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Merry Christmas everyone.
A couple fun news items in StumpTown today.
First, my Dad has his new medication. Praise God. No really, I’m not just saying that to indicate that I am praising God or that it is something praiseworthy but because I am hoping that you will actually praise God. I know many of you have been praying for this, so please take a minute and say thank you. The new medication will allow him to avoid having to travel out of state to a drug trial. In a truly amazing turn of events, when his insurance company would not pay for this drug, the drug company (Bayer…my new favorite) agreed to give him the drug for free. How often do you hear about that happening? It is true though. Now the important part. This drug needs to work. The others have not or have stopped and the tumors are growing rapidly. Please keep us in your prayers.
Second, we had 4 snow days this week and it was awesome. I worked from home and mixed in a little sledding and snowball fighting with the boys. Lots of people around here are sick of the snow and the way it interferes with life, but for me, who has a hard time allowing life to interfere with my plans, the snow has been a welcome interruption. The work is still getting done, but now it is getting done along with great memories of sliding down our long steep driveway with my 8 year old screaming “yeah baby” as he grips ahold of me on the sled. Good times.
Speaking of my 8 year old and the snow. G1 took a snowball to the face earlier this week. It probably stung and was really, really cold. In times past this would have led to a 5 minute crying timeout at least as he vented both his pain and anger in tears. This remains one of my least favorite aspects of parenting young children (yes, I know…I lack compassion). This time however, he just looked around at his stunned and braced for bawling parents and smiled a big toothy grin through his icy white mask of snow. No crying. No complaining. Just laughing and firing back. My little boy is growing up.
Third, I am very pleased and excited to announce that our Praise Team has finished its latest CD. For those of you not familiar with this project, the Westside Church of Christ Praise Team leads worship at Westside every week generally led by yours truly. Before I came back to Westside, the previous praise teams have recorded albums and some who were here during that era had often requested that we do it again.
This time, however, there was a new and fun (I hope) twist to the process. As some of you may know I have been writing praise and worship songs for the last three or four years and 9 of the 11 tracks on this cd are original songs I wrote with the help of my lovely wife, my “house band” (my wife, and our friends Tony and Jennifer), the Praise Team and some uber-talented musician types: Ike Graul, Kris Strobeck and Clarissa Cox. I am still writing and it has become one of the greatest blessings in my life.
Anyway, Jennifer Davis who sings alto with us wrote one of the other tracks and then we also do the old hymn Holy Holy Holy just because we like it. Jennifer has written more and she and I are already at work creating music for next year’s cd.
A couple months ago the PT got together with wunderkind Kris Strobeck who is a local musician and producer and personal friend. We recorded 11 tracks for this cd in a single day and evening. It was an immense amount of work. But thanks to the talented folks that sing on our PT and Kris’s excellent guidance, we made it happen. Then Kris and I have worked over the past few weeks (mostly Kris) to “clean up” and “produce” the songs to prepare them for the CD. That process is finally complete and thanks again to Kris and his amazing talent, I think they came out really good.
Anyway, someday very soon, this CD will be available for purchase. At this point, it should be for sale at Amazon and iTunes in mid to late January, but possibly sooner. The cd artwork was done by a very talented young artist at Westside who is the son of one of our longtime PT singers and the collaboration of talent with some of my closest friends has really made this one of the most fun things I have ever worked on.
So, I will announce and send a link to where you can buy it when it goes on sale if you would like one. If you attend Westside (or just want to come visit), you can purchase the CD at a discount once it is available. If you live in the Portland area and want to be invited to our CD release party (you thought with Jennifer and my wife involved there would not be a party? Come on!!), please let me know and we’ll get you on the list.
I know I speak for the whole PT when I say that our only hope is that this CD and the music on it will glorify God. The process of worshiping God to create the CD has already blessed me more than I can say.
May the God of peace and the peace of God be with you all.
A couple fun news items in StumpTown today.
First, my Dad has his new medication. Praise God. No really, I’m not just saying that to indicate that I am praising God or that it is something praiseworthy but because I am hoping that you will actually praise God. I know many of you have been praying for this, so please take a minute and say thank you. The new medication will allow him to avoid having to travel out of state to a drug trial. In a truly amazing turn of events, when his insurance company would not pay for this drug, the drug company (Bayer…my new favorite) agreed to give him the drug for free. How often do you hear about that happening? It is true though. Now the important part. This drug needs to work. The others have not or have stopped and the tumors are growing rapidly. Please keep us in your prayers.
Second, we had 4 snow days this week and it was awesome. I worked from home and mixed in a little sledding and snowball fighting with the boys. Lots of people around here are sick of the snow and the way it interferes with life, but for me, who has a hard time allowing life to interfere with my plans, the snow has been a welcome interruption. The work is still getting done, but now it is getting done along with great memories of sliding down our long steep driveway with my 8 year old screaming “yeah baby” as he grips ahold of me on the sled. Good times.
Speaking of my 8 year old and the snow. G1 took a snowball to the face earlier this week. It probably stung and was really, really cold. In times past this would have led to a 5 minute crying timeout at least as he vented both his pain and anger in tears. This remains one of my least favorite aspects of parenting young children (yes, I know…I lack compassion). This time however, he just looked around at his stunned and braced for bawling parents and smiled a big toothy grin through his icy white mask of snow. No crying. No complaining. Just laughing and firing back. My little boy is growing up.
Third, I am very pleased and excited to announce that our Praise Team has finished its latest CD. For those of you not familiar with this project, the Westside Church of Christ Praise Team leads worship at Westside every week generally led by yours truly. Before I came back to Westside, the previous praise teams have recorded albums and some who were here during that era had often requested that we do it again.
This time, however, there was a new and fun (I hope) twist to the process. As some of you may know I have been writing praise and worship songs for the last three or four years and 9 of the 11 tracks on this cd are original songs I wrote with the help of my lovely wife, my “house band” (my wife, and our friends Tony and Jennifer), the Praise Team and some uber-talented musician types: Ike Graul, Kris Strobeck and Clarissa Cox. I am still writing and it has become one of the greatest blessings in my life.
Anyway, Jennifer Davis who sings alto with us wrote one of the other tracks and then we also do the old hymn Holy Holy Holy just because we like it. Jennifer has written more and she and I are already at work creating music for next year’s cd.
A couple months ago the PT got together with wunderkind Kris Strobeck who is a local musician and producer and personal friend. We recorded 11 tracks for this cd in a single day and evening. It was an immense amount of work. But thanks to the talented folks that sing on our PT and Kris’s excellent guidance, we made it happen. Then Kris and I have worked over the past few weeks (mostly Kris) to “clean up” and “produce” the songs to prepare them for the CD. That process is finally complete and thanks again to Kris and his amazing talent, I think they came out really good.
Anyway, someday very soon, this CD will be available for purchase. At this point, it should be for sale at Amazon and iTunes in mid to late January, but possibly sooner. The cd artwork was done by a very talented young artist at Westside who is the son of one of our longtime PT singers and the collaboration of talent with some of my closest friends has really made this one of the most fun things I have ever worked on.
So, I will announce and send a link to where you can buy it when it goes on sale if you would like one. If you attend Westside (or just want to come visit), you can purchase the CD at a discount once it is available. If you live in the Portland area and want to be invited to our CD release party (you thought with Jennifer and my wife involved there would not be a party? Come on!!), please let me know and we’ll get you on the list.
I know I speak for the whole PT when I say that our only hope is that this CD and the music on it will glorify God. The process of worshiping God to create the CD has already blessed me more than I can say.
May the God of peace and the peace of God be with you all.
Comments
I don't want to be invited to the CD release party, but I DO want to know when it is so I can show up and create a big scene. Might bring along a half dozen Koreans with me.
On another note: Good call on the Holy, Holy, Holy. One of my all time favorites. Gives me goosebumps every time.
Bayer rocks.
Also, if you thought you loved Holy Holy Holy already, wait until you hear this version. There is an absolutely stunning descant sung by our beautiful angel voiced soprano Aliyih that will knock your socks off! The entire praise team has been known to lose concentration and stop singing our parts when she begins her descant. It is amazing! I am excited for you to hear all of the new songs. He has done fantastic work! If I do say so myself...
Keep those cover art submissions coming.
Just the fact that you were able to get all of those folks to coordinate their schedules and like each other at the same time is huge. I look forward to hearing your C.D.
No "snow memories" here in Central Florida. High Temp is 82 and the a/c is running.
am excited for the p.t. cds...and for you and jennifer getting your beautiful work out there.
close on the cd's heels will be requests for arrangements.
i know a lot of people will be blessed by this cd...i know plenty who have already been affected by the songs already.
as for a possible submission for the next?! i love "Flee as a Bird"...with a nice soft second soprano and a lilting tenor? That song haunts me.