Jamin Bradley

In college, I took a trip to North Carolina to attend a conference where a Christian music label taught people how to make it in the music industry. My heart was shattered as I learned that Christian music was all about money and business, not about the arts.

But there was one speaker there that struck me as really authentic and down to earth. He had some pretty big credentials to his name, having been the tour manager for Creed and having discovered P.O.D., but that wasn’t what mattered to him. He himself was a musician who had tried to make it somewhere in the industry, but it didn’t work out.

He shared a story that stuck with me. The details are a bit fuzzy all these years later, but he had a powerful moment where God fulfilled his musical desires. I think he was playing some songs or some worship for a fairly small crowd at a church somewhere… Whatever the actual case, God took his musical aspirations and passions and filled them in that small moment.

I worked hard at music in the years that followed to see what might happen, but next to nothing did. I kept the man’s testimony in my heart, hoping that God would find a way to redeem music in my life as well, and he has over and over again. From meaningful worship times to spontaneous songs to recording other people’s music and bringing their art to life—God has always found a way to fulfill me.

And right now, my heart is full as I feel God at work in the arts at our church. There are no expectations for the album to get lots of plays or for the songs to become hits. It’s simply a creation of God-honoring art by our people, seeking ways to praise God through our mission and values. It is a beautiful expression of our community, and I’m proud of them for their hard work.

Here’s the track list for 1208 Greenwood Church’s new album, out on May 22nd:

1. Inviting Jackson to Find (Jodi Bradley)
2. In Jackson as it is in Heaven (Jamin Bradley, Amity Grace, Jaimie Curtis)
3. Dancing with the Spirit (Stefan Bozman)
4. Can He Do It (Amity Grace)
5. The Clinging Spirit (Jamin Bradley, Amity Grace, Jaimie Curtis, Nerd Church JXN Choir)
6. A Fool’s Dance (Joel Bradley)
7. Something New (Caleb Keepin’)
8. Red Letter Theology (Carl Price)
9. Live Red Letter (Amity Grace)
10. Red Letter King (Jamin Bradley, Jaimie Curtis)
11. Jesusian (Joel Bradley)
12. Jesus the Law (Jamin Bradley, Janae Burchett)
13. Holy Metamorphosis (Megan Fulton)
14. Chrysalis (Jaimie Curtis)
15. Renewing Me (Rob Cunningham)
16. Jellyfish Frog Wings (Joel Bradley)
17. When Barriers Fall (Sarah Roelofs)
18. Run Away (Amity Grace)
19. Doing a New Thing (Spontaneous, Live at Spare Oom) (Jamin Bradley, Casey Mellinger, Stefan Bozman)
20. Jesus Justice (Jericho Bradley)
21. Moral Universe (Jaimie Curtis)
22. Forgive Me for Loving (Joel Bradley)
23. Peace that is No Peace (Jamin Bradley)
24. Babylon (Amity Grace)
25. The Great Banquet (Greta Bolton)
26. The Table (Amity Grace)
27. If You Were Me (Casey Mellinger)
28. Gather Round and Tell Me Your Dreams (Joel Bradley)
29. Welcome Home (Aaron Fraser)
30. Cultivating New Creation (Beckett Bradley)
31. Creativity in Motion (Rob Cunningham)
32. Jesus the Carpenter (Kendall Howard)
33. Beautiful Things (Amity Grace, Jamin Bradley)
34. The Floral Moon (Joel Bradley)
35. The Hope and Repair of Heaven (Jodi Bradley)

If you, too, are trying to figure out how God might redeem music for you, I highly suggest watching the movie Long December. I originally saw it because my favorite artist, John Mark McMillan, was in it, and I’m so happy I gave it a watch. It is, in a sense, the story I’ve shared here and a good reminder to my soul. It is a good movie for all musicians to see and for anyone who has ever had a dream that felt like God wanted to do something with, but it wasn’t happening as you thought it might. May this movie become to you what that man’s testimony became to me all those years ago.