Monthly Archives: July 2011

Christian Music Zine

Just when I thought this month couldn’t get any better (see previous post), the really nice people at Christian Music Zine just included Straight N Narrow on its FREE, exclusive, first-ever compilation digital download! It’s called “Dependent State of Mind, Vol. 1”. It’s available for the first time today!

Be sure to listen to all 15 of the artists (you’ll become a fan) and check out the site. Ultra-cool, like the name! (Album artwork to the left by Dan Allen Sr.)

Check it out here!

Handfuls on Purpose

Like many people, one of my favorite passages in the Bible is from the book of Ruth. Ruth had been faithful, worked very hard, and continued to pray that she would find grace. One day, she found herself working in a field owned by Boaz. While she was gathering wheat, Boaz instructed his workers to leave her handfuls on purpose, or so much wheat that she no longer had to scrape for it. Boaz ended up being Ruth’s husband, and gave her grace more abundant than she could have ever imagined. The accounts in the book of Ruth parallel God’s love for us.

There have been many times in the music ministry when I have experienced unexpected blessings that have blown me away. These last few months have had several of these “handfuls on purpose” times. Here are just a few of these (in chronological order): (1) Soon after the CD was released, the kind people at Visible by Light added “Leaping on Mountains” to their playlist. It was really neat to know that they listened to new releases and liked the song! Be sure to follow their link after you listen here. (2) Rachel Lane from the Times-Georgian did a super-nice article about the IMA and ISC nominations that made the front page of the paper! (click here). (3) Amanda Thomas, also from the Times-Georgian, did an equally amazing follow-up story about the IMA and ISC wins (click here to read). This one had a preview on the front page and covered the Faith and Values section.  I can’t say enough about how much their coverage meant to me. It was such an honor.  (4) CM Addict did a feature in their new artist section (click here to read), and (5) offered a free download of Straight N Narrow. In case you have never visited their site, it’s one of the best out there–really current, nice visuals, and yes, extremely addictive! (6) Justin Monsewicz, currently working with Ma’s Hippo Music in public relations, did a neat shout-out in his column here. (By the way, I hope to do a longer feature on him in the future.) I truly thank God and these folks for providing such “exceedingly abundantly above and beyond” experiences for me.