A prayful journey accompanied by rich orchestrations, stunning vocal arrangements and the signature voice of John Michael Talbot

We live in complex times. Technology is advancing at astonishing speed. It promises to simplify our life, yet life gets more and more complicated as more choices become available. Economic prosperity has made more material possessions within the average person's reach than ever before in history, yet true inner peace and happiness still seems illusive to most, even among the wealthiest of us. Despite all of our prosperity in the West the basics of our society are still deteriorating. Families are still crumbling, along with the sense of stability and peace that comes from stable relationships. Morality is in turmoil. Faith is in question. Hatred and violence are on the rise, especially among our children. Furthermore, the poor keep getting poorer while the rich of this world continue in a mad accumulation of riches that fail to satisfy even their own deeper aspirations, much less meet the basic needs of the many who remain desperately poor in our out of balance world.
I have experienced all of this in my family, community, and ministry. No one is exempt. Music that is based on clear spirituality and scripture finds itself increasingly outside the realm of the so-called "Christian music industry." Community and family, even within the Catholic and Christian subculture, is most difficult to maintain. At times the future can seem quite bleak, despite our seeming success. Even among the mega churches and popular movements of Christians, Catholics, and believers in our western world, the genuine spirituality of the ancients, and especially Jesus Christ, seems nowhere to be found. Yet God has an answer.
It was at this point that the scriptures on this project began to touch me deeply. They came first from the Office of Readings from the daily Catholic prayers, called the Divine Office. This service is usually prayed at the predawn hours, constituting a vigil. These psalms and prayers go to the darkest places of the spiritual life. Yet they shine the light of hope through the faith and love of God. They recognize the dark complexities of life, but always lead back to a deep and simple reality in Jesus Christ, the Light of the world. The original songs were written from the texts of this canonical office. Later I included other more hopeful texts from the other canonical prayer hours.
I also included the prayers of some saints of recent and distant church history. St. Theresa of Avila's," God Alone," reminds us that our possessions alone will not satisfy the longing of the human heart. Blessed Charles De Foucauld's (Charles of Jesus)," Abandon Myself," shows us the way to let go and let God. or to empty ourselves of self after the pattern of the self emptying of Jesus (Phil. 2). "Breathe On Me," is an ancient prayer invoking the Spirit, which is the intimate breath of God, without whom even our best efforts at spirituality fall short. These texts have given solace and strength to millions of believers for many years. I hope they also comfort you.
Musically the project is a return to the style for which I am best known. It is simple, but not simplistic. The sound is acoustic and pure. The basics were recorded in the mountain solitude of The Little Portion Hermitage. The rest was recorded and mixed at Dark Horse Studios in the pastoral countryside outside Franklin, TN. We tried to maintain orchestrations that are lush, but not overwhelming, and vocals that are extensive, but not distracting. Phil Perkins did his usual masterful job as Co-Producer. Brent King and Rob Burrell maintained the audio excellence of the engineering we have come to expect from them.
In this musical genre it is not only the notes that are important. The purity of the overall sound is also found in the space between the notes. In this it is a musical analogy of the delicately balanced paradox of silence and speech in the divinity and humanity of Christ. In order for us to fully hear God's Word we must also learn to listen to God's silence, and in order for silence to avoid lapsing into quietism we must find it and express it through God's Word in us. The two become one in us, creating a Trinity, so that our words become God's Word which is found most deeply in silence, and which permeates every word. This balance is most delicate in this more contemplative and meditative style of music, as well as in contemplative life itself.
This balance brings a certain delicacy to the music itself that must be maintained. It is the deeper strength of God that is found most perfectly in his gentleness. It is the Lion's Roar that is found in stillness, or the gentle wind outside the cave of Elijah's solitude and silence. This delicate balance is analogous of our full life in Christ.
So listen, and let God simplify your soul. I hope these texts give you faith, hope, and love in the midst of today's life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

John Michael Talbot