{carry me through}

There's a mountain
Here before me
And I'm going to climb it
With strength not my own
He's gonna lead me
Or the mountain beats me
Carry me through
Carry me through

There's a river
Here before me
And I'm gonna cross it
with strength not my own
He's gonna save me
Or the river takes me.
Carry me through
Carry me through

Oh Lord be gentle
I'm just a man
Please don't crush me 
Help me in.

Oh Lord remember
I try so hard
I walk and talk
Your kingdom love

There's a sinner 
Here before me
And I'm gonna give them
Strength not my own
He's gonna carry me
when I get weary
Carry me through
Carry me through

Oh Lord be gentle
I'm just a man
Please don't crush me
And help me in

Oh lord remember
I try so hard
I walk and talk
Your kingdom love
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Carry me through

Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Lord Sweet Lord
Carry me through.

{free.christmas.music :: yes please!}

you can't go wrong with Christmas music, especially when it's $free.99!

i highly recommend downloading both of these available right now at noisetrade.com

Over the Rhine :: click here

Fireplace Songs :: click here

you can never go wrong with anything from Over the Rhine and the fireplace songs is a collection of songs from artists such as Ben Rector, JJ Heller, Green River Ordinance, Trent Dabbs, and many more!  your happy ears will thank me for all this goodness!

{happy.christmas.listening}

aw

{new music to make you swoon :: phillip phillips}

helllooo phillip phillips.  

this boy, his guitar, and his breathy, raspy voice make me SWOON.

*sigh*

(ahem... where's my boy and his guitar?)

check out his new album today on itunes!

lots of musical goodness here

{aw}

{hopeless wanderer}

as i typed the title of this post i mindlessly typed "hopeful wanderer" instead of the new mumford and sons song title "hopeless wanderer." i think it was my subconscious.  let me explain...

the new mumford & son album "babel" was released today and it just so happens i was at home this morning to meet the time warner cable people.  this morning was a sweet, refreshing time for me.  fall is in the air here in north carolina. the windows and doors in the house were all open while i cleaned and waited.  i juiced, drank coffee, and listened through the new album in it's entirety.  it was glorious.

mumford has blown my mind again and to be blunt i was in DIRE NEED of new music.  new inspiration.  sometimes i feel like my soul connects with music in such an awe inspiring way and this album is just what i needed.  their lyircs never disappoint and one song that stuck out this morning was "hopeless wanderer"...

i've felt like that hopeless wanderer these last few months.  wrestling with my faith, not really knowing where i'm headed or if i'm going in the right direction.  traveling to poverty stricken countries and not understanding the things of this world.  listening to stories of friends lives and hearing choas, love, confusion, joy, hurt, and hope.  fighting my own loneliness and struggling with that unmet desire i have of falling in love. feeling my hope for those desires growing smaller.  that light of hope dimming. feeling called to make courageous decisions and being confident in the direction i was heading.  started walking that path and totally overlooking the unseen road block ahead.  running smack into that road block and coming to screeching halt.  pain.  oh the pain.  begrudgingly turning 180 degrees and making more  hard and painful decisions to go the other direction... all the while clinging to my faith and hope that all is as it should be... with a whole mess of emotions in the midst of it all.  hopeless. to be honest i felt hopeless.  i was a mess. i doubted it all...

then came the gentle and quiet whisper...

"i am with you.  do not fear.  seek me. 

abide in me.  turn to me.  lean on me.  

i love you my child.  i will care for you. 

you have all that you need in me. you lack nothing."

oh the Lord, so sweet.  He is love and of that i have no doubt.  even though days may be rough, they still continue to come and go, and i feel that flame of hope growing again.  the light in the darkness.  there is a new season ahead and i will not let my heart grow cold.  i am begging the Lord to "hold me fast," because how quickly i can become that hopeless wanderer. i am learning as i go to love this sky i wander.  the hard parts of life where God asks me to take one step closer to Him.  i have felt like the "hopeless wanderer" during this season of my life, but i think my soul knows different even when some days i don't feel it.

my soul knows i am truly the hopeful wanderer.

and that is faith.  that is hope.

i'm grateful for a God who is love.

i'm grateful for music inspiration.

i'm grateful for the raw talent that is mumford and sons.

{aw}

{i was made to live, i was made to love, i was made to know you}

these words are speaking so deeply to my soul this morning.  

the words of c.s lewis from mere christianity, put so beautifully to song by brooke fraser, and then they showed up on pinterest this morning on this beautiful piece of design by baylee heart.

my heart not only connect so deeply to these words, but when they come alive through music and beautiful design, my soul connects in a way that words cannot describe.  

the Lord meets me there.  

i have seen His face.  

the face of Love.  

the face of Hope.  

for THAT i am beyond grateful.

{C.S. Lewis Song}

if i find in myself desires nothing in this world can satisfy,
  i can only conclude that i was not made for here
if the flesh that i fight is at best only light and momentary,
then of course i'll feel nude when to where i'm destined i'm compared

{chorus}
speak to me in the light of the dawn
mercy comes with the morning
  i will sigh and with all creation groan as i wait for hope to come for me

am i lost or just less found? on the straight or on the roundabout of the wrong way?
is this a soul that stirs in me, is it breaking free, wanting to come alive?
cos my comfort would prefer for me to be numb
and avoid the impending birth of who i was born to become

{chorus}

speak to me in the light of the dawn
mercy comes with the morning
  i will sigh and with all creation groan as i wait for hope to come for me

{bridge}
for we, we are not long here
our time is but a breath, so we better breathe it
and i, i was made to live, i was made to love, i was made to know You
Hope is coming for me
Hope, He's coming...

{love... mumford style}

a little music treasure for your ears and soul.  enjoy

{not certain the source of this image.  borrowed it from instagram}

{aw}

{music.on.the.mountaintop :: boone, nc}

where i spent my weekend...

{music on the mountaintop}

listening to bluegrass in the beautiful mountains of boone, nc 

that i love so much with old friends and radtastic new ones!

trespassing with elizabeth and our eno hammocks through the new belguim reps' campsite to take a nap beside the stage in the woods and ending up making friends with the reps who offer you the sweet campsite that's open next to theirs AND free fat tire and ranger for the rest of the weekend. WINNING.

 

 nothing like a little relaxing while listening to great bands like sam bush, the infamous stringdusters, acoustic syndicate, and many more.  grateful for green, soft grass under my feet to get my hippie dance on :)

 ...and ending our weekend with a fantabulous breakfast at the hob nob farm cafe in downtown boone where it was 70 and sunny.

let's just say there wasn't one part of me that didn't want to leave that mountain... just sayin' 

{happy.monday}

aw

 

{allen mask :: do something}

one thing i LOVE doing is bragging on people who are out there doing some pretty rad things.

  this week i'm committing to doing just that here on the blog.

meet allen mask.  who is he you ask?  well let me tell you...

 

not only is allen the fiance of my dear friend and photographer extraordinaire, carly brantmeyer, but he's also a pretty awesome recording artist.  one who was coined the "wall street rapper" last year as an analyst at goldman sachs in NYC and in the last few months has made the transition to sunny California to join Carly in this adventure called life and to join up with the Google forces...  all this before his 23rd birthday!! 

he recently partnered with San Francisco Youth Arts Program CASA at The Rooftop School to compete in the 2011 national Battle For The Bands competition hosted by DoSomething.org, VH1 Save The Music and The Hot Topic Foundation and created this music video.

over 20,000 schools, individuals and organizations created songs, videos and advocacy projects to promote the importance of music education. Allen Mask and CASA were Grand Prize Winners of the competition with Mask's new single "Next Big Thing" and its music video. CASA received a $5,000 grant for their music education program, that was also matched by Google, and Allen had the opportunity to perform at the 2011 Do Something Awards Kick-Off in New York City with Plain White T's.  you can check out that performance by clicking here (allen's performance is at the 37:00 mark)

as you all know i'm a HUGE advocate of music and think public music education is a vital part of our nation.  kudos to allen and his team for taking the time to invest their time and talent into saving the music!

Allen's birthday was yesterday so let's show him some belated birthday lovin' by heading over iTunes and checking out the single "Next Big Thing" by clicking here. 

{happy.listening.and.don't.forget.to.DO.SOMETHING}

aw 

{the.avett.brothers :: 4.9.11}

over the weekend i had the pleasure, for the 7th time... i think it's 7th... i've lost count... of seeing one of my all time favorite bands, the avett brothers.  i was able to con my tall friend G, who had never seen their musical genius live before, to join me and what a time it was!  while tailgating we had some seriously crazy weather move through which brought some rain, but we quickly headed in and grabbed our seats almost front row standing area in the pit!

grace potter and the nocturnals opened the night and dang that girl can SING!  with her tina turner esque dancing she worked her little way out on stage, hit one of the highest first notes i've heard, and proceeded with a rockin' opening set!

then for the avetts.  welcome home boys, welcome home.  last time i saw them at home was in 2009 in that very spot and this show was just as good, if not better.  these guys have a musical gift.  they put all of their heart and soul into their music, pen beautiful lyrics that are so real to life, and it's a beautiful, beautiful thing.  i found this link today which is the ENTIRE playlist in video format of all 24 songs they played.

{happy.avetting}
aw

{a.rainy.random.saturday.night}

a secret letter project in the making... 3 years and counting.

i cannot get this adele song out of my head.  can i have her pipes?

{happy.saturday}

{maybe i'm just a little girl... a little girl with great big plans...}

{light.up.the.sky}

(pic via my iphone, hipstamatic app)

{light.up.the.sky}

the afters

When I’m feeling all alone and so far to go

The signs are nowhere on this road guiding me home

When the night is closing in

It’s falling on my skin

Oh God will You come close

Light, light, light up the sky

Light up the sky to show me You are with me

I, I, I can’t deny

Oh I can’t deny that You are right here with me

You’ve opened my eyes so I can see You all around me

Light, light, light up the sky

Light up the sky to show me You are with me

When stars are hiding in the clouds

I don’t feel them shining

When I can’t see beyond my doubt

The silver lining

When I’ve almost reached the end

Like a flood You’re rushing in

Love is rushing in

Light, light, light up the sky

Light up the sky to show me You are with me

I, I, I can’t deny

Oh I can’t deny that You are right here with me

You’ve opened my eyes so I can see You all around me

Light, light, light up the sky

Light up the sky to show me You are with me

So I run straight to Your arms

You’re the bright and morning Sun

To show Your love, there’s nothing You won’t do

Light, light, light up the sky

You light up the sky to show me You are with me

I, I, I can’t deny

Oh I can’t deny that You are right here with me

You’ve opened my eyes so I can see You all around me

Light, light, light up the sky

Light up the sky to show me You are with me

Oh oh oh oh oh oh

You are with me

Oh oh oh oh oh oh

You are with me

Oh oh oh oh oh oh 

{official.music.video}

{emily.lynch.debut.album}

{excited is an understatement}

i love this friend on mine and have watched her over the last 2 years pursue her dream of becoming a musician and today is a big day for her... 

her debut, self-titled album, released today!! 

over the last 2 years it's been an absolute joy to watch emily travel down a road that has been rocky, a total leap of faith, scary at times, so fun at others, but ultimately what she is supposed to do.  i've been to shows, we've taken some pictures, i've blogged about her here, here, here, here, and here and laughed a lot and found an amazing friend along the way.  emily has always blown me away with her passion for music, her God given talent, and her desire to do whatever it takes to get to where she longs to be... all with that beautiful smile on her face and a pep in her step.

i'm so proud of her and honored to be a part of this new album.  my photos of emily grace her new album and i'm so thankful and blessed to be a part of this milestone in her life. make sure you check out her album today and here are a few options of where you can pick it up

(click each word below to go to the link)

:itunes:   :amazon:  :actual CD:

make sure you show emily some love today on

:twitter: :facebook: and :tumblr:

personal favs off the album :: gone :: i want you :: on my way :: the way

{happy.listening}

aw

{it's that good, good music}

two songs that i've been loving latelty.

they're very different from each other,

but good, good music nonetheless.

{enjoy}

{2010... what a year you've been}

WOW!!... how cheesy was that blog title?  ...but seriously... 2010 has been quite a year, but if you would've asked me at age 20, one that i never thought i would have in my lifetime and definitely not at 27.  While having lunch with a friend from my lifegroup the other day, she was telling me how far i've come this year even though it might not be measurable by a marriage or a baby, I've come a long way. (this was said because in my lifegroup alone there have been 2 weddings, 1 engagement, 5 babies born, and 1 more on the way... yup)  ...and ever since our lunch meeting i've been really thinking about my life in 2010...

- I decided to pursue photography and signed up for an 8 week course to learn more about the craft.

-I shot my first engagement shoot in march with my cousin & her fiance and then their wedding in august

- I traveled to Philadelphia, Nashville, and New York City for work and play.

- I turned 27 and got one of the best surprises ever... my beloved Canon 5D Mark II

-Had my first opportunity to start 2nd shooting weddings for the wonderful

Carly Brantmeyer Photography

- I set up and completed a few couples, engagement, baby, and family shoots with friends to get to practicing on my photography skills that I've learned

-Spent some great times on Beech Mountain with the family in the spring

-One of my photos was used for a marketing campaign with Mountain Khakis

-My life crossed paths through mutual friends with the wonderful Elizabeth Marx and I began working with her company, Almond Leaf Studios, as a 2nd shooter for weddings.

- I travelled to Dallas, TX for the wonderful Love Affair Workshop and had an amazing time learning more about photography and met some great friends!

-Fed my love of music - 2010 Concert Recap - Mat kearney and Ingrid Michaelson, Shane and Shane, Matt Wertz, Dave Barnes, John Mark Mcmillan, Music on the Mountaintop festival in Boone, NC, The Infamous Stringdusters, Thad Cockrell, Needtobreathe, and The Civil Wars

-Fall fun times on Beech Mountain with the family 

-The season with having my best friend of 22 years, e, as my roommate came to an end after a year and 1/2, which means I'm living by myself for only the 2nd time in my life

-Started attending New Charlotte Church and volunteering with 1st through 5th graders on Sunday morning in The Warehouse.

- committed to going to UGANDA, AFRICA in January 2011 with Sports Outreach Institute AND agreed to be the official photographer for the trip under Silent Images 

-...and many, many other wonderful things!!

...and when I look at it that way, I see the Lord's hand in my life in big ways and my friend was right, I have come a long way in 2010 despite my so-called "failures."  I feel incredibly blessed and cannot WAIT to see what's in store for 2011.  I pray that as doors open, that the Lord would make it absolutely clear that I am taking the right steps in 2011 and I pray that my heart seeks Him more than any other year of my life and that I will have the courage and faith to take whatever steps He calls me too even if they're absolutely scary and outside of the box of what I think my life should look like. 

{aw}

{happy.listening}

i've been really digging this album from ben rector.  after hearing him open for dave barnes earlier this year, i knew this guy was the real deal.  the first track "the beat" makes me want to just move and the whole album is rich with sound and quality lyrics.  click here to get a free sample of ben rector's songs from noisetrade.com

here's a little taste of the song "the beat"... which totally cracks me up by the way...

 i also downloaded this new keith urban album yesterday after reading this tumblr post from my friend emily.  i love keith urban's country and this album is so very heartfelt... it gets me. 

{happy.listening}

aw

{it's beginning to sound a lot like christmas}

yep.  i've been listening to Christmas music.  i'm not overdoing it, but when this album from dave barnes came out this past tuesday, i couldn't give up the opportunity to induldge.  i mean it's dave barnes + christmas music... HELLO?!? ... this album is G double O D...  GOOD!  click here to get it for $6.99 on itunes.  now that's a good deal.

i've decided that i'm definitely a traditional Christmas music type of girl, but an absolute sucker for a little jazzy, country, soulful Christmas music. do you like that description?

 there's something about the soul of the holiday that just requires some good ol' sound.  this is another album that i found that would fall into that category with dave's... "a neighborly Christmas" by none other than drew holcomb and the neighbors.

{happy.Christmas.listening}

aw

{needtobreathe :: live at the fillmore :: 10.28.2010}

last night i had the pleasure of seeing needtobreathe live at the fillmore in charlotte, nc and the show was fantastic!  here's a clip of an unplugged version of "valley of tomorrow" they played towards the end of the show.  not great lighting, but the sound is awesome.  make sure you listen to 2:26... those boys can sing!

pics and video are both from my iphone

{happy.friday}

aw

{sneak peak - emily lynch}

just a little peak of our fun country shoot from last week.

check out emily's music and a free download at emilylynch.com

{happy.wednesday}

aw

{new.music.tuesday}

i like rap.  equate it to my life as a dancer, to it's awesome beats, or maybe to going to college at uncg (jenn... are you out there? ;)  but i'll have to say sometimes i cringe at most rap lyrics... like REALLY?  did they just say that?  but yesterday i downloaded an album that i am SO excited to suggest.

quite a few of my friends have raved about lecrae for a LONG time and i've even heard some of his songs, but for some reason i've been super slack and haven't downloaded any of his music for myself. my mistake.  my BIG mistake.  one listen to the intro to his latest CD, rehab, and i know i had downloaded something really good.  it had me dancing in my car within the first few seconds.  not only is it good music, but lecrae's lyrics are so deep and filled with the truth of God's love and that... i love. 

this is off of the rehab album's website from reach records...

"humanity has searched long and hard for answers for our ills, pains, and unsatisfying lives.  while we were created emotionally, spiritually, and physically healthy, sin has caused us to turn away from God and separated us from him and his goodness.  we need restoration, healing, and rehabilitation back to that original state of unity with God.  Jesus is our rehabilitation.

the Christian life is an entrance into rehab."

{happy.listening}

aw