A Journey Through Song: Wayne Watson and Michael Omartian

0:00 Hi, I hope you enjoyed the episode with Michael Omardian. A couple of weeks ago, fascinating conversation, great friend, legendary in the music business in so many ways, but more than that, just a great guy. And I hope you enjoyed that. I thought I would do a little bonus episode here and play you some of the music that Michael and I did together. It's been a while, but we, we had some great times in the studio and the first song that I'm going to play for you. is a song called Pray. And I think it came to me as I'm in touch with people around the country that I love dearly.

0:45 And I thought as they're experiencing difficulties in life, I thought, what can I do? And then you know what the answer is. We pray.

1:52 Try to comfort but there's too many miles in the way. Will you go back to the place where love began? Back to where love first started. Back to the feet of Jesus. To the throne of praise. Bring upon your worry. All your despair. All your tears. Anytime you're in love. First thing at the top of the morning, on through to the end of the day.

2:36 Pray, yeah you can pray. Pray with all you've got, cause you know you want to. Hold them up, never stop you. Some act of desperation A string to pull When your hope has just faded away I believe that the humble righteous prayer It can heal a broken nation I believe a faithful God will hear it soon All your despair All your tears in time Anywhere you can pray Yeah, you can pray First thing at the top of the morning Pray with all you've got, cause you know you want to Hold them up, you'll never stop just pray

4:31 You got to never stop now. Hold it on. Don't you know you are now free without. That was a great track. Uh, I love hearing the guys in the studio as we're about to kick things off. There were probably five or six guys in this big studio back in that session.

5:11 Then we had a ball doing that. Uh, the next song is one that, um, I wrote after my dad's funeral. My dad passed away at age 70 in 1997. And, uh, I watched, um, I sat on the second row of our little church back in my hometown and watched all the people come by and pay their respects to my dad. And, uh, my dad was a dreamer and he was a, was a doer, but he, he had all kinds of great ideas and he did a lot of great things in our little town, but I watched those people walk by and it occurred to me that the, the things he didn't get to finish, we're going to have to be finished by someone else.

5:56 I sang this song several other times. One time when after 9-11, a lot of the baseball teams came back to their home stadiums and honored their first responders and civil servants. I was friends at the time with the owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks named Jerry Colangelo. And Jerry invited me to come and sing this song during the game when they honored those people I mentioned. I also sang it after the shootings at Columbine in a large gathering there. And at the end of the song, just chilling moment when everyone in the audience stood to their feet and joined hands.

6:37 And this is called The One's Left Standing. No one on earth could ever explain The great mysteries of life Or the mournful and untimely face of death But as long as we remain We grow better, even stronger Though we'll never be the same Cause the ones left standing have to cry all the tears And replay all the memories of good and bad from the years And we shoulder the weight of the work left to be done And the ones left standing carry on We'll be right back.

8:29 Cause the ones left standing have to cry all the tears. And replay all the memories, good and bad from the years. And we shoulder the weight of the work left to be done. And the ones left standing carry on. When all the mysteries are gone, it will be clear that it was our God keeping us strong.

9:13 Cause the ones left standing have to cry all the tears. And we play all the memories, good and the bad from the years. And we shall. And the ones left standing carry on And be shorter the weight of the work left to be done And the ones left standing carry on Carry on One of my good, good friends played for the Green Bay Packers for 11 years.

10:37 Played on some less than championship teams, according to him. I began to follow them through another friend, my friend Tim Burke, who was a rabid Packer fan. And so he introduced me to Ken. Ken played left offensive tackle for the Packers for all those years. In 1997, early, I guess, January of 97, the Packers played the pre-Tom Brady New England Patriots in the Super Bowl in New Orleans. Ken had had to retire halfway through that season. Just too many injuries, too much of a lifetime of getting beat up and pounded on other people and all that.

11:19 So he retired. So I'm sitting in the stands in the Superdome in New Orleans with Ken Rutgers, watching his teammates beat the New England Patriots to win the Super Bowl in 1997. Wow. It was a very melancholy time for Ken. He stood there with his arms crossed while he watched people celebrate on the field that he knew very well. We stayed up until the wee hours of the next morning talking about what his life was going to be like. He was in his early 30s, retiring from football. Ken has gone on to get a Ph.D. and teaches in college in Oregon. Still a dear friend.

12:00 But I remember those conversations and drawing from lessons of Scripture, the phrase for such a time as this. came out to me and I wrote the song after that conversation with Ken to honor and encourage him and all of us for what might come next. It's called for such a time as this. All I have is now. To be faithful, to be holy And to shine lighting up the darkness Right now, I really have no choice But to voice the truth to the nations A generation looking for God For such a time as this I was placed upon voice of God and do His will whatever it is.

13:19 For such a time as this, for now and all the days He gives, I am here, I am here, and I am His. For such a time as this. Seems like the grass is always greener Under everybody else's sky Right here, right here for this time and play a mirror of His mercy, a forgiven image of grace.

14:14 For such a time as this, I was placed upon the earth to hear the voice of God and to His voice. For such a time as this For now and all the days He gives I am here, I am here And I am His For such a time as this Can't change what's happened till now But we can change what will be holiness that the world will see Jesus for such a time as this I was pleased upon the earth to hear the voice of God and do His will whatever it is for such a time as this for such a time

16:05 And I am here for such a time. Those of you that know me know I love baseball and I love the movie Field of Dreams. And I remember writing this song, coming up with this idea, and I thought, this is such a great idea by myself.

16:49 And nobody else said that, but I thought it was a great idea. And I had my kind of team look around and make sure that there wasn't a song called Field of Souls. And I thought it was such a good thing that the Bible talks about the fields are ripe to harvest and so forth. So I wrote this song and specifically wanted to point out through the song that that it takes all of us to do what we do. I, growing up, I went to church a lot and there were missionaries that would come through and different people that worked the mission field. And I, I was sort of led to believe maybe by my own conviction or those around me that boy, missionaries, that that's the thing.

17:32 Well, you know, not everybody can be a missionary. Not everybody can be a pastor. Not everybody can be, an attorney or a doctor or a school teacher. But whatever we do, we're out there. We're up to our knees in the field. And there are people that need us. So this is called Field of Souls.

18:20 We will work the field of souls Together you may die One is on too far in the soils To work a distant land And another anchor's close to home To hold a neighbor's hand Tell me who has served the Father most And who has labored best Oh, that life devoted to our God That devotion The other fields are dry.

19:39 We are not the same. All but differences aside. We will work the field of souls. Oh, together you and me. Shouts the gospel in the street for everyone to hear. He is born to everyone he meets. And the word is loud and clear.

20:21 Oh, and another cries of the Lord in praise. In silence all that we. Oh, and other fields are dry.

22:03 The future We are not the same All the differences are signs I know We will You can't burn you and I

24:08 This next song is a little odd. I'm not sure where the idea came from, except that I found myself pondering at one point in my life, and still occasionally, what kind of person was Jesus from a human standpoint? If he was fully God and fully human, what was his temperament? Was he type A, like some of you? Was he melancholy? Was he all things mixed into one? And it occurred to me that people sometimes think you are a little odd and me a little odd. And I bet you there were people that thought, this Jesus guy, he's a little unusual.

24:51 So this is called more than a little unusual. Everybody's picking on you You're not like everybody else Even when the big bad world Backs off just a little You're still pretty hard on yourself Feel like you just don't fit in But your faith, your conviction is strong And just because you march to the beat I'm a different drummer Hey, that doesn't mean that you're wrong What people thought about him But they thought that he was weird And didn't keep him from his mission And didn't keep him from his car He was more than a little unusual And I'll tell you he was more than a little unusual You gotta watch out who you're hanging around Watch out who you're listening to And just because it's on TV Or you read it in the paper And that doesn't mean that it's true Sometimes you paddle upstream Sometimes you gotta go with the flow Which is which and what is what And when to do whatever Oh God, you gotta help us to know

26:39 Jesus was a rebel. Do you think he cared? What people thought about him. They thought that he was weird. Did you keep him from his mission? Did you keep him from his call? I want to be tied to the things of the world by the strings of the world. I want to walk a mile in your shoes, Jesus. Do what you do.

27:21 Go where you go. Jesus was a rebel. Do you think he can? People thought about him. They thought that he was weird. To keep him from his mission. To keep him from his call.

28:33 He was more than one. I've shared this before on the podcast and from stage and other places. And, uh, it's always fascinated me and quickened my mind to, to always be aware of how quickly things can change.

29:17 Uh, whether you're driving down the highway and something goes terribly wrong, whether you get a phone call from a doctor after what you thought was a routine visit or whether something goes sideways that you did not expect to go sideways. Uh, I remember Michael producing this song. Um, and we didn't use brass a lot, but Michael is such a great arranger and we use brass and horns on this, on this song and it's called everything can change.

30:12 you Everything you ever wanted and more Yeah, the top of the heap feels so sweet When the world beats a path to your door People tell you to be careful What will you do when the good times come to an end?

31:18 A million times before But I think you need to hear it again My friend, I tell you Everything can change so fast Oh, everything can change so fast In the blink of an eye No hope for your soul When the party's through Everybody's talking about Heaven forever But not you Not you Jesus said it just takes a simple faith To wash a lifetime of guilt and sin away And a heart that is weeping We'll be dancing for joy.

32:35 Yeah, the minute you trust me, the minute you pray, I tell you, everything can change so fast. Oh, everything can change so fast. In the blink of an eye, your sin's a thing of the past. Everything can change so fast. All the ups and downs and around and around and around won't hurt me.

33:15 For better or worse, the wind will glow, but you won't desert me. I know you won't desert me. Oh, everything can change, everything can change In the blink of an eye, all your sins are things of the past Everything can change so fast Everything can change Everything can change Everything can change Everything can change All the ups and downs And round and round and round and round Everything can change

34:52 I guess all of us, my peers and all of us who do this, we get asked this question often. What's your favorite song? Hard to say. I have a top three or four or five maybe, and this song is definitely in the top three. I was forbidden to have motorcycle when I was a kid and a teenager growing up living in my father's house. It was forbidden to touch one. He preferred I not even look at one. When I turned 30, I bought my first motorcycle. And I remember sitting in a shop one day, in a Harley shop, and I'm sitting there and there are these two guys sitting across from me. We struck up a conversation like guys do and they asked me what I did.

35:34 And I told them very discreetly, but pointedly, about my life and who I serve and what I did. And they were very respectful of that. And I asked them what they did and they were in a club. And I thought that's what they did for fun, but that was their life. And on the way home, I remember thinking, I hope something I said would resonate with them either now or down the road somewhere. And that they had realized how loved they are and what Jesus had done for them. And then I remember riding, I was by this big tree on the country road. I remember the tree and I remember thinking, trying to imagine them in heaven. And it was difficult because they didn't look like the kind of people I was taught were going to be in heaven.

36:21 And then it hit me, Wayne, who do you think you are? And it occurred to me that all my good deeds and all my avoiding of bad deeds, while not a bad thing in themselves, did nothing to put me in right favor with God. It was one thing. And this is called the blood of Jesus.

37:02 But I know who you are. Your story made the papers. Most wanted ran your name. And the press called out for justice. For all the misery and the pain. And you must have stunned the gates of them. They said it's easy to explain. It was the best. that open heaven's door and let me in. It was the blood of Jesus, the blood of Jesus.

37:42 It washed away the guilt, it washed away the guilt of all my sin. And we mercifully go free of earthly ties And we wake up in that city And behold a family Who is there and who is missing Where we just might be surprised It's just the blood of Jesus The blood of Jesus That over time It washed away the guilt.

38:42 It washed away the guilt of all my sins. I believe that there's reality in mercy after all. There is truth in being saved by grace through faith. Yeah, I believe that when I'm called to give an answer on that day, I'll be sure that my debt is paid. I'm going to fall on my knees and say, Lord, what's the prayer of Jesus Christ?

39:24 then then I believe, I believe in what the blood of Jesus The blood of Jesus that washed away The guilt that washed away The guilt of all my sins What can wash away my sin?

40:25 Believe it's nothing but the blood. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood. Wash away my sin Nothing, nothing, love Wash and wash away my sin That's one of my favorites and still love playing it.

41:20 I'm gonna finish with this one. This is called, Don't You Remember? And I remember going through the thought process of trying to overcome a lifetime of teaching of guilt. and remorse and regret. And, you know, if guilt is well-placed and it brings you to a place of confessing and getting your heart right, that's okay. But misplaced guilt that is over and over and over for the same thing, please forgive me, please forgive me, please forgive me. I'm not sure that's theologically accurate. Because if we believe that Jesus died for our sin, not our sins, but our sin nature, then you got to believe that it's gone.

42:05 The Bible says, as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed your transgressions from you. And so I was using my imagination today. I came up with this song, imagining going in to talk to God and saying, well, okay, here's my file, and it's very thick with stuff I've done, and God responding, what are you talking about? So this is called Don't You Remember.

42:53 I'm right in front of you. That's it. That's right. That's now. My bag of sorrows and my sack of bones. Every doubt my unbelief. Oh, see, I got page after page after beautiful page. A list that never ends. Feel the need to bring up these old bones again. Don't you remember all the times I failed you? All the times I wandered away. And don't you remember all of my offenses walking?

43:39 I know you'd really like to help me out But you don't even know what I'm talking about It's not so much that you don't remember It's more that you choose to forget How does it work that a mission of God Can wipe the slate so clean That if you look for a single spot, a single spot could not be seen. Oh, still I've got page after page after pitiful, pitiful change.

44:29 And he said to me, don't you remember, I promise to forgive you. God is far as he's from the west. And don't you remember, I promise to be faithful. Wash away the sin you confess. I don't even know what you're talking about. That's all I said I don't remember. But it's more that I choose to find.

45:24 I promise to forgive you. Gone as far as he's from the West. Don't you remember? I promise to be faithful. Wash away the sin you confess. I promise you. There's lots of words that I don't remember But it's more that I chose to forget Remember Promise to forgive But God is for a tease from the rest Don't you remember I promise to be paid for Wash away the sin you confess Oh yeah you're talking about it's not so much that I don't get to know but it's more that I choose to forget you know it doesn't remember more as he's from the west you know it doesn't remember more I choose to forget you know it doesn't Thanks for listening to the Wayne Watson Podcast, where stories of faith, purpose, and everyday life meet and continue to uplift hearts around the world.

47:02 Be sure to follow, leave us a review, and share this episode with a friend. To learn more about Wayne's music, ministry, and upcoming projects, visit waynewatson.com. Every journey of faith begins with a story, and every heart finds its rhythm in the Lord. Until next time, go well, and may you keep walking in step with His song flowing through you.