for KING & COUNTRY

I was listening to for KING & COUNTRY the other day, loving it of course, and I was bummed that I had already talked about them on my blog because they are SOO good.. until I looked at my blog and realized I haven’t..  I just cannot believe I have not talked about them yet!

These two Australian brothers have amazing voices and love for God.  You can see this through all of their songs and it really shows when they talk [concert]. During one of their songs, The Proof Of Your Love [which will be down below], they include a spoken bible verse which is incredibly powerful. Even without the context of the song, this verse really gives you something to think about:

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love. 

[1 Corinthians 13:1-7, The Message]

I am having a hard time deciding which songs of theirs to put below, but you can always look up all the rest of their music too [which I strongly recommend].  Until you look up the rest of their music, here are a couple of my favorite songs of theirs:

The Proof Of Your Love

Busted Heart

Until next time.

Laura

4 Steps to Learning Guitar

This post is for anyone who has wanted to learn guitar, but hasn’t been able to get it done.  I would like to start off by saying, I am in no way an expert, but I have taught myself guitar and am pretty decent to good at it.  So here are 4 steps to learning guitar.

1. First off you need a guitar.  I feel like this should be fairly obvious, but go find a guitar.  Mooch a friends, siblings, random old guy off the street, or just break down and buy one. [Disclaimer: Let’s be clear.  I do not actually want you to go steal one.  So don’t.]

2. Learning to play is really frustrating when you cannot see improvement or do anything with you new fangled skills, so you need to find a song that you want to learn to play.  As a hint, it’s a really good idea to pick a really easy song with few chords and a simple strumming pattern.  [I would consider the basic/easy chords to be G, C, D, and Em]

3. Next you are going to need to look up the fingering [where your fingers go on the guitar] for the chords in the song you picked.  You can just google the chord or here is a link to some of the basic chords displayed: http://www.all-guitar-chords.com

4. Now all you need to do is keep trying to play the chords with the song until you get faster and faster at switching between them.  When you want to play new chords something else, go pick another song and any time there are new chords, go look them up!

Good Luck! And I wish you all the best with your guitar endeavors.

*If you are looking for songs, a GREAT website where I find most of my chords is http://www.ultimate-guitar.com

*If you are having trouble with strumming patterns or the basic concepts of how to play guitar, check YouTube.  There are many videos showing how to play songs, different strumming patterns, etc.

Until next time.

Laura

In The Light - Anthem Lights feat. Jamie Grace

I, of course, was listening to Pandora the other day and I came across this song: In The Light by Anthem Lights ft. Jamie Grace.  To be specific, I am referring to the acoustic version… I actually do not think that I have even heard the “non-acoustic” version. [I should go look that up]

This group is REALLY good.  Honestly I do not know a whole lot about them, but I will definitely be looking up more of their stuff after hearing this song!

In The Light - Anthem Lights feat. Jamie Grace (Acoustic)

Until next time.

Laura

Some Great Verses

Out of the 31,173 verses in the bible (depending on the version), there are many that have caught my eye and really speak to me.  Out of all of these verses, here are a couple that I can remember at this moment…

2 Timothy 1:7 → For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self discipline.

→ I love this verse because it always encourages me to be bold in my faith.  God did not intend for us to fall into the shadow, but just as we are to be the light for the world, we also were intended for power, love and self discipline.  I also think it is really cool to note that not only are we to have power, but we need to remember not to use that to just crush everyone down because we are also made for love and self discipline.

Philippians 4:13 → I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

→ Considering this is the title of my blog, I obviously love this verse.  This verse has gotten me through every “scary” situation life has thrown my way.  It is the verse I repeat (often out loud) anything I do not think I am strong enough to get through something.  Whether it be a somewhat trivial situation like heights to horrible events like the death of someone close, this verse has always gotten me through it.

→ Side-note on this verse: I recently read something that explained the more “true” way of looking at this verse.  This source explained how this verse in context is actually explaining how to be content in every situation [With Christ’s strength you can be content in every situation]. So now I have a more full understanding of this verse and like it even more :) (You can check out the article here: http://4simpsons.wordpress.com/2011/09/15/a-commonly-misinterpreted-verse-philippians-413/ )

Isaiah 40:31 → ...those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

→ I look to this verse whenever I am exhausted physically, mentally, or spiritually.  It always reminds me that those who look to the Lord for strength will find it.  He will renew our strength and we will soar.  While reading this I am continually reminded that the Lord will provide us with the strength and energy to continue on as long as we look to him for it.

There are so many more verses that I love and that really speak to me, but I need some for later, right?  If you have any more verses that speak to you, feel free to leave them in a comment below.  

Until next time.

Laura

Tyler Ward

Another fantastic artist that you may not be aware of is Tyler Ward.  Tyler became known to me through the fantastic platform: YouTube.  Ward has also been a great addition to music industry and has not only opened for The Jonas Brothers and The Fray, but has also toured with Boyce Avenue.  Tyler not only writes and plays music, but he also has a recording studio where he recorded his album Honestly which was released in October of 2013 and features artists Alex G. and Lindsey Stirling.  He also has a tour that launches next month and will stretch across Europe and the United States.

There are soo many songs that I would like you all to know about but here are just a few that show you just a little bit more about how awesome Tyler Ward is:

Plain White T's & Tyler Ward - The Giving Tree (Official Remix Music Video)

Tyler Ward - Dashes

Tyler Ward Cover - Dark Horse

To check out more of Tyler’s music, go to www.youtube.com/tylerwardmusic

Until next time.

Laura

Chester See

Another artist that I have been following for a while is Chester See.  Although he considers himself mainly an actor, his voice and music writing are really good, and he continues to put out new music usually on the YouTube platform. Most of his songs are a bit slower but he also has many covers of popular songs on his YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/chestersee).

Some of my favorite songs of his/covers include:

You're Beautiful

Lullaby(a newish one)

All of Me

And there are so many more, but you can check him out on YouTube or grab some of his songs on iTunes if you so desire.

Until next time.

Laura

Gungor on Guitar

Just a short post about this awesome video today → So my friend showed me this sweet video the other day, and I didn’t process until halfway through that it was Gungor! Soooo good! You really need to check it out, no matter if you play guitar or not, it’s impressive.

Until next time.

Laura

Hillsong Young & Free

So I was at Camp Shamineau the other day (meaning a couple months ago) and the band up there was Seventh Hour.  AMAZING band by the way, but they were playing these two songs, “Wake” and “Alive”.  They sounded awesome so I looked them up (once I regained an internet connection) and it turns out that they are both by the same group.  Now I have heard of Hillsong (who hasn’t?) but these songs are by “Hillsong Young & Free”.  It seems almost like a separate group, but I’m pretty sure that Young & Free is just Hillsong’s new album (I’m obviously still a little confused… and plus my iPad still considers them a separate artist… so slight justification?).  Anyways, these songs are incredible.  They have sweet beats with a more electronic feel to them.  They are totally upbeat and super fun to dance to :).  So you should definitely check them out if that’s what you’re looking for!!

Here’s the two songs for quick viewing/listening purposes:

- Wake -

- Alive -

Until next time.

Laura

Pentatonix

There is this group I have been listening to for a while now.  Their full name is Pentatonix or PTX for those get lazy with somewhat long names.  They are a group of a cappella singers/musicians who originally came together and won the show, “The Sing Off” in 2011.  Since then they have come out with multiple albums including VTX Vol. 1 and 2 which hit #14 and #10 on the Billboard 200.  Currently they are on a worldwide tour (2014).  

This group is amazing and consists of 5 individuals: Scott, Kirstie, Mitch, Avi, and Kevin.  

[Left to Right --> Kevin, Mitch, Scott, Kirstie, Avi]

Their voices meld together really well and they are always trying new styles and consistently sound AMAZING.  A couple of my favorite songs of theirs are:

Daft Punk

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MteSlpxCpo&list=TL8r_JVM7jDDYzfIzvtdD_RKN-O54nTspP]

I Need Your Love

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MteSlpxCpo&list=TL8r_JVM7jDDYzfIzvtdD_RKN-O54nTspP]

Evolution of Music

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lExW80sXsHs]

Until next time.

Laura

Kari Jobe - What Love Is This

So there is this song I have listening to nonstop.  “What Love Is This” by Kari Jobe.  It sounds amazing.  So this song is a slower worship song with amazing vocals and beautiful piano.  Here are some of the words:

You never change, you are the God you say you are;

When I'm afraid you calm and still my beating heart.

You stay the same, when hope is just a distant thought,

You take my pain, and you lead me to the cross

What love is this, that you gave your life for me

And made a way for me to know you

And I confess you're always enough for me you're all I need

So If you are in the mood for a slower but awesome worship song -- I definitely recommend this one!!  If you feel you do not have the time to even look it up, here it is:

Until next time.

Laura  

Rend Collective Experiment

So you have probably heard of them by now.  Rend Collective Experiment.  They are a crazy good christian band originally from Northern Ireland.  This band has a kind of folk-rock feel and have a mixture of both quiet soulful songs to upbeat fun ones :)

I first heard them play with a whole bunch of other artists like Tenth Avenue North, Lecrae, etc. but at the time I had never heard of them.  They were really good though.  At first one of my closest friends was the one who was really into them and their music. (Christiana Johnson --> you should check her out at http://theepiphaniesofablonde.blogspot.com )  After she got me to check them out again, I got hooked.

One of my favorite songs from them is of course the classic: Build Your Kingdom Here. SOO good.  I love the video too, all the fun instruments and the beat dropped part way through the song. So good.  I really recommend you check out the song and the band if this sounds like something up your alley.  If not, you should at least hear the song so you know what people are taking about.

Here's the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbdJXKqVgtg&feature=kp

Until next time.

Laura

What This Blogs About

So this is my first attempt at any sort of blog.  While you should keep in mind there will be a mish-mash of a whole bunch of different things posted here, you can probably expect:
- new songs I'm listening too (or bands...)
- a revelation of sorts from my life
- a nugget of inspiration from me, or about my rock and savior Jesus Christ
- my opinions on some relevant (or slightly unrelevant) topics
- an update on my life
- new poems/songs I have written
- cool things I have discovered or find hilarious..
- etc.

So basically, you never know quite what to expect :)

I'll keep this short and sweet, but I will try to post as often as I can so as to keep this fresh and interesting.  I do not know what will come of this, but I am excited to see where the Lord takes this.

Until next time.

Laura