Inspiration

Just The Way I Am

I wrote this song one day while I was driving.  In my mind I said, "God, I just don’t understand why you love me so much when you know how flawed I am!"  Sometimes, I think that I have to measure up to be some great person, before I can stand before God.  This isn't true.  He loves me just the way I am.  The freedom this gives me, makes me love him even more and want to be that "great person" - in honor of his love for me.  Out of those thoughts came this song.

Secret Place

This song came through one of the greatest trials I ever went through in my life.  Some of my closest (so-called) friends had not only betrayed me, but turned against me in my time of greatest need.  I felt like I had nowhere to turn.  I was in my kitchen when I began to cry.  Then it seemed like God spoke to me and said, "Run to the Secret Place."   I just begin to sing the song like I had heard it before.  It was words sent from heaven to sooth my hurting heart.  I hope it will do the same for you.

Thoughts In The Sky

One night I was just thinking about heaven and how one day it will be a reality!  I was thinking about how wonderful it is and how it almost seems like a fairy tale - but this one is true!  This world may say we're "living in a dream world" and we need to pay attention to the "real" things around us.  I say, why should I look at this world when it does nothing but get me down?  However, "When I think about heaven, all my sorrows just seem to fade."  I think I'll "keep my thoughts up in the sky!"

Real To Me

This song was written after dealing with kids who struggle with peer pressure.  So many people cover up who they really are to try and be like the "in-crowd”.  This reminded of days when I felt the same way and ended up doing things that betrayed who I really was.  After a while, I became disillusioned thinking - "Who in this world is real?"  But through the years God has shown me that I don’t have to hide behind a "superficial smile" or a "plastic face".  I can be myself and have the confidence he loves me and will always be there for me.

If It Had Not Been

Originally, the chorus of this song was the bridge for another song I had written.  But after writing, I felt it was strong enough to stand on it's own as a separate song.  It didn't take long for the verses to come and then, sometime later, the bridges.  In Psalms, David says, "If it had not been for the Lord on our side..." and he goes on to say the things that could have happened.  This is really just a song of praise to God.  I know I wouldn't be anywhere near where I am now if it had not been for the Lord.

The Very Last (Memories)

My dad inspired this song.  As a girl, I would sit at our dining room table hanging onto every word as he told stories about the "old home place."  We would look at old photo albums and talk about people that I never met.  I still reminisce over those "good ole' days" I spent with my daddy.  I am intrigued at how all those people effected his life, and now he is handing down his legacy to me.  What will I leave behind for others to tell about me?  So many times we forget that we are making memories for the future generation.  "Lord, help me live this day the way I'd live my very last."

Brighter Days

This song came as a surprise to me.  I wasn't necessarily thinking about much, but I just went to my piano and starting playing.  Right away, the thought came to me, "There will be another brighter day."  And I thought about how we all need someone to encourage us every now and then.  I have a friend that is always saying to me, "Keep your chin up, girl."  She can tell when I need a helping hand and she's there for me.  Then there's others that do the opposite and seem to be kinda glad when your having a down day.  This song talks about sticking with those encouragers in your life.  And when they need a word, just say, "Hold your high up high, there will be another brighter day."

Potter Never Gives Up

I wrote this song as a result of a prayer to God.  So many times I see my faults and feel so inadequate before him.  I feel like saying, "God, are you gonna try again to make something of me?"  But I felt like God said to me, "The Potter never gives up on the clay."  If I can only remember God is not finished with me yet - but, he will work on me until I am a vessel of honor for him.

Your Love

This song was my feeble attempt at trying to describe how amazing God's love is.  It turned out to almost be a love letter to God.  However, as I say in the song, "No words can express what I have to say... but marvelous, matchless... amazing."  It seems that the only way to describe God's love is through allegories.  That is mostly what this song is.  "Like the fragrance of that one perfect rose..."  and "Like the pure white snow on a Christmas Eve..." and on and on.  There are certain things in this life that can't be matched or compared by anything else.  God's love is the greatest of them all!

Lord Build Our House

This was a song I wrote for my own wedding.  I wanted to tell God that I wanted my home to be just the way he wanted it to be.  There's a verse in Psalms that says, "Except the Lord build the house... they labor in vain..."  I used that as my prayer to God.  "Lord, do what you must to make our house your home.  Not what man would build, but a place to call your own."  I wanted God to be build our house and make it his home.

His Love Goes Deeper

This song is probably the oldest song on the record.  I was seventeen years old when I wrote it.  I still remember the day, though.  I had been at school and had my lunch break.  Instead of eating, I went to my church to play the piano, sing, and meditate.  I was thinking of how there's in no one with sins too hard for the blood of Jesus too erase.  Sometimes, we think we have to deal with the shame of our past for the rest of our lives - but there is another way.  Jesus' blood goes deeper than that shame and guilt.  The blood of Jesus can reach to the deepest, darkest part of you, and make you completely clean!  "No matter how far you might have gone, his blood is still the same."