Andrew Steven

"Don’t lose your grip on Love and Loyalty. Tie them around your neck; carve their initials on..."

Sun, 20 May 2012 19:51:00 -0700

“Don’t lose your grip on Love and Loyalty. Tie them around your neck; carve their initials on your heart. Earn a reputation for living well in God’s eyes and the eyes of the people.”

- Proverbs 3:3-4

Taken with Instagram at Valley Bible Fellowship

Sun, 13 May 2012 10:32:43 -0700

Taken with Instagram at Valley Bible Fellowship

A Reminder For Sunday

Tue, 08 May 2012 11:14:37 -0700

Every Sunday, we know that there are going to be hundreds of men and women coming though the doors of our church who want to encounter God.

We cannot do that.
But we can be instruments in God’s hands, and He can do that.

Many of us have spent the whole week planning for Sunday. And though the songs are scripted and the moment is defined, we need to ask for God’s divine interruption.

He may require us to linger because He is doing a great work in someone’s heart. He may ask us to turn up, or quiet down. Whatever He requires, He knows what is happening in the hearts of men and women and we do not.

Many will not remember the message, but this week they’ll be humming one of the songs we sang. Some may not remember the “big” words because they are unfamiliar to their ears, but they will remember a song which declares God’s greatness and His wonder, His splendor and His majesty.

Often It’s easy to become repeatable, predictable, and insensitive to God. But remember, for many this will be the only meeting they have with God today, and for some, all week.

So we ask God that He make us sensitive to what He wants to do… right now. Grant us that grace.

“I Am Not The Same”Aaron Keyes I posted a video...

Fri, 04 May 2012 15:01:00 -0700

“I Am Not The Same”
Aaron Keyes

I posted a video from this recording last week, and I’m still really enjoying listening to this album. I love that it was recorded live in his living room with friends and family singing along.

Seriously consider purchasing it here.

The Heavens Declare

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 08:01:00 -0700

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, the use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. Psalm 19:1-4

The heavens declare the glory of God. They broadcast and publicize His wonder. The stars are the megaphone of the universe.

In the past when I’ve read this I’ve always interpreted it to mean that all creation declares the glory of God. Recently though, I’ve found a simpler, yet more profound meaning in Psalm 19.

The word used for “heavens” here isn’t one of afterlife and angels, but speaks of the wonders of the universe visible from the naked eye. And their existence, while silent to our ears, compose symphonies proclaimed and making known the glory of God.

I love how The Message words Psalm 19:3-4, “Their words aren’t heard, their voices aren’t recorded, but their silence fills the earth: unspoken truth is spoken everywhere.”

The stars as seen without telescope are doing a pretty amazing job declaring His glory… Just imagine what future technologies will uncover as we journey further into the heavens, all declaring the wisdom, power, faithfulness, and glory of God.

Check out this new video from Aaron Keyes off his new album....

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 17:21:19 -0700

Check out this new video from Aaron Keyes off his new album. Great song, great album, great guy.

Leaving the studio for the night. (Taken with Instagram at...

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:12:44 -0700

Leaving the studio for the night. (Taken with Instagram at Downtown Fullerton)

Check out Easter at the OC Fairgrounds. Above is the arts peace...

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 16:24:00 -0700

Check out Easter at the OC Fairgrounds. Above is the arts peace from Easter morning and below Francis Chan shares a message. Please take the time to watch both. It’s worth it.

"Passion" Week

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 07:00:05 -0700

Can you think back to when you were younger? I know for me, there were a few ‘experiences’ (for lack of a better word) that truly changed my life. In fact, really they defined my life. They left a preverbal itch. Kept me up at night and woke me up early thinking about them.

One of these ‘experiences’ was learning to play music. Music has begun to define my life and inform my decisions. And when I look back to my life before music, or imagine what it would be like if it stopped today, it truly feels as if something would be missing. Because I have found a passion in music.

That word passion is an interesting one. In fact this week, the week leading up to Easter Sunday, has traditionally been called, “Passion Week.” When I think of passion, I think of an enthusiasm and/or longing, but there is more than one meaning. In Latin, passion refers to suffering, and in the dictionary on my computer, passion can also be an outburst of emotion.

Maybe all of these meanings make it the perfect word to name this week. We see the unimaginable pain that Jesus goes through, both physical and emotional. And yet, we also see His unwavering love and His unstoppable desire to save the lost.

The very word, “passion” and the week that shares it’s name give us a great eye into the character of Jesus. But it also asks the question, what is our passion?

Worship In Unison

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 08:00:05 -0700

There are many things that we can do together, many good things even. But there are few things that we do together that require unison. Singing is one of those things. Just think about a time when you had to be in unison. Have you ever recited the Pledge of Allegiance with a room full of people? Maybe you have been in a church service where everyone read scripture out loud together? These are just two examples, and in both cases, the fact that they are done in unison is powerful. It’s impossible to make that moment about any one person in the room.

And like these examples, singing is also done in unison. Not just in rhythm, but also in pitch and key. And we become united in declaration and adoration. And as a group we bring value, both to the subject which we sing and the reason we unite.

More photos from S1.

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 18:04:13 -0700

More photos from S1.

As a friend said more eloquently than I could, “I often...

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 09:00:05 -0800

As a friend said more eloquently than I could, “I often waste 30 minutes online and wish i had that time back. that did not happen when I watched this video.”

KONY 2012 is a film and campaign by Invisible Children that aims to make Joseph Kony famous, not to celebrate him, but to raise support for his arrest and set a precedent for international justice.

An Excerpt of Something I'm writing...

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 12:36:09 -0800

There’s a reason we like old songs. When we put on a Johnny Cash record, there is an undeniable awe that comes over us. The same thing happens when we pull out an old photo album and scan through the hundreds of Polaroids. It’s more than just a hipster fad. A Polaroid doesn’t lie. It hasn’t been photoshoped or manipulated. You don’t need to question weather it’s real or not. And that part of the song when Johnny’s voice cracks, or gets a little off key, and you hear the guitar get more and more out of tune as the song goes on… You believe it. You don’t question it’s authenticity.

Making some beautiful noise.

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 14:23:00 -0800

Making some beautiful noise.

"The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down every day..."

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 09:00:06 -0800

“The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down every day and trying. Why is this important? Because when we sit down day after day and keep grinding, something mysterious starts to happen. A process is set in motion by which, inevitably and infallibly, heaven comes to our aid. Unseen forces enlist in our cause; serendipity reinforces our purpose.”

- Stephen Pressfield, The War of Art

Bon Iver continues making beautiful music. Be sure to watch...

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 08:47:15 -0800

Bon Iver continues making beautiful music. Be sure to watch this, and read the full description on YouTube.

Recorded in AIR Studio’s Lyndurst Hall - a building that was originally a church and missionary school designed in 1880 by the great Victorian architect Alfred Waterhouse (designer of the Natural History Museum) - Vernon was joined only by Carey, with the pair positioning themselves opposite one another at two grand pianos …

LA from a distance.

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 09:00:06 -0800

LA from a distance.

"In order to communicate the message entrusted to us by Christ, the Church needs art."

Sun, 26 Feb 2012 21:19:48 -0800

“In order to communicate the message entrusted to us by Christ, the Church needs art.”

- Pope John Paul II

Another studio update.And as always, some photos from the...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 20:30:42 -0800

Another studio update.
And as always, some photos from the wonderful Eric Shearer.

Ash Wednesday (repost)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:51:05 -0800

This is repost of a blog I wrote last year.

Today begins the season of Lent. While most of us have heard of Lent, perhaps few of us have actually participated in Lent.

When you think about Lent what comes to mind?

Sacrifice?
Fasting?
Religion?
Tradition?
Preparation?

For us in Southern California, we don’t always get to experience seasons. But for most of the world, seasons change. And people orient their lives around each season.

Similar to the changes in weather, for hundreds and hundreds of years, people have oriented themselves around Holy seasons, such as Lent. The word, “Lent” literally means “Holy Spring.” It’s a time of preparation for Easter that celebrates sacrifice and new life.

Lent and Ash Wednesday started in the 8th century in order remind us of the sin in our lives and reminded us of the need for a Savior. It’s a story of death, burial, AND resurrection.

During lent, people traditionally give up something, in order to enter in to something new. So often we give up something just for the sake of sacrifice.

Rather than looking for something to say, “no” to, what is something we can say, “yes” to, in order encounter Jesus.

Take a moment. Pray. What would it look like to say, “yes” to Jesus.

Yes – we are a new creation.
Yes – we called to something.
Yes – we have a relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

How can we say, “yes” to encountering Jesus?

On the flip side, what now do we have to say, “no” to in order to find space and time to encounter Jesus?