Fourteen years ago next week, my second daughter received an intriguing birthday present from her godfather. Inside, I found a music cd with a cartoon cover. I had never heard the musician before. I could assume that it was some kind of kid-level Christian music, but I had no expectations for it. Little did I know, as at that moment I could only see it as Bible music for a one-year-old, that this music was destined to be one of the most valuable and life altering gifts we have ever received into our house. The album was “The Way My Story Goes” by Jamie Soles.
The kids liked it. But somehow, mysteriously, the album began to find its way into my car whenever I was facing a long drive. I admit it – I was stealing a kid’s cd from a one year old. It was aimed at children, but it wasn’t kiddie music. It was deep, soul-clasping music that needed attention. It could fill me with joy, and with laughter, and with weeping in a single listen.
In the coming years, Jamie Soles’ music would deeply alter my own theology, educate me in ways my seminary training hadn’t, and push me to deal with critical problems in my understanding of God and the Bible. I like to tell people that Jamie Soles once saved my life. And maybe he did. But that is a story for another review. I have decided that I don’t want to get through the Jamie Soles reviews too fast, so I am going to spread them out over time and hit many of his albums along the way.
Let me give you some reasons you should introduce yourself to “The Way My Story Goes”:
1 God’s glory in Christ is clear:
- This album emphasizes that the whole Bible is about Jesus. And it teaches that the whole Bible is important.
- It teaches that “God reserves all glory for himself.”
2 It has what other Christian music is missing:
- Jamie sings about stories you missed growing up because they weren’t the big famous ones: Did you learn about Korah and company being swallowed by the earth in your Sunday School? What about how many donkeys the judges had?
- He sings about stories you missed because they seemed negative (the deaths of Sisera and Haman), or were too complicated for children (the wife-napping in Judges 21).
- When was the last time you heard family Christian music that mentioned circumcision?
- Jael and her hammer seem to find a soft spot in Jamie’s music.
3 He gets things right that many others miss, like good guys that our interpretations often mistreat:
- Soles treats Jacob like a good guy (as well he should).
- He also treats Samson like a good guy (as well he should).
4 He sees clowns where the Bible sees clowns:
- Eglon, Nabal, Ahab, Jezebel, and Caesar all make appearances.
- Where else will your kids learn to exult in God’s victories over Ashtoreth and Baal?
5 Jamie’s music will work its way into your thinking. It will teach you things you didn’t know, and to think in better ways:
- Jamie teaches us to lament: “O Absalom, Absalom! If only I had died instead of you?”
- He takes covenants seriously “This is the sign between you and I…”
- This dude takes genealogy and numbers seriously in the bible.
- He takes the Psalms seriously. On some other albums we have much fuller psalms – here we get a taste: He sings a shortened version of Psalm 80
- He has so many gems of Biblical insight. He recognizes and teaches typological thinking. Here’s an example: one song has God say of Noah, “All these people, and there’s only one who pleases me; that’s the way my story goes.” Of course, this is pointing to Jesus, with an idea that is clear from beginning to end on this album. And it makes learning details fun; he teaches you the list of the Apostles through a musical list that speeds up in challenge to the learning listener. My kids have always enjoyed that one.
It’s also generously packed with 24 songs to get you started on your way to becoming a Jamie Soles super-fan. Take the time, make the investment by listening and sharing it with your children. When was the last time you wept while listening to children’s bible music?
You can buy “The Way My Story Goes” on Jamie’s website (solmusic.ca), and you can support him on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/join/2034697).
