Author: Texas Gospel

The Kingdom Heirs take on legendary songson Something Good Volume 3

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CROSSROADS

Arden, North Carolina (February 14, 2023) — When a legendary group takes on legendary songs, the results are bound to be special—and indeed, the first two collections of favorites from the Kingdom Heirs were so well received that the quartet has returned to the well once more for Something Good, Volume 3, on Sonlite Records. The album is now available for pre-order, add or save ahead of its April 7 release.

Like its predecessors, Something Good, Volume 3 finds the famed ensemble — now boasting a new lineup as they head toward their 40th year as Dollywood’s resident gospel group — drawing from the deep well of long-beloved yet ever-timely songs to create an album that that will not only bring old memories to life, but make new ones, too.   

“Over the past 6 years, we’ve recorded a series of albums entitled Something Good,” says singer Loren Harris. “This is the third volume in that series, with the current lineup of myself on lead and Andy Stringfield on baritone along with Jacob Ellison and Jeff Chapman on tenor and bass respectively. This recording, like the two before it, has some of our favorite songs that have been recorded over the years by other groups, by groups that we may have performed with, or remakes of Kingdom Heir classics!”

From the opening “I’m Forgiven,” a spirited, horn- and piano-driven celebration of God’s mercy that dates back to the late 1970s, to the classic quartet sound of the closing “Glory Road,” first introduced in 1973 by The Kingsmen, Something Good, Volume 3 is a loving survey of Gospel music treasures, each given the Kingdom Heirs’ unique treatment. Country flavors predominate, with the pedal steel guitar and harmonica making regular appearances alongside the ever-present keyboards, but there is room for much more, too, including elaborate orchestrations that surround the quartet’s voices with a rich sonic tapestry on songs such as The Kingsmen’s “The Cross Has Won Again,” Happy Goodman Family’s “That Sounds Like Home To Me” and The Perrys’ “He Will Hide Me,” and a two-part arrangement of “Moving Up To Gloryland” that puts the Kingdom Heirs’ own unique stamp on the popular favorite. Indeed, with each song, whether it features Harris, Stringfield, Ellison or Chapman â€” or all four voices throughout — the Kingdom Heirs manage to summon echoes of earlier performances while shining through with a musical character and a spiritual richness that’s all theirs.  

Says Harris, “I think you’ll enjoy this trip down memory lane as we relive this wonderful music that we love to sing” — and if the enthusiastic reception given by their fans to the previous volumes of Something Good is any indication, it’s a trip listeners will be happy to take over and over again.

Lauren, Amber & Kenna release much-anticipated first single

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SPECIAL CROSSROADS RECORDS

Arden, North Carolina (February 10, 2023) â€” Last year’s news that Southern Gospel singing and songwriting favorites — and long-time friends — Lauren Talley, Amber Eppinette Saunders and Kenna Turner West were coming together for a special project spurred a groundswell of anticipation that is now being met with the release of their first single, “Ever-Present, Almighty God” on Horizon Records. Adding an extra measure of interest, the song is the first from Horizon to be released in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. 

Allowing listeners to feel as if they’re inside the song itself, Dolby Laboratories’ Dolby Atmos is familiar to many from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters. It is described by the respected sound technology innovator as “revealing depth, clarity and details like never before….a sound experience you can feel all around you.” Audio produced in Dolby Atmos adapts automatically to your Atmos-compatible device and system to give you an all-enveloping sound experience you would not expect.

Billed as Lauren, Amber & Kenna, the trio has translated its informal origin, captured in a viral social media video of them harmonizing in a car, into a mighty, well-crafted and heartfelt debut that both fulfills the promise of that initial spark and offers new ones — of music still to come, but more importantly, of God’s infinite power and grace. Bold and expansive from its opening notes, “Ever-Present, Almighty God” moves swiftly to highlight Lauren Talley’s unmistakable lead, as she begins the song’s reminder of two Biblical stories that illustrate God’s unquenchable power, and the call to unshakable faith that allows Him to bring it to bear. As the music swells, the song — written by Kenna, her long-time writing partner, Jason Cox, and Amber â€” moves to a triumphant chorus that finds the three voices joined in celebration:

He’s the God who shuts the mouths of lions
He’s the God who stands in the flame
When you’re up against what seems impossible
Remember you’re not
He’s the ever-present, almighty God

“As a songwriter,” says Kenna, “I love to write songs that remind us of what God has done in the past, because it encourages us to keep believing for what He has yet to do. That’s been a theme in my songwriting for years, and is one of the reasons I am so blessed by our new single. Add to that how much I love to sing with Amber and Lauren, and what you have in this song is one of the most rewarding recordings of my career.”

Adds Lauren, “‘Ever-Present, Almighty God’ showcases the character of each voice – not only mine, but the smoky texture of Kenna Turner West’s low notes and Amber Eppinette Saunders’ powerful high range, all on full display in a song we hope will move and inspire the listener,” while Amber offers the pithiest observation of all: “This song is a great reminder that we have an ON TIME, sovereign God that is in full control! What a joy it is to sing this with my dear friends.”

Listen to “Ever-Present, Almighty God” on Texas Gospel Canada!

Homeless people under a bridge

The least shall be greatest

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Floyd Rogers – Texas Gospel Volunteer, Christian writer

Mark 10:17-22 tells us about an encounter Jesus had with a rich leader.  The man said he had followed all of the commandments. He then asked Jesus what he had to do to be saved. Jesus told the man to sell what he had, give it to the poor, and follow him. The man left grieving because of what this would cost him. Let’s consider which is important: Actions or Motives. Let’s also consider why this is important and what may be the biggest stumbling block to our understanding.

The rich man’s works were not enough for salvation even though he followed the law. He did the right thing, but did he do so because God was the most important part of his life? His great wealth seemed to be a stumbling block.  Much was given to him, but he did not seem willing to give to God accordingly. One could infer from the scripture that this is why Jesus told him to get rid of his wealth. I believe Jesus looked at the man’s motives and not just his actions.  Jesus judged the man’s heart, something we see God doing in the Old Testament as well.

Genesis tells us, “Abel, on his part also brought an offering, from the firstborn of his flock and from their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering; but for Cain and his offering He had no regard.” Cain may have had a nice offering but was his motive acceptable to God?  Hebrews 11:4 offers the answer as it reflects back to this Old Testament book. It says, “By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain…” It wasn’t just his actions but that they were the result of his faith; they were a reflection of what was in his heart.  The book of 1 Samuel is very clear about how God judges: God looks at our heart.

Earlier I mentioned that the rich ruler’s wealth was a stumbling block. Consider, Cain too had plenty but unlike the rich ruler, Cain’s wealth was not a stumbling block. He gave freely to God. Having a lot of stuff isn’t the problem. The rich leader’s property was his downfall because that’s where his heart was.  I suggest that wealth of money, wealth of property even wealth of intelligence can be a stumbling block if you value it more than pleasing God.  There sure are a lot of top scientists unwilling to accept faith as a gift as they reject anything they do not understand. In the same way some rich people lean on money to get what they want and are unwilling to accept some things cannot be bought, there are highly intelligent people who hold a similar position when it comes to leaning on their own understanding rather than trust in the Lord.  Their heart, and their trust, lies with their wealth of knowledge. Anything we desire more than knowing and pleasing God can be our downfall.

To sum this all up, Grace is not something we can earn by doing the right things as the rich ruler seemed to think.  It is not something we can buy.  It is not something we achieve through our great intellect.  Grace does not come from our ability or works.  Saving grace is a gift. It is something that can be overlooked if we allow our ego to get in the way. It’s something we can reject if we are afraid to let go of anything that prevents us from accepting it. Those who feel their abundance wealth, intellect or status can earn salvation may think themselves worthy, but they are not.  Isn’t this why some of the greatest will become the least and some of the least shall become the greatest?

What are your thoughts?

Hackers target Texas Gospel server

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David Ingram

Texas Gospel Canada’s main server fell victim to a hacker attack Friday morning.

We are working to restore our station, but it will require us to change our URL. We are a volunteer-run and volunteer-funded station and have no way to pay ransom ware. Because of this, we have to abandon many hours of work spent in the creation our programming & schedule; meaning, all of the stuff done in the background to make our station go.

Updates will be posted below:

8 a.m. Tuesday: Our engineer is still working out issues with Texas Gospel 2 Country Gospel. The stream is up, but some of the programming is not yet available due to an issue caused by the hacking incident. We hope to have this fixed soon.

3 p.m. Sunday update: Our engineer expects Texas Gospel 2 Country Gospel to be up and running by or before Monday.

3 p.m. Saturday update: We have a new server as of today for Texas Gospel 1 Southern Gospel. You can listen online by clicking HERE. Some of our announcers cannot host a live show, but we hope to solve this issue soon.

Why did Jesus tell his apostles to preach only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel?

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Floyd Rogers – Texas Gospel Volunteer, Christian writer

Matthew 10:5-6 tells us Jesus sent his 12 disciples to preach to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. Jesus specifically ordered them not to preach to the Gentiles or Samaritans, but to tell to Israel’s lost sheep  that the kingdom of heaven is near. This may seem like an odd thing for Jesus to say.  Why not preach to everyone? Let me be very clear on this point: I don’t know; meaning, I do not know of a specific verse that explains this. I think we can infer an answer, but I make no claim that such an answer is Gospel. I only claim that my inference is based on scripture. With that in mind, let’s look at what is written, and where it may lead.

We can extrapolate from Matthew’s writing that he wrote to a Jewish audience to convince them that Jesus is the prophesied Jewish Messiah. I say this because Matthew repeatedly used the phrase “to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet.” I believe Matthew’s purpose is to show that Jesus is the one Jewish people had been expecting. With this in mind, would it not make sense that Matthew recorded things that Jesus did specifically for Jewish people?

It is written in the Old Testament that God made a covenant with the Jewish people. The fifth book of the Torah, Deuteronomy, tells us Jewish people are a holy people. It says God chose them, “… to be a people for His personal possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.” Exodus tells us God told Moses that the Sons of Israel, “…shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” The Old Testament clearly tells us Jewish people have a special place. But what about the New Testament?

Romans 1:16 tells us salvation is for everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Acts 3:25-26 tells us the prophets say to the Jewish people, “… God raised up His Servant for you first, and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.”  It appears to me that Jesus fulfills this by telling his disciples to go preach to the Jews. Fortunately for the rest of us, we too may accept salvation because of God’s grace. Salvation is not something into which one is born, even if one is born Jewish. I would argue that it’s harder for a Jewish believer because of social pressures. That certainly was the case in Jesus’ day if you consider how Jewish leaders reacted to Jesus.

Matthew 10:16 tells us that Jesus gave a warning to his disciples as they went to preach to the lost sheep. He told his disciples they would be sheep in the midst of wolves. He said some will be eager to hand them over to be flogged in the synagogues. The culture of Jesus’ day was not friendly to anyone who would upset the apple cart by preaching Messiah has come. But I would caution about being too judgmental of them because of this.  We certainly see people triggered today anytime someone mentions the Gospel.

Why did Jesus tell his apostles to preach only to Jewish people?  What are your thoughts.

AROUND THE WEB:

  1. CBN: What Does the Bible Teach about the Jewish People and the Nation of Israel?
  2. Got Questions: What does it mean that the Jews are God’s chosen people?
  3. IFCJ: Why God Chose the Jewish People
  4. CPM: Why are the Jewish people special?