What is music during the worship service supposed to do? Dr. Heather Josselyn-Cranson proposes that there are several roles for music in worship and that these roles are manifested in various worshiping traditions. In this book, she hopes to give readers a renewed respect for their own traditions, but also a new-found understanding of the different genres of music sung by Christians today, each with its own function and charm.
In The Reason to Sing, renowned composer-lyricist and teacher Craig Carnelia provides musical actors with a step-by-step guide to making their singing performances more truthful, vivid, and full of life. Using a technique developed over decades of teaching the professional community of Broadway actors and students alike, The Reason to Sing utilizes detailed descriptions of sessions the author has had with his notable students and lays out a new and proven approach to help you build your skills, your confidence, and your career. This book is intended for musical theater acting students as well as working professionals and teachers of the craft.
Quick, before you make another move, pastor, read this Journal!If you're thinking of leaving your church for another, start with Michael Lawrence's article on leaving wisely. In fact, look at Matt Schmucker's even before you think about leaving. Have you looked yet? Okay, what about now? I've seen enough pastors come and go to know that Lawrence and Schmucker just might shift your paradigm.Or maybe the process of searching has begun. Mark De-ver, Bobby Jamieson, Walter Price, and Dennis Newkirk will help you to avoid common mis-takes and pursue the next pastor wisely.Then again, maybe you should not make a move at all. Jeramie Rinne and Mark Dever will tell you why. Pastor Rinne, in fact, would rather see you dead right where you are. What a pastor!
Everyone worships. But Jesus tells us that God is seeking a particular kind of worshiper. In True Worshipers, a seasoned pastor and musician guides readers toward a more engaging, transformative, and biblically faithful understanding of the worship God is seeking. True worship is an activity rooted in the grace of the gospel that affects every area of our lives. And while worship is more than just singing, God’s people gathering in his presence to lift their voices in song is an activity that is biblically based, historically rooted, and potentially life-changing. Thoroughly based in Scripture and filled with practical guidance, this book connects Sunday worship to the rest of our lives—helping us live as true worshipers each and every day.
Have you ever wondered who hummed the first tune? Was it the flowers? The waves or the moon? Dove Award-winning recording artist Ellie Holcomb answers with a lovely lyrical tale, one that reveals that God our Maker sang the first song, and He created us all with a song to sing. Go to bhkids.com to find this book's Parent Connection, an easy tool to help moms and dads (or anyone else who loves kids) discuss the book's message with their child. We're all about connecting parents and kids to each other and to God's Word.
Reason Why I Sing is a cautionary tale of Mike Spears’s experiences as an artist for a major recording label and his journey through the dark side of the music industry. Names, companies, and other details have been changed in the story to protect the privacy of those involved, but the stories documented are all based on real-life events. Mike details his humble beginnings in small-town Illinois and his journey to Atlanta, a major music city that has produced some of the biggest stars of R&B and other genres. During his time as a signed artist, Mike recalls dealing with sexual manipulation, betrayal, and loss. He writes about losing himself and his values on the way to stardom, as well as his path back to being true to himself and his art. “I am exposing a lot about myself. I become completely naked and allow my flaws to show in this story. I’ve lived a life where I have pretended to be more than I was, till one day I was sick of myself. I had grown annoyed with who I was because it was fake and lacking substance,” says Spears of those days. "I'm the type that if a book doesn't get me interested within the first two pages, I'm done... The story, writing and heart of Mike Spears didn't let this rare reader put it down.The cold honesty made every one of my emotions run high throughout the book with a mix of heartache, loss and warmth. A definite read and a true story that everyone should read as it would make the world a better place and expose the ugly side of the entertainment industry" -Dane Butch/Entertainment Director, ECP
The day Lacey Sturm planned to kill herself was the day her grandmother forced her to go to church, a place Lacey thought was filled with hypocrites, fakers, and simpletons. The screaming match she had with her grandmother was the reason she went to church. What she found there was the Reason she is alive today. With raw vulnerability, this hard rock princess tells her own story of physical abuse, drug use, suicide attempts, and more--and her ultimate salvation. She asks the hard questions so many young people are asking--Why am I here? Why am I empty? Why should I go on living?--showing readers that beyond the temporary highs and the soul-crushing lows there is a reason they exist and a purpose for their lives. She not only gives readers a peek down the rocky path that led her to become a vocalist in a popular hardcore band, but she shows them that the same God is guiding their steps today.
Sing! has grown from Keith and Kristyn Getty’s passion for congregational singing; it’s been formed by their traveling and playing and listening and discussing and learning and teaching all over the world. And in writing it, they have five key aims: • to discover why we sing and the overwhelming joy and holy privilege that comes with singing • to consider how singing impacts our hearts and minds and all of our lives • to cultivate a culture of family singing in our daily home life • to equip our churches for wholeheartedly singing to the Lord and one another as an expression of unity • to inspire us to see congregational singing as a radical witness to the world They have also added a few “bonus tracks” at the end with some more practical suggestions for different groups who are more deeply involved with church singing. God intends for this compelling vision of His people singing—a people joyfully joining together in song with brothers and sisters around the world and around his heavenly throne—to include you. He wants you,he wants us, to sing.
EBONY is the flagship magazine of Johnson Publishing. Founded in 1945 by John H. Johnson, it still maintains the highest global circulation of any African American-focused magazine.
