, All Sons & Daughters, Brothers McClurg, Daniel Bashta, Gateway Worship, New Life Worship, Christine D’Clario, ALM:uk, Planetshakers, Worship Central, Brian Doerksen and GRAMMY Award winners the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir and Israel Houghton.

See more at: http://integritymusic.com/

Disclosure: I received free review copy of the album in exchange of my honest review and opinion. Special thanks to Ms.S.Walker

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Becoming Us: A Worship Leader's Return to Shoes

By Jason Houtsma on September 19, 2013, Credits to: All About Worship

Going Barefoot

I used to lead worship barefoot. You’d be surprised how often people notice your feet.  I didn’t do it because I was “standing on holy ground,” though that’s what most people assumed. I did it as a reminder to myself that no matter how big of an audience I was in front of, I was always just a child to God.  It was a way to help me keep my pride in check because at the time, it seemed I was becoming a pretty big deal. I was leading worship both at home and abroad and the crowds were getting bigger.  There were times when I would stand on a stage before 8,000 people carefully directing their eyes away from me and onto Him. It felt important. Worship is important, but I don’t lead barefoot anymore. In fact, nowadays the idea seems rather absurd. It’s not that I’ve become overly conceited. I’ve just come to a different understanding of what I do.  

There Is No “Them”

You see, I was confused and my confusion started with having the word “leader” in my title.  Being a leader implies that we have followers. It subconsciously puts a separation between us and our congregation. We (the leadership) need to get them (the congregation) to do something and we will measure our success based on whether or not they do it. But what if we understand that there is no us and them? It’s just we. My role is not to get them to worship, or to like a particular style of music, or to be okay with the volume we play at.  My role is to give us what we need: words that express what God is doing and wants to do in our community. Make no mistake. It’s a huge responsibility, but it’s also a naturally humbling one. It’s a servant’s role. The guy in the mailroom doesn’t need to meditate on humility before he delivers the CEO’s mail.  It’s inherent in his job description.  He doesn’t think of himself as a big shot and no one will ever mistake him for one.  He’s not a rock star…obviously.  

It’s Not Your Fault

This “us and them” paradigm is woven into the fabric of western society and it’s difficult to break out of. We like to elevate people to a different level whether they deserve it or not.  We value certain talents over others. I often joke with my guitar students that playing guitar automatically adds 10 points to your attractiveness score. Even our church buildings reinforce this separation. We stand on a stage while everyone else stands on the floor. We sneak on stage to play background music while they respond to the message or take communion.  It all suggests that we are different.  

A Different Paradigm

Seven years ago I helped plant a small church community called Mosaic. (It’s not the one you’re thinking of.  Trust me, you’ve never heard of us.)  The beauty of starting from scratch is that you can create your own culture. We don’t have a stage. We all gather around the cross.  There is no separation. It very much communicates that we are in this together and our focus is Christ. We keep the music volume pretty low so we can hear everyone sing.  We sing both modern songs and hymns as well as original songs written in our community. When people suggest songs I listen to their suggestions.  Putting together a worship set doesn’t stress me out.  It’s easy.  I simply look at what’s happening in our community.

“One of our members just got diagnosed with cancer.  What can she sing right now?”

“We’ve been doing a lot of service projects lately.  We probably need to remind ourselves that it is not our works, but Christ in us that changes lives.”  

“Communion has been pretty meditative lately.  We should sing a song to celebrate the work He has done and the hope it offers us.”

I had a pastor friend visit recently, and he asked me how I planned the songs to match the message so well.  My response was that I didn’t.  The songs just match us.  

We’ve all heard the term “worship wars” and I’ve got my share of scars from them, but it’s a completely foreign concept when there’s no one to fight with!  It’s all us.  Now I use Mosaic as an example, but I’m not suggesting a particular methodology.  Becoming “we” will look different in every context.  I just want to share how good we can be!  I’ve led worship in some capacity for over 15 years in every environment you can imagine, and it’s never been so joyful and life-giving.  It’s no longer on me to make worship happen for them. Worship is simply our gift we get to offer Him.  One additional bonus: my feet don’t get near as cold in the winter.

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Check out my review on Dustin Smith's Rushing Waters HERE

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