Suite: Michael, our Suite review of “Where Fear & Faith Collide” heard what came across as a deep sense of blessed desperation in your music. Is that an accurate assessment, and one you’re comfortable with?
Michael: Wow....that’s quite a phrase you’ve coined. A good one. I would feel comfortable with that description. I think I’m in the state of “blessed desperation” more than I’d like to admit. It’s just that the peaks and valleys (particularly the valleys) of life can tend to put me more in touch with that reality. I’ve definitely had a year and a half full of peaks and valleys. I think those experiences have lead to a sense of substance in the writing of this record.
Suite: You were fortunate to have wonderful guest artists collaborate with you on this superb album. What’s the best part of working with artists like Sara Groves and Mike Weaver?
Michael: This career is a very relational one, very community oriented. It’s extremely fun to share time and creativity with other artists, particularly these two. Each bring a different set of gifts to the table. I’ve co-written with Sara on a few occasions and found that she has an uncanny ability to connect with the purest emotional stimulus of any circumstance. It comes out in both her writing and her singing. That challenges me as a writer, a singer, and as a believer. That by far is the best thing about working with Sara.
And...well...it’s hard to fit a description of Mike Weaver into mere words!!! We were on the road together last fall and had an absolute blast. Mike is a genuine follower of Jesus. He’s who he is on stage and off. It’s fun to hang around guys like him. His love for God is contagious.....Plus, he’s a great racquetball player.
Suite: Is there a central message you’d hope to communicate with this album?
Michael: YES. It’s most clearly addressed in the title track “Fear & Faith.” I think that the relationship between the two is closer than we feel comfortable admitting. Actually, I think that the presence of fear in our lives can actually benefit the level of our faith. It is in understanding the reality of what it is we are afraid of and why that we find the true value of our faith.
Over the last few months of my life I have been confronted with some circumstances which have conjured up a lot of fear in my heart. Along with the onset of the reality of these circumstances came the temptation to be diverted from dealing with them directly. But in looking my fears in the eye I am brought to a place of decision: am I going to allow those fears (which are very real) to dominate me? Or am I going to believe that God is who He says He is and rise above the reality of them? After all, all fear originates from an incorrect understanding of who we are in Christ.
A lot of us look at our faith like a statue on the mantle. It’s really beautiful to look at, but it doesn’t get used for much. I don’t mean to be sacrilegious, but I think faith is much more like the lawnmower in my garage. The true value of it is only found when I fire it up and get it dirty. I want to believe in God so much that the reality of who He is filters down into how I view the frightening circumstances of my life.
Suite: How hard is it for you to keep your focus on the Lord in the midst of a musician’s lifestyle?
Michael: It can be a challenge for sure. I find myself taking about this very thing a lot in relation to the song “First Love.” I think anybody who works in a Christian environment (i.e. pastors, christian musicians, christian radio, christian publishers, etc.) faces a constant challenge to not let what we do define our relationship with God. We are very performance oriented folks. God addressed this in the book of Revelation when we spoke to the church at Ephesus. He said...I’m paraphrasing... “I love everything your doing. But this one thing I’ve got a big problem with. You’ve lost your first love.” At the end of the day, it’s not about how many articles we publish, or records we sell, or how many people sit in the pews or our church every Sunday. It’s about our relationship with God. Everything else stems from this foundation. It can be challenging to keep the correct perspective with all the peripheral things.
Micahel Olson is clearly an artist who sings out of his personal experience. Look for "Where Fear and Faith Collide" on February 13, releasing from Rocketown Records. For more information, visit his website.
