I would usually post a video here, and I did record a video, but I can’t find the stupid cable to get the stupid video off the stupid camera. I’m not frustrated at all . However, since I record the audio directly into the computer and sync it with the video, I do in fact have the audio, so I will at least post that.

I used my electric this week instead of my acoustic and I also threw in an ambient “pad” in the background that was made by this dude, who blogs about guitar and worship. Thanks for the pad, I’ll be using it Sunday!

Anyway, I really like this song and it fits perfectly with the sermon series that we’re in. Give it a listen below and check out the lyrics as well. I hope you’ll dig it.

As usual, I only give this one take because I don’t have time to do a real recording, so please be forgiving of my singing and a couple of wrong chords.

We’ll be starting off worship with this Sunday morning. It’s a super easy song and will likely be familiar to some of you.

Oh yeah, some of you may remember my new delay pedal…I decided to figure it out a little more and I recorded this video using the pedal which is why it’ll sound a little weird (weird but hopefully good!).

Matthew 7:8, Matthew 21:22, Mark 11:24, Luke 11:10, John 16:24, James 4:3, 1 John 3:22, 2 Chronicles 7:14, Psalm 2:8.

As I reflect on these verses I realize how little I pray and how weak my prayers are.  I hope I can step up to this week’s challenge and begin to pray big!

This song, by Shane Barnard, is a reflection of these verses and others.  We’ll sing it right after the message and I hope that it draws us into the message and turns our hearts to worship.  I’m looking forward to this week and what everyone’s response will be.

It is essentially the Lord’s Prayer with a focus on recognizing that God loves us and will take care of our needs. It’s a simple song, but says a lot. I’m looking forward to worshiping with everyone this week.

Side Note: I’ve had the chorus of this song stuck in my head before but never knew the melody. I figured I could learn it and record it all in about 30 minutes. Turns out the melody has some atypical parts and there’s a chord in there that while easy, I’m just not used to playing. You’ll notice a few mistakes in the video, so please be easy on me. On a positive note, I got the lighting fixed and the video quality should be pretty good from this point on.

Overwhelm Me is my favorite song of his. I’ve been using it in leading worship since I heard it for the first time many years ago. It is a passionate plea with God to take us out of the place that we’re in and move our hearts toward Him. Though we may know that He is the giver of life and joy, we so often ignore this and pursue other things that we think will fulfill us. Asking God to “overwhelm me” and “shake the ground I stand on” can be dangerous since it sometimes means that to get our attention He really does have to shake up our entire world. However, in the end, it is essential. His way is best. His love is greatest. We’ll be singing this song after the sermon on Sunday and I am praying that we are all able to divein to a deep encounter with Christ.

Side note: big improvements on the video quality this time around. The resolution and frame rate are much better, but I still don’t have enough light in the music room so it looks a little grainy. Hopefully I can get that aspect fixed soon.

EDIT: I just found Bleecker himself on Youtube doing this song and apparently he has 2nd verse that I didn’t know about…sweet! We’ll probably just stick to the one, though, since it’s a new song. He also mentions on his video that the song was written from Psalm 51:10-12, 62:7-8 and Mark 7:37. Very good to know…enjoy!

This Sunday, Brannen will address those questions and more as we start a new series going through the book of Ruth. Hopefully this song will be a great time of reflection after diving in to God’s truth. Come ready to learn and ready to worship. But come as you are – Origins is a place where it is safe to have questions, doubts, or insecurities.

*disclaimer: as usual, I don’t have time for multiple takes unless I flat out miss a chord or lyric, so expect some mistakes and some off pitch singing in places

“Here I Am” was written by Michael Bleecker, the worship leader at the Village Church in Dallas. The Village is one of my favorite churches of all time, despite the fact that I’ve never actually been there. I love their philosophy, their theology, and their approach towards doing church. The teaching pastor, Matt Chandler, is a guy who I podcast every week and I highly recommend the podcast to all. God has gifted Matt in a very powerful way and I am constantly challenged by his preaching. God has also used the ministry of The Village over the last year to get a hold of my brother in a much deeper way than he’s ever experienced before.

Michael Bleecker is a great song writer and from the little I know of him, also has an awesome heart. And a bit of randomness, he also named his kid Jude and I think our Judes are about the same age…weird. Soon I will introduce his song, Overwhelm Me, as it is one of my favorites, but for this week, “Here I Am” fits really well with our series and with the message that Brannen will be preaching this week. I would go into an explanation of what the song means, but it’s pretty straight forward, so make sure to check out the lyrics link below the video. My prayer is that we will be moved by the message of demonstrating the gospel and that the lyrics of this song will be a true cry of our hearts.

I really like poetic lyrics, and while he didn’t go crazy deep, Crowder uses lots of great imagery in his new single, “Alleluia, Sing” (I didn’t mean for that to sound so review-like). He really does a great job setting up a picture of God that brings joy and adoration to my heart, which results in praise.

This song isn’t quite as easy to sing along to as most “worship” songs, so make sure you listen a couple of times and even buy it on iTunes so you’re ready to rock with us on Sunday morning. Hopefully this song will move your heart into an encounter with God…it does so for me.

There are a couple of vocal/guitar/rhythm mess-ups in this recording, and the vocals are probably too quiet in the first verse, but I’m sure you’ll forgive me

I originally heard this done by the Stillpoint Band with Charis singing it and let me tell you, that chick is anointed! I was completely drawn into worship by the lyrics, the dynamics of the song, and by her incredible voice.

This week’s “Crazy Love” book study at Origins was on chapter three which is actually entitled “Crazy Love.” I was deeply impacted by taking a step back and looking at God as Father and basking in His love. I thought it appropriate, especially given this upcoming Sunday’s message, to sing about this great love. We’ll be doing this song on Sunday morning, so if you’re an Origins-goer, give this a listen and come ready to worship!