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David Ragland, Director of Grace Multiplied |
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Some of my earliest childhood memories are of singing and playing violin in church. I credit my spiritual upbringing in part for helping me realize the crucial role music plays in my life. For me, music helps reveal joy and understanding in places where those things might otherwise be hidden, and perhaps more importantly, it's a huge communication tool. Anyone can enjoy and relate to music, and even though some people might tell you otherwise, anyone can sing, play, and express themselves through music. I started playing music in a church band setting eleven years ago at St Paul's UMC. I was fortunate enough to play in the first-ever band for the 9:30 service. I sang and played bass guitar alongside my father, Art Ragland, and amazingly enough, also alongside Cindy Hargis and Steve Flanders - two of the current members of Grace Multiplied. When my family was called to move to First Church UMC, my father and I continued to play in church bands together - first in a band called "The Cheesemakers" for a college evening service. Then, we transitioned into filling a void in the 9:30 AM modern service with a band called "Flame". While playing for and helping lead this service, we pushed the limits of what some refer to as "Contemporary Worship" by making our song catalog as diverse as possible - on any given week, you might've heard something by The Police, Rebecca St James, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, U2, Allison Krauss etc. If it fit the theme of the service and if we thought it would help get a message through to people, then it was good to go. It was worship in this setting that helped me realize that I would love to use my musical ability to lead a church group, and when my parents were transferred to Phoenix, I led "Flame" for a year-and-a-half before I left for Boston where I got a Song Writing Degree at Berklee College of Music. Now, God has led me back to St. Paul's where I look forward to continuing to worship alongside the wonderful musicians in Grace Multiplied and the rest of the St Paul's community! Grace Multiplied would LOVE to hear from you! If you have comments, questions. or suggestions about the song selection, lyrics, or otherwise, contact us at GraceMultiplied@gmail.com, or feel free to come forward and talk to us after the 9:30 service! David Ragland
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