Martha Christian

Every January (I know it’s February…hang with me for a minute), the stars line up, my worlds collide and I dare to ride the wave of creativity and productivity that comes post holidays. As a worship leading, church music directing wife and partying mother of 4, December hits me like a hurricane, stirring everything up, bringing all sorts of great stuff to the surface and then spitting me out spent on the other side. But as a true “Martha,” I’ve been running so hard and so fast it feels much like hitting the solid ground at the end of a moving sidewalk.

So what to do? 2012 was an amazing year for a lot of us. For some of us, redemption and restoration had it’s way with our souls and we are still shaking our heads at our new places of freedom. We’ve seen the fruition of one time dreams that are now realities. Children grew up, smile lines deepened and our hearts went places we wouldn’t have dared to go. My spirit has been moving as fast as my heart and that doesn’t seem to be stopping either.

Now, in February, my house is finally in working order, our church is moving into a new series on “Real Love” and we have a small group that we love. I’ve managed to get back and forth and back and forth to Nashville to write and co-write. I’m involved with the SMSWF and John Condrone’s Songwriter’s Rounds out at Crystelle Creek in Gatlinburg and I’ve played out more this year than I did the same time last year. As my sister is fond of saying, “We’re really doing this!!!!!” The momentum is picking up speed and we’re seizing the day.

Hallerin Hilton Hill, one of my favorite radio celebrities, opens every show with this:

“Welcome to this brand new day. This day has never been lived before. It’s a blank canvas. If you will it so, it can be your masterpiece. As you wake up this morning think of three things you’re grateful for and then get out there and live this day with all the joy, wonder and enthusiasm you can muster.”

Every day as I drop my kids off to school, I give them bits and pieces of this. I am a woman of faith. I have heard the Creator tell of His great love for me in the redemptive cross of His Son and it rocks my world to the core. To know I’m loved has radically changed me. As I embrace this day with that certainty, recklessly abandoned to the good plans my God has for me, I do so with the blinds to my life wide open. My family is right there with me, watching, copying, encouraging others to do the same.

As I look around and see the longing eyes and the shoulders weary from the wounds of this world, I want more than anything to say,

“Look up. Your Hope has come. Beloved, it’s a REALLY good day!”

What say you? Will you seize the day too? I think we’re quite capable if we dare to trust Him.

Blessings to you for this new year. It’s gonna be a good one.

Martha

Martha C Uncategorized

I’m always grateful anytime you stop by! If you’re on Twitter or Facebook, I’d love to keep up with you there!

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 I’ve been reminded often as we walk in this direction that I don’t order my steps. There is much talk about destiny and making your own, but the truth of it is, there are just entirely too many variables for me to completely chose my “best life now.” It’s an impossible goal.

 But I have found that as I do the things for Love, the other pieces just seem to fall in place. And that’s just where I want to be.

I’m thrilled to be heading back to Naples, FL for the Storytellers Creative Arts Conference

As a creative person awakened to life by the love, sacrifice and redemption of Christ, I struggle with the categorization of “Christian” art. Art cannot be Christian when it is but an expression; it has no soul. But as I create, the soul of the story, the song, the painting is mine. And I can create with bravery and beauty or within the safety net of a defined space, somewhat akin to painting by numbers. I struggle with just where to go with my own personal music, but my heart keeps coming back to this: Find me daily trusting, loving, and doing the hard work armed with fearless courage.

I am so encouraged by the folks that gather in Naples with me. This call to more progressive, more compelling mainstream art from the Christian community is the resounding cry from the presenters, and I’m thrilled to be joining them again. Might God be calling you to join us to? What would happen if we, the artists who happen to be Christian, got together and said, “How can we reflect the glory of God as magnificently as He enables us to do?” I think it would be better than magic. And yes, I said magic.

Hope you can join us! In the mean time, I’ll be doing a few festivals in the Southeast region, singing out whenever I can. Check our upcoming events to see when you can come out and see us!

Blessings!

Martha

Martha C Music

It’s been a wild fall already and we’re just getting started!!! Here are some highlights.

Thanks for stopping by! And if we met on the road, please drop a note on the Contact Page and let me know! I would love to keep upwith you!

I’m on facebook or twitter (@marthachrs)

 Many thanks to Christina Curry and Kat Speer with the Smoky Mountain Songwriters Festival for taking these great shots!!

I had the great pleasure of being a part of the first annual Smoky Mountain Songwriters Festival in Gatlinburg, TN. No, this is not Steven Curtis Chapman. This is a pic I took of me and my new friend Jeff Barnes. We got to play together at the Park Vista lounge as part of the Smoky Mountain Songwriters Festival. He was wonderful. You should check him out.

Another one to check off the bucket list is playing on the Ole Smoky Moonshine Hollar Stage with the festival! The party lights draped lazily over the rocking chairs filled with grateful folks who just sampled the moonshine made for a PERFECT venue. I loved it. Met some great new friends, was encouraged to record “Hold My Hand” and found that I LOVE the Bose L1 Towers. LOVE EM. Best live speakers out there!

FUNNY story…

I’ve been able to be a part of the Smoky Mountain Songwriters Festival from when it was just a dream in Cyndy Reeves Montgomery’s heart and I was so stinking proud of her as the songwriters gathered in the Edgewater Hotel to hear the winners of the songwriting competition. As folks gathered in the back of the room, awaiting the scores to be tallied, I was talking to my new friend Lee Johnson when Cyndy called me up to hand out the awards!!! It was like an Inspire Worship Conference DEJA VU!!!! I’m destined to be Vanna White in this world. All there is to it. Here I am with Jonathan Dean Snellings, who won the overall songwriting competition. He was great. Be watching for him. As for the pics, I’m in EVERY other award pic from that night. And there were PLENTY

My good friend Larry Love with Larry Love Photography visited me when I was singing at the Sevier County Fair and caught this great shot. I love his eye. My sweet family came and stayed for my whole 2 hour set. If that doesn’t say “We believe in you,” I don’t know what does. I’m amazingly blessed.

I sincerely hope that every day you use those 20 seconds of courage to take a step of faith toward that quiet dream in your soul. It’s a crazy ride, but isn’t that we all want? At least just a little? God is a god who loves to give the big dreams and then faithful to give the God-sized provisions that make them happen. I’m praying you are brave enough to trust Him with them. He is good and He loves us. He’s daring us to trust Him.

Related, check out my album if you haven’t yet. It’s huge on Spotify. I KID.

Blessings to you!

Martha

Martha C Uncategorized

Hey everybody!!
Pretty excited to be in one of my favorite places, Nashville, TN, waiting to fly down to New Orleans for the weekend. I’ll be opening for my friend David Blackwell who is releasing his album, “Lonely Road,” as well as raising funds and awareness for Spina Bifida of Greater New Orleans.

Check him out here: www.davidblackwellmusic.com

We’ll also be leading worship Sunday morning at Crossroads church. Any time I get to love and lead the Bride of Christ, I’m thrilled.

Then it’s off to meet my family and head to the beach for some much needed family time! Funny how life just gets going sometimes and you find yourself holding your breath and checking your Twitter more than you should. Or maybe that’s just me! Our youngest daughter is 3 and is full of life and sass and all that jazz. Just like the children’s literary character, Olivia, she is very good at wearing people out. And about dinner time, she’s usually worn herself out too. The smallest thing can set off fitful tears and pouty lips and angry little growls from our princess, and we know the only cure is a “master reset.” She goes for a little time out on the bathroom stool. After a few moments we go in and talk with her, pray with her, tell her how much we love her…She emerges a new, happy girl.

And so we find ourselves every once in a while, just overwhelmed with the life around us; the lives we’ve let in or tried to keep out, the loves we try to run to and away from, the places we cry, the places we hide, and we just need, like my sweet Tess, a “master reset.” It’s why I think holidays and stay-cations (when you live in a gorgeous place like Gatlinburg, you just close the blinds and stay put for a day or two) are so important.

We are so prone to forget the things we love. We need to be brought back to those simple places of shared sunrises and sunsets, brave moonlit walks, carefree breakfasts in jammies, living in swim suits, taking the long way, lingering conversations, exploring, you know, “longing for heaven” kind of living. Some folks do really well at living like this. The rest of us? We need a “master reset” every once in a while.

So pray for my sweet husband as he’s taking the four kiddos in a fifth wheel for the next few days until I join them. May we be brave. May we be quick to believe that whatever “this” is is good. May we be slow to speak, quick to hear, eager to love, grateful to forgive. May we embrace for even a moment how dearly loved we all are, as evidenced in the reckless love of Jesus that would say, “I see all your scars and I long to make you whole.”

Blessings!

Martha

Martha C Uncategorized

Martha C Uncategorized

“Dare You to Trust Me”

RELEASE PARTY!!!

Sunday June 24, 2012

7:00pm

Evergreen Church

1103 Dolly Parton Pkwy

Sevierville, TN 37862

ORDER the CD HERE!!!

Make plans to join us as we perform the album and then hang out afterwards and celebrate!! So many folks have given to this project, leaving me humbled and grateful. I can’t wait to share this moment with all of all of you guys! Make plans to be there! It’s going to be a really great night!

I’ve been chugging the coffee this afternoon, crashing from my whirlwind trip to Nashville. It was a great time of co-writing, and meetings, meetings, meetings. My late night was a result of staying for the NSAI meeting Tuesday night where I got to hear the completely endearing Dave Clark, whom I met a couple years ago at the Write About Jesus conference in St. Louis. In a few days, it will be broadcast here, and I cannot encourage you enough to check it out. His wisdom on songwriting and creating is as honestly refreshing as it is challenging. I have spent the hours since thinking, “I do not want to be good enough. I want to raise the bar.”

Trust me. Check it out.

This summer is already going full steam! I’ll be at Bridgemont Camp & Outdoor Center a whole lot this summer. I grew up there in so many ways and am grateful to still be connected with them. It’s an amazing place. Check out their website!

I’ll also be back at the Hard Rock in Gatlinburg for their Founders Day on June 14th from 6-8pm, opening for Dishwater Blonde. ROCK ON!

Thanks for checking in! If I’ve met you along the way, I hope you’re better for our meeting. If we haven’t met, I hope to one day meet you and share our stories. We have great ones to tell. I encourage you to share part of yours with someone today, knowing that when we enter into each others lives, we catch a glimpse of heaven, where everything will be exactly as it was meant to be.

Blessings for your journey!

Martha

Martha C Uncategorized

Hey Folks!!

We’re on the runway, I believe, ready to take off! Let me get you caught up!

We will be releasing JUNE 19th on iTunes, Amazon.com, CdBaby, Reverbnation and http://marthachristian.bandcamp.com/.

Joel Christian did an AMAZING job with the cover art. We’re super proud of all the folks behind this project: Timothy K.S. Norris of musicbrook.com, Shane Reman and Tia Reman of http://www.stphotogallery.net/, Monique Pisano of LOXX Salon, Tess Werner, public relations… The list keeps growing. We are so blessed.

Second, we have shows coming up!! Check out the events page for a full listing. I’ll be in Gatlinburg, Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, New Orleans, and Naples, FL eventually this year! We will also take the album out so if you know a good spot, let us know and we’ll see what we can do!

Saturday, I had a show on the Hard Rock Community Stage of the Bloomin’ BBQ & Bluegrass festival in downtown Sevierville. It went GREAT!!! Here’s the radio spot from that:

Martha Christian Promo 5-18-12

Thanks to Joe, Tony and Cullen from i105 for being three of my biggest supporters who are NOT MY FAMILY. You boys give me some street cred and I’m super grateful!!

Blessings to you all as you continue to live and breathe and wrestle through the mountains and valleys of this life. I carry so many tough stories in my heart. The temptation to want to rescue is ridiculous for a girl like me. I try and fail miserably. BUT, we do have a real Rescuer that came and conquered and is more than capable of carrying the fatherless home too.  Jesus, if you didn’t love me first, I would have never heard you calling me.

Be brave friends, as He didn’t just rescue me but you too.

Martha

Martha C Uncategorized

“We are saved by GRACE ALONE through FAITH ALONE in CHRIST ALONE as told in the SCRIPTURES ALONE for the glory of GOD ALONE.”

As a broken woman in a broken world, I’m learning to embrace a life of grace plus nothing. I’m a wife, singer-songwriter and mother of four; a calling impossible without endless grace and grace alone. My job is the music director and worship leader at a medium size Presbyterian church in a resort town in East Tennessee. It’s an odd place to be in ministry. My town is driven by the entertainment needs of the southeast and the retirement needs of folks from all over. Our church is constantly turning over as folks move in and out of the area for work or, like everywhere else,  relationships become challenging and people feel it best to move to another church. It’s not a place for the faint of heart or for those who would add to grace. At Evergreen, we stand beside each other, in spite of each other, and bravely say, “Jesus, it’s you plus nothing else.”  I’m most grateful for my pastor who knows me and loves me and ruthlessly leads me to grace, and reminds me that in my brokenness, I’m not without a Rescuer. And it’s not me!

As we’ve continued to take the next steps to completing my soloproject, we’ve been so blessed to have our church family come around us and embrace it with us.  As we’ve listened to the final mixes, my 3 year old always asks, “Now, what is Tim doing in this song?” When I say, “Everything that’s not my voice,” she says, “Oh yes, he’s a ninja.” And though Tim Norris is more of a magician,  producer, band member, friend, I guess ninja comes pretty close.

This past Friday we did a photo shoot for the album. I no longer have “purple” hair so I guess it was time! My friend Monique Pisano did my hair and make-up, and our friends Shane Reman and Tia Reman from ST Photography did the shoot. My mother in law came just in time to hold the fan and direct the pictures. It was entire day of friends from the church giving their hearts and time to me and this project.  It was just  beautiful!

We have some exciting things in the works and I will let you know once they are announced. As for what’s next, we are mastering the album in Nashville, then packaging it all up and releasing it! We want to take it out to a neighborhood near you so if you have a place you think would fit us, let us know!

Blessings and great grace to you as you wait with me as God continues to mold those who are His to look more like His Son, Jesus. It’s not an easy wait, but I’m learning the greatest things take the greatest time. I remain completely hopeful that He really is making all things new and that the more I cling to grace, the better I will love those around me.

Hope to see you really soon!        Martha

Martha C Music Evergreen Church, Grace Alone, Martha Christian, Shane Reman, ST Photography, Tia Reman, Tim Norris

Greetings from the beautiful Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee! Thanks for stopping by to see what’s new with us!
I’m joining forces with other local artists for the Relay for Life benefit concert, Thursday night, March 8, 2012 in Sevierville, TN. It’s at 6:00pm at the Sevierville Civic Center. Tickets are available at area Tennessee State Banks and cost $20.00. It’s going to be a great night so make plans to be there!We just finished cutting the final vocals for our CD project! Soon and very soon it will be available on iTunes and our website and I PROMISE, it will be worth the wait! Tim Norris is absolutely amazing and I’m so, so honored to have worked with him through this endeavor. I’ve grown into a full fledge singer/songwriter/recording artist on this project. He’s given above and beyond for sure and I’m humbly grateful. And REALLY excited…and need to find his nickname.
We STILL have a couple copies of the preview cd! It’s a sweet little cd that has a few of my very favorites from the upcoming cd. Hop on over to the CONTACT tab and message me if you would like us to send one to you. They are $5.00 and you can pay through Donate icon on the MUSIC page.The Create 2:10 Arts & Media Conference  in Naples, FL was amazing. I was honored to lead worship for the conference and speak on Building a Thriving Worship & Arts community and Songwriting, two things God has uniquely created me to do. There are some amazing folks in this world, and I was so grateful to spend some time with the ones that gathered there. I also rode in my first cab. If that doesn’t say “country mouse,” I don’t know what does. Make plans to join me there this year!I am a part of the Smoky Mountain Songwriter’s Festival and we are looking forward to all sorts of singer/songwriters coming to town this year for the first annual festival. Check out their webpage and make plans to come to our beautiful city this August!

Thank you for stopping by! I pray you are learning to breathe deep the amazing grace that we are all breathing and learning to dance in that distant song you hear when you are brave enough to believe. I pray you find it much better than you thought, this walking by faith alone in grace alone. I know I am.

Blessings,

Martha C Uncategorized "The Release of the Spirit", Create 2:10 conference, East Tennessee Songwriter, Evergreen Church, Martha Christian, New CD, Relay for Life, Smoky Mountain Songwriters Festival, SMSWF, Watchman Nee

Hey Friends!

Thanks for coming to the site! Our great God is continuing to do what He does best to seek and save that which was lost and I’m thrilled that for this hour, I get to lead the Bride as she waits for Him. I want to let you in on some of the highlights.

I have been asked to sing on a charity Christmas CD project for Knoxville’s Independent radio station, i105.  I got into music so I could do a Christmas album someday and it  looks like today is the day! We will let you know when those are available for sale!

The last part of July and August I spent preparing for the The Smoky Mountain Songwriters Festival Preview Event with the Pea Pickin Hearts, Heather Maples, New Rain, Clay Mills, Bobby Tomberlin, Chris Wallin and Marty Dodson which was a great success. It’s about time Gatlinburg became a hot spot for great writers! The views are breathtaking and it’s an easy drive from Nashville, a trail I blaze often to co-write with other writers.

If you’re in the East Tennessee area for the prettiest time of the year, you can find me at the Wears Valley Oktoberfest where I’ll be singing every day at 11 am. The view at the base of Cove Mountain is just gorgeous.

In November I will be joining Rory Noland at the Storytellers Arts and Media Conference in Naples, FL where I will be leading worship and speaking on Building a Thriving Arts and Worship ministry and songwriting. God is so very, very clever…I had just received 7 of his books to start leading our band here at church through.

I’m so grateful for how God is continuing to mold and change the face of Christian music. After meeting some more great folks at GMA’s Immerse, I have renewed confidence in His ability to make all things new. As an independent, I’m not affiliated with any label. But if I were, Centricity Music is one I’m most excited about at the moment. Check them and their artists out.

Also, if you haven’t heard Dara Maclean’s “You Have My Attention” album, do yourself and get it while you’re waiting on mine.

Blessings to you guys. Enjoy His favor,

Martha C Music, Uncategorized Bobby Tomberlin, Centricity Music, Chris Wallin, Clay Mills, Dara Maclean, Gatlinburg, Heather Maples, i105, Immerse, Martha Christian, Marty Dodson, New Rain, Pea Pickin' Hearts, Rory Noland, singer songwriter, Smoky Mountain Songwriters Festival