The Wilds Christian Camp recently released their newest album, and I am thankful to have written lyrics for two of their songs. For those interested in listening to the songs, you can purchase the album by clicking here. Music directors and pastors will also be pleased to know these songs are available as choral arrangements and free congregational hymns. I will post the links to both resources below.
Who is Like the Lord Our God?
This song is very much a hymn of adoration, focusing on the objective character of our God and his redemptive work. It focuses on how each person of the Trinity works in the act of redemption, first with the Father’s plan of working a new creation by transforming our lives, then with the Son’s work of healing the spiritually blind by giving us eyes of faith, and finally with the Holy Spirit who sheds his light abroad on our hearts to bear his fruit and love each other. I knew the theme of the album was going to be focused on light, and so I tried to capture the work of the Godhead through the images of light we see in Scripture that relate to each person. Our response to such glorious redemption should be to go and tell others of the light we have seen in the gospel. I hope this song motivates campers this summer and all who hear it to go and tell the story of God’s salvation.
In the Morning
They say in the writing world that authors like to enter into the conversation with other works of the past, drawing on similar storylines and plots and allusions, while also adding an original contribution to great bodies of literature. I strive to do the same in my hymn-writing. My first song with the Wilds was entitled “Holy Bible, Book Divine” (you can check it out here), a clear reference to an old hymn from the early 1800s. “In the Morning” takes its cues from the African-American spiritual, but then develops each stanza’s lyrics.
I love this fresh take on a well-known classic, and I believe it will refresh your devotional life. It is quite different from “Who Is Like the Lord Our God?” in that it focuses on the personal, subjective side of our faith. We find this balance in the Psalms; God’s people worship him with objective praise for who he is and what he has done, yet at other times they often cry out to him in very personal language. May this song personally strengthen your faith in and desire for Jesus in the morning, when you are alone, and when you come to die.
We’re Better Together
No, I didn’t write a song entitled “We’re Better Together.” But the collaborations on this album made me think about a song I once heard. These days most of my movie watching revolves around the choices of my children, who are in their toddler and elementary years. In Valentines episode of “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” the main characters sing a song that has the lyrics, “We go together like cookies and milk.” It’s all about their friendship and the joy they share together. I must say the same can be true about collaboration in the music world. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with Matt Taylor and the fine team he has formed for these albums. Matt wrote the music for both of these songs, and they were arranged by Brian Buda and Richard Nichols. The vocals were provided by a quality ensemble of singers, and his wife Christy sang a spot-on solo for “In the Morning.” Beside the musicians I am also grateful for the work of Airborne Studios, Reba Snyder in production, and Matt’s assistant Mikayla Gordon. It is hard for most people to comprehend the amount of work that goes into producing this kind of music, but so many eyes and ears and voices have contributed to these works. What makes this so special is that each individual contributes out of their own strengths, making the sum greater than the parts. And I am thrilled at the outcome. We are better together by God’s grace, and I hope you enjoy what you hear because of it.
In Christ,
~CP
Worship as a Way of Life 
Leave a comment