Thursday 30 December 2010

Say The Date

Post Christmas. Bin liners full of rubbish. Over eaten. Too many empty wine and beer bottles to fit in the recycling tub. Perhaps too many people miss the true meaning of Christmas Day? I do find it humorous though that the New Year celebrations are about to hit, the world is about to welcome in 2011, but why? What's the big deal?

Once again the reason for the celebration is missed. 2011, Two thousand and eleven years since the birth of Christ! But the shots of vodka and binge drinking are now the mainstream meaning of a New Year's Eve party. I like a beer as much as the next man, but surely the fact that it's 2011 years since our Lord was born of a virgin, and we are celebrating his life as he lives amongst us is what we should be partying about!

Think of how many times you forget the date. I was in the bank today and I couldn't remember the date, so I looked up and the banks tend to have one of those massive dates plastered on the wall that they change every day. It was there. 30/12/2010. That's what it said. Whenever you write a letter, you tend to stick the date at the top underneath the recipient's address, and you include the year. Some random geezer stops you in the street and asks for the date? Maybe a little over the top but the full date would probably roll off your tongue. Every day people discuss Jesus without even knowing about it, simply by writing, reading or speaking the date. Celebrate in style tomorrow night! And remember every time you now see or speak the date, what said date truly symbolises.

Have a Happy New Year!

Monday 27 December 2010

Song of the Week | tobyMac - Christmas This Year

There was a news article about this song a few weeks back, announcing that tobyMac was releasing a Christmas single, his first for 8 years. It also features the pure wonder of Sixpence None The Richer female vocalist Leigh Nash.


After that iTunes took it on themselves to make it their singles of the weeks, a free download for all for a week pre-Christmas, so when you hear what it's about and what Mr tobyMac himself has said about the song, if more people have downloaded it and thought about the real reason behind Christmas, that is fantastic!


 "I wanted to write a song that captured that pure delight without missing the spirit of the season ... when love came down to let us live.”


Brilliant. Enjoy the track and I hope you are having a brilliant Christmas time!

Friday 24 December 2010

He's On His Way

As we all know, the TV adverts have been counting down to it, the supermarkets have been promoting their food and gifts pressuring us into realising that the time is running out for our preparations, and of course, there is another Christmas number one on the list of musical history.

However, the real countdown, the real Christmas starts with Christ. And he's on his way. Hopefully the churchads.net Christmas campaign will reach out to all the Christians, reinforcing their faith, as well as grabbing non church goers and make them think about the real reason for the 'holiday'.

Let's hope the churches are full tomorrow morning and everyone is celebrating the birth of our King!

I hope you have a great Christmas Day. A Merry Christmas to you all!

Thursday 23 December 2010

Bandstand - The Gentlemen

From Sheffield, The Gentlemen are 'made up by brothers Joel and Josh Cana - who make up the rhythm and bass sections respectively, Sean Walsh on guitar and 'enigmatic, wizard-like lead singer' Nicholas Noble, who's as comfortable singing and breakdancing around the stage as he is on guitar or keys.'

Sir Terry Wogan himself played their debut single to his massive Radio 2 audience and ever since they have be striving for success. But as they strive is there a danger they have to push aside their Christianity to become mainstream?

Nicholas has been quoted as saying: "I think there's lots of people who have this slightly misguided notion that the purpose of Christians in the mainstream music industry is to get a high profile then at Glastonbury stop in a set and give a five minute gospel presentation and Glastonbury will turn to Jesus. That's never going to happen and it's not what we're trying to do. We're trying to make music that expresses who we are but also trying to follow Jesus in our own personal lives, and we think that's our calling to be Christians and not an evangelistic team as a band."

Check out The Gentlemen here.

Monday 20 December 2010

Hanging On

We all have situations that we want out of. Something that you no longer want to be a part of. For youngsters maybe it's a football team, school, or even getting up early on Sundays to go to church. As you grow older though it could be university courses, relationships, employment, or even getting up early on Sundays to go to church,

There is though, something amazing, we are given an opportunity for a fresh start at the end of each year, to scrub out the past and move on, put a 'spring' in our step and start things new, with resolutions a plenty and lots of fireworks to blow out the cobwebs. It's the New Year. As great as that is, what is the reason that we wait?

Why wait for a New Year? Why not embrace the decision that you find yourself in, take that situation, listen to the thought process you're having and get on with things. Is the New Year a sort of comfort blanket. Someone asks when you're going to go for that promotion at work and you say "I'll do that in the New Year" but you then move those goal posts and push it back. To a birthday, or another month, another season or perhaps even the following year. Too many of us sit in discontent waiting for things to happen, but never take that first step to actually make things happen ourselves. It's like being stuck in the eye of a storm, where it's quiet, calm and you move along with it, getting used to the situation. But what you need to do it run towards the storm, work through it, and on the other side there is something so much better! That is where you want to be, so be there, forget what people think with their watching eyes, in the end it's what you think, and what God thinks.

Take that leap, throw aside the comfort blanket of a New Year, do it now! Why wait? What is so important about that New Year? Put your faith in God and go for it now! Why does a New Year have to be your new start? Why can't your new start start now? Stop hanging on, and let go!

Song of the Week | Casting Crowns 'O Come All Ye Faithful'

As the final advent candle has been lit, the coming of the Lord is almost upon us.This week's song is taken from Casting Crown's 'Peace On Earth' album, a collection of Christmas songs. Before the turkey is served, presents opened and the 'traditional' festivities begin, remember that we faithful ones know the true meaning of the 25th December. Be joyful, be triumphant, and embrace the real Christmas.


Friday 17 December 2010

Phatfish Interview

Hello Ben Hall & Nathan Fellingham from Phatfish. How are you doing? Where are you currently?

We are sat in the Phatfish office, catching up on various bits of admin – and we’re both doing very well!

How’s 2010 going thus far?

Going great. We’ve enjoyed loads of great gigs with a real sense of people being impacted by the great truths we have the privilege of singing about – and we just love playing music together. Add to that the birth of Jude
Fellingham (Nathan and Lou’s new addition) and you’ve got a great year!

If people don’t know what you and your music are about, how would you describe yourself?

Musically I’d say we were a pop rock band, using creativity in finding new sounds, crafting great melodies and making quality tunes. That makes up a big part of what we do, just loving music. But it’s not all that we’re about. We want to use our gifts to communicate who our God is and help people communicate how awesome they think he is in their local churches.

Where does the name of the band come from, a keyring ws involved I believe?

Yep, that’s right. It was actually Rachel Fellingham – Luke our bass players wife – who gave a friend of hers this little ‘Purple Phat Fish’ keyring – and in the card she said ‘Sounds like a good name for a band!’. We took the idea on – but dropped the purple after a year and just went with ‘PHATFISH’.

When did you give your life to God and what made your life turn in God’s direction?

We’ve all got different stories about God’s awesome work in each of our lives, from following God from childhood, to finding out who He is in our teens. So God’s grabbed us at different times but the way He did it would be evident in all, like God’s amazing love, perfect timing, sovereignty, faithfulness and grace. All of which seep out in our music.

You've been around for well over a decade and have released 10 albums. Which would you say was the most successful album? And how would you define success?

Well the biggest seller has been Heavenbound - so I guess you could say that’s been the most successful – and I think it’s inevitable that success will be defined in that way when it comes to albums as it represents how
well people have responded to it. But at the same time we certainly don’t consider success to be exclusively measured by sales. The key thing for us is that we continue to write God glorifying songs and to develop the gifts God has given us – to faithfully continue in work he’s given us to do.

What’s your favourite track over the numerous albums? Which do you most enjoy playing live?

My favorite is probably ‘This is what my God is like’ but we’ve all got our favourites, usually the ones that the individuals have written themselves.

Would you say you prefer worship leading, or performing as a band?

Both are a privilege, they each as enjoyable. There’s often an element of conveying truth through the lyrics at gigs, so it’s not just a group of people entertaining, right as that is, but we try and communicate things that will build up and challenge everyone, whether Christian or not. The band loves God though, and
loves leading people to encounter Him.

What message do you want to give through your music?

I suppose, explaining who God is and what He’s like, and provoking people to a response.

The band has seen various lineups throughout the years, is this the best yet?

I think we definitely feel as tight and coherent as ever as a team.

Back to your roots, how did you first come to music?

Various visits by red Indians in our dreams, telling of rock star lives with fame and riches. Well, not really. I think we’ve all been musical from our youth, I can remember carrying a notepad of song ideas round when I was at school, and playing the same piece on the piano for years.

Where do you find influences?

Live gigs, being outside (Nath’s a real adrenaline addict), good preaches, tv and being connected to what’s happening in the world.

Who would you love to perform with, past or present?

Ah, funny, we played this game the other day at our church worship team party. I chose Natasha Beddingfield and James Brown, Lou chose Stevie Wonder and Dolly Parton.

What artists have you most loved sharing a stage with?

We love playing with Matt Redman, what a legend.


What are you currently listening to on your mp3 player?

Fight for this Love – Cheryl Cole.


Who do you think is going to sum up the sound of 2010?

Wagner, and The XX.


God's Earth is a huge place, as you've toured internationally, taking you to all corners of the globe, where have you most enjoyed visiting, what cultures have you embraced?

Australia is God’s country.


Best live performance you’ve played?

Too hard to answer! We’ve enjoyed so many.

What do you miss the most when you’re on the road touring?

Our own beds.

If Phatfish was a Jelly Bean, what colour and flavour would you be and why?

Lemon, because we’re all bitter people. Jokes, the cheap ones or jelly belly ones? If cheep, strawberry because they’re the only ones that taste good, but if you’re treating us, then anything but peanut better, who makes peanut butter sweets?

Some quick fire questions:

Tea or coffee?

Coffee. 

Neither, MILO.

Summer or winter?

Summer.

Summer, unless it snows everyday in winter.

Superman or Batman?

Batman.

The new batman, the old ones are weird.

Mac or PC?

Mac.

We all have Macs but Mike the piano player is a staunch PC boy.

Bread or Wine?

Wine.

Bread, or even better, use the yeast for beer.

Favourite passage from the Bible?

John 8 – Before Abraham was born, I AM’

1 Chronicles 29:10. – 11 So David blessed the LORD in the sight of all the assembly; and David said, "Blessed are You, O LORD God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the
earth; Yours is the dominion, O LORD, and You exalt Yourself as head over all.

How did The Light Tour come about?

We essentially wanted to take the material from the last PHATFISH album ‘In Jesus’ and the latest album by Lou ‘Step into the Light’ and put them together to make a great set. We really believe both albums are full of great music and words that need to be heard!

What made you decide upon the locations of the gigs for The Light Tour?

It was a mixture of people approaching us and us speaking with contacts we already had.

I know that a percentage of merchandise sales on the tour goes directly to HOPEHIV. What made you decide to initially start supporting this particular charity?

We first worked with HOPEHIV about 10 years ago, when Phil Wall did his ’10 10 Challenge’. For the Light Tour we felt stirred to in some way give to those who are in desperate need – and really because of the history we decided to work with them again.

What’s coming up in 2011 and next on the agenda for Phatfish? Anything you can reveal about the next album?

We might be working on a grand theme, not too sure what that theme will be yet, but we want it to be something believers and non believers can relate to and know God through.

As it is fast approaching…how will you be celebrating Christmas?


Mike’s in the US seeing family where the rest of us are at home in Brighton.

And finally, how would you describe the love of God for all those people who perhaps get embarrassed about being a Christian, those who are unsure of their direction and of course those already on their journey with Christ?

Phillipians 3:14 Paul says “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus”.

Thanks guys! And Merry Christmas! 


Phatfish have just released a compilation of their most popular congregational songs - called 'Anthems For Worship' and you can buy it here!





Wednesday 15 December 2010

Roo Walker Interview

Hello Mr Roo Walker. How are you doing? Where are you currently?

Hello! I'm doing very well thanks and currently I am in Wales with my family
How’s 2010 going thus far?

2010 is going fast but there's lots that's happened, release of E.P in February and I think I've nearly sold them all which I got printed which is a good start.
If people don’t know what you and your music are about, how would you describe yourself?

I'm in contrast/conflict of being a musician and an entertainer. I always have the intention of being more of a musician but as soon as you put me in front of an audience I can't help myself from being a complete fruit loop! Idiot sometimes... I write songs, some are "serious" some are about wanting to burn down my town (not serious)
I like to give people joy... And fire lighters! (just kidding)  
When did you give your life to God and what made your life turn in God’s direction?

I gave my life to God for the first time on December 8th 2003. I decided with a friend to find out about this whole God religion thing, I wanted to understand if there was one God or lots of gods, if so, why so many religions? Is there no god? Yada yada. I try to give my life to God as much as I can remember to because I have a habit of trying to take it back. 

Your debut release 'Positive Music' music is fantastic. What message did you want to give through this release and through this music in general?'

Thank you , good question, I wish I knew what I was thinking!
  
You took the song ‘Sound of Selling Out’ as a single. What is the story behind the song and what made you pick it as the single?

I started writing the song when I was listening to the radio and a song came on, the song which thankfully I can't remember was doing very well in the charts. This may sound arrogant (it probably is) but I thought, this is rubbish, isn't it? Yes it's really quite bad...  I can write something better than that I said to myself, so I started the basis of it and wanted to write something that ticks all the boxes as a pop song. I often try to be clever when writing songs but this time I wanted to be really obvious and cliche for a change, so that's where the title came from because it's selling out musically. The chord progression in the chorus has been used so many times for hit songs, even hit worship songs.

Metaphorically it is reffering to when you want to give up on your dreams/calling to just to do  something which gets you by. I chose it as a single because it just stands out as being the single sounding track on the E.P. Plus it seems to be most peoples favourite.
   
What’s your favourite track from the album?

I think errrr The Sound of Selling Out!
Back to your roots, how did you first come to music?

My Dad and older brother played guitar and both introduced me to lots of music growing up... Dad liked prog rock of the 70s and the Beatles, my bro liked green day guns n roses and oasis. I started playing guitar at 12 and got obsessed.

Where do you find influences?

Influences find you. Haha!
Who would you love to perform with, past or present?

I would love to perform with Bobby Mcferrin or Wagner.   
What are you currently listening to on your mp3 player?

Loving the IHOP one thing worship, Listened to the song 'When I'm alone' by Lissie about a bezillion times. Punch Brothers latest album antifogmatic has been marvelled over alot too

Who do you think is going to sum up the sound of 2010?

Lady Gaga, if I'm honest I think that's the sound most commercial artists are striving for.

Best venue you’ve played?

Mermaid Theatre London/Sheffield O2 Academy
What do you miss the most when you’re on the road touring?

My girlfriend Emma, family and friends. 
You’re known for being quite comedic during your live shows, have you always been seen as the ‘funny’ one?

Haha the funny one, yes I think so although I'm not a comedian. You would be very disopointed if you came to a show under that impression. You would probably point and laugh though!  
If Roo Walker was a Jelly Bean, what colour and flavour would you be and why?

Well Cilla, I would be the colour green and would be the flavour of asparagus because people would go, eeeeeer I was not expecting that. Similar to the audience response after my shows.
Some quick fire questions:

Tea or coffee?

Tea please.
Summer or winter?

I think it's winter at the moment.
Superman or Batman?

Batman.
Mac or PC?

Mac.
Bread or Wine?

Haha wine.
Favourite passage from the Bible?

Joshua 1 vs 5 - 9.

I suppose we should mention it as it is fast approaching…how will you be celebrating Christmas?

With my family me thinks. Vote John Cage! 

And finally, what’s coming up in 2011 and next on the agenda for Roo Walker?

I think I shall start making an album!
Management wants me to make a DVD, I'm not sure about it bit think it's happening!
I'm also looking forward to continuing working with Philippa Hanna and Chip Kendall.
   
Thanks Roo. Merry Christmas!

Tuesday 14 December 2010

Song of the Week | The Afters 'Light Up The Sky'

This song is currently right at the top of the Christian music charts. The band themselves i'm hoping to have secured an interview with soon, so keep an eye on the site for that. But this song and it's video, shows just how we go through all sorts. We've all been through loss, bad news, grief, hardship, pain, anger, discontent. However, when you see that sky light up, you really do have God with you, watching you, placing his hand on your life.


Thursday 9 December 2010

My Fab Five

I know I haven't quite yet got to my first lot of twelve disciples, but I have got the first five official followers of crossreferences. I salute you all. Welcome along...

This made me think, currently here in the UK, the TV show The Apprentice is down to it's final five contestants. See the link? Good. I did think that, whilst the TV show is about getting a job with Lord Sugar, what we should be going is being apprentices to the one true Lord, our God.

There are weekly challenges for the 'reality' job-hopefuls, where they get sent back into the boardroom if they fail and eventually one of them is announced the winner. In real life however, we face daily challenges and there is no board room, there is one chance to do the right thing. We can all do that to become ultimate winners, and progress from this life, into the next in heaven.

I once heard that it's the coolest thing in the world to be involved in something bigger than yourself. You might think of that being to get a bigger car, a bigger house, going for a bigger position in a company like those people on The Apprentice. But why don't you go for the biggest? Go for the Lord.

Wednesday 8 December 2010

TobyMac New Christmas Single

TobyMac has released his new single in time and on the subject of Christmas. The five time Grammy award winner has roped Leigh Nash from Sixpence None The Richer for the song entitled 'Christmas This Year'. It's available exclusively on iTunes for you to download right now!

Follow Toby on twitter here: @therealtobymac

Monday 6 December 2010

Before the chaos

I know the chaos has pretty much already started, people wandering the streets, looking for presents for their loved ones, surfing the internet until the small hours of the morning ordering gifts, awaiting the arrival of them through the post in order to hide them, before the wrapped, giving and receiving takes place. But with all this chaos, the world loses sight of what Christmas is actually about.

It's been turned into this 'holiday' where the Christ part of Christmas is put after the mas. It has indeed been taken over by the masses, the shops all advertising in our faces, when really the thing in our faces should be Jesus. So maybe, before you start (or even continue) your Christmas shopping spending spree, take some time, think about the real meaning, the actual reason and spend some time alone with our Lord. When the wrapping paper has been binned, the batteries from the new toys have ran out and the ridiculous amount of food you've overspent on has either been eaten or passes its expiration date, what will you be left with?

Song of the Week | Chris Sligh 'Empty Me'

Chris Sligh is perhaps most well known for his American Idol appearances, and becoming a finalist on the sixth series of the show. This is perhaps his most successful release, however that might be due to the honesty behind 'Empty Me'. "Lord empty me of me so I can be filled with you" - how true!

Thursday 2 December 2010

Open Up

It's been a crazy week here in the north of England. Snow, everywhere, people can't drive, colleagues can't get to work, I was sent home from work due to the freak weather and as usual no one is prepared. Would you be prepared if the event wasn't snow, and instead was the return of Christ?

Probably not. I know I probably wouldn't be. He has my life in his hands but I'm sure that my preparations would be tiny and his coming would go way deeper than any snow that has fallen these past few days. Maybe we'd all be more prepared if we discussed it with friends, shared our faith and opened our hearts. Our friends, every Thursday, have started opening the doors of their house to anyone who wants to come and talk about God and share their faith. These are the people who have said they weren't sure about their calling and when I set up this blog and when my Mrs sorted out her youth groups website were even less sure about what their calling is. But really, I've always known what their calling is. Being there for others.

Whenever needed they will be there, guaranteed. They are a loving household who extend the word family to include more than just the four of them. Their open house represents their open hearts. Unfortunately this evening, due to the car being buried, we cannot make it to share a brew and biscuit together and discuss the big man upstairs, but I have no doubt that right now they will be helping someone with a problem, talking to a group about faith and ultimately bringing people closer to God. That is their calling.

What's yours?

Wednesday 1 December 2010

Sanctus Real Interview

Hello Dan Gartley from Sanctus Real. How are you doing? Where are you currently?

Good. Thanks for asking. We’re currently on the last run of the Hungry For Love Tour with Leeland and The Afters. It’s been great!

How's 2010 going thus far? 

It’s been a mixture of hi’s and lows. We released our new album, Pieces of a Real Heart, this year. Everything surrounding that has been very positive and very exciting. The songs have been received well, which we’re extremely grateful for. Matt, Chris, and Pete all had babies too, so home life is even more exciting and crazy than ever.

However, Matt’s baby was born with a heart condition called, “Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS).” Basically, the left side of his heart has not developed properly. They had to perform open-heart surgery three days after he was born. They will do two more surgeries by the time he’s two years old. The months leading up to Bowen’s arrival were obviously hard for the Hammitts, and they were hard for the band as well. We didn’t know what to prepare for; if Matt would be able to tour or if we could continue being a band. There was a lot uncertainty.

The good news of all this is that the first surgery went very well and after nearly 3 months of recovery, Matt and his wife, Sarah, were finally able to bring their son home. They’ve kept a blog about all this at www.bowensheart.com.

As for the band, we’ve had to be very conservative with our schedule to ensure Matt can be with his family, but things are starting to pick back up from the difficulties of the recession, so that’s good. God provides.

If people don't know what you and your music are about, how would you describe yourself?

We’re a pop rock band comprised of Christians, and we write songs about life from our Christian perspective.

Where does the name of the band come from? 

Mark was searching for a word in the dictionary and he came across “Sanctus.” He saw it was a hymn of praise sang at the end of the Eucharistic liturgy. We’re not Catholic, but we liked the idea of making music that was a hymn of praise to God. “Real” sums up in one word that we’re ordinary people; just believers trying to follow God.

When did you give your life to God and what made your life turn in God's direction? 

I grew up going to church. I gave my life to God at a young age. However, it was the beginning of High School that I made the biggest conscious decision to seek God with my whole heart…not that I didn’t want to before, but adolescence brought about a slightly deeper awareness of what following God means. This was after a mission trip to Mexico, and it was the first time I felt called to action for my faith.

The band has been around for well over a decade and have released 5 studio albums. Which would you say was the most successful album? And how would you define success? 

I think we’d all agree that our current album, Pieces of a Real Heart, is our most successful in every aspect. It’s currently on track to sell more copies than our previous albums, which is good because then our record label will let us make another one (I kid. I kid) More than that, it means there is a deeper connection with our audience, the church, on PoaRH than previous albums. We absolutely love making music and being a band…we all grew up listening to our dad’s record players…but what keeps us going when the challenges strike, which they do often, is the fact that we feel called to it. We’re away from our loved ones far too much, and we don’t make nearly enough money to do it for any other reason. So to release an album and have people connect with songs like, “Lead Me” and “Forgiven” as they have is confirmation that God is still calling us to it. One day he’ll tell us the time has come to wrap it up, and we’ll all be very sad, but to attempt anything other than God’s calling only leads to living as a fruitless tree.

What's your favourite track over the numerous albums? Which do you most enjoy playing live?  

My favorite track is probably “Eternal” on We Need Each Other. I always think back to the feeling of worship that came over us when Chris first started messing with the guitar part.

My favorite to play live is probably “Dear Heart.” I get to play my Hofner bass like Sir Paul McCartney, and sometimes we have a friend come on stage dressed as a reindeer. He holds a giant heart balloon and dances around during the song.

“Dear Heart”…Deer Heart? Get it? Anyone? No? *crickets chirp* ok…

What message do you want to give through your music? 

Our beliefs are fairly straightforward in the messages of our songs. Love God. Love your families. Serve them. Doing anything else before this is missing the point.

Back to your roots, how did you first come to music? 

We all fell in love with music at an early age, growing up listening to our dad’s stereos. Some of our parents played instruments. I think just being around it so much inspired us to try making some ouselves.

Where does the band find influences? 

We listen to a lot of music of all genres, so musical influence comes from all over the place. Also conversations. “Forgiven” came from a conversation within the band and “Lead Me” came from a conversation Matt had with his wife. We like to read books too. Matt reads a lot and often times lyrical ideas stem from things he’s been reading and thinking about.

Who would you love to perform with, past or present? 

Keith Green, Tom Petty, House of Heroes, Conan O Brien.

What artists have you most loved sharing a stage with? 

There are many, but Leeland and Tenth Avenue North have both become wonderful friends.

What are you currently listening to on your mp3 player? 

As I type, I’m listening to a band called, The Middle East. A friend turned me onto them, and it’s great. Otherwise, I’ve been listening to Mumford & Sons, Band of Horses, Brandon Flowers…stuff like that…and Tom Petty is never too far away.

Who do you think is going to sum up the sound of 2010?
Lady Gaga? Smashmouth?

God's Earth is a huge place, as you've toured internationally, taking you to all corners of the globe, where have you most enjoyed visiting, what cultures have you embraced? 

We’ve thoroughly enjoyed every trip we get to take overseas. We don’t get to do it enough. We played with Delirious at Alton Towers in Staffordshire a couple years ago and that was a huge deal for us. We all LOVE Delirious! Pete and I stayed several days longer and visited Manchester and London and stopped for a day in Dublin.

In Manchester, one of the places we passed through was Piccadilly Square. It was a beautiful day and people were out having a great time. It was picturesque. Two days later Manchester held the UEFA Cup Final between Scotland and Russia. A Jumbotron video screen in Piccadilly Square malfunctioned and the crowd rioted. We saw a huge photo in the paper of the aftermath from exactly where we were. It was a different kind of picturesque…it looked like an earthquake destroyed the city…

Best venue you've played? 

I’ll say Disneyworld. The stage started underground and rose up to where the audience was.  We were giddy as school kids while the stage rose from the ground.

What do you miss the most when you're on the road touring? 

Since I’m the only unmarried member of the band, I’ll be the only one who doesn’t answer, “family.” So umm…sleeping in my bed, cooking my own food, riding my motorcycle, and playing with my great danes.

How has the Christian music scene changed over the decade or so that you've been part of it? 

It’s starting to become more singular. “Christian” has been the only genre of music categorized by lyrical content rather than musical style. Ten years ago, listening to “secular” music was taboo in American churches, so there were Christian alternatives to every genre. Today there are many Christian bands whose primary audience is in the mainstream. Skillet and Switchfoot are great examples of this. These occurrences have blurred the definition between “secular” and “Christian” music, and so Christian music is coming more and more to be what was once considered strictly “worship music.”

Some quick fire questions: 

Tea or coffee? 

Coffee (I roast my own...)

Summer or winter? 

Right now it’s getting close to Christmas, sooo…Winter

Superman or Batman? 

Batman

Mac or PC? 

Mac

Bread or Wine? 

You need both for communion

Favourite passage from the Bible? 

“For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.” - 2 Corinthians 8:12

God doesn’t expect us to be perfect. He only asks that we be willing. He uses us for what we CAN do, not what we can’t.

What's coming up in 2011 and next on the agenda for Sanctus Real? 

Once we’re done on this tour, we’ll play spot dates until next spring. Oh, and we’re playing on a cruise ship in February that goes to the Bahamas. That’ll be a good month to go to the nice warm Gulf of Mexico.


As it is fast approaching…how will you be celebrating Christmas? 

With our families, and since I’m always dreaming of a White Christmas, with any luck, I’ll be shoveling some snow from the driveway…just some, I don’t want to shovel much…


And finally, how would you describe the love of God for all those people who perhaps get embarrassed about being a Christian, those who are unsure of their direction and of course those already on their journey with Christ? 

If someone is embarrassed about being a Christian, I might question whether or not they actually are one. I don’t say this in a judgmental way. What I mean is that to be a “little Christ” is to live as Jesus did. He was far too aware of himself and sure of his purpose to be embarrassed about it. I would encourage anyone who wrestles with embarrassment to ask God to make himself so real in your life, being embarrassed isn’t possible.

If you’re unsure of your direction, I encourage you to dig down and find the root of this uncertainty. If you have questions about faith and God, don’t be afraid to vocalize them. There isn’t a question you can ask that God isn’t bigger than the answer. We’re generally more frightened of these questions than He is.

Those who are already on their journey…Good deal, brother/sister. Let’s be praying for each other!


Thanks Dan!