Live Worship Set with my friends at World Vision

Wade in the Water (I Think I Know What You Started)

Always For Me

Zach and Sal Episode 1

Pandora

I am excited to announce that my single, What You Do To My Heart, will be included in the Pandora rotation!  Things have not gone live yet but will be soon!  Thanks for all your support yall and keep on listening!!!

I Give Myself

Growth is good.  It's essential actually, but that doesn't change the fact that the process absolutely sucks sometimes.  I've found myself in one of those seasons.  I'm completely surrounded by so many amazing things, but in the midst of these blessings I am growing.  Some of this growth feels like fire burning my skin, when in fact it is burning away that which needs not be there.
This song is just a little peace of the process I'm in.

Get Out of the Green Room

I watched a fantastic video via The Verge Network this morning.  It was a talk surrounding the fact, yes FACT, that worship leaders need to get off their butts, get out of the green room, and go connect with people!  I'm wrapping myself in here as well because I have absolutely been one of those leaders who goes and does his thing, and then gets a coffee, plops down on the couch and proceeds to "listen" to the sermon via the web stream.

Jesse Stone, of Austin Stone Worship, lays this out so perfectly and it fires me up!  Do you realize that you have an incredible platform?  You have the opportunity as a worship leader to connect with, love on, lift up, encourage, teach, and so many other things, the people in the congregation you serve.  Listen to the word I just used one more time... "Serve".

I'll be the first to admit that I used to use my platform as a spotlight for my gifts.  I was in college, playing professionally all over the Seattle area and saw it as an opportunity to do more music.  I was squandering the abilities God gave me and was incredibly fortunate to have leaders over me who recognized the potential in me and took time out of their own lives to mentor and teach. 

The bottom line here is this,
the green room is not a lounge, it's a place a preparation and prayer.  Use it as that, and then get out so you can connect with the amazing people around you!  Pray with them, encourage them.  Maybe God has a mentor opportunity just waiting for you.

Watch Jesse Stone's video via The Verge Network here! I loved it and I think you will too.

DOUBT: The Faith Fuel

I can't begin to tell you how often I've battled with doubt.  It's a constant struggle for me and sometimes I think it's going to drive me completely bonkers!  All around me I'm hearing "just have faith", or "trust in the Lord your God", which is all sound advice.  But is it advice that's really thought through?  Or is it an easy "cop-out" answer for Christian leaders who want to simply hand out the candy instead of the floss?
Here's how I see it...
Doubt can be negative, but it can also be fuel.  Doubt is gasoline poured on your fire and can actually crank up the heat of your faith!  Did you know doubt can actually be a sign of devotion?! WHAT!?  I know!!!  Now let me be clear here and say that doubt without action leads to nothing, but doubt that fuels action can lead to much deeper levels of faith and understanding.

I dug in to an awesome article on this this morning, brought to you by Relevant Magazine. You should check it out and tell me what you think!

Via Relevant:

Thomas has received a lot of criticism for this throughout history, and his nickname stuck: Doubting Thomas. But can we really blame him?
Thomas may have assumed that the disciples were hallucinating, or they may have seen a ghost, or just someone who looked like Jesus. If they hallucinated or saw a ghost, it would mean that Jesus had not truly, physically risen, so Thomas demanded not only to see Jesus with his eyes, but to touch Jesus’ wounds with his hands...

Read more...

Lion Chaser: This is You

I'm back on the lions kick guys. I just can't seem to get away from it! And lets be honest, lions are pretty awesome. This morning I went through a box of books we've yet to fully unpack and pulled out my copy of Mark Batterson's "In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day". I think I may have talked about this incredible read before, but whatever, it's totally worth a re-visit. The book starts off by introducing you to an incredibly powerful and courageous man, whose decision to chase fear instead of run from it elevated him to a position of great authority and influence. That man is Beniah, who went on to become one of David's mighty men I believe. (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong lol.)

The whole encounter described in Mark's book is absolutely epic and paints a picture for us of how we should trust God with our fear knowing that what's on the other side of that fear is breakthrough and blessing. If you know the story of Beniah, you know that he came face to face with a lion, on a day when the ground was covered in snow, and decided to chase the lion down in to a pit where he would kill it with his bare hands. This accomplishment, on top of a few other very noteworthy happenings, built quite the resume' for Beniah and scored him a position serving directly under King David. Had he chosen to run in fear from the challenges he faced, which would have been totally understandable and actually quite logical, he would not have seen the incredible blessing and legacy that God had for him.

So I guess I just want to ask what you're facing right now? What's your lion? And I want to encourage you because that lion staring you in the face does not own you. That cancer does not own you, that depression does not own you, that addiction does not own you, that broken marriage does not own you. You were created to be a lion chaser and are branded with the name of Jesus! His name is above EVERY name! His name is above the name of cancer, depression, addiction, and broken! His desire for you is not just "good" but "great".

Get ready lion chaser. Destiny is staring you in the face. Will you chase it?

Identity: Your New name

This morning was one of the first mornings in a long time that I woke feeling truly rested and refreshed.  It's been a bit since I've felt that way, mostly because life just gets busy, and crazy, and busy again, and then moves back in to being crazy.  It's crazy busy, so lets just say that I have a "bazy" life lol.

You probably know as well as I do that "bazy" living can get you distracted from your core (your core being Jesus).  You start taking a little less time each day to pray and ingest His word, and pretty soon you end up where I found myself.  Dry, dazed, frustrated, and tired.  I started falling back in to some old habits and was becoming more and more sick of myself until I finally just stopped liking myself all together.  I was completing losing sight of the fact that Jesus love for me is FAR greater than my habits.  I was forgetting that He calls me His and there is nothing I can do to remove that label from my heart.  I'm signed and sealed "HIS".

When life gets crazy it becomes easier to lose our identity in all of it.  So lets take a second to remember who we are.  To do this I want to share with you something I did about a year or so ago that completely rocked my world in the best possible way.

I was reading an AMAZING book, the first of 3 or 4 I believe, called "Soul's Gate".  In a nut shell, the main characters in this book are brought together by a prophetically gifted, wise, mentor for the purpose of training them how to intercede and war for the people around them.  The book paints an incredibly interesting portrait of spiritual warfare and what it means to pray.  There was a particular section in the book that really hit a home run for me.  Royce, the teacher, was training these 3 individuals to trust in God in such a way that they were doing some crazy supernatural things as they warred over the people God pointed out to them.  Part of their training was to gain an understanding and perspective on who they are in God's eyes.  Royce gives each of them a pad of paper and pen and then sends them in to the woods surrounding the training grounds telling them to ask God for a new name.  He sites the scripture in Revelation where it talks about the white stones etched with a new name for those who receive them.

Each of them are branded with a new name, a couple of them with more than one.  Why is this important?  Because the truth behind their identities came straight from the Father and when they heard Him speak, understanding that this identity could only have been given by Him, they experienced a drastic shift in they way their faith operated.  They started walking as the warriors God branded them to be.

I read this part of the book and thought Huh.  Why not me?  I immediately set the book aside, turned on some worship music, and started pressing in, asking God to show me how He sees me, and to give me a new name.  I guess I didn't expect him to answer right away, but he did, and with 3 names.

Joshua: This one struck me hard.  All my life, even as a little guy, the people around me have accidentally called me by this name.  i had a teacher in grade school that used to mix me and another kid (whose name was actually Josh) up all the time.  I never understood why until now.  This was a small whisper from God.  He has been calling me by this name my entire life and I never realized it!  Here's a little bit behind the name. Joshua was a warrior with extreme faith in the Lord.  A leader.  He was also the one God chose to lead the Israelites in to the promised land after Moses died.  God chose him to complete the promise He gave to His people.  He is a completer of promises.

Goku: Now this one struck me, but not in a good way initially lol.  I am a HUGE nerd and LOVE all things super hero.  I grew up watching a show called "Dragon Ball Z" which was about highly trained warriors defending the earth from all sorts of evil attacks and threats.  The main character, Goku, is an alien whose DNA causes him to become exponentially stronger when ever he his pushed to the brink of death.  This means that every time he's beaten, he returns 100 times stronger than he was before!  The name Goku also happens to be Japanese, meaning "Sky".  God caused me to think about this fact and recognize that the sky is a limitless expanse, and whispered to me "you are limitless son."  I still giggle at this name when I hear it.  The nerd in me just goes nuts! lol

The third name is one I'm going to keep to myself for right now.

Who are YOU?  I know this may seem "out there" to some of you, but what if God is just waiting for you to ask?  What if He is ready to unlock something in you and all you have to do is ask "Lord, what's my name?"  You already have identity in Jesus, so let Him love on you and unlock the things he built inside you!

Do I believe this is the only way to learn about yourself?  Absolutely not.  But this is a great way to be reminded of how much God loves you and to learn more about how He sees you!  Look through His eyes at the mirror and get ready!

How To Tell When Your Ministry Has The Wrong Focus

This is such an incredible word!  I've been under leadership like this in the past and have seen the damage a ministry can do to it's people when the focus is shifted from where it truly needs to be.
I encourage you to read through this article and maybe take some time to consider your own ministry.

Brought to you by Worship Links

JD Greear writes: Sadly, most of us can all too easily recount stories of pastors who betrayed their congregations, who hurt the very people God had called them to love, who—in short—made their ministry all about them… As a Christian leader, I don’t hear stories like that and congratulate myself. I hear them and tremble. Because the same pride that has shipwrecked countless other ministries lives in my heart. And in yours.
We need to be constantly vigilant for signs that our ministry has become all about us. Here are a few…  Read more...

Zach Trandum Presents: I'm So In Love With You

Just a couple years ago I composed this little ditty.  Coffee in hand, surrounded by the walls of our cozy little apartment, my 12 year old Mac working it's tail of to do pretty much anything.  This isn't even close to a finished product, but I came across it in my archives fairly recently and fell in love with the song all over again.

You and I: An Original Song by Zach Trandum (Featuring Sarah Trandum)

I have some pretty amazing people in my life.  God has richly blessed me with family and friends that have loved me enough to not only walk with me and rejoice in the good times, but to call me on my crap in the tougher times.  The single greatest, most amazing (and super hot) person in my life is my incredible wife, Sarah.  When I step back and look at the gift God gave me in her I am, quite literally, speechless.  And that's saying a lot because I like words lol.  This girl sharpens me, encourages me, challenges me, recharges me, along with so many other things.  And to top it off, just when I thought things couldn't get any better, she gave me a daughter.  Did I mention she's smoke'n hot? Cuz yeah, she is.  BONUS!!!!
Back in 2009, right when Sarah and I started dating, I was the worship pastor of a small church in Mount Vernon Washington.  Sarah would drive more than 2 hours to come visit me.  On one particular afternoon I was in the church neck deep in a songwriting session.  When she arrived I was getting ready to lay down a scratch track for my records.  Knowing that she's had quite a bit of musical experience and training herself, I asked Sarah to sing with me on the tune.  It took her all of 2 minutes to latch on to the melody, find the harmonies, and remember the lyrics.  I've been doing music for a long time and I still cant pick things up as fast as she does (kinda drives me nuts lol).
Well kids, this is the recording we did that day.  Nothing special at all about the production.  Its just the two of us singing live, worshiping God.  I sincerely hope you enjoy the tune!

Let the Music Thump You

If you could make worship music literally thump in your chest, I'm pretty sure this is what it would sound like.  One of the reasons I've fallen head over heals in love with Dubstep is because it is so insanely creative.  Hank Hill may label it as a bunch of toilet noises... But Dubstep has a musical quality that you just can't get anywhere else and now we're hearing more and more of it breaking in to Christian music. 

Whether you agree or not, these Christian Dubstep sounds are worth a listen. Let your ears drown in the thump.

Seasons of Songs: It's Not Time Yet

Ecclesiastes 3:1
"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven..."

I recently came across one of my old lyric books (I've got a pile of them boxed up...It can drive my wife crazy lol).  Not to toot my own horn, but I was rather blown away at some of the lyrics I've written just a few short years ago.  There was incredible insight and metaphorical poetry taking place that I didnt realize I had in me at the time.  Needless to say, I had to jump on those papers immediately and start crafting the words in to songs.  

Like a swordsmith preparing a new blade, I unsheathed my Ipad and went to work on the words, lines, and phrases contained in one of my notebooks.  I would love to tell you that one of the most amazing musical works I've ever created came out of that time but I would be lying.  A big, fat, nothing came out of it. As hard as I tried, as much thought as I put in to it, I just couldn't come up with anything that felt right and I was frustrated as to why I couldn't put the pieces together.  Why wasnt this working?

Well, I've developed a theory (though I'm not usually one to theorize anything at all).  

Just as we go through seasons in life, I believe certain worship songs can be marked for a specific season.  It may remain locked to you until that season starts.  Even as I'm writing this to you I can recall moments in my own life where I've poured back over old lyrics that had frustrated me before and suddenly sprung to life in that moment.

My point in all of this is to encourage you to not become discouraged.  The lyrics you write are important and may not show fruit for a while.  Continue to create!  When the right season comes and the door is opened that song will bust open from the depths of your chest like a wild river.


“In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.”
― Albert Camus

Songs that Hit You: Nothing but the Blood (Featuring Julieanne Marie)

There are certain songs that hit you.  As you walk from day to day with the radio playing or your headphones in, marching along to your job, letting the sounds of your favorite band pump in to your ear drums, there will eventually be a song that, almost physically, punches you in the heart.  Maybe it's the lyrics that seem to be speaking directly to you and whatever circumstance you find yourself in.  It could be a haunting melody that moves you to tears.  It might be the ramped up energy of a chorus that boosts you as you push through the last mile of your morning run.  What song is it for you?

I had the honor of sharing the stage with a rising star, Julieanne Marie.  We didn't think we were going to have time to sing this song, but were asked to by the event organizer.  He'd heard us practice the music before things kicked off and I am SO glad he asked us to sing it as encore.

This is "Nothing but the Blood of Jesus".  What an incredible tune this is!  I don't want to say it's rare, but music usually doesn't strike me to my core the way that this song does.  I dig, and dig, and dig to find truly great music, great singers, and great songs.  This timeless song is an honest, outcry of the heart as it declares Jesus as the only source of life and strength.

I hope you enjoy this worshipful duet featuring Julieanne Marie (watch out for this girl!  She's taking off!!!)

What You Can Do: Breaking the Creative Box

Being a student of vocal jazz, I was exposed to one of the more creative sides of the genre.  I can't put a label on exactly what drew me to vocal improv (or "scat").  I fell in love with jazz at an early age and have been border line obsessed with it since then.  As I began developing my abilities as a vocalist I started listening to artists like Kurt Elling and Mark Murphy, who are known for their incredible scat skills.

One of the reasons I love vocal improvisation is the fact that it is insanely creative.  What would happen if we included aspects like this in to worship music!?  Awesome is what would happen.  If anything it would be a venture outside the normal box that so much of worship music is stuck in right now.  I'm not dissing on what the current popular sound is, I'm just saying that we weren't created to be creatively limited.  So how can we bust out off the box?

Here is a cover I did of an oldy that I'm sure you'll recognize.  I put my own spin on it.



But Seriously, what are your thoughts on creative worship music?  What aspects and cross genre sounds could you incorporate to usher in a new sound?

The bible tells us that we are created in His image.  This means that God, being the ultimate creative being, made us with the ability to be hugely creative.  But how do we get those creative juices flowing?   How do we take old songs and make them feel new?  Here are a few thoughts I have on this subject:

1. Listen like crazy.  Not just to the stuff you usually stick to.  Venture away from your DC Talk CD's and branch out.  Charge your creative batteries by listening to other creative people.  David Crowder is a great example of a massively creative writer.

2. Play with what you're playing.  Try taking the worship tunes you're used to playing one way and take them in a different direction with a different feel.  Who knows, maybe Mighty To Save would sound awesome as a Ska song. 

3. If you're a songwriter, get together with other songwriters and bounce ideas off each other.  Let creativity inspire creativity!

4. Make time for yourself to sit down and create.  Even if nothing of real substance comes out of the time spent, you're still working those muscles.  Creativity takes practice!

Tale of the Tambourine Lady: Are You a Distraction in Worship?

It was a glorious Sunday morning.  The congregation was congregating, pastors were pastoring, and the worship team was doing that prayer circle thing where you're invited to lead out as the spirit leads but then just stand there in awkward, yet reverent, silence.  After our stirring "go team" we ventured out onto the stage and took our positions, readying ourselves for an encounter with the Father.
Throwing my guitar strap over my shoulder, I made sure everything was in tune and stepped up to the mic.  Looking out over the good people of our church I did what any good worship leader should do to start the service and inspire all those groggy, but dedicated, first service folks... I proceeded with a short series of irritating questions.

"Are you excited to be in the house of the Lord?  Are you ready to worship?  Won't you stand with me?"

As people began slowly rising from their seats I noticed a new face sitting in the second row.  She glanced up at me and I mouthed the word "welcome" to her as she smiled.  I'm always glad to see new people joining us, then I saw her retrieve the largest tambourine I've ever seen, which had somehow been hiding in her purse.  Had Mary Poppins come to church today?  Whose taking care of the Banks children!?  Who will give them their spoon full of sugar!?!?
Needless to say, a feeling of dread crept over me as if Miss Poppins had snapped her fingers and commanded it too.

We kicked off the first song, nice and up tempo, and I watched as our guest stretched out, wound up, and began beating that giant tambourine like it had just tried to steal her purse.
The problem here was that I did not have in ear monitors and could hear every single, delightful, thump and tinkle from our new self appointed team member who refused to confine her expression of worship to the prison cell we call "tempo".  She was flying her freedom flag and stomping those feet like the devil himself was directly under her pew.

Well, after repeated attempts to get the attention of one of our ushers I gave up and focused as best I could on the remainder of the set... Apparently the lovely lady and I had the same plan except she wanted a solo.

Why am I sharing this?  Because it is possible to be a distraction in worship.  I'll be the first to stand up and advocate for freedom of expression but you also need to be aware of the people around you.  Are you taking away from their experience?  Are you slugging then in the head with a gigantic tambourine?  You can argue that focusing on something like this will only take YOUR attention away from worship.  Its not a matter of removing all your attention from worship.  Just be aware of where you're waving your flag (I got clocked in the face by a worship flag once) or if the massive percussion instrument you toted with you to church is going to be appropriate for the setting.  You might need to just wait for a your Sunday evening family jam sessions.

Do You Worship Your Worship Experience?

A few months ago, while traveling in Kentucky, I visited a church with a friend. It was different from the churches I typically attend for a few reasons. It was much smaller. It didn’t start on time. It was a different denomination. And the demographics—race, social class, age—varied greatly, and I was not in the majority...


Read more at: http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/church/do-you-worship-your-worship-experience#aAATpbBhxUe4jeks.99

Their Emotional Response: A Worship Leader's Idol

We are emotional beings.  God created us that way because emotions are powerful and can launch us in to action.  But, worship leaders, did you know that an emotional response from your church does not equal success?

I have worshipped in many different settings with various types of congregations.  Some have been seemingly excited and passionate in their worship, but then turned out to be dried up and only emoting a response from the song they were singing at the time, or acting as the worship leader directed.  I've been with congregations that seemed dry and uninterested in participating in worship but then ended up having an incredible touch from God because they were invested in what was happening.  The difference?  One is only skin deep while the other was all in, emotions and heart.

Right now is a very busy season for my family and I.  We've been in the midst of moving and I'm working at World Vision full time, teaching voice lessons, and leading worship for a youth group near here every Wednesday.  So yeah, its a little cray cray to say the least.  The youth group I am leading for right now is awesome and I have genuinely fallen in love with these kids.  I must admit though, when I first arrived and was asked to step in and start helping I got a bit frustrated with them.  I couldn't get them to respond to anything, and then I remembered something... "I" am not responsible for their response.  Once I readjusted my focus, realizing that all I need to worry about is worshiping God with MY heart, a shade was pulled back and I saw something happen.  I started to see these kids for who they are and who God designed them to be.  This charged my batteries and all I had to do was sit back and watch as the Holy Spirit began reaching in to start transformation.  Hearts were, and are, being struck by the incredible love and presence of God!

There is a shell that is being chipped away here and I cant accurately measure that with emotional response.  I believe this is the same for every church service really.  We cannot continue to see success as just another excited shout, hand clap, or raised hand, though they may manifest themselves in those ways.  Our success is in our worship of the Lord.  We succeed when our heart is fully invested in worshiping Him.

1 Chronicles 16 tells us to sing our praises to the Lord daily, proclaiming His deeds among all people.  It also says that "all the gods of the nations are idols".  I think we can label that success meter as an idol in our lives.  We can become so absorbed with squeezing that response from the people in front of us that we lose sight of the true reason we're there.

We are worship leaders, and so our responsibility is to lead with our worship.
I want to suggest you pick up a book called "The Invisible Worshiper", by David Binion.  The book dives in to the meat of this concept and is, in truth, where I pulled the idea.

What do you guys think?  Share some of your thoughts on this subject in the comments section!