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Roots – Album Coming Soon!

Apparently it’s been about 4-½ years since I wrote my last blog post! I can’t even believe it. So, when I say this post has been a long time coming, I’m not kidding! I wonder if some of you are thinking I disappeared off the face of the earth!? It has been 5 years since I released my first album, Unraveling. I’m excited to be able to say that my second album, Roots, is very close to being ready to release out into the world! I’ve been wanting to tell you about the journey behind the album (and these past 5 years) for some time. But, I have to admit that the journey has not always been very easy or fun. With the release of the album getting so close, I just can’t put it off any longer. It’s time.

Releasing all the things Unraveling (the album, the book, the coloring book, speaking events, etc.) was a dream come true for me. It was such a beautiful time of discovering what it looks like to live in harmony with God. It was so very apparent to me that the work I was doing was meant to be. I was made for it. I was living out my life-long calling. Finally! Things were going really well…until they weren’t. It was like I’d hit a sudden roadblock. I was ready to keep going. I was making plans for “Girls Night Out” events where I would go to different churches or Bible study groups to share my Unraveling story. I had mini workbooks designed and a whole program worked out for a fun evening for women to reconnect with their creativity, their Maker, and even their friends and family. Then COVID hit. And we all know what happened next. Everything came to a halt.

Even at the end of the last album I knew that my next album would be called Roots. I knew it would be about abiding in Christ. It would be about all things plant and garden. It has been a theme I’ve been focusing on for years and years now. I wasn’t prepared for how real the theme would feel to live through. That roadblock felt more like a weed-wacker chopped off my blooming head!

We talk about blooming so often. It’s so easy to see a flower blossom and give thanks for its beauty. It brings me so much joy when spring comes and the flowers bloom right before your eyes. This was my experience in the spring of 2020. I was one of the crazy people who started mountain biking that spring. Even with all the hard things we were going through as a world in the throes of a pandemic, I was blessed to get to go out to the Turkey Springs trails to ride and watch as nature did its thing. It was such a stark contrast to what I was feeling inside. My dreams felt like they just died before my eyes and yet nature knew how to keep going. The flowers got more brilliant every time we got outside. It was so beautiful!

The past few years have been a practice in holding that tension between the beauty of life and the cold reality of death. In John 12:24 Jesus says, “ Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” I’m sure Jesus was talking about His death and resurrection. He knew the plan was that He had to die. But, He also knew that He would be raised to life and glory. I wonder if in verse 26 He’s giving us a hint that to follow Him might just require following Him into deaths of our own. As I reflect on my life over these past few years, I can see many little examples of death and resurrection. 

I can’t help but think of the long winter (especially since this winter seems to just keep going on and on…) when the wildflowers that used to bloom so beautifully in the spring are now buried under so much snow! Their seeds are buried deep and break open in a kind of death. There is so much going on in the depths of the earth. Things we cannot see and rarely even think about. The death of a seed. The roots break through the outer shell and spread into the soil where it can find nourishment. The roots are working hard to build the foundation for the right time when the stem can start to break through the earth and stretch into the light. The leaves stretch out and absorb the warmth and the buds start to magically appear. All of these things must happen for the beautiful flower to bloom.

The death of some of my Unraveling dreams has led to a season of wrestling for deep, abiding life where my roots of faith go so deep that someday when I reach the surface “much fruit” might be produced. This coming Roots album is going to be full of songs that tell of the journey that has felt like being buried underground like a wildflower seed. Before I can even hope to think of any fruit coming from this journey, I wanted to share some of that “roots under-the-surface” journey with you here.

At some point during the past 5 years I got super jaded about church. This is a difficult thing to talk openly about, even though I know I’m not the only one… I have been involved in church leadership with women’s ministry, Bible study and worship leading for at least a decade. But, at some point during 2021 I just couldn’t do it anymore. I knew that my heart was not in the right place and I needed to take a step back and re-evaluate. It’s weird, it was like 2020 was difficult but I was keeping it together okay and then 2021 hit me and I totally fell apart. It felt like yet another thing in my life that God was letting die. I never came to a point of turning away from God Himself. I always felt secure in knowing that God was what I was after. I knew that Jesus was the One I needed more than anything. I think maybe I had allowed the activity of church things to take the place of God Himself, and He graciously gave me space to prune that idol away. It felt like what I had was this little seed of faith that was grounded in Jesus and I kept praying that God would let it grow. And He is. He is growing my faith very slowly but steadily. One of the things that is sustaining me through these slow years of growth is knowing that “The joy of the LORD is my strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10). Even through the hard times when I have felt like God has stripped away things I used to hold so dearly, I know in my deepest heart of hearts that God’s joy is holding me together. I have begun to serve at church again but my heart is forever changed. I pray that the deeper roots of God’s joy will sustain me for whatever ways He has me serve both now and in the future.

This is a lengthy update, but I guess that’s what roots are like. My hope is to be transparent in sharing the deep places where this album is coming from so the fruit it bears would be good fruit in your life. I hope that by sharing some of my dark places maybe you can relate and feel less alone in your dark places. I got a shirt recently that says, “Hope is making a comeback.” My desire is that this album would stir up our hope. I pray that as I release the album it would be like reaching up out of the earth and into the light and that I can hold your hand in mine so we can rise up together. It has been a long winter of growing deep roots. But, friends, SPRING IS COMING!

Much Love,

Denise

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Dressember – Helping to End Modern Day Slavery

Dressember – Day #1

A few weeks ago I listened to a Podcast (you can listen to it by clicking here) that opened my eyes to the major issue of slavery in the modern world. I thought slavery was something of the past, but that is not the case. This December I’m joining women and men from all over the world and participating in a Dressember campaign.

Every day this December I will be wearing a dress to bring awareness to this issue and also to learn more about the problem and how I can help. You can join me in this effort in a few ways too!

  1. Join our Pagosa in Petticoats team and start your own campaign by signing up and agreeing to wear a dress every day in December and help raise funds that the Dressember foundation will distribute to those in need through trusted non-profits like International Justice Mission.
  2. Donate through my Advocate Page.
  3. Let me borrow one of your dresses! I don’t have a huge dress collection. If you have a small dress laying around that you would like me to wear one day during the campaign, I would love to wear it!
  4. Be a learner! Follow along with the Dressember Blog to learn more about modern day slavery.

I’m not normally much of  a dress wearer. In fact, when I first heard about Dressember I thought I’d really rather not wear a dress every day. Immediately my heart felt that pang of conviction. Wearing a dress every day for a month is a pretty small sacrifice compared to the suffering 40 million people are experiencing around the world right now! So, a few of my friends and I are going to do our small part to make a dent in something much bigger than ourselves. Please join us!

Follow me on Instagram or Facebook this month to see my outfits and to learn more about the slavery happening in our world today!

Much Love,

Denise

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I Hear You & I Believe You

Have you ever been in a situation where you felt small and helpless? Like no matter who you told your story to, no one would believe you?

I feel blessed to say I haven’t had to experience this type of defeat too often. But I know that there are many people in our world today who have had their voice silenced by others. In less than two weeks, I get to be part of an event that gives voices to victims of domestic violence through creativity in an art show! The event is put on by the Pagosa Springs victims advocacy group called, Rise Above Violence. This year the theme is called, Voices Rise: Art Above Violence. The art show is a way for the survivors to get to share their stories in an artistic and creative way. The way the event works is that an artist from our community is paired with a survivor of domestic violence. The survivor meets with the artist to tell them their story and the artist creates a piece to share at the event, giving the survivor a chance to use their voice in an anonymous way.

I heard about the event a few years ago from my friend, Heather Rose, who encouraged me to make something for the show last year.  I participated last year by writing a song and making a batik that went with it called, Bloom. I was moved by the event and the way it brought healing to the survivors and awareness to our community of domestic violence.

This year I wrote a song that I will get to perform at the event. Here is a little bit of the story behind it.

My song this year is called, “I Hear You & I Believe You.” I met with the mother of a young girl who is a survivor of domestic violence. This young girl was brave enough to go to her mom and tell her the truth about what had been going on with another member of the family. When I met with the mom she wanted to make sure to encourage others, “Don’t be afraid to speak up or it won’t stop. Be the one to put an end to the violence that has already occurred, no matter how little you think it might be.” In 1 Timothy 4:12 it says, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity.” Unfortunately, children’s voices often go unheard because grownups simply don’t believe them. In this case, the mom chose to believe her daughter. I am so proud of their bravery in speaking up when it would have been easier to be silent. We can’t stop domestic violence if no one is brave enough to speak up. With the theme this year being Voices Rise I felt that this was the perfect theme for the song. Not only is it meant to encourage people to speak up and use their voice, but it is also meant to encourage people to hear and believe.

If you are able to, I would encourage everyone who can to attend the show. You will be moved by the stories of the brave ones who are speaking up and by the amazing artwork inspired by their stories. Would you please honor the survivors by coming to the show, listening to their stories, and making it possible for Rise Above Violence to continue to support those in our community who need it? I know you will be blessed in return.

For more information about the event and to purchase tickets click here!

To hear a preview of the song you can follow me on Instragram where I recently shared a little snip-it!

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So… Now What???

It has been several months since the release of my album and book.  I have had pretty great success in selling and distributing the CD & Book sets to so many of you and even to some new people who I’ve never even met in person!  That’s pretty exciting stuff!

The energy of the sales got me excited and I worked really hard and forced the finalization and printing of the coloring book.  Which was a fail!  What I mean by that is, the printing was off and I wasn’t happy with the decisions I’d made for the design and quality of the paper.  It certainly was a lesson learned for me of slowing down, waiting on God, and sticking to His timing.  Not mine!

As happens with summer, the months have now flown by and I still don’t have a revised coloring book.  I have some great ideas but haven’t fleshed it out yet.  In fact, I’m feeling a pretty real slump in my overall confidence and in my trust that God will provide.  Ouch!  Even after all that God has done and shown me, taught me and grown me…  I still have to be reminded to abide.  I still have to seek God and be in His word.  I still have to listen and take direction from Him.  I have certainly not arrived!

This picture pretty much sums up the way I’ve been feeling these past few weeks.  Stuck!  I’ve got a million ideas in my head of what’s next in this journey but I’ve had a hard time knowing where to start.  I’m having a hard time balancing the practices of being still and doing the work in front of me.  What is the work in front of me anyway?  What does God have in store?

Now what?

I’ve had several people ask me if it feels great to have the project done.  In my heart my first reaction is to shudder because I don’t feel like it is “done.”  For one thing, I do still have a coloring book to make.  For another thing, I don’t want to stop.  I don’t want to call it “done” and move onto the next thing or put it behind me and go back to the way life was before.  I want to keep going.  I want to move forward and tell my story to whoever will listen.  I want to keep learning from God and sharing that with others through words in songs and words on pages and words on computer screens.  When I follow God, my life makes sense.  I want to keep following and I want that for other people too!

Even in my moping around not knowing how to move forward I keep asking God to open doors, to lead me, to teach me how to love people better.  The answer I keep getting is to keep moving forward, one step at a time.  I don’t have to have this all figured out right now.  It’s okay to not have all the answers.  In fact, I’m reminded that if I had known I was going to be writing a book I never would have started that either! 🙂

God is so good to give us just what we need, right when we need it.  There are a few things in my life right now that require my obedience.  The kind of obedience that means putting my all out there so that once all of myself is out of the way, God can really move.  I don’t want my insecurity or fear to get in the way of what God wants to do.

I want to share a few things with you that are on my heart in the hopes that you would be in prayer with me as I discern what would bring God glory so that those things in my heart that would bring me the most glory can be revealed and removed.  My prayer is that the branches in me that do not produce good fruit would be burned away to make room for pruned branches that would produce good fruit (John 15:2)!

These are my prayer requests:

  • The best way to finish the coloring book and make it a fun, interactive book with more reflective questions & doodle space.
  • Growing my audience through social media venues like Instagram, Facebook, and other typical marketing methods.  Is this the way forward for me?  Or is it just the way that it’s done these days and God has a different way?
  • Open doors to share my story through singing and speaking at events, small groups, Bible studies, etc.
  • Is this thing I’m doing a viable business or ministry that could become a supplemental income for my family?  And if so, how do I move forward in that without it becoming about me making money or making a name for myself?  How could I make it about providing the resources and the space to keep going wherever God takes me without the fear of letting my family down in the process?
  • Prayers for the words to speak at the events where God has already opened the doors and also for a way to get there.
  • For bravery to keep going and be okay with not knowing the future.
  • For continued trust that God will continue to provide!

At times I’m tempted to think that I have to do this thing on my own.  Thanks for being the community that keeps asking me how I’m doing, praying for me and encouraging me to keep following God and the dreams HE has placed in my heart!

My heart is full of love for you and I’m praying that even as you pray for me, that you would be encouraged to seek God for who He is and where He might be leading YOU!

So Much Love,

Denise

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Father’s Day (a little late…okay a lot late)

If you’ve been following me on Instagram or Facebook you may have noticed that we recently went on a whirlwind trip to Atlanta, GA the weekend of Father’s Day. We chose to go to Atlanta in June for one very specific purpose… WHALE SHARKS! Our son, Jackson, LOVES Whale Sharks! Behind Malard Ducks, Whale Sharks are Jackson’s second favorite animal.

I’m not sure what got Jackson started on loving Whale Sharks. Perhaps it’s because they are a gentle giant (short people like us always appreciate a good gentle giant). Jackson did a research project in 2nd Grade where he learned all about Whale Sharks. He discovered that the only aquarium in the United States that has them is the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, GA. We had been trying to figure out a way to go there ever since.

If you know my husband, Jarrett, at all you know that he loves a good adventure! He will take any excuse he can find to go explore somewhere new. So he has had Atlanta, GA on his travel research radar for over a year, trying to figure out a way we could go and see these epic creatures.

We had talked about doing a family trip for Memorial Day weekend to Denver but Jarrett started looking into plane tickets for Atlanta to see if that might be a possibility. He discovered a few decently priced tickets so we put off the Denver trip and kept watching for cheap flights out of Denver to Atlanta instead. One day Jarrett found some tickets we couldn’t pass up. We bought the tickets and surprised Jackson with the news on his last day of 3rd grade! He was ecstatic to say the least!

We spent 3 full days in downtown Atlanta, GA. We walked or rode the Marta train system to get everywhere we needed to go. We got to spend a one full (9 hour!) day in the Georgia Aquarium and it really was amazing! Jackson loved every single minute of it and Jarrett and I had a blast too! They have 4 Whale Sharks in a giant tank with Manta Rays, sharks of various kinds, a Sea Turtle, and countless other sea creatures. We even got to take a behind the scenes tour where we learned all about how they got the Whale Sharks to the aquarium and how they take care of them. We also got to see the tank from above where we watched the whale sharks rise to the top of the water right in front of us. They are HUGE, people, HUGE!

The Georgia Aquarium

Whale Shark!

View from our room in the Omni Hotel in Downtown Atlanta

Here’s the thing… If you know me at all, you know that I am NOT an adventurous person. I am also not a huge fan of big cities. I tend to like to stick close to home and read, write, or create things. I like my warm, cozy bed and the familiarity of my own space in our quiet little town. It’s an understatement to say that Jarrett’s sense of adventure stretches me in so many ways. After nearly 15 years of marriage and countless adventures, though, I can say with gusto that I am so grateful to be married to Jarrett Chaney! I have seen so many places that I never would have dreamed to visit on my own. I would never have thought going to Atlanta for a few days to see Whale Sharks was even a reasonable possibility. But Jarrett did! He saw our son’s curiosity and made his dreams come true! It’s so fun that this trip to Atlanta was connected to Father’s Day because it was such a great example of what it means to be a Father; to love your child and to delight in their delight.

Jackson Street

I am so thankful for Jarrett’s fearless, adventurous spirit. Our Atlanta adventure reminded me of when I first started to write my song, “Where You Lead.” We were on our way back from another one of our adventures to Tuscan, Arizona. I was thinking of all the places Jarrett has led me. Literally up mountains and through valleys filled with wildflowers. To deserts and barren lands with beauty of their own. On trails that lead to waterfalls, lakes, rivers, and streams. Up steep cliffs, through rocky canyons, and to the tip tops of rugged mountains. Jarrett taking us on adventures has been such an earthly, human example of a Good Shepherd leading his flock (which is what I talk so much about in my book, especially in the Chapter for “Where You Lead“).

On pretty much all of our adventures I am lagging behind by a good ways. By being slow, I get the privilege of getting to view our adventurous surroundings while also getting to watch my son following his Daddy. It fills my heart with joy to see how they interact. Jackson would follow Jarrett anywhere. He follows with joy because he trusts him. He believes that His Daddy would never lead him somewhere that he would not go first. This is a great example of walking by faith!

Only one of the many pictures of me following behind these two adventure seekers.

In our spiritual journey, walking by faith means trusting that we have a Heavenly Father, a Daddy, who has already been there and done that. He is trustworthy and true. He helps us up the hard places, and teaches us about life as we go. In Deuteronomy 31:1-8 Moses is stepping down from leadership and encouraging the Israelites to continue following God into the Promised Land. In verse 8 Moses tells them, “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” God goes before us, is with us, and never leaves us.

I’m not sure what kind of earthly father you have. Even the best of them are imperfect. But I do know this, you have a Daddy in Heaven who delights to delight in you. As it says in Zephaniah 3:17, “The Lord your God is with you,   the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” Perhaps there is a curiosity in your heart that you’ve been ignoring, too afraid of that adventure that awaits you. I know I have. What if God is calling you (and me) to trust Him? What if He’s just waiting for us to say, “Yes” to the adventure of following Him?

No, I don’t consider myself to be an adventurous person. Mostly it’s because I’m afraid of the unknown. Lately, though, I’m learning to say “Yes” even when I’m scared because I know that the adventure is always worth it! Especially when you have a really good adventure guide!

The most precious gift of our whole Atlanta trip was the moment the three of us were sitting on the floor next to the giant Ocean Voyager tank at the aquarium watching the Whale Sharks swim by and Jackson said, “I am never going to forget this!” It brings sweet mama tears to my eyes every time I think of it. I wonder if God feels the same way about us when we trust Him enough to follow where He leads, joining Him on the adventure of a lifetime.

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When the Well is Dry & Mother’s Day SALE!

This past Sunday I had the privilege of getting to share my song, When the Well is Dry, at our church.  It’s a song with quite the long back story, so I only shared briefly what it is about.  I wanted to share with you the chapter in the book that goes with the song.  Below is a link you can click on to open the PDF file and read the story.  Not only will this give you a little more history of the song, but you’ll get a great preview of what the book will be like!

When the Well is Dry – Denise Chaney

I just received my proof copy of the book this afternoon!  I am so excited about how it has turned out.  I do have some tweaks to make still.  You will probably find a few mistakes in the sample I gave you. 😉  But, the great news is that we will be finalizing the editing and will have the books available for MOTHER’S DAY!  If you are at a loss for what to get your sweet mamma for her special day, look no more!

In all of my excitement I have decided to make the CD + Book combo $20 until Mother’s Day (normally it will be $24 for the set).  Please order soon so I can get a good count of how many books I need to order.

Several people have asked me how they can order.  I do not have a record label or a publisher.  I do have distributor’s for all the online places, but the best way to order is directly through me.  Here are a few options for you:

1. Order Online and pay securely with a credit card at my SQUARE STORE.  I will receive the order right away in my email and will get them to you as soon as possible.

2. Send an email directly to me at: info@denisechaneymusic.com with the number of CDs, Books, or Sets you would like and I will email you back with a confirmation and total.  You can then mail me a check and I will mail your order as soon as I have everything, or, if you are local, we can set up a time when I can deliver your order to you and you can pay me by cash or check.

3. If you are local to Pagosa Springs and you see me around town or at church, you can come tell me in person how many you would like to order and give me cash or check on the spot! 😉  Once the books are in I will deliver them to you.  I will also try to keep a steady supply with me in my car once the books arrive, just in case!

I am so beyond grateful for all of your love, encouragement, and support during this process.  God has been faithful to provide inspiration and the finances to get this done and he has done that through you!  I can’t wait for you to hear the music and read the book.  My prayer is that you would see beyond me and what I have created to the God who created you!  I am trusting that God will use it to draw you nearer to Him if you will engage and allow your heart to be drawn!

Much Love,

Denise

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Unraveling CDs are Here!!!!

They’re here…..

I am excited to announce that the physical copies of my NEW CD, Unraveling, are finally here!  CLICK HERE to purchase it now!

To celebrate, my husband and I will be playing LIVE tomorrow, Saturday April 21st, at Boulder Coffee Cafe in Pagosa Springs, CO from 9AM-11AM.  Swing by for fun music, good coffee, and your chance to get your hands on the album!

I’m so excited to get to share this music with you!  Hope to see you there!

Much Love,

Denise

P.S.  I have ordered the proof of the book that will accompany the CD called, Unraveling: A Reflective Journey.  More updates on that coming soon!  You can still pre-order the book at my store by CLICKING HERE!

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Unraveling Album Release… TODAY April 12th!!!

In honor of my Dad’s birthday, HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD, I’ve decided to go ahead and release the album to all of you beautiful people!  You can download the album today on Amazon.com, iTunes, and pretty much every other place you might order your digital music!

Physical copies will be available by April 20th!  Click here to order now!

LIVE PERFORMANCE, Saturday April 21st at Boulder Coffee Cafe in Pagosa Springs, CO from 9AM-11AM.  Come get a cup of coffee, pick up the CD and enjoy some live music!  My husband. Jarrett, and I will be playing some of the songs from the album along with some fun cover songs!

Thank you for celebrating with me!  I’m so grateful for you and can’t wait for you to hear the music!

Much Love,
Denise

P.S.  Book Update – Fast progress is being made!  No official release on that yet but hoping for Mother’s Day!  Feel free to order the CD & Book set from my store and let me know if you would like to have the CD sent to you before the book comes out.  Click here to order!  Would love your prayers for Pattie, my designer, and me as we finish up this process and make those final decisions on design and publishing.

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CDs Ship Soon + Book Update

Unraveling, the album, is in the final stages of being duplicated and will ship next week!  I am still in the process of figuring out a release date.  Please continue reading for more information on that!

Project Update = Books are HARD!

I have been putting off writing this update because I desperately want to have a release date for this whole project.  The above picture is just the tip of the iceberg of research, paper samples, scribbles, and general craziness that I have been working on in my spare moments lately.

These past few months I have been doing a lot of life and trying to squeeze in working on this project in the little moments here or there.  As it turns out working with amazing people to write, produce, record, and design a CD PLUS working with amazing people to write, illustrate, edit, layout and design a book takes significantly longer than I could have ever imagined!  Every time I think I’m “this close” I take a couple more months to get “this close” and still not finished.

I must apologize for the wait!  I could list all kinds of reasons for why my project isn’t done yet, but I’m not going to try and mask anything.  The truth is… I have no idea what I am doing!  Seriously!  I wish I could say that I had (or have) a perfectly formed game plan and I’m rolling it all out in perfect time, exactly how I had planned.  But that is not the case.  The reality is, I’m just taking the next step, and then the next step, and then the next step.

As unprofessional as it may sound, I have to admit that I am grateful to not have it all together.  If I was following a perfect plan, I might be tempted to pat myself on the back and think that I had done it all on my own.  If I had known what work was ahead of me and how long it would take me to do it, I probably never would have started!  God is so kind in that way.  He has given me only what I have needed for each day.  As it says in Matthew 6:34, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”  Granted, I’ve done my fair share of worrying about tomorrow, but God has truly given me exactly what I need every step of the way.

The next step for me in this process is to finish the layout of the book and figure out whether or not to release the CD before the book is ready.  That’s a tricky one for me because, in my mind, they go hand in hand.  I’m sorry I don’t have an answer on that yet.  I want to trust God’s timing for it all.  If you could be praying with me about that, I would greatly appreciate it!

Speaking of God’s timing, I have another confession to make.  It has been challenging these past weeks to trust God in this process.  I am so anxious to get this thing done that I find myself wanting to strive in my own power to complete it.  This whole project has been a constant test for me in trusting God to provide the time, inspiration and resources to keep this project going.  As I’ve gotten closer and closer to the finish line I’ve had some real discouraging moments of doubt in my ability to finish strong.  I am so grateful for the accountability I have from you all!  Your questions and excitement have kept me going and I am looking forward to the day I can put the finished product in your hands.  Until then I trust that God has His perfect timing in mind and that’s good enough for me!

I hope to share more soon!

Much Love,
Denise

Visit my online store to pre-order the CD & Book!

 

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“Everything Lovely”

One day I was talking to my mom on the phone and she said, “I need you to write me a song about Philippians 4:8.” So I did. The end!

Haha, I’m just kidding, that’s only part of the story! When my mom asked me to write the song I didn’t take it lightly. I knew that if I was going to write anything coming from Scripture it had to come from a place of learning what it meant for myself first. So I started to study. I read all the different translations of the verse, and thought about what it really means to “think about these things.”

The Message puts Philippians 4:8-9 this way:

“Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.”

I feel like the world would be a much better place if we could all live out these verses. Don’t you? The main reason my mom and I were talking about the verse was because of our daily struggle with negative thought patterns. You see, I have been a Christian since I was 5 years old. Somehow, I had picked up this bad habit of thinking that since I grew up in the church that I had all the answers for right and wrong. But, as I read these verses, God began to show me that I only assumed to know His Word. I didn’t actually know it. Ouch! God began to show me how much I had taken His Word for granted. I assumed to know who Jesus was and why He did what He did. I assumed that other people automatically should know how to live and do things because I had been taught them since my earliest memories. However, negativity and a judgmental heart had crept in, because I had filled my mind with things that were not from His Word. I had begun to look at the world through the eyes of the world, instead of through the eyes of the One Who created it. I am so grateful for the challenge my mom gave me of writing this song, because it was one of the ways God used to open my eyes to the excitement of reading His Word for myself.

Often, God uses a variety of ways to teach me something new. During that same time of feeling convicted about my assumptions of knowing God’s Word, I heard a sermon about fasting. God used it to change my life and the way I do things. Fasting is a Biblical practice of setting something aside in order to pray and seek God. There are many examples of fasting in the Bible, most having to do with not having food and/or water for a set amount of time. It is the practice of giving up something that we think we can’t live without, and trusting God to provide what we really need. It is a practice in laying aside our desires in order to seek God’s desires. In this particular sermon, we were challenged to pray about what we might need to fast from in order to deepen our relationship with God. By the end of the sermon, I knew from what I needed to fast. Media! You see, in the previous months, I had begun to fill my mind with all kinds of main stream podcasts, videos, movies, TV shows, even books, that (although were not evil in themselves) were keeping me from filling my mind with truth. I was using media as a distraction from life, a way to disengage and “veg out.” I think I was assuming that if I had done my five minutes of quiet time, that I was good for the day and deserved some down time. But, God showed me that what was coming out of my life was a direct reflection of what I was putting into my mind.

Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

I started the renewal process by replacing what I was putting into my mind with God’s Word. If I was going to listen to a podcast or music, I would replace it with listening to the Bible on my “Holy Bible” app or to podcasts of sermons. If I was going to watch a show, I would get out my physical Bible and read instead. It was really a time of getting back to the basics and re-learning all those things I thought I had learned as a kid. But, this time, I was learning straight from the Word of God. I continue to be surprised at the things I thought I knew about the Bible. I couldn’t begin to try and be an expert, but I truly have learned so much more about Who Jesus is and how to be more like Him.

This journey has challenged me in my faith, and truly deepened my relationship with the Lord. I think I used to believe that God only spoke to certain people through His Word. I always thought that Bible study teachers were the ones who could understand the Bible, and I was just supposed to learn from them. That was another, totally false, assumption. I have learned that God is willing to draw near to anyone who is earnestly seeking to draw near to Him, like it says in James 4:8, “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.” As I have begun to add some media back into my life, I am much more careful about the things I choose to let into my mind. More importantly, I am much more ready to pick up God’s Word, and fill my mind with whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, and worthy of praise.

Part of the lyrics from the song come from Psalm 16:11, which I have been reflecting on over the past couple years. It says, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” As I seek God’s presence through His Word, He has truly spoken to me and shown me so many things in my life that I would have missed if I hadn’t been intentional about looking for the treasures He had placed right in front of me. Don’t miss out on God’s love for you through His LIVING WORD.

“Finally, brothers (or sisters), whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”   Philippians 4:8 (ESV)

With the Advent Season upon us, what a perfect time to begin reading God’s Word.  Why not start with the birth of Jesus, God’s Son!  If you are looking for a place to get started, consider looking into She Reads Truth.  They are devoted to helping people read the Bible every day.  They have several different options for connecting from free e-mail devotionals, to inexpensive Bible reading plans through their App, to beautifully made books that include the Scriptures for reading every day!

Everything Lovely  is one of the 13 songs that will appear on the Unraveling album I am currently working on.  If you are interested in Pre-Ordering the album or checking out some fun items for purchase, please visit my online store at https://squareup.com/store/denisechaneymusic.  Everything Lovely t-shirts were just added for purchase.  These shirts were designed by my good friend DeEtte at CanyonTees.com.  She lovingly hand screen prints each shirt!  Order by December 6th to have them in time for Christmas!

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