| The On-Line Music Review & Information Ministry |
| Melissa Greene |
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| [Album Bio] |
Next Step Bio
Melissa Greene’s new CD, Next Step, opens with a make you want to dance title track. With its speaker-
thumping chorus and powerhouse vocals, indeed Greene isn’t shying away from an opportunity to show off
the many weapons in her musical arsenal. “I’m so excited for people to really get to hear the real me,”
enthuses Greene.
The book of Job tells us, “The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away,” and Greene was recently struck with a
newfound comprehension of what Job must have gone through after he lost many of the blessings God had
bestowed upon him. And this realization took place right around the time Greene was planning the Next Step
project. This was a Lord gives/Lord takes period for Greene because, on the one hand, she was blessed with a
promising new record contract; yet right around that same time, “my brother-in-law, who was 32 at the time,
was diagnosed with stage-four cancer,” she adds. “I think every one of the songs I ended up choosing, and
then later ended up writing, were all out of going through this struggle.” Sadly, Greene’s brother-in-law
succumbed to cancer in September, 2007.
Yet on a more positive note, one of the clear messages Greene presents with this sincere new collection of
songs is that God will help us take the next step — whatever that step may be — even when we feel too
paralyzed with pain to move. Greene speaks to this miraculously encouraging characteristic of God through
the song “Too Far”, which she helped write just before her brother-in-law passed away. “It was just the idea
that God has brought me too far to let anything stop me now, no matter what that “anything” would be, and
how little did I know that the “anything” would be facing the death of a loved one.” This song, filled with
spiritual determination, also reveals an entirely different musical color for the singer/songwriter, primarily
because it’s driven by a gritty, electric guitar groove. Its lyric reminds us to focus on what God whispers to
our hearts, rather than let ourselves get overwhelmed by foreboding circumstances. “So I’ll keep moving
forward, And I’ll keep listening to my heart, When it tells me, ‘Don’t you dare give up.’ ’Cause you will
overcome,’” says the lyric.
Amazingly, Greene’s upbeat title track was written approximately two weeks after her brother-in-law passed
on. With it, Greene creatively combines a deep spiritual truth with a fun musical backing. Its lyric paraphrases
something one of her pastors, Mike Glenn, recently said; something that will always stay with her. “The test
of discipleship was not about understanding God,” Greene recounts. “It was not about understanding His
ways. It was not about understanding why He does what He does. It was about following Him. Jesus didn’t
say to his disciples, “Get me.” He simply said, “Follow me.” And that was such a challenge to me – especially
in that moment. Because I was sitting there trying to encourage my sister and encourage myself. ‘How are we
going to make it past this?’ And I realized in that moment, and in listening to that message, that the pastor was
saying, “All you have to do is get back up and take the next step with God. And He is right there to take that
next step with you. You don’t have to figure out how you’re going to make it to the end of journey. You just
have to take the step.””
Taking that next step, especially after struggling through an unexpected obstacle course filled with deep
emotional landmines, ultimately depends upon trust — a mysterious spiritual trust. We must have the faith
that, when we put one foot in front of the other, God will gently direct our feet onto solid ground. Greene
summarizes such difficult forward motion, which often feels like large leaps of faith, on a ballad titled “To
Trust You”
“The chorus simply says: “I can choose to ask why, I can choose to be angry, I can wrestle when life is not
what I thought it would be, I can wish that all the pain would simply go away, But at the same time, I can
choose to trust You,” Greene quotes.
When many of today’s popular artists sing about “steps,” these words are most likely about little more than
dance steps. But when Greene pours her heart out over “steps” via the heartfelt songs filling out Next Step,
her God-given phrases encourage movements that count both for now and for eternity. That’s because the
Next Step all comes down to faith.
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thumping chorus and powerhouse vocals, indeed Greene isn’t shying away from an opportunity to show off
the many weapons in her musical arsenal. “I’m so excited for people to really get to hear the real me,”
enthuses Greene.
The book of Job tells us, “The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away,” and Greene was recently struck with a
newfound comprehension of what Job must have gone through after he lost many of the blessings God had
bestowed upon him. And this realization took place right around the time Greene was planning the Next Step
project. This was a Lord gives/Lord takes period for Greene because, on the one hand, she was blessed with a
promising new record contract; yet right around that same time, “my brother-in-law, who was 32 at the time,
was diagnosed with stage-four cancer,” she adds. “I think every one of the songs I ended up choosing, and
then later ended up writing, were all out of going through this struggle.” Sadly, Greene’s brother-in-law
succumbed to cancer in September, 2007.
Yet on a more positive note, one of the clear messages Greene presents with this sincere new collection of
songs is that God will help us take the next step — whatever that step may be — even when we feel too
paralyzed with pain to move. Greene speaks to this miraculously encouraging characteristic of God through
the song “Too Far”, which she helped write just before her brother-in-law passed away. “It was just the idea
that God has brought me too far to let anything stop me now, no matter what that “anything” would be, and
how little did I know that the “anything” would be facing the death of a loved one.” This song, filled with
spiritual determination, also reveals an entirely different musical color for the singer/songwriter, primarily
because it’s driven by a gritty, electric guitar groove. Its lyric reminds us to focus on what God whispers to
our hearts, rather than let ourselves get overwhelmed by foreboding circumstances. “So I’ll keep moving
forward, And I’ll keep listening to my heart, When it tells me, ‘Don’t you dare give up.’ ’Cause you will
overcome,’” says the lyric.
Amazingly, Greene’s upbeat title track was written approximately two weeks after her brother-in-law passed
on. With it, Greene creatively combines a deep spiritual truth with a fun musical backing. Its lyric paraphrases
something one of her pastors, Mike Glenn, recently said; something that will always stay with her. “The test
of discipleship was not about understanding God,” Greene recounts. “It was not about understanding His
ways. It was not about understanding why He does what He does. It was about following Him. Jesus didn’t
say to his disciples, “Get me.” He simply said, “Follow me.” And that was such a challenge to me – especially
in that moment. Because I was sitting there trying to encourage my sister and encourage myself. ‘How are we
going to make it past this?’ And I realized in that moment, and in listening to that message, that the pastor was
saying, “All you have to do is get back up and take the next step with God. And He is right there to take that
next step with you. You don’t have to figure out how you’re going to make it to the end of journey. You just
have to take the step.””
Taking that next step, especially after struggling through an unexpected obstacle course filled with deep
emotional landmines, ultimately depends upon trust — a mysterious spiritual trust. We must have the faith
that, when we put one foot in front of the other, God will gently direct our feet onto solid ground. Greene
summarizes such difficult forward motion, which often feels like large leaps of faith, on a ballad titled “To
Trust You”
“The chorus simply says: “I can choose to ask why, I can choose to be angry, I can wrestle when life is not
what I thought it would be, I can wish that all the pain would simply go away, But at the same time, I can
choose to trust You,” Greene quotes.
When many of today’s popular artists sing about “steps,” these words are most likely about little more than
dance steps. But when Greene pours her heart out over “steps” via the heartfelt songs filling out Next Step,
her God-given phrases encourage movements that count both for now and for eternity. That’s because the
Next Step all comes down to faith.
----