new artist discovery. mmmmm April 24, 2010
Posted by highofseventyfive in documenting life, Media.Tags: acoustic, christianity, folk, jack johnson, john mark mcmillan, josh garrels, spoken word, sufjan stevens, surf jam
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Depending on what song you listen to, this guys is a blend of, here we go– the following: Sufjan Stevens, Decembrists, Devendra Banhart, Jack Johnson, Jason Mraz. i know, WHAT. according to myspace, he is “Folk / Neo-soul / Electronica”
its cool because i’ve been searching a long time to find my “christian Jack Johnson”. and hooraay, I have found him.
His name is Josh Garrels.
Here’s his site, here’s a video, and here’s the song I like the best.
go to http://www.myspace.com/joshgarrels, and list to “All Creation” , and you’ll get the sufjan/jack johnson/mraz theme all in one.
“YHWH” – Josh Garrls from Josh Garrels on Vimeo.
He’s so eclectic, and his voice is so interesting! I think what I like about him is that he is very interesting and creative. he’s laid back, folk, then sort of surf-beachy, acoustic, full of instruments, spoken word/rap in there too. its just all over the place yet his sound has definition. And the best of all, is his lyrics are creative, and powerful because he writes about faith in Jesus.
Lately I have been kind of disappointed with Christian music because it seems like most stuff out there is strictly worship. I have always loved folk/singer songwriter stuff, and random eclectic music like devendra bahnart. but devendra banhart has wacked-out lyrics and sings about some strange stuff. i was searching for an artist would was a little less mainstream-sounding, and not necessarily worship songs, but still had lyrics focused on God.
i’m probably going to purchase all his albums now. wowzas!
John Mark McMillan is one of my other favorites. I have two of his albums, and he is the original writer of the song, “oh how he loves”. his voice/sound is so cool. and i love his songs about us “coming up from out of the ground” and using neat imagery for part of faith and the power of God. “We want your blood to flow inside our body, and we want your wind inside our lungs. We just want to love you. We just want to love you, yeah.” straight out of Ezekiel 37
here’s that song:
John Mark McMillan – Skeleton Bones from john mark mcmillan on Vimeo.
songs & scripture: a relationship March 2, 2010
Posted by highofseventyfive in Media, theology.Tags: Bible, john mark mcmillan, Leeland, lyrics, Scripture, songs, the rocket summer, TobyMac
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So there’s been quite a few songs lately where the lyrics just pop out at me like, WOW. I suppose its the combination of good words with music that makes it so powerful. I was just contemplating however, why it seems like lyrics seem more powerful than Scripture. I feel like this shouldn’t be. Maybe its the fact that I’m listening, while driving, (most times) when it hits me. Maybe its because I’m singing it, over and over. If I read Scripture over and over, and sang it, would it be as powerful? It says that the Word is living and active– is it as living and active as my music, in my life?
I don’t suppose I’ll figure out the answer to this any time soon. But as a quick fix, I am going to list the lyrics that move me, and then try to match up some Scripture with them. I figure that’s a good a start as any. Here goes:
TobyMac– Captured
I’m Your prisoner by choice/I will rest at Your feet…
All I wanna do/ is get into You /You got me captured/by Your love/ All I wanna do/ is stay here with You/ You got me raptured/ Can’t get enough
Romans 6:18-19
You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.
Psalm 63:3
Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
Leeland–Beginning and the End
Out of darkness into light/I know that I will be alright /Here inside Your hands/I never want to stray too far/Just want to be where You are /Here inside Your plan/And You’re the center of /The beginning and the end
….
You have plans for me /You’ve given me a hope and a future/You have plans for me /You’ve given me a hope and a future/(I place my life inside your hands /You hold for me a perfect plan)/And You are… /The beginning and the end
Ephesians 5:8
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.
Psalm 138:8
The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever–do not abandon the works of your hands.
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Revelation 22:13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
The Rocket Summer—I Need a Break…But I’d Rather Have a Breakthrough
I need a break, but i’d rather have a breakthrough/I’m losing my sleep, running after You/still i’d rather have a breakthrough/so I don’t stop/making moves/i need a break, but i’d rather have a breakthrough/i’m tripping on hurdles/running after You
Hebrews 12:1
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
Ephesians 5:10
and find out what pleases the Lord
Ephesians 5:16
making the most out of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
John Mark McMillan—Alive
Well they say that a man can never go home/But I just can’t get out of your front yard
What if I could be/Something more than me/They say that I got a disease/Of the human kind/Maybe all I know is/In your arms and in your eyes/I’m more than alive
Psalm 84:10
Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.Romans 6:11
In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
oh how he wrecked it–explained. September 14, 2009
Posted by highofseventyfive in just thoughts, Media.Tags: church, crowder band, john mark mcmillan, lyrics, sloppy wet kiss, worship
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here is the post from john mark himself about the crowder cover of how he loves, and the lyric change that is causing quite a stir!
please read john’s thoughts here:
http://johnmarkmcmillan.blogspot.com/2009/09/how-he-loves-david-crowder-and-sloppy.html
“HEAVEN meets EARTH like a sloppy wet kiss”
The idea behind the lyric is that the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of earth converge in a way that is both beautiful and awkwardly messy. Think about the birth of a child, or even the death of Jesus himself. These miracles are both incredibly beautiful and incredibly sloppy (“gory” may be more realistic, but “Heaven meets earth like a gory mess” didn’t seem to have the same ring). Why does the church have such a problem with things being sloppy? Do we really think we’re fooling anyone on Sunday morning, especially God? Are we going to offend him? I mean, he’s seen us naked in the shower all week and knows our worst thoughts, and still thinks we’re awesome. What if we took all the energy we spent faking and used that energy to enjoy the Lord instead? That could be revolutionary!
and to reference my old post on this topic not too long ago:
http://highofseventyfive.wordpress.com/2009/08/20/oh-how-he-wrecked-it/
i’m rather agreeing with his feelings that, jeez why is everyone so gosh darn uptight, that this beautiful imagery wouldn’t be allowed in church or on the radio or whatever. its kinda ridiculous.
cry in my throat, water in my eyes August 27, 2009
Posted by highofseventyfive in documenting life.Tags: campus ministry, carol burnett, college, crickets, hebrews 12:3, john mark mcmillan, post grad, west windsor
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so, I like sound of crickets.
today was, a good day. i slept terribly last night, kept waking up and having all sorts of awful dreams. woke up around 10 finally, ran a few errands, went to work from 1-5. went and hung out dinner and a movie with derouvi. it was nice just the two of us. she’s super duper. kind of upset that no one else could make it and it couldn’t be a get together for networking/encouragement, but w/e.
the movie, Post Grad, summed up ALOT of what i’ve been feeling. but then of course, at the end of hte movie she gets her dream job, realizes she doesn’t want it , and moves to new york on a whim and is in love with a boy and happily ever after. i kinda wish the movie just ended with her still living at her parents house for a whole year and dealing with all the stuff in her town or something.
carol burnett is hilarious though.
after the movie we parted ways, at 9ish. and i broke down. i cried and cried and just drove aimlessly for about an hour, through west windsor in the fields (not actually IN the fields of course) until i hit rt 130 and then drove ALL the way back from near hightstown. and cried, and cried and cried. and kept track number 9, “out of the ground” by John Mark Mcmillan on repeat. i really like the electric guitar in it. they are hauntingly epic.
i miss college SO MUCH. tonight was the ice cream social. part of the first week of school NSO. its like, eating me alive. today i took a little time to be with God, but, a distracted short time before work. and the verse I read was Hebrews 12:3 which says
“Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
well, I’m not really sure where i’m at, if i’ve lost heart or not. it seems so silly probably, to others, to be so “oh woe is me” all the time, about–college. but there is something severely life-altering by my graduation. I’ll say it again i’ve never loved anything more than college. and what is so terrible, is it seems like i can’t go visit for a certain amount of time. but maybe i will give up on what people might think of me, or what i’m “allowed” to do. maybe i’ll just invade territory that is no longer mine. maybe i’ll be selfish. maybe i’ll just show up all the GD time. maybe i’ll just always be there. and people wont know the difference. and i wont care. and i’ll live in a dream. i’ll be a crazy person. i’ll live in denial of the break up of the thing that stole my heart. not a boy, but a time. an era. a place. a feeling. a mission field.
i cannot WAIT to serve on campus. to really BE there. and actually have a good reason. this in the meantime business is absolutely killing me. and whats strange, is this is seeming less and less like a call from God, and more and more like fullfilling my own strong desires. Am I just doing this to avoid the “real world” or trying to live in some sort of fairy tale?
No, I’m glad I’m going through this time. its absolutely terrible. And i think instead, its reinforcing my deep longing for the campus. its not REALLY for me, deep down. Its for the fact that there is no other place that has felt more like my mission field, no other place that I felt truly purposeful. There are so many broken, hurt, empty people who need Jesus. Jesus deserves the glory and my obedience. I have never seen somewhere with such potential, such life, vitality, and experiment. its exquisite, romantic. yes. campus minstry. sounds so blah when it rolls off the tounge. i should come up with another word for it. because it is so much much much much much much more.
someone should have done a better job preparing us for this.
oh and on another note that tends to bother me: everyone and their flipping uncle is getting engaged! i’m sorry, but it just feels like a stab in the gut everytime another couple gets engaged. we are LIKE 2o something! gosh! and pretty soon i’ll have no friends left. and next summer, i will the most broke as a joke person, how are we going to do all these weddings!?! c&c, j&k, c&d, t&d, k&t, and now maybe if facebook informs me correctly, a&m?
i’d much rather just be happy for them. oh yes. i would.
and i really should avoid facebook. it shows me how the world has turned and left me here.
oh how he wrecked it August 20, 2009
Posted by highofseventyfive in Media.Tags: covers, dcb, john mark mcmillan, oh how he loves, thumbs down
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new cd coming from DC*B soon. unfortunately, they covered “how he loves”. uugggghh. i listened to it, go listen to it on myspace. its terrible. haha. i like crowder band but they butchered the song. and they even changed the words! leave it to kim walker, or the man himself, john mark mcmillan. >>>![]()



