Recently, I had the opportunity to be interviewed on The C.L.I.M.B. Podcast, one of the most respected songwriting podcasts in Nashville hosted by hit songwriters Brent Baxter and Johnny Dwinell.
There are no accidents. God’s timing is amazing! I’ll get back to that in a minute. The way this story comes together blows my mind!
———
First, today is a day filled with some sadness, hope, and excitement all wrapped into one.
17 years ago today, my dad, Doug, took his last breath. Here are some lyrics from a song that will be on the new album that describes that day….
“I got the call at 4 am / He fell asleep and never woke again / No sirens screamed, no last goodbye / Just a quiet thief… that won… the fight / Fentanyl”
To say that it crushed my heart was an understatement. It took years to heal. And even all these years later, there are parts of me still healing from that devastation.
But God….
I get to mourn with hope, knowing that someday I will dance with my dad in heaven. Someday. Because before he left this world, I had the honor of introducing him to Jesus. Fentanyl can’t take that away.
Seems like an appropriate time to say, Suck it, Satan!
———
Now, picture it. Belle, Missouri, 2020. (I’ve been watching Golden Girls reruns for the last week, so just go with me here.)
The great toilet paper crisis of 2020 hit, and just like most of the rest of the world, I was sitting at home in my pajamas, wondering what was happening next. I was working in prisons at the time, teaching personal and professional development, where I had the opportunity to share my dad’s DOC # and tell grown men with hardened hearts and criminal pasts that it wasn’t too late for them to still be dads to their kiddos.
But when the world shut down, so did the prisons, and my job abruptly stopped.
I had a lot of time on my hands to think, and boy, did I ever do some thinking and praying. I got out my big binder of songs that I’d been writing since I was a kid and stared through them. 99% of them sucked, but on those pages, I saw hope. I saw a gift God had given me that I didn’t want to waste anymore.
I asked myself this question… “Am I going to keep dreaming about being a songwriter, or am I gonna get off my butt and actually do this thing?”
I decided the latter. So, I got out of those pj’s, took a shower, and dove in. I haven’t looked back since.
I started researching everything I could about songwriting. That’s when I found out about the Nashville Songwriters’ Association (NSAI), so I joined. The memories are a little blurry, but I then found out about this podcast through American Songwriter Magazine called “The C.L.I.M.B.” So, I tuned in. And I found out about sonwriting coaching through one of the hosts, Brent Baxter. I dove into everything he was teaching about songwriting.
That great toilet paper crisis is not something I take lightly. It flipped the world upside down. People lost their lives. I don’t take any of that lightly.
But for me… it was one of the greatest seasons that ever happened to me. God and I started building dreams together.
I have a FREE gift for YOU! Download this acoustic version of “My Jesus” that I made just for you. Download today…
———
And here we are today…
Several months ago, Johnny Dwinell and Brent Baxter, hosts of the C.L.I.M.B. Podcast, reached out to me for an interview. They wanted me to be a GUEST on the very show I had been a student and fan of for the last six years.
And here’s where God’s timing comes in. Something happened, and we had to reschedule the interview. No worries.
But as we finished the interview, Johnny told me the air date would be February 24. They had no idea that was the 17th anniversary of my dad’s death, but God did!
I just can’t stop being amazed at God’s goodness in all of this!
In the interview, we talked about so many things, including writing and releasing “Before Whiskey,” and we also discussed this new album I’m about to record in a few weeks. An album all about my dad. A journey through songs that have brought another layer of healing to my heart, and that I believe God is going to use to heal other hearts shattered by addiction, abandonment, generational curses, and more.
And here we are… on the very day… my dad went to be with Jesus, sharing more of our story with the world.
Still trying to wrap my head around it.
———
I’ve told Johnny and Brent a hundred times that the work they are doing matters. It may just seem like a podcast where two guys in the music business get together and chat, and interview other pros in the industry. But it’s WAY more than that.
Their obedience to do this podcast is changing lives. It’s changing the generations. I’m living proof of that. It changed my life. And now I’m getting the opportunity to change other lives through the power of words.
———
We’re just getting started. Let’s go, God!
I hope you enjoy the interview.