My Five Favorite CCM Albums of All Time

I had a conversation with a friend recently where I was asked to name my five favorite Christian albums of all time. I was surprised how quickly I was able to come up with the list, and I thought I'd share it with you. Remember that these albums were created at a time when music, especially Christian music, was not nearly as accessible as it is today. We tended to listen to entire albums much more than we do now. These projects date back to the mid-eighties so you may have never heard them. They are all available on I-tunes and I strongly encourage you to give them a listen! 

5.  Whiteheart - Freedom 

The concept for the CCM rock band Whiteheart was a very practical one: Take the leading session players making music on the top CCM artist's albums of the day and form a band. The group made several transformations over the years but reached it's pinnacle with 1989's Freedom. Fronted by roady-turned-lead-vocalist Rikk Florian, the band was made up of musicians who remain a who's-who list of players till this day. What they produced on this recording was nothing short of brilliant and, though there was no 'radio hit' for them on this outing, the album as a whole is one of the finest Christian projects ever recorded!

4.  Amy Grant - Lead Me On

There would be no CCM without Amy Grant. I realize others will select one of Amy's many various albums as their favorite - but for me, Lead Me On was her best! It combined her poignant writing and straight-forward vocal styling to create an honest look at life and faith as only Amy Grant's artistry can. Musically, the record was much more reliant on real instruments than the more commercially successful follow-up project Heart In Motion which was more synth-driven. The radio hits were the title cut and the song Saved By Love. They certainly were not her biggest hits, but the album as a compilation was, in my opinion, her finest accomplishment. 

3.  DC Talk - Jesus Freak

No album has every revealed a greater musical maturity than DC Talk's 1995 breakout project Jesus Freak. It is probably one of the most significant recordings in Christian music history. It still sounds as fresh today as the day it was released. Radio hits like Colored People, Between You and Me, In The Light and the title track are still staples on Christian radio! This album changed everything and every time I hear it I wish the boys would get back together and cut another record! Kevin Maxwell and Michael Tait remain two of the most talent vocalists in CCM and TobyMac is simply brilliant.

2.  Switchfoot  - The Beautiful Letdown

The Beautiful Letdown introduced Christian Music's premier San Diego rock band Switchfoot to mainstream radio and changed the rules for Christian music yet again. There are so many brilliant moments on this record and the huge radio singles Dare You To Move and Meant To Live remain staples on Christian radio and top 40 alike. The masterful musicianship and the brilliant lyrics share equal billing to create a listening experience that begs to be repeated. I've probably played this CD more than any I've ever owned and have sung the words of these songs at the top of my lungs over many a mile!

1.  Russ Taff  - Russ Taff

My favorite CCM artist of all time is Russ Taff. His 1987 self-titled release is everything a signature album should be - It is Russ Taff at his best. His best voice, his best writing - He truly put it all on the line with this recording. These tracks include some of the most passionate vocals ever recorded and the result is infectious! The project opens with the 'In-your-face' rocker Shake and warns you of what's to come. The radio hit I Still Believe is one of the most vulnerable and honest songs ever written and performed, remaining the standard in my mind by which all Christian music is judged. 

Those God Gives You

In John 17, Jesus prayed what we call His High-Priestly prayer. It's a moving prayer that includes petitions for unity and protection for those who follow Him. One of the most remarkable claims He made in the prayer was this - "The ones you have given me, I will not lose." That statement is so filled with insight. All through His ministry, there had been those who were connected with Him for a season, but ultimately walked away. However, God had given Him some who would stay connected and turn the world upside down! 

I believe the same is true today with those we disciple. Many will be connected for a season, but what we have to figure out is who God has given us! Those are the ones we want to pour our lives into!

I'm so thankful to be reconnected with one of those God has given me! His name is Jason Rhoades. The connection was made back in 1996 when we moved to Atlanta, GA. Jason went through our leadership training there and our Master's Commission program. We have remained connected all these years. He moved to Lafayette several years ago to help us launch our Master's Commission program here and now he and his wonderful wife Amanda and their two beautiful daughters Jalin and Abby are moving back to be connected with us once again in ministry. Jason has taken a job with an oil company here and he and Amanda will get deeply involved with our church to learn the Crossroads model of ministry from the inside out so they can be our first church planters in the days to come. 

I am so excited about what God has in store for the next season of my life as He allows me to place the ones He has given me over great churches we will plant across the country and around the world! 

Words and Feathers

I shared a message this weekend called "Taming The Tongue." I ended my message with the story of a woman in a small town who shared things she 'knew' about another woman in the village. The things she shared were horribly damaging to her neighbor's reputation, but she told them anyway. She told many people even though the things she was telling could not be proven. Eventually, she found out the things she had been saying about her neighbor weren't true. She felt horrible.

She went to the Pastor and told him what she had done. She asked him what she could do to make it right. The old Pastor handed her a feather pillow and told her to go to the village square and tear open the pillow and empty all the feathers out of it and bring it back to him. She did what he instructed and asked him what to do next. He then instructed her to go back to the town square and pick up all the feathers she'd emptied out of the pillow. "There's no way I can do that." She pleaded. "The wind has carried them everywhere! How could I ever collect them all again?" The Pastor looked into her eyes and said, "You're right, and you can never take back the things you said about your neighbor."

Our words are powerful and we must be good stewards of what we say!

The Man With The Golden Voice

By now I'm sure you've heard the story of Ted Williams, the homeless man with the golden voice who's interview with a reporter in Ohio became an overnight sensation after going viral on Youtube. He's now been interviewed by the Today Show and others, reconnected with family and has received job offers by everyone from The Kraft Corporation to the Cleveland Cavaliers! 

It's an amazing story and one Americans have embraced warmly. I think it's because we love a redemption story! Here's a man with an obvious talent that's been lost to drug and alcohol abuse, homelessness and hopelessness and then BOOM - All of a sudden he gets another chance! 

But isn't that the story we all share? We all have gifts and promise, and yet life has a way of burying it beneath our sin and suffering and then BAM - God gives us another chance! That chance - that one shot at TRUE redemption is Jesus Christ! The man with the golden voice that rings out, "Come, all ye that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest!" 

I hope Ted makes it. I hope he stays sober and meets with great success, connected to his family and celebrated by all who loves a good redemption story. Most of all I hope He makes Jesus Lord of his life and experiences what true redemption is all about. I hope he uses that golden voice to praise the One truly worthy of all praise. 

On a side note: Is it just me or does Ted look like he could be President Obama's uncle? Just sayin...