All posts by Jonathan Andre

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Message Mondays (Matthew West’s “Strong Enough”)

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matthew west hello my name is

strong enough

Admitting that you aren’t strong enough to last the day, week, hour or situation to your friends, family, and all the other people you care about can be a feat in and of itself. To be vulnerable to the point of sharing that we’re not ok, and that we need someone to be strong enough for both them and us; is something we all as humans need to realise is what should happen, every time we’re in the presence of people who do not judge, condemn or even despise. Because if Christ can forgive the inexcusable in us, surely when people admit to us their own shortcomings, all we can be is what Christ was for us- forgiving.

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Articles, Features

Message Mondays (Here’s My Heart)

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crowder

Showing someone your heart can be a scary thing. To have someone else in the world know you inside out, all your dreams, hopes, fears, circumstances, dashed memories and ultimate triumphs, everything within your innermost being; is something even I can’t necessarily fathom. Sure, sharing your heart with your spouse and your family is one thing but to actually talk to someone else (not related to you) and share everything about yourself and hope their reaction isn’t one of disdain or dismay can take courage from the person sharing. But there comes a point when you realise- sharing with friends and family is one thing- you can see the reaction on their faces and whether it is of approval or disappointment. Sharing your innermost thoughts with God, who indeed already knows what you’re thinking, feeling, and even believing; is on a whole other level entirely.

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Worship Wednesdays (Matthew West- Hello My Name Is)

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matthew west hello my name is

Worship songs don’t necessarily have to be songs sung on a Sunday morning. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the songs by Chris Tomlin, Phil Wickham, Bethel, Hillsong or any other artist that normally has church songs in circulation in every corner of the globe. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the songs everyone classifies as worship, even if you yourself identify more with pop/rock (or just rock) compared with the vertical praise melodies you often hear on millions of praise CD’s produced each year. Why? Because worship is a lifestyle, rather than a genre of music that producers, marketers and executives of the CCM industry make it out to be. Worship is laying down every part of ourselves as a living sacrifice before the Lord rather than a style of singing, or how we lift our hands to God every Sunday. Worship is how we live our lives as an act of serving to others rather than the correct words we use during song verses and choruses.

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Throwback Tuesdays (Matthew West- History)

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matthew west- history

Considering that yesterday’s Message Mondays post was about Matthew West’s “Day One” and it is 2015 (ten years since Matthew West released his album History), I thought it would be fair and appropriate to discuss “History”, the title track off the 2005 album. If you haven’t heard of Matthew or his music, you’re in for a real treat. With songs like “You are Everything”, “Save a Place For Me”, “The Motions”, “Strong Enough”, “Hello My Name Is” and “More”, this singer/songwriter is perhaps one of the most underrated and overlooked, and in my opinion, in the same category lyric-wise as artists like Nichole Nordeman, Bebo Norman or Jason Gray.

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