Seventeen years ago, these words stung my heart: “Mama, how am I supposed to know what the Bible says if I can’t weed it?”
That was a great question coming from my three year old son. If parents are to “train up a child in the way he should go,” we are going to have to get creative in the early years of “hiding the Word in their hearts so they may not sin…” Children are at the mercy of adults to find out what God’s word says.
As a parent, grandparent and minister of music whose ministry involves teaching chapel and a music program to many children each week, I am thrilled with Randall Goodgame’s SING THE BIBLE WITH SLUGS & BUGS Volume 2! This album of creativity is a musical experience jammed packed with Scripture and Biblical principles that has the potential to guide listeners for a lifetime! There are many scientific studies proving the benefits of music. Studies show that songs lie deeply rooted in the brain and are recalled at the end stages of life long after all other memories have faded. The Word of God is powerful. Godly music is powerful. Combine the two and the benefits last forever!
After seeing a need for quality kids music in the early 2000’s, Goodgame made a musical career of putting together concerts and children’s albums. By 2009, Randall created SLUGS & BUGS & LULLABIES. By 2015, SING THE BIBLE WITH SLUGS & BUGS was released. SING THE BIBLE WITH SLUGS & BUGS Volume 2 picks up where the Dove Award nominated first edition ended.
Produced by Ben Shive, this new collection continues presenting scripture memory songs that are fun, and that are of musical excellence and that appeal to the whole family. “These songs are rich in practical instruction, specifically about how Christians act as they are being transformed by the Holy Spirt,” Randall explained. “They’re also packed with bedrock Truths of the Christian faith. By combining these elements, I hope SING THE BIBLE VOLUME 2 will serve as a musical handbook for the Christian home.”
All in all, there are 14 songs that master a balancing act of hilarious and meaningful while incorporating 43 Scripture verses! When played in order, the album intentionally takes the listener on a journey that touches on the topics of celebration, struggle and repentance and then finishes up with a big lesson on forgiveness.
The last song, “By His Wounds” features a gospel choir that consists of Nashville’s finest singers- black and white alike. “I approached ‘By His Wounds’ with racial reconciliation on my mind,” Goodgame said.
The choir sings “By His wounds, we are healed” over and over. “Of course, we take these words from the prophet Isaiah and point them at Christ, acknowledging Him as the Messiah. But His wounds heal every strife. Because of His wounds, war will cease and He will wipe away every tear. By HIs wounds, racial wounds will also heal.”
Since the album targets families, I was glad to see the recording itself was a family affair. Goodgame’s daughter, Livi, sings harmony throughout the project, his adopted son, Benjamin from Ethiopia has a solo on “By His Wounds,” and Randall’s wife, Amy, is featured on “Hear, O Israel.”
I have started testing the new project out on a classroom of thirty or so kids that attend our after-school program at my church’s daycare. “Let Your Light Shine” is a big hit with the kids. Next week, they will love “The Ten Commandments” with Count Dracula and Frankenstein! I am looking forward to using SING THE BIBLE WITH SLUGS & BUGS Volume 2 with these children and even younger kids as a fun way to plant the Word of God into their hearts so that hopefully as they grow older they will not depart from the way they should go, and will not sin against God. (Proverbs 22:6, Psalm 119:11)
For more information visit:slugsandbugs.com
Review by: Rhonda Frye
