The song for Episode 15 came together in under an hour (though a lot of time was spent to record the vocals). “I Can” was inspired by my wife Kim’s verse of the day which happened to be Philippians 4:13 (“I can do all things through Christ who

YOP 14: “Blessed Assurance”

Apr 8th, 2016

Episode 14 features the classic hymn, “Blessed Assurance.” This began as a choral number, but I chose to release it in a solo form to (finally) get a song out for this week. Once the arrangement is done and recorded, you’ll get the full version

YOP 13: “Bigger Than You”

Mar 28th, 2016

Episode 13 has an original song that’s very appropriate for Easter. “Bigger Than You” is a bluesy and soulful number that goes out to anything that might make you spend time worrying. Happy Easter!***LYRICS“Bigger Than You”Lost in the darke

YOP 12: “What A Friend” (featuring Grace Blackford)

Mar 20th, 2016

Episode 12 features another arrangement of a traditional hymn (“What A Friend We Have in Jesus”) and features guest vocalist (and listener of the podcast), Grace Blackford.I’ve been able to watch Grace grow up in our church (Emanuel Lutheran)

YOP 11: “Let Us Break Bread Together”

Mar 13th, 2016

Episode 11 features a track from my 2006 album, Verse by Verse (which was recently released in digital format for purchase on bandcamp). I hope you enjoy my arrangement of “Let Us Break Bread Together” with an accompanying scripture reading by

YOP 10: “Give Me Jesus”

Mar 6th, 2016

Episode 10 features a cover of the hymn, “Give Me Jesus.” Following a difficult week, I was quickly humbled and reminded how blessed I truly am. During this week (or any time, really), I’d encourage you to focus on the positive aspects of your

YOP 9: “Walls”

Feb 28th, 2016

Episode 9 brings another song from RESOUNDworship’s 12 Song Challenge. Each month, Joel and Sam from The RESOUNDworship Songwriting Podcast give a challenge to write a praise and worship song with specific guidelines.February’s song guidelines

YOP 8: “Fight On”

Feb 21st, 2016 11m 59s

Episode 8 is here with a new song and a special story. My cousin Kevin and his wife Gretchen are parents to a beautiful baby boy named Cayden. As of this episode’s release date, Cayden is 335 days old – almost ready to celebrate his 1st birthda

YOP 7: “Still”

Feb 14th, 2016 10m 1s

This week is another first – a choir! I wrote “Still” in early 2013 in response to the violence and fear gripping the world at the time. It was first performed with a choir at the Marion Palace Theatre for a concert put together by my good frie

YOP 6: “I Am Blessed”

Feb 7th, 2016 8m 23s

Gratefulness is this week’s theme with a song I wrote a few years ago called “I Am Blessed.” While it’s an older song, this really is its debut because I’ve never performed this one. It’s an uptempo song somewhat in the style of Lost and Found

YOP 5: “Great and Marvelous”

Jan 31st, 2016 11m 26s

In this week’s episode I debut a brand new song, “Great and Marvelous.” This praise and worship song was written as part of the 12 Song Challenge being presented by Joel and Sam at The ResoundWorship Songwriting Podcast. January’s challenge was

YOP 4: “The Church’s One Foundation”

Jan 24th, 2016 12m 12s

Today’s episode features my cover of a traditional hymn (“The Church’s One Foundation”), a brief story about my reason for choosing that particular song, and some of the history behind the well-known hymn itself.If you’d like to learn more abo

YOP 3: “Forever Will I Sing”

Jan 17th, 2016 10m 33s

On this episode, I debut a praise and worship song (“Forever Will I Sing”) written for a children’s choir.If you’d like to learn more about the project and sign up for the email list, visit YearofPraise.com.LINKSEmanuel Lutheran ChurchBenSo

YOP 2: “Given For You”

Jan 10th, 2016 9m 48s

On today’s episode I thank everyone for the response to Episode 1, debut a communion song (“Given For You”), and talk about the role of listening in my creative process.If you’d like to learn more about the project and sign up for the email li

YOP 1: “Be Not Troubled”

Jan 3rd, 2016 10m 45s

On this episode I release my first song (“Be Not Troubled”) and discuss the inspiration and motivation to originally write the piece.If you’d like to learn more about the project and sign up for the email list, visit YearofPraise.com.LINKSBe

YOP 0: Introduction to The Year of Praise Podcast

Jan 3rd, 2016 10m 1s

I welcome you to The Year of Praise Podcast, share what the project is all about and why I started on this Christian songwriting challenge.If you’d like to learn more about the project and sign up for the email list, visit YearofPraise.com.