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"God whispers to us
in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it
is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world." —C.S. Lewis
Life was good for Matthew West.
Having catapulted onto the Christian music scene in 2003 with his debut
single, "More"—the most played Christian AC song of
2004—the multi-Dove Award nominee and sought-after songwriter had
enjoyed two critically-acclaimed studio recordings, Happy (2003)
and History (2005); been a mainstay at Christian radio with
memorable hits like "Only Grace," "History" and
"Next Thing You Know"; and toured with such artists as tobyMac
and BarlowGirl. But in April of 2007, with a new label home at Sparrow
Records, concert dates on the books and plans to hit the studio with a
fresh batch of songs for an album he'd already titled Something To
Say, Matthew lost his voice.
After one look at his vocal chords, doctors at the Vanderbilt Voice
Center immediately put all his plans on hold. They discovered a vascular
polyp and hemorrhaged blood vessels on Matthew's vocal chord, making it
impossible for him to sing. His doctors were convinced only two courses
of treatment would work: complete silence and surgery.
"Everything came to a screeching halt," Matthew says of the
diagnosis and the news of surgery. "All of a sudden my calendar was
completely cleared. My studio plans were postponed. My life shut
down." Even worse, he says, was the frustration of not being able
to communicate with his wife, Emily, and 1-year-old daughter, Lulu.
"I was armed with a dry erase board, unable to do the little things
we take for granted everyday, like talking with my wife, or singing to
my little girl before bed." |
This season of silence wasn't
just a wake up call for the Wests, it was a dark, uncertain place. "I saw a
side of Matthew that I had not yet really seen," says Emily. "A more
fearful side, vulnerable, less confident. But also, I saw in Matthew a
determination to allow God to do a work in his life through this trial. I saw
him commit time each day in prayer, and really seek God for some purpose to this
season."
Matthew recommitted himself to journaling his thoughts and prayers during his
season of silence. "Solitude is an uncomfortable place, and silence is so
unnatural for most of us," he relates. "I found myself surrounded by
questions like, 'What if I can't sing anymore? What if my voice doesn't sound
the same? What if I can't provide for my family?' It was foundation shattering.
But over and over again, I felt this recurring message on my heart saying,
'Cease striving … don't even ask for answers, just be with Me. Be still. I am
using your voice, even when you can't hear it.'"
Most of the songs on Something to Say were written before Matthew's
surgery, but in many ways, it took this trial to fully understand their meaning.
"Prior to this experience, I only had a glimpse of what these songs had to
say, but having literally nothing to say for two months, it was as if I
understood what these songs were trying to communicate all along. It's like
writing messages or taking notes and then taking the test to see if you really
'get' what you've written. Sometimes you're given the message before you know
what it means. Then the test comes, and you can see how God intended everything
to be."
Driven by a distinctive lyrical clarity, Something To Say is a soundtrack
for life—a powerful reminder that God is speaking every day out of the broken
places and pieces of our lives. Produced by Brown Bannister, Ed Cash and Chris
Stevens, the album delivers the infectious guitar-driven pop that fans have come
to expect from an artist and writer whose songs have also graced projects by
Natalie Grant, Mandisa, Mark Schultz and Billy Ray Cyrus, as well as a cut on
Rascal Flatts' multi-platinum Feels Like Today.
From the high-energy title track, to the powerful "The Moment of
Truth," to the closing ballad "Stop The World," Something To
Say unfolds in fresh and thought-provoking ways to reveal its message of
hope and healing. "I wanted to write songs that weren't afraid to talk
about real life," Matthew says. "Real struggles. Real issues. Real
problems. Because every song about real life is an opportunity to sing about the
real Hope that can be found in Jesus."
"Life Inside You" is an unforgettable example. Based on a true story,
Matthew captures the struggles—and Hope—of a teenage couple facing pregnancy
and addiction. "This young couple, with all the potential in the world, on
the verge of throwing in the towel … somehow in the center of what seemed so
hopeless, that tiny heart was beating … She kept the baby. It's a boy. They
got sober and got married. Redemption is real."
The core message of the entire album, he says, is "no matter how many
mistakes we've made or trials we've faced, it's the brokenness of our lives that
God uses to give us something to say to the world. I was sitting in church one
Sunday after my surgery when my pastor read a quote from C.S. Lewis: 'God
whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our
pains; it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.' It's easier to cover up the
weakest moments in life, hoping no one sees, but that's not God's plan for us.
'Offer it up to Me, let Me show you what new life is like, what I can do with
your mistakes.' He will amplify His voice through you in a huge way."
Ultimately, Matthew hopes to communicate the message that God is indeed at work
in all our lives, in every circumstance, in every moment of our existence. And
even in the silence—as Matthew well knows—there is still great Hope to be
shared, a story to be told, and something to say.