[ WM ] Amen . And the song “ The Table ” is a great resource for worship leaders . I think you did that one this past July at the annual Worship Together Conference . How did that song come about ?
[ Jonathan ] So this particular song was one of those God just kind of put in my lap . We had a music room when we lived in Dallas . Had a little music room , office space … I had my keyboard in there . And this night , I don ' t know why I did it , but I moved my keyboard from that room into our bedroom . I set it at the edge of our bed . Went to sleep that night and woke up like I heard this melody in my dream . I heard it so loud . It woke me up out of my sleep - it was probably 4am or 5am in the morning . The sun wasn ' t out yet . You know God likes waking people up in the morning . He just loves waking people up early : " I ' ve got something for you ." So , I got up , and I ' m like , " Oh my keyboard ' s right there ." And I go to my keyboard , and I write “ The Table ” in like 15 minutes .
[ WM ] Wow !
[ Jonathan ] Yeah , I have my phone out trying to remember the melody that I heard in my dream . I finally got it out and pieced it together and wrote the song in 15 minutes . My wife woke up and said , " What you got ?" And I unplugged my earphones . I played the song for her , and she ' s like , " Wow ! So that song , God ’ s just like … here you go ." You know ? And it just meant a lot .
But just to go back and echo what I said earlier , everyone wants to know that they ' re loved , that they belong , that they ' re seen . And I just wanted to remind everyone that you have a seat at the table . No matter what you ' ve done , no matter your mistakes , God still loves you . He ' s never going to throw you away . So come on .
[ WM ] That ’ s wonderful . And how about the title track , “ I ’ m Here for You ”?
[ Jonathan ] Yeah , I wrote that with my friends ,
I ’ m Here For You
Kyle Reynolds and Whitney Medina . And we just set up a write one day . I was in California , and we went in the studio . He played a track that he made . And this was one of the few times I ' ve collaborated with people when we were writing . They ' re like , " Let ' s just write . Let ' s write something ." And I was like , " Oh , this is a nice track . This feels good ." And I kind of expressed my heart , where I was in life about serving people , loving people well . And we just started writing and wrote that song in a couple of hours , and it came out that way .
And I remember we weren ' t even going to use it for the project . I wasn ' t even writing it for me . I went in there writing it for Influence Music , for the worship team . And man , I listened to it . I listened to the demo , and I called my manager . I said , " Bro , I really like this song ." He was like , " Me too ." And my manager ' s more business than a music guy .
So , when he tells me , " Hey , man , I ' m pacing around my hotel room , listening to it over and over again ." I call my A & R guy and I ' m like , " Hey , I think we need to put this song on the project and make it the title track ." So , we did it .
[ WM ] Jonathan , the world that we live in is full of noise and clutter . Tell us how you hope your new project can impact that noise and clutter ?
[ Jonathan ] Yeah , man , it ' s going to be noisy regardless , you know ? And I hope that people , as they ' re listening to this music , and as they read the Word of God , that those truths are able to drown that stuff out , because it ' s still going to be loud . You ' re still going to hear everything . But I ' m praying that when you hear the music , and it ' s the Word of God in this music , I ' m praying that they ' re able to drown that stuff out
and hear what really matters . And that ' s the truth of God , the truth of the Word of God here .
[ WM ] I see that you lead worship , sometimes at the keyboard , and sometimes with an acoustic guitar . What is your guitar of choice ?
[ Jonathan ] Oh man , I love my Martin , of course . But someone broke it , so I can ' t play it . They dropped it on concrete and messed up the pickup . But yeah . I love a Martin , man . Right now , I ' m playing a Yamaha . It was gifted to me . And then for my keyboard , I love a Motif or a Nord .
[ WM ] What words of encouragement or advice to you have for aspiring worship leaders and artists ?
[ Jonathan ] I would tell them to stay faithful where they are . And that ' s easier said than done when you ' re on social media , and it ' s easy to play the comparison game … But I ' d tell you to stay faithful where you are , and continue to work on your craft behind the scenes … and always stay ready . And don ' t try to force the door open . Don ' t try to force anything . Let God open the door , and you just be ready to walk through .
[ WM ] That ' s right . That ' s when we get into trouble : when we force that door open .
[ Jonathan ] Man , just be ready . Do your work behind the scenes . And when that door opens , when God does it and He can trust you with that platform , then be ready to walk through .
[ WM ] In conclusion , thank you so much for this visit today . May God be with you and bless you and have his hand upon your outreach .
[ Jonathan ] Thank you man . I really appreciate it !
motowngospel . com