Ask your questions to Meredith, and she'll will answer some every week here on the site. Ask your question here!
What is your advice to young girls/guys, who would like to get involved in becoming a recording artist?
I have many people ask me this question on a regular basis. My advice to anyone wanting to become a recording artist is simple: be faithful where you are. Now I know that's not the answer most are looking for, but it's the best advice I can give. After attending a Rebecca St. James concert when I was 17, I began to ask the Lord what He wanted to do with the gift of music He had entrusted to me. After praying about it that night, the reply was clear: "Meredith, be faithful where I've placed you for now. I will open the right doors at the right time." During that season of my life I was playing keys and leading worship for my youth group and on occasion my church. The Lord taught be how to be faithful in little things long before anything "bigger" came my way.
To anyone with the gift of music and the desire to share it with others, I would also encourage you to let your goal be to make great art for the glory of God, not to sign a record deal. Get involved in your local church. Write and rewrite songs, crafting them to say something that hasn't been said, making them the best they can be. Ask for constructive criticism from someone other than your mother. :) Give your best to the Lord, for He certainly deserves it, even if you never sing your songs outside of your room. Develop your private worship before you ever stand on a stage and take it public. Trust the Lord when He says that His plans are to prosper you. He will take you where you need to go, when you need to get there. Above all, let your motivation be His glory and not your own. That is where you'll find your greatest joy!
"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
Ephesians 3:20-21
How did you and Jacob meet?
Jacob and I met during GMA week in Nashville. I was there recording a couple demos, and he was the keyboard player for Jeremy Camp. During the evenings that week I would go to different band showcases and ended up at Jeremy's showcase that Tuesday night in April of 2007. We first saw each other on the street corner in front of the Renaissance Hotel, and I remember losing my train of thought in talking to a friend as Jacob passed by. We were introduced in the hotel lobby, and after the concert, the band invited my friend and me to dinner. We went to Chili's where Jacob and I sat diagonal from one another. We kept catching each other's eye, and it was obvious something was going on between us. We parted ways that night, and I prayed that if it be what the Lord wanted, He would let our paths cross again. The next day while in studio, I received a Facebook message from Jacob saying he'd love to hang out next time I was in town. I simply replied, "I'm here now" and left my number. He called me within 30 minutes, we went on our first date that night and got married 13 months later. :)
How did the song "Come Home" come about?
Come Home is a song I wrote for my brother, Derek. All three of my brothers are adopted and have wrestled with their own demons so to speak, but Derek is the oldest of the three, and I watched him start fighting some pretty significant battles (especially with alcohol) when he was in Jr. High. He is now in his early twenties and over the past few years has hit rock bottom more than once. I began praying for him when he was little and was never hesitant in giving my honest opinion, many times coming across as overly "preachy." The Lord convicted me of my insensitivity and challenged me to continue to pray and simply love my brother without feeling the need to correct him at every turn or offer advice when he didn't ask for it. After all, doesn't God love Derek more than I ever could? The answer is yes. If I truly believe that, I can rest in knowing that the Holy Spirit is working in his heart even when I can't see the evidence of that work. Around the time that I wrote Come Home with Jason Ingram, Derek and I began having deep spiritual conversations over the phone. These were very honest conversations that essentially ripped my heart out as my brother would disclose his fears and reveal the pain from rejection that he tried to deny every day of his life. We would cry together as I tried to reassure him that God had never left him even in the darkest of nights. Come Home came out of those conversations.
I would love to say that this story has a happy ending, that everything has been packaged and tied with a nice little bow. But the truth is, it's messy. My brother still wrestles with himself and struggles with alcohol. He can't fathom the concept of grace and knows he doesn't have what it takes to be "perfect." Until he lets go of his fears of failing and trusts Jesus completely and finally for salvation, he will keep trying to find his identity in everything that can never answer that longing. Until then, I will keep praying. And loving. And speaking the truth of God's Word to him when he calls in the middle of the night. God is the God of the prodigal. After all, He left the 99 sheep to go after the one lost. I believe the Lord will bring my brother home in His time.
(I waited till my 2nd record was finished before playing this song for Derek. I was nervous to let him hear it, but sat beside him as he listened for the first time. When the song was over, he looked at me with tears in his eyes and his crooked smile and said, "That's perfect, Sissy. Can I hear it again?")
How did the song "you're not alone" come to you?
You’re Not Alone came during a transitional time in my life when I moved up to Chicago from the South to take a position as a worship leader at Harvest Bible Chapel. I had recently graduated from Liberty University and was embarking on a new journey, a journey that I knew the Lord had set me on, yet for some reason I felt like I was going it alone. I had left all my friends and family behind, and the thought of starting over was frightening to say the least. On top of all that, it seemed like God was hiding His face from me, like no matter how hard I prayed, He still seemed far away. I went home to North Carolina that Thanksgiving with loneliness following me all the way, so I sat down one night at the piano and began to pour my heart out to the Lord as I played. I got really honest with God and remember flat out saying, “God, where are you?” In His patience and sovereignty, He answered me with this song. It was as if He walked into the room, reminded me of His constant presence in my life and of His promises that never failed, and sang over me the reality of His love. I truly believe that God allowed me to walk through that dark, lonely time to teach me that His Word and His love would never falter no matter what my circumstances or feelings might be. We can put all our weight on the solid foundation of His Word and trust that when He says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” that promise is more real than what we may face from day to day.
