Walking in the Light

May 24, 2016 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to Walk in the Light as you read. This is the title track from my very first album of Scripture inspired piano in 2001.

How do you know if you are walking in the light?

This question can have a lot of good answers. Last week while filming some music videos in south Georgia, I captured the image below. It is a beautiful symbol of how life brings light and darkness. By faith, we are called to walk in the light.

Isn’t it interesting how the setting sun draws our attention in the photo? We know there is darkness in the world, in life, and even in our hearts. This darkness, and the dark storm clouds pique our curiosity, but we are drawn to the light.

Here are four ideas to consider, which help me know if I am walking in the light…

1. Walk in the light of God’s peace. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

2. Walk in the light of God’s rest. “The Lord replied, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.'” (Exodus 33:14)

3. Walk in the light of God’s hope. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

4. Walk in the light of God’s healing. “Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.” (Isaiah 58:8)

Reflecting on these truths refreshes and encourages me. I hope they do the same for you. There is light, God’s light, beckoning to us in the midst of life’s storms. I would love to hear from you if this is especially meaningful to you today. You can send your comment down below.

Which idea for walking the light shines the most for you?

Here is the inspirational verse for the song Walk in the Light: “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7)

What is a “Pure Love” Song?

February 11, 2016 By Stanton Lanier 15 Comments

Click the play button above to listen to the love song Pure Fountain as you read…then pause it when you are ready to watch the video down below.

Have you ever thought about “true love” as “pure love?”

With the February 14th Valentine’s Day holiday approaching, I was thinking about how common the phrase “true love” is around the world. For example, “Yes, it must be true love” or “Have you found true love?” A phrase I have not heard used so much is “pure love.” Have you heard either of these before? “Yes, it must be pure love” or “Have you found pure love?”

Take a few moments to slowly read over the words below which express the depth and richness of the words “true” and “pure.”

TRUE: correct, accurate, right, verifiable, factual, what actually/really happened, genuine, authentic, real, actual, bona fide, proper; sincere, genuine, real, heartfelt, from the heart, loyal, faithful, constant, devoted, steadfast, unswerving, unwavering; trustworthy, trusty, reliable, dependable.

PURE: unadulterated, uncontaminated, unmixed, undiluted; sterling, solid, refined, one hundred percent; clarified, clear; flawless, perfect, genuine, real, clean, fresh, sparkling, unpolluted, untainted; wholesome, honorable, reputable, clean, honest, upright, upstanding, exemplary, worthy, noble, blameless, guiltless, spotless, unsullied, uncorrupted, undefiled.

Now, with these in mind, watch the Pure Fountain (Love Song) music video, and receive this as a love song from God to you personally. Listen to the music as a love song gift from Him to you. Meditate on the words from Him to you. Reflect on how much He loves you and believes in you — true, pure, paradise.

Words from the Lover to his Beloved (God to you) in Song of Solomon, Chapter 4:

“Dear lover and friend, you’re a secret garden, a private and PURE FOUNTAIN. A garden fountain, sparkling and splashing… You’ve captured my heart. I stay until dawn breathes its light and night slips away. Body and soul you are PARADISE. One look my way and…I was hopelessly in love!” (The Message)

Consider asking: God, would you reveal Your true and pure love to me more deeply?

Jesus sees us long before we see Him. He knows us. He brings to us His true and pure love. He brings to us His grace and forgiveness of our sin. Based on everything I know about Him, He believes in you (and in me). His is a “pure love” song.

December 27th ~ Where Did All the Time Go?

December 27, 2015 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to Thanksgiving as you read. This original, piano-English horn duet is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

On the one hand it is just another month. Through the demands of other’s expectations and crowded calendars, the routine takes over and seems to direct us wherever it wants us to go. Each week is filled with days passing by and each increases in velocity. It can seem quite mundane in the routine busyness of it all. Or worse, it can be a blur of to dos that leave us feeling empty and worn out.

And yet, the fact that December is the final month of the year distinctly sets it apart. Regardless of the type of year we have experienced, it closes that chapter. As we begin turning this page, the ending comes with a new beginning. Something magical happens in us as we realize the passing of time that has occurred; the brevity of this life becomes clearer in our thoughts. We ask ourselves and each other, “Where did all the time go?” as we secretly hope that something meaningful was achieved.

But before we can see the shadow cast completely, December ushers us into in an overwhelming rush of joy, brilliance and awe. We learn again and again… that the world we live in, filled with the beauty and pain of our humanity, has been pierced with the invasion of a supernatural Savior. Rescue has come. Rescue is here. Love becomes real, for Love took on flesh. In the most amazing story in all of human history, God became one of us.

Turning an eye to a new starting line with hope of how we can live out the coming chapter with more vigor, more urgency and yet have greater Peace, we see the opportunity for redemption of time and we can live more contentedly.

So when we see this rightly, December leaves us grateful. Let us write the next year’s chapter well.

December 24th ~ Christmas 1914

December 24, 2015 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to Awaken the Dawn as you read. This track is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

Approximately 7 million soldiers lost their lives in World War 1. Much of the war took place in the mud in central Europe where Germans, French and British soldiers lived in trenches for years at a time, their feet wet and their bodies chilled. It was a war of inches. The Germans would advance 100 ft. and many lives would be lost. Then the French and British would advance 125 ft, reclaiming 25 feet of real estate, and again many lives would be lost.

It was Christmas Eve, 1914 when the Germans began singing Christmas Carols. The British and French soldiers answered with many of the same carols in English and French. On Christmas Day a German soldier hesitantly came out of his trench with one of the many Christmas trees which had been brought to the front to cheer up the German soldiers. Other trees were added. A few, and then many British and French soldiers joined the Germans. They shook hands. Some embraced. Someone produced a soccer ball and they spent Christmas Day playing soccer together. They exchanged chocolate, champagne and cognac, cakes, candy and tobacco. They showed each other photos of their families.

This spontaneous display of man’s desire for peace, and for the meaning of Christmas for all of them, is one of the great testaments to the potential goodness of humanity. The armies did not approve and many men were disciplined, but it was an act of love, charity and peace even in war. It was Christmas.

December 22nd ~ The Greatest Gift

December 22, 2015 By Stanton Lanier 2 Comments

Click above to listen to Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring as you read. This piano solo is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

Sunday, November 28, 1972. It was a big day. A really big day.

I turned 11, and my parents gave me the greatest gift ever – a black Schwinn bike, complete with a sparkly, silver banana seat and high handle bars. It wasn’t just cool, it was going to be the coolest bike in the bike rack in front of Ben Franklin Elementary School on Monday… and, it was!

Friday, December 3, 1972. It was a bad day. A really bad day.

Probably in my arrogance, I was admiring my new bike more than I should. I parked it in the bike rack that morning and in a rush, failed to remember to put the lock on it.

During recess, I took every opportunity to look at it. It was so cool. But when I came out at the end of the school day to get my incredible bike to ride home, I couldn’t believe me eyes. My stomach dropped. There was the bike rack. But my bike was nowhere in sight. It had disappeared. Stolen.I ran inside to the principal’s office and turned in a report, although I don’t think it did much good. Mr. Taylor wasn’t very fond of me anyway. It was a long, long walk home that day.

Friday, December 24, 1972. A day I will never, ever forget.

My extended family on my mom’s side had driven from Dallas and Waco to spend Christmas with our family. Among the bunch was my great uncle Bill (his real name was David, and I was named after him).

Uncle Bill was one tough hombre, as bald as bald could be. All of us kids were all a bit scared of him. He never married because he was in the FBI… whoa! He would never tell us what he did, so you can imagine what we thought he did. Uncle Bill lived by himself in an old house where my great-grandparents had lived in Waco, Texas. I always remember thinking how poor he was.

Christmas Eve can be magical for a 10-year-old boy. You can guess what I hoped for, but knew I wouldn’t receive.

Of course, another bike.

Sure enough, when Santa showed up… Schwinn did not. I knew it was all my fault I didn’t have a bike.After we opened our presents, Uncle Bill called my dad and me into my parents’ bedroom. I remember it like it was yesterday. I thought I was in trouble, as it was a condition I often found myself in. Uncle Bill pulled out his old leather wallet, opened it up, and took out a crisp brand new $100 dollar bill. I had never seen one in my life. He told me he heard about my bike being stolen and wanted to give me $100 dollars so I could go with my dad to get a new bike.

I just stared at it. I couldn’t believe it. Tears come even now, as I see this memory so clearly in my mind’s eye.

You see… generosity changes everything. I never looked at Uncle Bill the same. Here was a man that gave far more than he could afford to help a kid get a bike. Generosity is a strong, powerful, and mysterious thing. It changes us when we do it. It changes us when it’s done to us. That day forever changed that boy and this man.

May you experience generosity and the peace that comes from it this December, as we celebrate the One who would give the greatest gift of all.

December 21st ~ Embracing Life’s Seasons

December 21, 2015 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to O Come, O Come Emmanuel as you read. This piano solo is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

“For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.”
– Ecclesiastes 3:1

I remember December 2000 like it was yesterday. I was graduating from nursing school with hopes to start caring for children at a local pediatric hospital. I had met the man of my dreams, and knew that God had finally led me to my future husband. My family was looking forward to celebrating our first Christmas at our new mountain home in beautiful Blue Ridge, Georgia. It was as if God had brought everything together in perfect harmony.

I had also finished an amazing year of Bible study learning the foundations to live out my faith, and was so encouraged each week by watching God’s work take place in the relationships and lives around me. Celebrating Christmas this year felt different. Snow brought a rare white Christmas. Most vividly, there was a December Peace in my family, not only for me, but also for my sister and my parents. My twin sister had also met her future husband, and my parents were happier than I had ever remembered.

I paused and reflected on the above scripture found in Ecclesiastes 3:1 during this season. I was so thankful for this SEASON I was in, so thankful for this time to embrace, this time to quit searching, this time to love, and this time of peace.

It was in January 2001 when I felt God telling me a different season was coming. I remember thinking He was probably preparing me for my new life with a career, living independently from my parents, and taking care of all my own needs. I remember reflecting in my Bible studies. I had not had a true season in my life where I had to learn about true faith. Maybe this new season would be my time of refinement and growth.

It was January 8 when suddenly my season changed. My amazing mother passed away at the young age of 53. It was not the season I was expecting to go through. I had not focused on “a time to grieve” or “a time to cry” previously. It was through God’s incredible grace I was given that December Peace as the year 2000 came to a close. My life continues with many different seasons. To this day, I look back on that December with such gratitude and hope for the future. This season was “defining” for me personally. It brought me to a new place spiritually. I learned firsthand of my dependence on God to give me that peace that surpasses all understanding. I don’t look back with anger or bitterness. I look back with gratitude. Gratitude for an amazing mother who walked with me for my first 23 years. Gratitude for God teaching me to embrace each season of life. He has taught me how to weather each season that comes, focus my thoughts on what is true and good, and find JOY even when it is not the season I was expecting or looking for.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 ~ A Time for Everything

For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest. A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance. A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.

December 19th ~ His Peace

December 19, 2015 By Stanton Lanier 2 Comments

Click above to listen to Angels We Have Heard On High as you read. This piano-cello duet is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

Peace took on new meaning for my family in 2004. That December found us holding our first and then only daughter, Hayley, close in our arms, day after day, as we awaited her final breath. Years of faith, prayers of loved ones, and Scripture-inspired music surrounded us daily and reminded us of the eternity we one day would share together; the knowledge of Hayley’s imminent death, though, remained wrenching. I remember constantly kissing her forehead, as I had a lifetime of love to fit into an unknown, but certainly short, number of days. I wanted the warmth of her cheek on mine and the memory of holding this cherished gift from God to be etched on my heart forever.

Hayley would pass away from an aggressive form of leukemia on December 19, 2004, having been home under hospice care for several weeks. A year filled with hospital rooms, intense chemotherapy, more than 60 blood and platelet transfusions, full-body irradiation, and a cord blood transplant would come to an end that evening with our daughter taking her last breath…six weeks before her second birthday.

December Peace is His Peace. His Peace brought tears of joy to my eyes and compelled my heart to sing praise as my precious daughter smiled, took her last breath, and left this world forever. His Peace was joy amidst anguish.

His Peace continues to turn my fear, anger and confusion into faith, love and compassion, and helps me look forward for comfort rather than backward for explanations. And it is His Peace that now fills my Decembers with visions of my baby girl running into His arms.

This life is full of difficult, sometimes nearly impossible-to-bear circumstances. His Peace reminds me that there is an eternity beyond what we can imagine. His Peace reminds me that all that is ahead is so much greater than anything we will leave behind. His Peace reminds me that He is in control AND that I am loved.

His Peace frees me. His Peace brings me to contentment, even when my heart aches… especially in December.

December 18th ~ My Favorite Month

December 18, 2015 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to In the Bleak Midwinter as you read. This piano-English horn duet is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

December is my most exciting month of the year. It is the month we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. When I reflect on our Savior and what He has done for me on Calvary, I have so many things to be thankful for, and I rejoice in all that Jesus has made available to me.

Jesus is my Peace, my Healer, my Comforter, my Joy, and my Strength. When I think on the works of His marvelous hands, I recognize my future is in Good Hands. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” I can look forward to having peace in the new year and walking in God’s plan for my life .

December is the month when I reflect on how Jesus made a difference in my life throughout the past months and seasons. Never has Jesus failed to bring me through. As I travel along this journey, I have an assurance I am never alone because Jesus promised in Hebrews 13:5 that He will never leave or forsake me. When I know Jesus is the one lighting my path, I can see brighter days ahead. December is the month I take pleasure in celebrating our Savior with Christmas carols, love, unity, and fellowship with those who have impacted and made a difference in my life. I also make a great effort to give back to those who may not know the love of God. I realize throughout the year I have been blessed to be a blessing, so I seek to allow my life to be a blessing to as many as God would have me serve. I celebrate my Savior by lifting Him up and magnifying His name in the midst of those who need a word of encouragement, and hope.

December is the month I look forward to giving out some of the most beautiful and inspirational greeting cards. While drinking hot cocoa, I write words expressing my love. My favorite December songs are Silent Night and Holy is the Lamb. I am always anticipating God raining down some snowflakes, giving us a white Christmas that shows reverence for His Holiness.

December brings me great joy because I know in my heart Jesus is real, and everything begins to reflect Christ’s love. People are more generous; all over the world songs are being sung about our Savior’s birth; amazing miracles are expressed and talked about over the news; lights are bright throughout the nights, and the world has a heart of giving. Children are laughing and playing, and everyone is anticipating the birth of something new.December is a time I reflect on God’s Peace. There is always a feeling of God’s awesome presence moving around us that lets me know all is well. December is the last month of the year, and I know God speaks about our “Latter being Greater.” As I look back, and look ahead, I can actually testify as to how God’s Peace has calmed all my storms.

December 15th ~ Granddaddy’s Old Hat

December 15, 2015 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to Away in a Manger as you read. This unique arrangement is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

Granddaddy’s Old Hat ~ by Craig Corbin (Copyright 2012, Craig Corbin, not to be re-published without permission. Craig is a gifted mixed media artist and did all the artwork for the album “A Thousand Years.” His life and work are a special part of the Music to Light the World story.)

A week away from Christmas… and as a little fellow that meant helping my grandmother pick pecans under the large trees that covered the dirt road like wings from an angel. Granddaddy might drop us off, and might even hang out, but he rarely got out of his faded blue truck. Even still, he was sure to point out the ones I might have missed. It was such a great moment, sitting in the rumbling leaves listening to my grandmother’s rake, occasionally hearing the spitting of tobacco from my grandfather, and making sure not to pick from that area.

Soon we were finished and had enough to provide a couple of pecan pies that would be served the night before Christmas at my grandparents’ home, where we exchanged gifts. Our Christmas Eve tradition was to go to my grandparents’ home along with most of my extended family. A meal was served and there sat those pies and the memory of the pecan gathering a few days before. We would always exchange names the year before, and at the end of the night it was my grandfather’s duty to hand out these gifts. I think he truly enjoyed this, especially with the little ones, who he would joke around with, and even tickle their ribs before handing over the magic box of unknown. I can still see him sitting in that old chair on top of our little world doing his thing.

Of course every day comes to a end, and after cleanup the night would come to a close. Once names were drawn out of my grandfather’s old hat we would have all we needed for next year. With a hug and a Merry Christmas we were home bound. Which for us was three houses down.

Tired from the night, it was time to try and sleep. Although it was an ending for us kids, it meant a beginning for my father, who might have to assemble a bike or a train set. We never got piles of gifts, as we knew the meaning of Christmas was a birthday for our Lord. Yet, we got plenty to make us wake up early the next morning and see what was waiting for us. It was such a simple time in life. Now as a father of an almost two year old girl, I will see the glow in here eyes on Christmas Eve. Although a lot of time has passed, and my grandfather passed away many years ago, I hope my daughter will have special memories of our simple celebration of Jesus Christ. In the end, that is the best gift I can give her, and that story will never change. Merry Christmas!

December 14th ~ Needle on a Piece of Vinyl

December 14, 2015 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.

Where could you use some “December Peace” today?

Music has been a part of my life since a very young age, and the music of December is a thread that knits together all of my 43 years. Just reading the titles of songs that were learned as a toddler, performed in choirs, played on instruments and now enjoyed as a listener… it takes me to another place. It has been said that music is love in search of a word. The music of December is inspired by God’s love in search of the world. It tells stories of the night of Christ’s birth; it brings cheer and merriment due to God’s blessings, and it quiets the mind and stills the heart as we reflect on our place and purpose.

My greatest memories of December are of Christmas spent at home with my family growing up. Even though I grew up in Florida, we managed to have a fire in the fireplace around the holidays. I would lie in front of the fire and peer into the coals looking for shapes and designs. My older brother and I would see how long we could touch the lights on the tree before they burned our fingers. It seemed like the blue lights were always the hottest! There was always something sweet to eat in the kitchen at Christmas, even though snacks generally consisted of celery and carrot sticks. We would shake all the presents and try to guess what each one was. And the backdrop to it all was a needle on a piece of vinyl that produced music that filled the house. There is just something different about December.

As a child, I didn’t fully appreciate the ability to rest or experience peace. It didn’t require any effort really… I could just “be”. Now, as a husband and father with a young family of my own, it is all I can do to find momentary rest and pause in the middle of a busy world. Matthew 11:28-30 tells us, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” While this is an invitation to trust Jesus personally and an opportunity for rest through forgiveness, it’s also a reminder to me that I can bring my troubles to Him, I can trust Him and find peace in Him. That’s what I hope to do this Christmas, and I hope that for you too.