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God of the Universe
is a debut, 2-CD set produced by the worship team at Westside Christian Centre in Australia, and its leader, Greg Jones.
The result is a life-filled and refreshing CD set featuring an impressive diversity
of musical styles. Some of the songs are simple tracks with a traditional emphasis on keyboards (Hungry for You) or guitars (I Lift My Voice); others feature remarkable, upbeat Latin rhythms (In the
Presence of the Lord) with elaborate instrumentation and percussion; others display a dynamic horn section (God of the Breakthrough) or saxophone solos (Show Me Your Ways
); and still others have a gospel flavor (Encountered Grace). Not surprisingly, some of the pieces are more "do-able" than others from the standpoint of a church worship team equipped with a typical
array of talent and instruments. And attempting to describe these CDs by reference to a single style would inevitably fail, but there’s a good chance that those who like Hillsongs Australia recordings will like
God of the Universe as well. Most of the songs are a bit less feverish or high-energy in pace, but the big, Spirit-filled sound is similar, on the whole. And there’s lots of life and
awe-filled genuine worship in these CDs.
This is not to say that there’s no
room for improvement. As with other live CDs, some of the unscripted talking between songs is distracting. A few of the songs are a bit short on, or repetitious in terms of, their lyrics, and others are sing-songish in terms of melody (
e.g., Reign). Also, some listeners may dislike the timbre or quality of the lead vocalists on some of the tracks. But these weaknesses—especially forgivable on a debut set—are overshadowed by the sheer joy of
genuine worship that oozes through so many of the songs.
The brightest highlight of this 18-track set is found in Revelation 4, which, as the worship leader describes it, "is almost straight
scripture." There is a tremendous anointing on this simple piece, which builds in intensity much as one might expect the praise in heaven to build. This song alone would justify buying the set, but there’s more. To
name just a few, God of the Breakthrough and Come and Do It Again are upbeat, faith-builders; the title track is passionate and eminently do-able; In the Presence of the Lord
will make you want to break out into a Latin dance; and Free For Eternity contains wonderful, cross-centered lyrics:
All that I am
All that’s been given to me
Prosperity, power, freedom and everlasting peace
Is because of the cross and the price that You paid for me
Jesus You’ve set me free, . . . by the cross . . .
Thank You Jesus for the cross
The sacrifice You made for my eternity
Through the shame You stood the pain and died for me
So I am free
In sum, God of the Universe
is a delight to listen to as personal worship, and provides lots of material for corporate worship as well.
Reviewed by S. Johnson — January 2003 |
