All Things Possible - Mark Schultz

God is the greatest reality and that makes all things possible.

All Things Possible

Artist: Mark Schultz (www.markschultzmusic.com)

Label: Fair Trade Services LLC

Length: 10 tracks/35 minutes

Mark Schultz has never sounded better. All Things Possible may be his finest hour as a singer/songwriter. Much credit goes to Seth Mosley and Pete Kipley, the producers. Mosley shares some of the songwriting credits along with others like Cindy Morgan and Mia Fieldes. Mosley’s creative energies are everywhere. He also plays various instruments.

Modernized production makes Schultz more vibrant. The pop/rock has an edge, and the ballads are not overly sentimental. Vocals are restrained. It’s just what Schultz needed with his first release on a new label.

It may seem clichéd, but hope abounds. This is something that Christian artists like Schultz can offer in the world of music. It’s not built on utopian dreams or wishful thinking but on the reality of Christ’s death and resurrection. These tracks encourage while acknowledging the harsh realities of life. “It is Well” (not the hymn) is one example:

When my strength is gone

Oh your cross stands strong

And your mercy never fails

It is well

“All Things Possible” becomes a jubilant chorus of praise towards the end:

My God is strong and mighty

My God is faithful

My hope is in the Lord

For He is able

The resignation in “I Gave Up” is not about defeat. It’s a bold way of being done with the old and what weighs down. The opening line sets a defiant tone: “I gave up all my striving.”

I like the picture in “Love Walked In.” Believers in Christ can follow Him by walking in when others walk out. Early Christians cared for those abandoned by society. Later Christians did not desert the sick and dying during the Great Plague of London. Christ strikes me as One who does not leave for the reasons that humans do. The sober yet winsome melody is a perfect complement to the theme of restoration.

Presumably, “I Will Love You Still” is an ode to Schultz’s wife. It also applies to how God’s sees his children.

If ever you should fall

If ever you should break

If ever you should turn from me and slowly walk away

I will love you still

Piano, French Horn and strings are all that’s needed for this lovely melody.

A couple of tracks have short, distinct, and even whimsical flourishes at the end. It’s evidence of the care that has gone into this recording.

The love of family, Schultz’s wife and newborn child (2012), is a sanctifying influence. He looks like a contented man on a cover with a cartoonish city in the background. The city of God is far more real than the city of man. God is the greatest reality and that makes all things possible.