“Seem Me first, and all these other things will be added to you,” Jesus told the crowd during His Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew 6:33.
When 2022 rolled around I put my pen down. I only wrote a couple of blog posts the whole year, did not work on the book I was writing, nor the one I needed to edit, and I did not intend to make an album. Instead I spent the year dedicated to learning more about the craft that I feel I am to use to serve God. The gift of writing that He has blessed me with.
I also spent much of the year questioning this “passion” of mine, and sadly to say, I questioned it not because I did not feel God’s approval of it, but because I did not feel man’s approval of it.
Lord, please forgive me!
But God was still planning to do something with the foundation we had laid together over the last five years. While I was unproductive, at least in producing works, God guided me into a conversation with my friend and brother-in-law, Lucas Diaz. This was in February of 2022. It was during that conversation when Lucas told me about the music he was creating and posting on his YouTube channel, https://www.youtube.com/@ldmusic8764. I already new that Lucas was a talented and well trained musician, what you would call a professional, but what I learned that day was that he was also using digital mediums to craft his songs. This is important, because Lucas lives in Germany, and I am in the United States.
I asked Lucas if he’d consider making a song for me. I only asked for one. It was a song I wanted to record sooner than later because it was written in 2020, about 2020. It was a time sensitive piece. It will be the last song, and the longest song, on the album, By His Name. It is called Our Cities Burn with Fire.
Lucas immediately agreed. Which was a surprise to me because I am certain we had a similar conversation years ago that did not end up in agreement. But this time there was immediate agreement. I sent Lucas a demo of the song and a lyric sheet with chords, the same process we’d use for the next seven songs.
When the song was finished, I was blown away. I was even allowed to paly harmonica on this song. Then the surprises just kept coming. Lucas asked for another one. I graciously conceded another song, even giving Lucas access to my library so he could choose the songs. At the time I was pushing songs that I, as an amateur musician, could not easily play with one acoustic guitar and limited musical capabilities. You know, the more complex or abstract songs, which is a category Our Cities Burned with Fire fit into. Some of the songs didn’t see completion, others did. After working on several songs, we decided to make an album.
I got a little more selective in song choice, trying to balance the album with a mix of works. I gave Lucas complete creative freedom on every song, which means I didn’t tell him what I wanted it to sound like, what genre it should be, or what instruments should be on there. I’m a lyricist, first and foremost, I told him, you are the creator of the music, melodies, and harmonies. Whenever Lucas sent me a completed demo he always asked me to tell him if I liked it or if I wanted to try something different. He is a very humble and king man. I knew the answer before I listened to each demo. I gave my part to the song, and he gave his, and that is the way it would stay.
The album would be complete just under a year after we started working on it together. The result is a beautiful and eclectic mix of music and sound. The album spans genres while always staying close to the heart. It is a blend of praise to God and the pain of seeing the results of the evil around us.
Lucas did the bulk of the work on this album, which is why I can honestly say I did not do much in 2022. For every hour I put in he probably put in four. I thank Lucas from the bottom of my heart for taking on this project with me, and I also thank God for being the head engineer.
This is because God, despite my failures and fickle emotions, uses what is available, including what we make available, to accomplish what He wants accomplished. God chose Lucas for this endeavor. I believe that. He prepared him musically, not just for this project alone, but He used that preparation for this project. When this project started, I don’t think either of us thought about whether God was choosing or engineering or using, we just started making songs. But in reflection, this project, regardless of the hours of work Lucas committed to, or the hours of time I spent writing these songs, this project is all God.
My question for you is this. When God chooses you, will you choose Him? Because when he uses You for the glory of His kingdom, you will know it. And it doesn’t matter what our response it, when God chooses us, the work will get done, regardless if we choose Him back.
The gift of choice is what makes us human, but it also gives us much power. We can choose how to handle our emotions, which path we will take when given an option, and how we will respond to God. The latter is a choice all will make, either with intention or in passivity. It doesn’t matter how the choice is made; it still gets made.
If your heart is considering God right now, it is not because of the words on this blog post. It is because God is speaking to you, to your heart. You can talk back to Him, in whispers or in silence, standing or kneeling, alone or in a crowd. He is available everywhere and anywhere, at anytime, just for you. Just talk back to Him. Tell Him your heart. Submit your feelings and emotions to Him. Finally, if you choose, ask Him into your heart for good.
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