Celebrate Jesus [With CD]

There are dozens of books on the history and origins of famous hymns, but few on the contemporary praise songs that are used in evangelical Christian churches on Sundays. To remedy that, Phil Christensen and Shari MacDonald offer Celebrate Jesus: The Stories Behind Your Favorite Praise and Worship Songs. Rich Mullins's chorus ""Awesome God,"" for example, was controversial at the studio because execs were concerned that the line ""When he rolls up his sleeves, he ain't just puttin' on the Ritz"" might be a bit blasphemous. And the song ""You Are My Hiding Place"" was written during a divorce, when songwriter Michael Lender was feeling rejected and vulnerable. Worship leaders and lovers of contemporary Christian music will enjoy this behind-the-scenes look at the origins of some of their favorite tunes.