Mela Kamin – What I Say in between Songs

This song is another great thing that came from collaborating with Carl & Dan. The chorus came together and I set out to finish the verses, while the guys laid down tracks for “I Pray.” Dan plays hammer dulcimer on this one, which was both unexpected to me and really cool. The beginning is like a musical waterfall. This one talks about what God does for us – He pulls us through in our victories and in the times we’re being tested.

I remember recording this and thinking – “I am literally screaming into the mic.” Some songs, you hear my breath and I’m almost whispering – not this one. I even was so loud it distorted my voice a bit. Ok, we needed to pull it back a bit. I may be small, but I have a BIG voice (when I need one). I get that from my Dad. He has a mighty voice, which reminds me – the word tells us that God’s is a “mighty voice.”

Psalm 68:33 “to him who rides the ancient skies above, who thunders with mighty voice.”

We all need to remember that and to declare things in Jesus’ name. Ask God to send His mighty voice when you need a clear word from Him. When you’re in the midst of despair, ask for His mighty voice to come in and lift you up. This is the same voice that spoke the universe into being. It has a power you can’t even grasp.

“Every heartbeat, every breath – everything you do . . . in the blessings, in the flames, He will pull you through – that’s what He does for you.”

One of the best Christian speakers I’ve seen, Ellie Lofaro, said, “We need to stop telling God how big our storms are, and start telling our storms how big our God is.” WOW! That stuck with me – I wrote it down, I underlined it and, of course, I thought it would make a great song.

I really love how the song came out. The story that’s told is one of suffering through storms and wondering at times where God is in all of it. How many times have each of us done that? It’s easy to just see the clouds and the rain and hear the thunder – and think you’re all alone and scared. But, God is bigger than all that – He’s your shelter. He’s your refuge. He’s your strength.

This song took the longest to get just right. Along the way that day, I realized that I need to let myself accept my limitations and be okay with the process – even if it takes longer than I want. God doesn’t want me to blow through, thinking I’m doing it all on my own. If He let me do that, I wouldn’t turn to him. And, that’s what the song is really about – feeling alone and abandoned and God stepping in and telling you to remember who He is.

If it happened easily, I wouldn’t appreciate it as much, when I finally get it. I would be prideful. That recording served to knock me down a few pegs and it certainly didn’t feel good. But, in the end, listening back to the songs, I recognized the hard work I put in – especially on that song. The fruits of our labor are really sweet. This felt like a storm I had to endure, but the lyrics say, “God said, Remember who I am” . . . and I did.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (NIV)
Philippians 4:13

with Greg at the DOVE Awards

What a great night of gospel and contemporary Christian music. It was entertaining, inspiring and exciting. Our favorite performances were by MercyMe (“Finally Home”), Chris Tomlin (“I Will Rise”), Brandon Heath (“Give Me Your Eyes”) and Steven Curtis Chapman (“Cinderella”). It was fascinating to watch the set changes, during the commercial breaks and see how it all comes together in minutes. It was also fun (for me) to get all dressed up, award-show style – though getting my makeup done was a longer process than I had imagined (so we missed dinner) – and I had the most makeup on I’ve ever experienced (yikes!). I have to admit, I removed some before we went to the show. We ended up hitting Wendy’s on the way back to the hotel (thanks for being open late!) and I was happy to eat, wash off the layers of makeup and get some rest.

The next day was vocal day, so we had breakfast, checked out of the hotel and headed to the studio. Greg finally got to meet Dan, watch a little of me recording and of course, take some pictures. We needed to touch up a few vocals, revisit some songs and completely re-record “I Pray.” We were unsure we could finish it all in a day. I prayed the recording would go smoothly and quickly . . . it did. We were all pleasantly surprised to be done by mid-afternoon. We had a celebratory meal and even though, I had to go back last-minute for “express vocals” to fix a bridge on one song, we completed everything we needed to.

The songs are now left in the enormously capable hands of Dan & Carl, who will add a few more instruments, background vocals and mix the songs. In a few more weeks, I’ll be hearing the final versions and I’m so anxious. I know it’s going to be great and I’m so grateful to Dan & Carl for their efforts to make this something we’re all proud of.

God be praised and heard!