Episode 65: How a Song Can Rescue a Hurting Soul with Gloria Gaither

Music for The Soul Podcast

Don't settle for shallow. Those are the words today's guest left with us as we concluded our discussion. At Music for the Soul, we write songs that speak honestly about some of life's toughest challenges, because we know that songs can help rescue a hurting soul. Our guest on today's show is Gospel Music Hall of Fame member, Grammy and Dove Award winning lyricist, Gloria Gaither. Gloria shares with us her story of working on hundreds of musical releases throughout her career, and how she was inspired to write music that wasn't just catchy or "mainstream", but spoke to the souls of people walking through different adversities in life. She also talks about the importance of having horizontal praise in addition to vertical praise. Gloria explains that many people proclaim that "God is great", but don't apply God's greatness to their lives and their neighbors. We need to not only know that God is great, but WHY God is great and HOW we can apply that to serving others in God's name. Who is Gloria Gaither?

For more than fifty years, Bill and Gloria Gaither have shared a mutual dedication to combining great art and great theology. As a result, they have created a lasting legacy in the field of gospel music and beyond. Together they have written more than 700 songs, created hundreds of award-winning recordings and a dozen timeless musicals that have been sung for decades. Gloria also traveled with the Bill Gaither Trio for twenty years before she turned to her graduate work in literature. In recognition of Gloria and Bill’s vast contribution to the gospel music industry, they were named ASCAP’s Christian Songwriters of the Century in 2000. Also on their long list of special honors with Grammy Awards and Dove Awards, is their induction into Gospel Music Hall of Fame.

Gloria has long been a student of literature, with special interest in the works of John Steinbeck. She has contributed papers and reviews on his writing in a variety of academic settings. She has been published in the Steinbeck Academic Journal both in the United States and abroad. She has written more than 40 books, including titles for adults and children, created scripts for over 100 videos in the chart-topping Homecoming series, and for 15 years she led the vision for Homecoming Magazine, an innovative publication for which she guided the themes, wrote features, and did milestone interviews.

Resources:

Our listeners can learn more about Gloria's musical releases on her website: https://www.gaither.com/artists/gloria-gaither/

You can also check out Gloria's Blog, Love Song To My Life, at the link here: https://www.lovesongtomylife.com