One of my favorite works of Christian literature is A Man For All Seasons. I think every Christian who appreciates excellence and beauty mixed with truth should obtain a copy of this play, based on the life and death of Thomas More. It’s written by Robert Bolt. It’s not a long read, and it’s incredibly well written. I highly recommend it if you have yet to read it. There are many great moments of dialogue, but one of the most... Read more
Three years ago today, a little girl died because her big brother didn’t see her coming. She needed help getting onto the monkey bars, and there he was, driving home. Twenty-four hours later, many people’s lives had changed forever. Several different people definitely not given to “seeing things” would independently tell her family that they saw an angel take her into his arms. I’m speaking of course about the daughter of Steven Curtis Chapman. I first heard the news on... Read more
Yesterday I conducted a little poll to see whether my readers could tell from isolated snippets whether two songs were Christian or secular. Though I didn’t get quite the response I would have liked (COUGH COUGH… just kidding 😉 ), I got a nice little handful of submissions. The majority of the votes were divided between option one (both songs are Christian) and option three (the first is Christian, the second secular), with a small percentage voting that they were... Read more
I’m going to give my readers a small quiz today. I’ll quote snippets from two songs, both of which some of you may recognize (in which case you already know the answer, so this doesn’t apply to you). Given the fact that my readers are (I presume) predominantly southern gospel fans, I figured it was a fair bet that at least a good portion of you won’t recognize either song. However, even if you only recognize one (which is plausible),... Read more
How hard can it be to forgive? Much harder than we think. I’m not talking about forgiveness as in, “Hey, I forgive you for forgetting all about our lunch date the other day.” I’m talking about forgiveness when you’ve been wronged, and you can’t seem to let it go. I’m talking about forgiveness when you really don’t want to forgive. You’d rather let the grievance sit there, sucking away your emotional energy, festering and making you bitter. Some people might... Read more
David, Kelly, and Odie Boggs are a mixed trio from Ohio. Davy and Kelly have been involved in ministry/evangelism for a decade, and now they are joined by their grown daughter, who has cerebral palsy and a stirring testimony. Ben Isaacs is Davy’s first cousin, and he has produced their last few projects, which gives them a more polished sound than the typical regional group. Last year, they recorded their first live project in California. Says Davy about the song... Read more
This is an experience that’s all too familiar for me: I’m listening along to a song, maybe I like it, maybe I don’t, but all of a sudden, there’s a word or phrase that just falls with a gigantic *THUD*. Instinctively, my ears cringe, and my face contorts, because it’s just too painful. In general, it makes me lose my appetite for the rest of the song, but occasionally I can overlook it and still enjoy the piece as a... Read more
A while back there was some debate around the southern gospel blogosphere over what great music is. Some said, “Great music is music that makes me stop thinking about any other kind.” Some said, “Great music is music that makes me cry.” Some said, “Great music is something that touches me.” Some said, “Great music makes you want to play music.” Of course, they’re all wrong. Great music is Bruce Hornsby. ‘Nuff said: On second thought, maybe they’re all right. Read more
Hey guys, some of you will remember that I did a little “review” of Doug Anderson’s brand-new project before it actually came out. Well, now that I have my hands on it, I decided to add a few extra thoughts in brackets here and there. I really didn’t have all that much to add, but there were some more thoughts I had and details I picked up on in a full listen that I wanted to share. I have also... Read more
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From Young Southern Gospel Fans to the Artists
Daniel Mount has written an open letter to southern gospel artists from young fans of the genre. Like him, I am a young fan, and I’ve addressed and will continue to address the points he made here on this blog. They are good points, and I will gladly be one of the co-signers he has called for. I thought that I would elaborate on some of them in my own post, if my readers don’t mind. This was Daniel’s first... Read more