My Music
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all to God. Thank You for blessing me with this gift that I can share with people.
Full of gratitude to my Dear Wife and Best Friend for her constant love, support and patience.
Also thankful to our offspring: especially our son who helped on World Changer (door knocking idea),
as well as my daughter who have both encouraged and challenged me to be a better musician.
Lastly to the two producers who helped me on 5 of the songs.
Songs describe the journey we as God's people go on during our lifetime. It is clear that we all have different perspectives, experiences and choices to make.
GOD
(Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - TRINITY) offers us salvation by his GRACE, MERCY, and LOVE and asks us to respond as well as Let His Will be Done.
Musical Styles
Disco, Pop, Jazz,
Reggae, R&B
commonROK decided to go all out and venture into multiple genres to explore his musical talent derived from his exposure to multiple genres. He is not a professional musician and lacks formal training BUT, God has blessed him with the ability to develop meaningful lyrics/melodies/music that are fun, uplifting and thought provoking
Yes, new album by commonROK formerly ROK.
Took a while...
Get ready to
HEED THE CALL!
"I believe that we all have a calling from God and if we listen (Heed the Call) and obey God's calling we will accomplish God's purpose for us while we are here on earth. We all have a purpose. We need to choose to take the narrow path and follow the Way, the Life and the Truth -Jesus"
Overview
Putting one's faith and trust in God to be saved by his grace alone not works means: Jesus + Nothing = Salvation
Overview of Song Order:
The initial 4 songs remind us that we are God's creation, made in His image and for His purpose. That is we are beautiful in his eyes. Yes, God is the Creator and he is Sovereign (the "Boss") that's why we must obey him. Importantly he is Good. Lastly, He is the Great I AM always with us, and has promised never to leave us or forsake us.
In the second wave (songs 5 to 7) the Gospel is shared and information on what one needs to do to put one's faith in God. He offers salvation and our role is to heed (listen) to God's call.
Then the last 3 songs: they highlight the joy and excitement that occurs in heaven and on earth once we become saved; notably we can build our relationship with God which leads to rejoicing and developing an attitude of gratitude knowing that he is with us always during our time on earth and we will be with Him for eternity. Praise God, Hallelujah and Amen.
Listen to My Music
Here are the 11 Songs on Heed the Call....
01 Beautiful People
An uplifting song about acknowledging people in public places, loving and serving each other and showing compassion to everyone regardless of differences in outward appearance. Why- because we are beautiful people made in the image of God.
Luke 10:36-37 - Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers? The expert in the law replied, 'The one who had mercy on him.' Jesus told him, 'Go and do likewise.'"
02 World Changer
An empowering anthem about transformation and becoming a new creation in Christ by the Creator of the Universe, the World Changer who also changes are lives, if we let him in to our hearts
"2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!"
03 The Battle is the Lord's
Can you imagine being surrounded by enemies e.g. life situations or circumstances where you have leveraged all your resources (real/imagined) and things don't work out the way you wanted.
That is your strength, intelligence, influence and wealth make you think you won/win or lose/fail. It is important to remember that God is a GOOD GOD and He Has the Final Say because the Battle is the Lord's.... This is a song that God led me to at a tough time in my life and He indeed saved the day and made a way as he always does. Amen
04 You Are
A reminder and proclamation of God's provision and promise to take care of us even when things don't look good. God You Are (who was, is and is to come)
"Psalm 23:1 - The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing."
God is everything from a friend, a healer, comforter, savior, creator
God told Moses to tell the people I AM THAT I AM Exodus 3:14
05 Waiting
Jesus is providing a gentle reminder and invitation about his offer to have a relationship with us; he is patiently waiting at the door of our hearts.
"Revelation 3:20 - Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me."
06 Can I trust?
We find it difficult at times to trust in a person especially when the person has disappointed us or life has been challenging. Hmm, Learning to trust in God's wisdom rather than our own understanding is the best way to go for he is trustworthy and never fails.
"Proverbs 3:5-6 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."
07 Heed the Call
A hymn with a beat- Main message for
1) Non-believer: heard about Jesus but have questions/moved in some way by the Holy Spirit to obey God
2. Believers: who hear and heed the call e.g. a still small voice or seeing God in nature
All must recognize & heed the call of our Good Shepherd.
"John 10:27 - My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me."
When you Heed the Call something exciting happens in heaven (Track 9)
08 Just say
Song addresses the simplicity of salvation through confession and belief in Christ. It's not about raising your hand at church or going to the altar. Should come from your heart and can take place anywhere and at any time when the God, the Holy Spirit leads you. Then the journey begins with daily growth.
"Romans 10:9-10 - If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."
09 Heed the Call Nations (Bonus)
Short fun song that expresses the celebration and joy that occurs in heaven when a sinner is saved per Jesus. We here on earth are full of joy as another brother or sister comes to the Lord and one day we will all be in heaven worshiping God
Revelations 7:9
... behold a great multitude, which no man could number, out every nation and of all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb....
10 Rejoice and be glad
A joyful celebration of each new day as a gift from the Lord. Awesome to get together with believers to worship and praise the Lord. Also should connect with God on a daily basis.
"Psalm 118:24 - This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."
11 Thank You For Loving Me
A fun, catchy last song to express gratitude to God for being a friend, who loves, forgives, made the ultimate and necessary sacrifice. Let's enjoy the abundant life with Him now and looking forward to spending eternity with God. We say Thank You.
"John 15:13-15 - Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command."
Lesson Learned - Investment Matters (Time/Money/Talent)
Completing this album as an independent artist (by myself) was quite challenging. Vocals were the biggest challenge- wrong key on about 3 songs, and voice transformation; the latter was due to over-processing e.g. pitch correction and effects I applied on the songs I produced, mixed and mastered. I was not aware of these artifacts/errors until it was too late. Apologies. In life we make mistakes and learn from them ideally to help us grow. It is clear that professional interactions (studio time, professional equipment, expert mixing and mastering) make a dfiference and can improve music quality and outreach. Kindly listen through songs for messaging even if not perfect musically (vocals). Thank you for your understanding, patience and support despite imperfections.