John Dandrea

I heard the melody to this song first.   The theme was of finally being in the physical presence of our Lord, in fellowship with Him in Paradise. I would soon work around this theme for the entire album - a spiritual journey of fellowship with our Creator.  When the song was completed with the lyrics, I looked at the title and knew that it was perfect for an album title track.  
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I heard this melody one morning as I was driving to work, along with the chorus part "and I hear Your voice, in the rolling thunder"    and that very quickly developed into the rest of the song. The theme with this title is that there are things that we can be absolutely certain of and totally confident in - that the Lord has showed us the Way, the Truth, the Life, and that He will return again.  
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This song is very special to me - with vivid imagery     (a sailboat out on the sea, at sunset).   It can be about a man letting the woman know that his love is true, no matter what troubles lay ahead. . . but it's also a song about a man calling out to God, to help him through life's storms and deep waters.  As long as he places his faith in God, he will  "make it through" the stormy  seas of  life. 
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I used imagery from one of  my favorite mythology stories and the rainbow bridge that spans between the Earth and the home of the Norse Gods - in this case, Jesus represents the bridge and His connection between us and God, and that connection is stronger than any force in the universe. God also provided to us the symbol of the rainbow, to remind us all of  His promises to us, including his plan for our salvation through His son Jesus.   
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I was focusing on the scene in Matthew 28:1-8.  By the time anyone got to the tomb, an angel of the Lord had come and rolled away the stone, saying  "He is not here, for He has risen as He said He would".   I think about that Empty Tomb, and what it means.  Jesus now sits in the Highest Heaven, at the side of God, and He is as real as real gets.  And no one can come to God except through Him. 
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I was composing a more interactive praise song in which listeners could join in, clap their hands and stomp their feet in a unison form of praise and worship.  It was written as a fun song to sing, with a lively beat. The lyrics of the chorus express that we are One in the Lord, and One in the Spirit.  There is a wonderful unity in a true church family,  and in all those who call ourselves Christians.  
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This song has the distinction of being the only song I had written as a full choir song - with SATB voice parts.  It was difficult in the aspect of drafting a  musical score, but the song itself  had tumbled out easily. The words of this song are more like a prayer.  They are a very personal expression of  both  my  own  times of  trials  as  well as of  God's unending grace and forgiveness.   
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The particular phrase of piano rhythm of   "On My Knees" sort of started the entire song and lyrics at the same time.  Musically it's a fairly simple song, but served well to communicate the ideas that I wanted to express.  It came about as I was reading Luke 11:1, in which Jesus had finished praying and one of his disciples said to him "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples".  And Jesus Himself gives us what we call  The Lord's Prayer.  
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