Reflecting on the “For Joy” Project
“Worship tells the story of the community that is singing it...the story of where we’ve been, where we are, and where we are going.”
The “For Joy” project is named after a song I recently co-wrote with Singer-songwriter Marie-Claire Mitchell. The Mount Carmell Worship Collective has written its first group of original worship songs, and we recently completed a crowdfunding campaign (in July) to raise funds to help record them.
With your help, we were able to raise enough funds to cover the cost of recording and releasing two songs! We are grateful for all those who donated to make this possible.
We were encouraged by the outpouring of support in the form of donations, those who volunteered their time and talent, and to all those who helped get the word out. So we decided that while we only raised enough funds for two songs, we will personally pull together some of our own funds to add one more song to that list. So in total, we plan to record and release three songs this Fall, and we couldn’t be more excited!
You can stay up to date on the latest developments by following us on Instagram, LinkedIN or subscribing to our mailing list (link at end of this post). Here, we briefly reflect on the “For Joy” project outcomes and next steps.
Sermon and Song Nights
Every Friday in July, the Mount Carmell Worship Collective hosted free live online Sermon and Song worship events where we shared one of the songs we were crowdfunding for. Each event also featured a guest pastor or ministry leader giving a 10 minute sermon on the Scripture passage that inspired the song.
Minister Laura Randolph taught us about the hesed of God, and how his mercies are new every morning. Overseas Missionary Jay helped us contextualize suffering within a framework of joy. Rev. Colin Fagan reminded us about God’s love for us, and helped us better understand the meaning of worship: “Worship tells the story of the community that is singing it...It should tell the story of where we've been, where we are, and where we are going.” And Missionary Lance McCleod invited us to taste and see the goodness of the Lord, and to live our lives in ways that invite others to taste and see too.
The sermons were beautifully and powerfully delivered. We are beyond grateful to those who volunteered their time to speak into our lives.
Next Steps
So, what’s next after this? The plan is to record three songs, and release them this Fall! That is a quick turnaround time, but that is largely made possible by our talented collaborators and our minimalist model for music production.
We are actually working on recording our first songs for the collective. The first one “New Every Day” is scheduled to be recorded with Guitarist and Producer Grant Argent on September 7th. The release date for that song will likely be the end of September or early October.
The second song that will be recorded and released will be “Taste and See,” and the third one is TBA.
Impact Stories
Last, but not least, we have to share some impact stories from those who attended our Sermon and Song nights. These words of encouragement make the whole project worthwhile. We are grateful to all those who came and worshiped with us. Thank you!
“Thank you so much for leading this worship night - I didn’t know it until now but it was water to my soul.”
“I am Godly proud of you!”
“I seriously loved the event…The sermon really touched me as well…your worship songs must get published and out there to touch many hearts and souls.”
“Beautiful music and though-provoking reflections! Thank you for organizing it!”
“I enjoyed tonight! I was blown away! What a beautiful song!”
