luck (n.)
late 15c. from M.Du. luc, shortening of gheluc “happiness, good fortune,” of unknown origin. Related to M.H.G. g(e)lücke, Ger. Glück “fortune, good luck.” Perhaps first borrowed in English as a gambling term. To be down on (one’s) luck is from 1832; to be in luck is from 1900; to push (one’s) luck is from 1911. Good luck as a salutation to one setting off to do something is from 1805. Expression better luck next time attested from 1802. Taken from http://www.etymonline.com

This is an extension of the thought of ‘luck’ as written in my post Reveling in the Call from the Heart. The opening of that post talks about an interview I read with a songwriter who said that his successes have come though luck and following his heart. I just gave a short sentence saying, “let’s get ‘luck’ out of the way: luck is when preparation meets opportunity”. This post is a companion to that one. It expands in a similar, but different way. This one expands on ‘luck’.

As a person after the heart of God, I find that the etymology of the word ‘luck’ takes on an expanded definition. Or to say it another way, I find that the etymology of the word (happiness, good fortune) is an inadequate explanation for the feeling conjured. The word conjures thoughts of an unguided, unfounded happiness that somehow comes to us; it tells us that maybe a necessary component is gaining more money for happiness.

There’s a ton of sweat equity in songwriting. Many times dissapointing. But there’s really not much glory given to God by not preparing and honing the skills! As the saying goes, ‘luck’ is when preparation meets opportunity. There’s the type of unskilled luck at the casino table and then there’s the times when preparation meets opportunity. Songwriting needs to be about when preparation meets opportunity. Those chances where there are possibilities for success in songwriting come as God opens doors and you are giving God the complete glory for how he has bestowed upon you this magnificent gift. I’m sure, in God’s timing and will, that He would like to see each of us have successes. But how can we not ‘put on the armour of God’ for spiritual warfare and not also understand this to mean to be well prepared for the opportunities ahead of us in the battlefield of life and songwriting!!

God’s will for our success in songwriting, or any aspect of life, is when preparation meets opportunity. Luck is blind chance. Becoming a good songwriter is not. I mean, there’s a certain aspect of casino-table-type luck where you or your song is just going to be in the right place at the write time, but are you willing to stake your entire songwriting career on that?? Be prepared. Looking like a serious songwriter will take you far.

The great ‘leveling of the playing field’ that has happened over the last 20 years with the affordability of recording equipment has indeed sparked a revolution. The revolution of creating a cash cow industry for music equipment manufacturers!

But enough of beating that dead horse. We can all still benefit greatly from learning from the masters of the trade. And rest assured, we ALL DO have to go through the school of hard knocks and make mistakes. Failure is the greatest teacher. Just ask Thomas Edison, who after inventing hundreds of items finally invented one which was successful. So it is that we will eventually learn how to record music well after we record a few hundred songs.

The greatest lesson that I’ve learned over the years is that in order to be a great recordist, I need to understand and learn more about microphones. Specifically, how to set up one mic and use that one mic to capture the subject well. Specifically how to experiment and find just how different the microphone sounds when set up at different angles and distances. Specifically how to record without overloading the microphone. This is lesson one, and the real experienced people out there that are reading this are saying what a idiot I am for saying the obvious. But I hope this helps someone.

There is one huge sub-lesson on recording microphones: learn about the recording level going in. There’s plenty already written on this subject, but let me just say one sentence in this regard so you can ‘google’ this: 0dB FS = -18db VU.

The next best lesson I learned, just about basic recording and mixing, is to pay CLOSE attention to gain staging. What I mean by this is amplifying the signal only certain amounts at each stage; not over-driving the signal into the next amp stage. Again, the experienced are groaning at me for being obvious. But I tell you, for those of you reading who didn’t know these two items, your engineering world just woke up.

There are so many other lessons to learn in recording: the uses and tricks of compression, the uses of equalization, the use of effects. What the many jobs of a mastering engineer include. But do yourself a huge favor: concentrate on the first two. I’ve read many an engineer’s notes who have said that the best thing they’ve ever done to a record was to just set up mic’s and ‘get out of the way’ and not try to do anything at all but capture the artist in the best way possible.

Recording and mixing is a serious and fun science. The pro’s often don’t have the time, nor the incling, to explain this. But without this knowledge, the hobbyist or the learner will remain in the dark and make bad recordings and mixes. Wake up and smell the coffee about the basics!

It doesn’t matter which one you choose, but it’s important that you choose one and that you register your works with them. After/before you seek a copyright registration, but registering your songs means that the PRO has a database of your songs from which they can assign any royalty payments that may come your way. Many doors and career benefits will be opened.

If you choose to be the administrating publisher for your works, then find out the requirements for having a publisher membership and seek that. If you have a publisher membership, then register your songs under your publisher membership instead of your writer membership. This assures that the entire performance revenue stream is assigned to you or your company. As expected, the main criteria for joining as a publisher is to show evidence that you have had a song published. Find whatever opportunity that you can, say with an independent artist, to get a cut so you can apply for a publisher membership. Or, if you’re a solo artist, then providing info on your first solo CD project or EP or solo song will be the ticket.

If by chance you intend on helping other writers by being an administrating or exploitation publishing agent for them, be sure to sign up for a publisher membership with their PRO so you will receive the publisher’s share of performance royalties.

There are plenty of good articles everywhere that tell you some ins and outs of ‘how’. Let’s stick with the ‘why’ and some of the background stuff so you know what you’re getting yourself, and possibly your mates, into. After these questions are answered you can get more into the ‘how’.

What are your goals?

Why do you want to record you or your band? Are you a songwriter that needs a demo? What are the goals for doing this? Answers to these questions will help you decide how to proceed. For example, if you are a solo guitarist and your goal is to just have some CDs of a couple of songs to pass out to friends, why not ask around at the local guitar shop or ask friends of someone who has a decent recording set-up that would be willing to make a few extra bucks?

Let’s look at the larger picture. If you want to record with intention of replication and distribution, then be totally aware of copyright law. It would be illegal for you record a song that someone else wrote with the intention of distribution. Go to the Harry Fox Agency and google on ‘how to secure recording rights’. The answer on how to secure recording rights, in a nutshell, is this: pay for the mechanical reproductions you are making by contacting the owner of the rights of those songs. The cost is usually very reasonable.

If your songs are original compositions, protect yourself by getting the songs copyrighted before you record. This is job #1 for the serious songwriter. It takes sometimes up to 9 months to receive a copyright registration, but proof of your submittal is good enough for government recognition of your work.

Ok, back to the topic at hand. Why do you want to record? Are you a solo artist that is recording a project for demo purposes? Then maybe you don’t need to spend huge bucks on a top-of-the-line studio, maybe you need to find a smaller studio or a recording geek to help you out. Are you part of a full band that wants to record for the purposes of getting a demo for distribution to bars? Then seek good quality, but don’t break the bank. Are you a songwriter in need of a great sounding demo? Sadly, a great sounding demo is what is expected. Make a list of the studios in your area. Call or surf and find out recording rates.

Have a plan before getting into the studio.

Do you want really great quality? Then be prepared to spend some money. But fear not, you will save a ton if you your sessions planned far in advance. Think of session planning as you would songwriting. A little incubation time is required.

Before even getting into the studio, contact and prepare the musicians. This means send them charts, mp3s, CDs tapes, whatever. Get them prepared for the parts they’ll be playing. Even if you want them to come up with some ideas, prepare them with whatever you have. Even if it’s only a description of the song.

Plan the sessions with the studio manager. After setting up the blocks of time, tell him or her what you’ll be doing that day. “Today we’re bringing in the drummer and he’s (she’s) gonna play these songs”. The session on that day will be all about certain players and certain parts of certain songs. Build the house from the foundation upward.

If you’re planning on recording your band all at once, no problem. Most places can do that. Just be prepared that there’s a goodly amount of set-up time.

Speaking of set-up time, this is all studio time as well. Be prepared because you will have plenty. Especially when it comes to drums.

Even if you’re a solo performer, make session plans. No matter whether your solo or in a band situation, you will need to be flexible and re-structure your plans. Things happen or things take longer than you expected. Learn when a part is good enough and move on. If you’ve got the time to wait for the ‘perfect’ take, then wait. Just remember that time is money.

Build the house. Start with the foundation and build upward. Begin by recording the drums, then get the bass track down. Then the rhythm parts, then any highlight or lead parts. Finally, get the vocals tracked (you may want to record a ‘scratch’ vocal track during the drum session for reference). There’s no hard and fast rules about producing this way, but this is what works well. If you don’t have tight tracks from the drums and a tight bass guitar track to them, nothing else will groove. These ARE the grooves! You might decide to record the band all at once, and this is ok. This also works well. Do what you think would be best for you. If you’re playing and recording as one unit and you think it will take multiple takes to get it right, think about recording each instrument separately. You’ll have more control over the mix and less frustrations overall.

As a songwriter, I need to begin to ‘dot my i’s and cross my t’s’ by being organized. Not everyone is going to feel the need to be so tidy as another might, but what I mean is so that you have a listing of your songs available so that at a moment’s notice you can be prepared to pitch a song. Creating a spreadsheet with items such as title, song form, musical style, copyright registration in hand/application sent, PRO registration and contract status are some important items. I’ll break out some of these items below.

Why have a column for song form? Not only is it a good way for you to understand the different types of song forms, but it might be a catalyst for you to intentionally write songs in certain song forms. Just another way for you to sharpen that tool for the craft tool box.

Musical style column? No matter what genre(s) or sub-genre styles you write, you’ll be prepared to pitch certain songs when a music manager calls for certain styles or feelings in a song.

A column for copyright registration explains itself. This is a great way to remind yourself that protecting your work before any submissions are made is vital.

PRO registration. Performance Rights Organization. In the US, these companies are ASCAP, BMI and SESAC. Don’t forget about registering your songs with CCLI. These companies collect royalty monies for any works that are made public, whether that’s radio/tv/satellite or other digital transmissions. Bars, clubs, restaurants, broadcast companies and websites that allow copyrighted material to be publicly played are required to pay license fees to the PROs and the PROs distribute money directly to you, the writer. This revenue is called performance royalties. This is how the basic revenue stream is set up, depending on the agreement you have with your publisher: The PRO will distribute 50% directly to the writer, if you have registered the song with them, and 50% to the publisher. Traditionally, the PROs only paid performance royalties to the songwriter and publisher, but due to the digital act of 1995 added to copyright law, artists now also receive a share of ‘digitally transmitted’ royalties.

Contract status. It will be good for you to keep track of whether or not a song is currently under contract, the type and length of contract and whether or not the contract has granted any exclusive exploitation. Unless you really want to have a column for all of these separate considerations, at least the easy visual of a check mark will lead you to discover the rest of the details in a specific file folder or computer folder somewhere.

As your musical catalog grows, the more you’ll find the need for organization. But only you can dedide that, and whether or not songwriting is a serious business consideration! But let me say that the more you treat it professionally at home, the more professionally you’ll be treated when pitching your wares

The actual method of pitching will probably vary, depending on your personal or other contact. I guess it’s best to say that being prepared to pitch your songs in a variety of ways might be the best thing. For example: mp3s at the ready, the ability to burn CDs or even inexpensive thumb drives with your personal information. Creating relationships with those who might be willing to listen to your work is a great consideration. Deciding on what type of package to create for pitching is up to your creative genius. The more professional the package and your willingness to make contacts or follow the rules of submission, the more receptive music managers and publishing agents will be with your works.

It’s all about relationships!

What are my goals as far as music publishing?  Well, in this case, my overall goals in songwriting include the self-publication of my music. So my overall goals belong here in this mission statement:

To be true to the call I have in writing songs for God.  To be true to the call that these songs will be edifying to the body of Christ. To help other writers along the path.  Kingdom ethics, considerations and relationships are first.  Money is second. 

I want to accomplish these goals by pursuing the following:

1) Become the best songwriter I can be.  Take songwriting course(s), read books and  complete exercises as well as create relationships with other songwriters.  Attend seminars when possible.

2) Become an efficient music publisher.  Be as prepared as I can be in administrating my song catalog.  Dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s legally.  Offer publishing services to a few other songwriters (be the exploitation publisher for some, administrating publisher for others).

3) Create a tight branding for my publishing company (stay and create within my niche in the songwriting world, use the same visuals in advertisements, be known for creating respectful relationships).  Create the right relationships and connections to get my songs in front of the right people.

I can’t ask if you agree with these or not, because that doesn’t matter.  What does matter, though are your comments or questions (if you feel like giving them).

Steve

Copyright law, at it’s very core, is a very simple read.  It’s just that there are so many different contingencies and what-if scenarios that it’s easy to have your eyes glaze over . Unless you’re either a lawyer or extremely interested, it’s easy to give up.

Ok, wait.  This blog isn’t meant to try and explain all there is to know about music publishing, but I’ll tell you this:  The copyright law for the U.S. is found in U.S. Code Title 17 at the Library of Congress.  You can find it all broken into nice little sections in .pdf format at http://www.copyright.gov/title17.  Or download the entire Title 17 there.  The entire code is continually updated to be relevant to current times, and includes all sorts of amendments in regards to other forms of creation, such as semiconductors.  As it pertains to songwriting, no further explanation is necessary, as an introduction, other than the following three paragraphs.

The U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 8 says this: The Congress shall have power…to promote the Progress of Science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writing and Discoveries (emphasis mine).  This says that our founding fathers made sure that Congress could make laws protecting songwriters and other authors.

Section 101 describe all of the definitions of Article 17 of the U.S. Code.  Section 102 tells us that (a) Copyright protection subsists, in accordance with this title, in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.  This says that IF you are the creator of any writing AND the work is expressed in a fixed form THEN copyright protection automatically subsists.  Only one more paragraph, hang with me.

Section 106 of Article 17 says this (I will highlight): Subject to sections 107 through 122, the owner of copyright under this title has the exclusive rights to do and to authorize any of the following:

(1) to reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords; (2) to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work; (3) to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending (4) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works, to perform the copyrighted work publicly; (5) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pan-tomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, to display the copyrighted work publicly; and (6) in the case of sound recordings, to perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

Let’s break that down into small words and few of them:  You, the writer, AUTOMATICALLY own a copyright on the stuff you write.  You also own the EXCLUSIVE right to the words in bold above.  HOWEVER, even though you automatically own a copyright, it is highly suggested by the LOC that you apply for a copyright registration so that your work will be supported by them in a court of law should infringement occur.

What this means in practice is that routinely a song writer will sign away at least half of the rights of a song that they wrote (read over half of the possible income generated by the song).  But they have traditionally given away even more than that.  The majority of publishers in the past have included all sorts of schemes and costs that they can deduct from any monies owed you, and suddenly, you are not receiving even 25% percent of the monies generated by your song. What’s worse, some unscrupulous so-called ‘publishers’ and others that want to make a demo of your song are there only to loosen your wallet and give you promises they have no intention of keeping.  Paying for a demo separately is one thing, but just know this:  a real music publisher would never ask for any of your money up front.

A real music publisher will, however, ask you to sign over a certain percentage of your exclusive rights so they can do their job.  The percentages are a matter for another blog.

There are some basics to know about dealing with publishing contracts.  Reading legal lingo is usually no fun, though.  Learn about the basics of publishing and music publishing history in plain words.  One very good book to do so is Music Publishing: A Songwriter’s Guide by Randy Poe.

If you have any specific questions, please contact me at songs at solidwalnut dot com.

This is not unique to any other type of calling in the life of an individual. But it can seem in the arts that the passion of performing as one is called by God vs. the pull of other responsibilities and activities in life can be a struggle particularly full of angst due to the input and filtering of the messages of the world vs. the messages from the heart and from God.

A very large creator of angst in the songwriting and music industry is the angst created by the real and fabricated ‘fame, fortune and freedom’ that we see on TV and read in the news. No matter how humble many of us are, there is a tug on us that wants a piece of that action. We want to know how to get some of that. That’s only natural for us, I suppose.

But I’m not writing this to delve in to all of the possible issues and feelings of that angst other than how it can relate to us as songwriters. And we are songwriters that, in our estimation, are on the outside looking in. How can we participate in this business of songwriting and be successful?

Some of the first questions we have to ask ourselves are about the definition of success and the direction you want to take as a songwriter. Look for resources that can help answer this for YOU. Pray and spend time with God in finding answers. Are you writing for an audience of only One? Do you write songs with the intention of having them sung at church? Are your songs destined to be sung by a popular artist? Are the lyrics and music you’re writing for the purpose of you getting out and performing?

The definition of success is a topic of it’s own and deserves a separate written blog or article. But let’s simply define success in the eyes of God as one word: obey. That’s what we’re called to do, to obey Him and to focus first on the kingdom. Focusing on the kingdom means that we are to praise God, number one, and change lives, number two. Kingdom success.

The direction you want to take as a songwriter is something that may be a separate consideration from kingdom success. But everything should be measured against kingdom success first. Then it’s time to define your direction. Each direction will give you different answers as to how to proceed. For example, if you believe that your calling is to write strictly for an audience of One and it’s unlikely your lyrics would ever sung by another man or woman, then honing the craft towards an earthly target audience may be a waste of your time. If you are writing with the intention of getting songs sung at church, you now have more than God in your audience. The songs now need to be sung and need to be repeatable by the congregation. To have your song recorded by other artists requires an enhanced approach. Focusing on getting out and performing requires another plan. Each direction deserves individual consideration as to the skill set needed.

We can expand on the individual topics of the skill sets needed later. The call from the heart and from God for your life, songwriting, is a simple song of it’s own. It’s a song that needs to be nurtured and expressed by you in conjunction with the call. It’s a song that is as individual as is your relationship with the Father. Relax and perform it as only you can. Commune with the Father to continually discover the path that He has for you.

Let’s get luck out of the way: I’ve always thought that luck is preparation meets opportunity. Enough said?

I am one of those people who believe that everything in the world is created or allowed by God and all people are his children, whether they know it or not. I don’t spend my time judging others for not following Christ but rather look for how Christ is acting in other people’s lives even if they’re not acknowledging Him.

This songwriter began with a quote from an Indian mystic speaking of being still and listening through the quiet and being led by your inner voice. I immediately thought of that small-still quiet voice that we as Christians acknowledge is God acting within us. This is an example of how God has infiltrated many spiritual beliefs in this world and written His name on their hearts.

The writer goes on to say how important it is for us to learn to listen to this inner voice and then lead from the heart. He says that nurturing and developing how to hear your heart is the key in learning to trust decisions, sometimes seemingly crazy, made by it. This reminds me so much of my personal connection with the Father and how important my daily quiet time is in getting to know Him and nurturing the call He has on my life.

Taking action on this leading from the heart is how this songwriter has learned to navigate the music industry. He states that over the years he has become encouraged to take action according to this intuition. It’s like “making a deal with Creativity itself”, he says. The more he has trusted his heart, the more his heart has trusted him and further opened the lines of communication with him.

In Matthew 8, we read Jesus telling us that we need to knock, to seek and ask the Father. In verse 9, Jesus says: “Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”

We know through the study of the word that God is not a genie in a lamp, and that he just doesn’t dole out gifts due to our whimsy, but rather He gives us what we truly need in His timing. He gives us the desires of our hearts as it aligns with His will for our lives.

If the will of the Father is that I am to be a songwriter then He will give me the tools that I need according to His will and according to His timetable. The Father already knows who I am and what I need, but Jesus tells us that we need to continually knock at His door and petition Him and to continually ask. I need to continually ask and to listen to that still-quiet voice and to nurture my relationship with the Father so I am in tune with His will! I need to constantly seek God’s counsel so I can commune with Him and so I can remove some of the silly requests that no longer make sense, or to try and understand a changing landscape.

I need to spend time with Him to understand the type of songwriter that I discover that I am to become. The pressures and other responsibilities in my world need to find balance with how I am called, but the main consideration in life is that I am reveling in the call that God has placed on my heart.

First, what do I mean by the question? I’m 53 and in the years where many a man begins to wonder whether they’ve ‘missed the boat’ or begin thinking whether or not retirement at any age will financially feasible. Why, after being a songwriter of 15 years or so, should I take a course on songwriting now? I’ve written 40-some songs, don’t I know what I’m doing yet?? Why this particular songwriting course? How does this fit with any spiritual, emotional and financial plan for my life?

We’ll get to those questions. But first, how about this answer for anyone who has a bent for songwriting: Why not take a course on songwriting???? I mean, learning more about the craft is not like taking a stab at all of those ‘can’t miss’ financial opportunities that are out there (with the empty feeling that if I don’t grab the right one that I’m going to ‘miss the boat’). Learning about the craft is a definite boning up on a specialized skill set. Learning from experts can give you the toolset you need to succeed and blossom in the songwriting business world. At the very minimum, becoming a better writer will make your word art take on some very satisfying forms. You’ll craft songs that will more richly tell your stories and enrich your life along the way.

But should I or you take any particular songwriting course?? As is a good plan in life, it’s always worth defining a road map or plan of action. You don’t have one yet?? Don’t worry about it, just keep working toward it.

All right. Why should I start a course on songwriting now that I’m 53? For one thing, it’s because I know that I have already done well at songwriting but now I want to be great at it. I feel that I’ve always been a decent writer. Not great, but I can string together words okay. Looking back at many of the songs that I’ve written, I see a natural feel for forms and prose and a natural feel for instilling clarity, or really being conscious of being concise with my words and aware of not confusing the listener.

Am I trying to make up for lost time; have I missed the boat? Ha, no. But it’s time for me to knuckle down and be the best that I can be in my calling from God to be a songwriter. It’s also the time that I can consider retiring from my full-time job. I’m eligible to retire in two years (because I meet a requirement of being 55 years old plus having a minimum of 15 years of service). What does that mean? It means that I’m eligible to begin withdrawing pension money. I can begin withdrawing from retirement accounts at 59½ years without penalties. But what it also means is that I won’t have health insurance!! Big drawback. What this all means and whether I’ll actually retire in 2 or 5 years is another story for another time!!

So why, after 15 years of songwriting, should I take a course on it now? Don’t I know what I’m doing yet in this business of songwriting? The short answer is no! I’ve been very “successful” in getting my and others songs out there in the world (literally, I’ve shipped CD’s of me and other artists to many different countries) in an effort to spread the gospel. I’ve learned much about publishing and administration. I’ve been “successful” in writing personal praise and corporate worship songs in a local effort. Now, I want to have better commercial success.

I really am less concerned about me as an artist and more concerned with writing songs that other artists and worship teams will want to sing. I want to fill the pipe line full of songs to music managers of all sorts. I want to send music packages to other worship leaders. I want to make my songs shine by paying attention to getting better at the craft of writing, and I want to increase my awareness and write songs specific to genres (actually, sub-genres for me. Since the vast majority of my songs are personal and corporate praise and geared toward the Christian music market, I will concentrate mostly on music managers within that market).

I’ve begun this online course at Christian Songwriter University (which has since folded into the larger ccmni organization). Why this particular songwriting course? I found out about it while searching for Christian songwriting sites. I ran into Contemporary Christian Music Networking International which I found to be very fresh and up-to-date. It is a part of a network of music business related sites, all concentrating on the Christian music industry. CCMNI has a songwriting contest, which I entered. One of the prizes of the contest is one month free membership in Christian Songwriting University. Intriguing! After reading more about CSU, I found that they are not interested in only teaching better craft and about industry relationships. They are primarily interested in helping a songwriter cultivate an attitude of kingdom-first. How we plug in to the calling on our lives from God, and how we express that is of great importance in their curriculum. I found that fascinating and fresh! That spoke to me more than I can express at the moment.

This course and these people who are instructing it are exactly what I need. My heart really wants to grasp all that God has for me in this arena. I have no other longing other than to do my best for Him and to show my wife some earning security in this second half of our lives. Yes, I want to be more financially successful in songwriting. Yes, I want to be able to retire from my other job and lead worship and write full-time instead of part-time for both. These people offer all aspects of what’s on my heart. I truly believe this is a God thing.

This time of my life is really fulfilling for me, and creating a second career of songwriting really fits the emotional bill. This is the person I was designed to be: a songwriter, a worship leader and a husband.

There is no, why now? question about this.

Listen to the call that says He knew you evermore
And knew the days of your life before you
Listen to the call and wonder what He has in store
This chapter of your life is all brand new

Stephen Robert Cass Christian People – 1998 Solid Walnut Music