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MBC: How did you hook up with Andrew Peterson and Justin McRoberts? B: As far as Andy goes, I did a tour with Caedmon's Call a couple of years ago and have known him ever since. He is a very good friend of mine. When an opportunity to tour together came up, it worked out really well. Justin is actually pretty random because his label called my manager and wanted to book him on the tour, so they set it up. He just came out from California and has been a really great guy. MBC: You recently signed with Essential records. Do you see any difference in being with a record company and being independent? B: Yeah, it is a different kind of deal, but it has been a really, really good thing. I can't take quite the same kind of ownership that I could when I was independent, but what I do hasn't changed. I'm not involved with the whole marketing process, which frees me up to keep writing and recording and playing live. There is definitely a difference in the business end of things, but at my live shows I sell more of my independent records because of the other being available in stores. It is weird to see my CD at Wal-Mart or to walk into a store and hear my song playing over the system. MBC: You mentioned during the concert that you don't see music as the primary industry that you are involved with. Do you find time while you are on the road to expose yourself to ministry opportunities? B: I don't doubt that there is ministry involved with the music. There certainly is, and God is going to do what He is going to do through songs. Once I write a song, I don't feel that I have a lot of control over whether or not it ministers to somebody. The truth is, you just lay it out there and ultimately God is going to be in control of everything. The ministry to me is about the relationship that happens because of what you do. I kind of key in on the people I get to talk to after shows or even people like the sound guy, because ministry can take the form of discipleship. Look at Jesus in Matthew and Luke. This is a good example because the scripture accounts that he is traveling around and talking to people. His conversations with the woman at the well and the rich young ruler depict the relational ministry that we are called to pursue in the body of Christ. MBC: What events in your life have influenced you to look at ministry from that viewpoint? B: My parents were Christians so we went to church and all, but they also allowed us room to make our mistakes. While we always knew where they stood, they were very consistent in love. Our relationships developed to the point that my parents became dear friends of mine. I have seen both my parents develop ministries out of friendships they have had with people, and I've seen that affect lives. That is how I hope to live. The work I did with an organization called Young Life also influenced me because they place an emphasis on relational ministry. If we are pursuing God, then we can pursue what we are passionate about knowing that His desires have become ours. Then, everything that happens around us is a kind of ministry. MBC: What was college like for you? B: It was mostly a discovering time of who I was and who I wasn't. I went to Presbyterian College in South Carolina. It was just a small liberal arts school with 1200 students. No one would go there and think, 'I am going to a Christian college.' I settled into this place and had these relationships that enriched my life. I can see that those relationships affected the places that I went that ultimately led to me doing music. It was an absolute blessing. MBC: You went into college with plans to be a doctor. What made you choose music instead? B: In high school I studied biology and in college I did the same, planning to pursue medicine. I loved it and was passionate about it. I also loved writing songs for people but I wasn't into singing yet. I had some friends encourage me to pray about the possibility of singing. Deep down inside I thought it would be the ultimate job. At the same time, I never would have picked it - mainly because I was doing medicine and secondly because it scared me to death. While studying for the MCAP I lost my desire to study medicine and found music. It was the thing that I was most afraid of. MBC: So you gave up everything you knew? B: Yes, but I had support from my family and dear friends which helped a lot. It was a releasing of everything I had planned and knew and was confident in. I was not confident in music. When I realized medicine was out, it was the most frightening but most liberating moment of my life. There is a lot to be said about God moving me from my comfort zone. It just kind of happened, and it was affirming to have those doors open. I don't regret the whole medicine thing at all because it taught me discipline. Now I am pursuing God and that is the goal. MBC: Is there anything you would like to share with your college audience?
B: I enjoy college age because it is a searching time. You are not completely released from your parents, but you are free to be yourself. It puts you in a place where you search things out and examine who you are. College opens an opportunity for people to deal with reality. That is why the gospel is so incredible at college age. It's the most real thing there is. College is a time to dig in and grow. A lot of students try to search out God's will and know the future. God's ultimate will for us is that we pursue Him every day and know Him. If that is our goal then we have the freedom of Christ to pursue our desires, and ministry is a part of that. People who see you pursuing something passionately are going to notice and be ministered to.
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