May 2007 Offerings Of The Month: "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms" Melody by Anthony J. Showalter, Lyrics by Elisha A. Hoffman (Public Domain) Arrangement by Espen Overgaard & Edward Jerlin © 2007 Espen Overgaard/Everlasting Arms Records & Publishing - All Rights Reserved "In Memoriam" Written by Rev. James Martin & Edward Jerlin © 2007 Everlasting Arms Records & Publishing - All Rights Reserved Espen Overgaard, originally from Norway, served as the Worship Leader at my church from 1999-2002. I can honestly say that I have never played with another musician who brought out the best in all the musicians around him as well as Espen does. The Lord has truly gifted him in this way. More importantly, in the all-too-short time I served with him on the worship team, Espen had a profound effect on my faith walk, far more than he realizes. I'm truly thankful for the times Espen & I had together. We formed a lasting friendship that has endured the years & the distance since he & his family returned to Norway in 2003. During his time at Salem, Espen was asked to sing the old classic hymn, "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms" for a choir concert. Rather than accompany himself at the piano, he asked me to accompany him so that he could focus on his voice. During rehearsals for it, we both expressed a desire to do something a little more radical with the arrangement. ;-) I don't recall whose idea it initially was, but we both quickly agreed to it & had a lot fun with it, which comes through quite clearly on this recording. Last month, Espen & his family visited us for a few weeks around the Easter holiday. It was during this time that I decided to try to properly record our arrangement of it. Espen remembered it well, & sang it exactly as I remembered it, as if he'd never left. On the recording, Espen is singing the lead vocal, & I'm singing the backgrounds & playing the instruments. Enjoy! The Overgaards & The Jerlins during their recent Easter visit: "In Memoriam" is dedicated to all those who have given their lives in service to our country. The church I used to attend that Jim was pastor of (Immanuel Union Church) has a somber flag-raising ceremony in front of the church on the Sunday before Memorial Day every year, organized by the Boy Scout Troop (Troop #2) that meets at Immanuel. One year, there was a short ode of rememberance & encouragement printed on the back of the ceremony's bulletin/program. It was written by Jim, and dedicated to the Veterans who have passed on: No walls can hide, no power dim - the memory of our departed kin; who now and evermore you'll find, are remembered - - in our hearts, our prayers, and in our minds. And still, we pledge our selves to be, sons and daughters of that living legacy, a legion, in watch, that all might remain free, "In Memoriam" for all the world to see. I was very moved & inspired by it & decided to keep the program in case I could ever set it to music. A few years later, I was cleaning out my studio & found the program at the bottom of a pile of potential lyrics. Again, I was moved & then finally did indeed set it to music, much to Jim's surprise. I had tried to write a string arrangement of this & have also tried various kinds of musical ornamentation, but have decided that the piano & voice are really all the song requires. This song is slated to be part of the "Strands of Life Suite" CD. Enjoy! Feel free to leave feedback and sign our guestbook. Thank you & God bless. To download the music, RIGHT CLICK and choose "Save Target As": "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms" MUSIC 2:52 "In Memoriam" MUSIC 2:19 To download the lyrics, RIGHT CLICK: and choose "Save Target As": "In Memoriam" LYRICS