Your Grace Finds Me

Christian singer/songwriter Matt Redman is all about worship music. Best known for songs "Blessed Be Your Name" and "Heart of Worship," his most recent hit "10,000 Reasons" topped the Billboard Christian Songs chart and earned two Grammy awards. His new album, Your Grace Finds Me, was recorded live at LIFT Worship Leader Collective at Passion City Church in Atlanta. After being a part of the Passion gathering in Atlanta in January and the second in Houston this past weekend, Matt is hitting the road for a U.K. tour with Christy Nockels. In the midst of touring, marriage, and parenting, Matt took some time to talk to Today's Christian Woman about his new album and what his family has taught him about faith.

You just released a new album, Your Grace Finds Me. What are three themes you want to shine through for the global church today?

The first theme on the album is grace. I sing about how grace finds us at the Cross—and of course that's the most heightened example of grace that we'll ever see. It's the undeserved and unearned kindness of God flowing down towards us. In the title song we talk about the fact that God's grace keeps on finding us; his unmerited goodness and unending generosity continue to show up in our lives day by day. Even the very breath we breathe is a gift of grace given in kindness to us from the heart of God.

Another theme on the album is the uniqueness of Christ. Songs like "Jesus, Only Jesus" and "One Name Alone" point to Christ as the one who is above all things, and in all things, and in him all things hold together. He alone is worthy.

A third theme is battle and blessing. It seems like so many times in life we experience these two dynamics at the same time. We know a real outpouring of the favor of God in our lives, but at the same time we experience something tough to navigate. It happened even during the writing of some of the songs on this album. On the day we wrote "Mercy" and the title song "Your Grace Finds Me," my son had a rugby accident and ended up in the hospital, we broke the door off of our car, and I had intense tendinitis so painful that I couldn't even strum a guitar. That's it right there—battle and blessing—and the key is that we draw near to God in both circumstances.

How do you most often meet and commune with God?

My favorite thing is to get out into nature—to stare up at a starry night sky or walk out in fields or beside the ocean. Something really comes alive in me in those moments. In fact I recently had a few days of retreat and songwriting in the highlands of Scotland—it is a truly inspiring place.

What has marriage taught you about your faith? And how does your wife, Beth, inform your songwriting process?

Marriage has taught me so much. One of the things I love about my wife, Beth, is that she's a real visionary who loves to pioneer and embrace adventure with God. That's been really good for me because I can tend to be a bit more of a "settler" without her in the mix! We've been on some great adventures—all the international travel of course, but also being part of a few different church-plants that started from scratch. And then when it comes to the songwriting, it's also been a blessing to be married to someone who loves music and who brings some special ideas to the writing process.

What about parenting? What has being a father taught you about your relationship with God the Father?

We have five children and they're all so unique, so they all need parenting in a slightly different way. As their dad, I know so much about each of them: their likes, their needs, their fears, and what they treasure in life. And hopefully that helps me parent them in a wise and caring way. Then I think about God, the one who can number the hairs on our heads and knows every single fiber of who we are. He fathers us with the ultimate wisdom, care, and precision. That's amazing to me. My own father passed away when I was seven years old, but I have experienced what Psalm 68 says to be true: God truly is a "father to the fatherless."

How do you strike a balance between touring, marriage, and parenting?

That's always something we need to keep an eye on; it can be a tricky balance, for sure. One thing is we've learned to work in seasons so that a busy season gets followed by a quieter season with some good time at home.

Matt Redman is a Grammy-award winning worship artist. Connect with him on Facebook, Twitter, and his website.

Allison J. Althoff is the Editor of Wheaton Magazine and the former online editor of Today's Christian Woman. Follow her on Twitter @ajalthoff.

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