School of Church Music and Worship releases ‘Blessed Assurance,’ ‘Lead On, O King Eternal’ videos

The School of Church Music and Worship at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary recently released two music videos, “Blessed Assurance,” and “Lead On, O King Eternal,” featuring the Texas Baptist College Band and the Cowden Hall Band. The videos, released on the seminary’s YouTube page, are part of a larger collection of recordings from An Evening of Music with the School of Church Music and Worship which was released on DVD in the early summer.

Chuck Lewis, associate dean and professor of church music and worship in the SCMW, provided direction for the video recordings. Lewis explained the selection of “Blessed Assurance” came from a brainstorming session held by the college band members in January.

“Because their last recording was a modern song of praise, the band members decided that they wanted to arrange a legacy hymn for a new generation,” Lewis said. “In some ways, the goal was to take a song that was incredibly meaningful to their parents and grandparents and give it a fresh treatment that would appeal cross-generationally.”

Noah Austin, a Bachelor of Music student from Leander, Texas, plays acoustic guitar and is a vocalist in the band. As part of the group of students that selected the hymn for recording, Austin said the song has greatly impacted the church.

“This reminds me of the grace that God has shown me and that I don’t have to worry about losing my salvation because I’m not the One who it depends on,” said Austin.

Lewis said the goals of the video are two-fold. The first goal is “to point others to the source of our blessed assurance, Jesus Christ,” he said. In effort to support this goal, the SCMW has made available free lead sheets for churches to use. The sheets can be found on the school’s Artistic Theologian website.

The second goal of the video is to “help tell the story of Texas Baptist College; an amazing place for students who are seeking an education that is Christ-centered, Scripture-drive, and student-focus,” Lewis added.

As part of the arrangement of “Blessed Assurance,” the college students wrote a new bridge that is “borne out of the theological minds our students,” Lewis said. The new bridge highlights the truth found in Scripture that a believer’s assurance of salvation is by grace through faith alone.

The Texas Baptist College Band is comprised of auditioned college students in the SCMW. The band includes four singers, five worship band instrumentalists, and one violinist.

“Lead On, O King Eternal,” the seminary hymn since 1980, holds a “special place in our formal gatherings,” said Joseph R. Crider, dean of the SCMW. The hymn is played at the seminary’s convocation and commencement services.

Crider explained the hymn, which traditionally finds accompaniment with the “powerful sound of an organ” was selected by the students for recording because they were “interested in giving it a modern expression that would translate its use to current worship contexts without compromising the core melody.”

Crider said one way the SCMW can serve Southern Baptist churches is by “provid[ing] accessible arrangements of great hymns that can be used on Sunday mornings.” The lead sheet music for “Lead On, O King Eternal” can also be accessed on the Artistic Theologian website.

Cowden Hall Band, named after the building that houses the SCMW, is made up of students from the school who also help lead in the seminary’s weekly chapel services.

David Toscano is a Master of Music in Worship Leadership student from Mexico. Toscano, who plays electric guitar in the band, said this was his “first time recording with international people.” The opportunity to record causes him to want the video and accompanying lead music “to be spread out to the world so many people and churches can play it for the glory of God.”

Michael Palomo, the bass guitarist in the band who is a Master of Music in Worship Leadership student from Richardson, Texas, said his feelings about the project have changed since the springtime recording.

“At first, I was just happy to serve the school by creating music,” Palomo said. “Hearing the reaction from others since the song was released has made it truly a special moment in my life.  Being used by God to create something that has had such an impact for His glory means the world to me.”

Over the last 18 months the SCMW has produced more than ten videos, with a completely virtual recording of “Be Thou My Vision,” being the first such recording in April 2020, following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to An Evening of Music with the School of Church Music and Worship, the school also produced a series of videos during the Advent season.

All worship video recordings are available on the Southwestern Seminary and Texas Baptist College YouTube page.