March 22, 2009

The band I lead (we really need to come up with names, I’m tired of writing that) was at the Raleigh campus today, and a new band, led by Brandon Squizzato, led the Durham campus. Brandon has been faithful and patient in building his band, and his heart’s desire is clear. I can’t wait to hear how the Durham service went, and believe his band is going to be a great fit there.
The Raleigh service was beautiful, and apparently the new sound system made for better sound than ever. The songs were geared towards thankfulness, and I personally was glad to sing this over and over again. My soul easily forgets just how much God has done, and a humbling reminder is needed. Daily.

And Can It Be That I Should Gain
Words by Charles Wesley
Music by Thomas Campbell
Arrangement by Vintage21 Church

This is usually a slow song, but our version has a little bit of groove to it, so it was a good opener. We did the first verse and chorus two times, as sort of a song to set the tone for the day. We don’t have a lot of time with three morning services, and I didn’t want to introduce a brand new song right off the bat. It fit well with the second song, which is about thankfulness, and today’s message was about obedience in light of what God has done for us.

Thank You
Words and Music by Thad Cockrell and Matt Stevens

Thad and I have written numerous songs together, but this is the first one my band has played. This song has undertones of soul and gospel, and immediately felt like a good fit for what we’re going for.
This is a simple song that repeats “thank you, Lord” many times. You can’t say that enough to God, and my hope is that grateful hearts praised God, and ungrateful hearts were challenged in what they sang.

“I want to thank you, Lord, for what you’ve done for me
I want to praise you, Lord, and from this heart I’ll sing”

Sermon: Philippians 2:12-30

And Can It Be That I Should Gain
Words by Charles Wesley
Music by Thomas Campbell
Arrangement by Vintage21 Church

Because I already wrote about this song, I’ll use this time to share a bit of wisdom learned the hard way in today’s service:
Never attempt to motion to the sound guy to turn up your guitar in the monitor while holding a pick between your thumb and forefinger. Ever.

Thank You
Words and Music by Thad Cockrell and Matt Stevens
We introduce new songs at Vintage21 Church by singing them once in the first set and again in the second set. The congregation really joined in the second time, and I think this song will be a mainstay at Vintage21 for years to come.

Jesus Paid It All
Words by Elvina Hall, 1865
Arrangement by Kristian Stanfill

Familiarity is a good thing, and this song has become one that people are able to really let go, lifting hands and hearts. The new sound system we’re demoing this week apparently handled the dynamics well as we built the ending refrain up: “Oh praise the One who paid my debt, and raised this life up from the dead.” Indeed.

Band
Sound:  Thomas Dameron, Jeff Tyndall
Bass: Jerry Updyke
Drums: Daniel Deese
Backing Vocals: Tiffany Ashford
Keys: Josh Bain
Lead Guitar: Steven Suits
Guitar, Vocals: Matt Stevens

Today’s Sunday Review is posted in collaboration with other church music ministries at Sunday Setlists.