Stanton Lanier / Sky Whisper Sound, LLC

Scripture inspired piano to refresh your spirit

Crossing Waters – Taking a Leap of Faith

By 8 Comments

Click above to listen to the piano, percussion, violin trio Crossing Waters from Open Spaces as you read. If you enjoy the music, please consider supporting by visiting stantonlanier.com, iTunes, or Amazon.

Is an idea stirring in you that will require a leap of faith?

This is what I was reflecting on as I was composing Crossing Waters. I will explain in a moment, but first, here is a short story that required a big leap of faith…

A few summers ago my son and I were part of a high adventure Boy Scout trip to the Northern Tier boundary waters on the Minnesota-Canada border. Our group of five scouts, two adult leaders, and a guide canoed fifty miles in five days. Our route took us across a dozen cold water lakes, and included two miles of carrying three canoes and all our camping gear between each lake. The night sky was breathtaking, with more stars than I have ever seen.

The biggest “leap of faith” moment came when we all had a chance to jump off a 40-foot cliff into deep water. My son and I both took some time looking from the edge. If we made the leap, it would be a symbolic moment. We would bond through overcoming our fear, and we could call on this experience when facing life’s future “leap of faith” moments. There was risk. We were scared. But we jumped. One thousand one, one thousand two, splash — exhilaration!! Wow!

The Leap

The uplifting, upbeat piano melody in Crossing Waters is symbolic of child-like faith, that anything is possible. The light percussion joins in, indicating there is a rhythm to life’s “leap of faith” moments and how we respond. We often have to jump into the unknown, to “get our feet wet” so to speak, before any results can happen. The violin represents looking back over our shoulder in gratitude and remembrance for all the times God has been faithful to help us “cross the waters” of fear, and revealed the exhilarating blessings on the “other side.”

What leap of faith “next step” is God asking you to take?

“And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap. So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, 16 the water from upstream stopped flowing…The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.” Joshua 3:13-17

Practicing Silence

By 4 Comments

Click above to listen to Still Waters (title track from my album Still Waters) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: Still Waters CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, Still Waters PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

Are you good at practicing silence, making time for quiet and listening? Or, does this continually seem out of reach due to the stresses, volume and velocity of every day life?

Either way, let this music and words allow you to breathe, to be recharged, to experience silence in a new way. IMG_2472 Here are a few things that come to mind when I think about, and try to practice silence: Out of 88 piano instrumentals I have composed, “Silence” is the longest, and is on two albums (Still Waters, original recording time of 8:59, and December Peace, re-recorded time of 7:58). I have always found this interesting. It wasn’t forced, but maybe points to the importance of silence. The music was birthed from the idea in Habakkuk 2:20, “The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.” My grandfather “Daddy L” (short for Lanier – my Dad’s father) was one of the quietest men I have ever known. He was full of faith, love, and kindness, yet he didn’t say much. He had a long career in banking and was active in serving the community. He loved fishing, and he was absolutely unbeatable at every way you can play the game of checkers. He died the summer before I turned seventeen (I never beat him at checkers). His silence influenced me to be reflective, to take time to pause and take in the scene. It also inspired me to be more vocal with my children, to speak into their lives more intentionally, while also teaching them the value of silence. The disciplines of simplicity, solitude, silence and surrender have all impacted my faith, creativity and calling. I am quite content with long periods of silence. I set time aside to practice silence, frequently for short lengths of time, and occasionally for long periods from a half to a full day. God is always faithful to speak into the silence with His still small voice. His gentle whisper offers wisdom, guidance, and comfort. Do you need to take time to practice silence? What are some benefits you could discover?

Gaining A Thousand Years

By Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to A Thousand Years (title track from my album A Thousand Years) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: A Thousand Years CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, A Thousand Years PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

Could you use a little more time, like me?

Recently I composed a new song in about one hour, which is not typical. It was as though time stood still, or at least slowed down. Can you find the bumble bee in the image below? As I observed, I noticed the bee was not in a hurry. IMG_2470 What if “A thousand years in your sight are like a day or a watch in the night” is true, as written in Psalm 90:4? If this was taken literally, if 1 day (24 hours) was like 1,000 years of time, then…

  • Half a day (12 hours) = 500 years
  • 6 hours = 250 years
  • 3 hours = 125 years
  • 1 hour = 42 years
  • 1 minute = 8 months
  • 1 second = 4 days

Which of those is your favorite? As you begin your next one-hour project, think about this being the same as forty-two years from God’s point of view. This helps me maintain a long-term perspective regarding my daily to do list, big projects, relationships, and more. It means sometimes a whole lot of progress can happen in much less time than I expect. It also helps me keep things in perspective when they don’t seem to be moving along as quickly as I would like. Have you ever had “a thousand years are like a day” experience?

Tenor Plah

By 2 Comments

Click above to listen to Quiet Place (from my album The Voice) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: The Voice CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, Quiet Place PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

It’s a rainy day in Atlanta this morning as I write. This “Tenor Plah” idea is a good one for rainy days, but can be applied any time when your spirit needs a lift. Sometimes rainy days — or life — can bring me down, if I allow my thoughts to spiral down a negative path. Before I share what “Tenor Plah” helps me remember, here is a list of “rainy day” words for consideration — Faithless, unimpressive, inopportune, polluted, ugly, deplorable. How did those impact your outlook? They are the opposites of the words I am about to share.

IMG_2504 The words “Tenor Plah” help me remember “…whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.” “Tenor Plah” represents the acronym “TNR PLA” from these six key words found in Philippians 4:8. Thinking about such things always helps me have a better perspective on rainy days, and life. So, whether it’s rainy, cloudy, snowy or sunny as you read this, consider filing “Tenor Plah” in your memory bank, so you can apply this whenever needed. What is something true, noble, right, pure, lovely, or admirable you have noticed today?

A New Way to Listen to Love Songs

By 6 Comments

Click above to listen to Pure Fountain (from my 8th album Open Spaces) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: Open Spaces CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, Pure Fountain PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

Do you know those “Aha” moments? When a “light bulb” goes on in your brain about something?

Here is one regarding an interesting way to listen to love songs. This may not apply to every love song, but I think it applies to most. I believe love songs can be instrumental music inspired by romancing words, such as Pure Fountain, but for purposes of this idea, let’s define “love song” as lyrics searching for or affirming redeeming, romantic love, combined with a beautiful melody that sings to the heart. So, play your favorite love song and listen like this… If the music and words are affirming love, pretend the words are being sung by God to you. Receive the love song as written personally for you, and sung to you, by God. If the music and words are searching for love, pretend the words are being sung by you to God. Listen to the love song as written personally by you, and sung by you, to God. Do you get the idea? It may take a little practice, but it is worth a try. For me it gave some of my favorite love songs a deeper meaning and life application. What did you experience when you listened this way to one of your favorite love songs? Below I am including the music video for Pure Fountain so you can receive this as an example affirming love, where God is singing to you. I hope you enjoy!

This Very Moment – Being vs Doing

By 8 Comments

Click above to listen to This Very Moment (from my 8th album Open Spaces) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: Open Spaces CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, This Very Moment PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

Be. Be still. Be still and know. Be still and know that I am. Be still and know that I am God.
Mountain Meadow This way of praying through Psalm 46:10 is a great way to pause and allow your “being” to refuel all the “doing” that lies ahead. Repeat the phrases above a few times while listening to the music. Consider pausing a few times throughout your day to reflect on Psalm 46:10. Gives thanks for life’s blessings that come to mind. Remember a time that God helped you through, or maybe even a time when He did something amazing. Cherish life’s moments today. What area in my life needs a little more “being” before I keep “doing?” “…Anyone here who believes what I am saying right now and aligns himself with the Father, who has in fact put me in charge, has at this very moment the real, lasting life…” (John 5:24, The Message)

Humpback Whales Echoing Brilliance

By Leave a Comment

When is the last time you saw something brilliant?

What does this have to do with humpback whales? The connection was a “brilliant” experience for me. In high school and college years I worked several summers at Adventures Unlimited, the largest canoe rental in the Florida panhandle. In recent years they built one of the top zip line tours in the southeast through pine forests and along the Coldwater River. Jack, the owner, and my boss, taught me and all his employees the value of hard work and customer service. He also made sure we laughed and had fun in the process. He was, and still is, a great leader and visionary on a person-to-person basis, with creating unique outdoor adventures, and with preserving natural beauty. He is also a lifelong friend.

I got to see Jack last December when he and a friend attended one of my concerts in the area. My performance included Singing in the Ocean Deeps from the album Open Spaces. Afterward his friend said, “I have a friend in Tonga, in the South Pacific, who is a world-class ocean videographer. Do you want me to see if he might want to combine his film with your music?” Below is the result…

Sometimes we see something brilliant, literally, like this amazing video of a mother humpback whale and her calf. Sometimes we “see”something brilliant when we take notice that something good wasn’t just a coincidence. Like what may happen through a friend. Sometimes we can sense that God was the author of “brilliant” as expressed in Psalm 8 (The Message)…

“God, brilliant Lord, yours is a household name. Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you; toddlers shout the songs that drown out enemy talk, and silence atheist babble. I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous, your handmade sky-jewelry, moon and stars mounted in their settings. Then I look at my micro-self and wonder, why do you bother with us? Why take a second look our way? Yet we’ve so narrowly missed being gods, bright with Eden’s dawn light. You put us in charge of your handcrafted world, repeated to us your Genesis-charge, made us lords of sheep and cattle, even animals out in the wild, birds flying and fish swimming, whales singing in the ocean deeps. God, brilliant Lord, your name echoes around the world.”

This is the passage that birthed Singing in the Ocean Deeps. God was brilliant as the inspiration came, as the piano keys began to sound like the ocean, and as the French horn was added in the recording studio to symbolize whales singing.

What is an experience that echoed “God, brilliant Lord” in your story?

Scoring Big – A Basketball Discovery

By Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to Discovery (from my album Unveiled) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: Unveiled CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, Discovery PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

What is an awesome “mountain top” memory you could call on today for encouragement?

Since this weekend is the Sweet 16 of the 2014 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament (it’s okay if you don’t care), I couldn’t resist sharing a story from my past that I call on from time to time. To set this up, you have to know I was born in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, home of the North Carolina Tar Heels. This gave me a love of ACC basketball, and I would later go to college at Georgia Tech during some great basketball years (1982-1986). I played high school basketball in the Florida panhandle — what I like to call “football country.” We had a Florida state champion football team. Lots and lots of basketball practice, wanting to play in the ACC one day (which did not happen), and having some great teammates at Milton High School, led to two favorite “mountain top” sports moments. My junior year I scored 30 points in a game. I was never more “in the zone” than that night, going 14 for 19 from the field and 2 for 2 from the free throw line (there was no three-point line to reward my long range). My senior year I didn’t have much playing time, but was blessed to be on a team that made it to the Class AAA Final Four for the state of Florida. We lost in double overtime in the semi-final, but it was still a mountain top. MHS 1982 During college and early career years I learned that life would be a roller coaster, filled with some mountain tops, and more valleys. When my age matched my career high point total for a basketball game — age thirty — I discovered that the true meaning of success involved surrender, rather than striving to “score big.” It was the year that Joshua 1:8-9 would really take root in my life, and forever alter my game of life. “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” There is a basketball player inside me when I compose, record, and play concerts on the piano, seeking to offer God’s peace, rest, hope and healing to listeners. My prayer is that everyone who encounters the Scripture-inspired melodies would discover or re-discover a mountain top moment. What is one of your “mountain top” memories, and how can this give you confidence and courage today?

Keep Dreaming, Even in the Desert

By Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to Desert Thirsty for Rain (from my 8th album Open Spaces) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: Open Spaces CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, Desert Thirsty for Rain PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

Do you have a big dream, but it seems like you are wandering nowhere in a desert?

We are not alone. This is part of dreaming. It is an important phase of living out our big dreams to do good in the world. “I sat there in despair, my spirit draining away, my heart heavy, like lead. I remembered the old days, went over all you’ve done, pondered the ways you’ve worked, Stretched out my hands to you, as thirsty for you as a desert thirsty for rain.” (Psalm 143:5-6, The Message) Sand desert Several resources and people played a part in inspiring me to pursue a big dream in 2004 — the launching of Music to Light the World. The one I am thinking of today is The Dream Giver, by Bruce Wilkinson. It is a modern-day parable that tells the story of Ordinary, who dares to leave the land of Familiar to pursue his Big Dream. I encourage you to add this to your “dream reading” list. It took five years (1999 to 2004) for me to be ready to experience a big dream’s early phases: Embracing My Big Dream — a feeling grows into a longing that becomes a unique calling, Leaving My Comfort Zone — having courage to overcome fear, to embrace uncertainty, and Meeting Bullies in the BorderLand — learning some will believe and others will not; learning to love people well either way. These are plenty hard to overcome, but the next one can catch you off guard, and could be the most challenging: Entering the Wasteland — a lonesome time in the desert, wondering what is happening, and asking, “where are you God?” and “Why did you give me this dream?” It turns out these times in the desert are not wasted. They help us trust God as the Dream Giver. They help our faith grow stronger. They prepare us for whatever lies ahead, including, as shared in The Dream Giver, blissful times of sanctuary, daunting valleys of giants, and rewarding lands of promise. What next steps can you take to help your “desert” experiences strengthen your faith?

Argument or Story?

By Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to Spirit of Grace (from my 8th album Open Spaces) as you read. If you enjoy you can stream, download music, or find sheet music at the following links: Open Spaces CD, MP3 Album, Piano Book, Desert Thirsty for Rain PDF Sheet Music, iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Pandora.

“Is your life more of an argument or more of a story?”

This question cut to my heart several years ago. It went deep. For most of my life the idea I was supposed to “defend my faith” had taken root. A light bulb came on as I realized my story had been more of an argument up until then. It was good argument — for what was true, noble and right — in a word, for TRUTH. iStock_000013181151Small The thing I couldn’t see as clearly was the spirit of judgement and criticism toward others that came with this “truth package,” wrapped in pride with a ribbon of self-righteousness. Even if only perceived by others, this meant they were felt. My friend Ken Boa (www.kenboa.org) says, “Stop taking yourself so seriously, because God has already taken you seriously.” I cannot make myself right. Only God makes me right, and it is by His Spirit of Grace (Zechariah 12:10, Ephesians 2:8). Living a captivating story is so much more compelling than winning an argument, right? Thinking on things that are pure, lovely, and admirable — in a word, GRACE — means loving, accepting, and forgiving well. It means listening to someone’s story and sharing pieces of my story that speak into theirs. It also means being positive in my assumptions toward others versus negative (because I don’t know their full story yet). Living a story of grace is a process. It takes practice. It means mistakes will happen. It weaves a beautiful tapestry of wonder, mystery, joy and tears. Will I live a story of grace today? Will I have a spirit of grace or “ungrace” toward others? As a bonus for reflection, consider watching and listening to the Spirit of Grace music video…