interlínc : Maximizing Music and Media in Youth Ministry

We sat down with Phil Wickham at Starbucks on a sunny SoCal day. Phil just came off of the David Crowder tour and is enjoying playing all over the place. After a couple solid years of playing and his second album, Cannons, echoing in thousands of ears, Phil is in a great spot. Read on and you’ll understand exactly why.

interlinc: What would you say is the overall message or recurring theme in your music?

Phil: I think that over the last two years, I’ve really been able to hone a few things and they’ve become really clear to me. When I play I truly want to create a moment where people can encounter God. It may be a different moment for different people, but my hope is that everyone has that encounter, even if they find a moment where they stop and think about God in a different way.

I guess you could say that my music is really geared for the church. I think it’s too easy to get caught in tradition or repetition so I want to keep bringing us back to the wonders of the relationship we have with God. I think True Love is a song that does just this. My hope with this song is that we’re drawn back to the point of remembering that God’s love is the truest love we can experience.

The song Divine Romance is another example of trying to help lead people into that moment. Most all my songs are written over a great amount of time, but I wrote Divine Romance in about 10 minutes during a sound check. I was just playing some chords and had some lyrics floating in my head and I asked the sound guy if he could record it. I threw the CD in the back of my car. When I finally pulled it out I was taken into that moment. The lyrics go both ways and talk about us lifting our hearts and hands, but it also swings to the thought of Christ lifting His heart and hands as He became the sacrifice for us. It ends up being a song of both worship and a reminder.

interlinc: I know that some of the greatest songs can get a little old to the artists who wrote them; has that happened for you?

Phil: I think there are a few songs from my first CD that I don’t really like to play live, but for the most part I simply say, “I’m so glad that I get to sing this song for the rest of my life.”

interlinc: In going and playing shows, how do you find that balance between performing and helping lead people into those moments?

Phil: When I first started is seemed like there were these outside influences and people asking if I was doing purely worship music or just performance music. I remember asking myself, do I have to choose? I think I’ve found that they can coincide.

I think I started to write songs that would create a response in us... songs that would take us higher or deeper or just to a quiet place. I also wanted to deliberately write a song or two to help connect with the people there. Before I can try to lead them to a moment, they need to know a little about me. My song Sailing On A Ship is my way to punch through and let them see what a goober I really am. I love to tell the story behind the song and how much I loved The Chronicles of Narnia and especially The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

interlinc: If you weren’t doing music, what would you be doing?

Phil: I get asked this question a good bit and there’s no easy answer. I really am so glad that I get to do what I do. I don’t think there’s one thing that comes to mind, but I would want to make sure that I was a part of people’s lives. Maybe youth ministry... I know I would want to teach and encourage. I do have a couple years of college where I was an English major, so maybe something where I could spend time writing.

interlinc: How can youth leaders be praying for you?

Phil: I would love to have youth leaders praying that I would remain diligent to give God the first fruits of my day. That I would use those moments to be quiet and be in His word. There’s just something wonderful when I’m faithful to that, I experience His peace, I get anxious so slowly, I get more done and of course, it affects my writing in such a wonderful way.