Robbie Seay Band musically tells story of ‘God who created and pursues us’

Posted: 3/14/08

Robbie Seay Band musically tells story
of ‘God who created and pursues us’

By Leann Callaway

Special to the Baptist Standard

HOUSTON—On weekdays, Ecclesia Church in Houston serves as a community outreach center, farmer’s market, art gallery, coffeehouse and recording studio. On Sundays, its space becomes sanctuary to the homeless and drug-addicted, as well as to the high-profile attorneys and suburb-dwellers who fill its seats.

And it serves as home base for the Robbie Seay Band—worship leaders who shape the church’s identity and are shaped by it. Ecclesia’s services are a mix of liturgical elements such as weekly communion and communal prayer along with experiential worship, with artists painting during the service.

“The church should be a center for songwriting and creativity, where music and expression are vital to our faith,” said Seay, whose brother, Chris, is Ecclesia’s pastor.

“Worship is something that is bigger than any of us. It’s about who God is, what he is doing in our lives, his forgiveness and sovereignty. We share the story of Christ with our songs and hope that people not only connect with the music, but also find common ground with us—that we are all sinners in need of the God who created us and pursues us daily.”

Known for an alternative style that features insightful lyrics coupled with an equally edgy and engaging sound, Robbie Seay Band’s sophomore album, Give Yourself Away, finds the group pushing their musical craft to new levels. One of the songs from the album, “Rise” is being featured in commercials for the reality show American Idol.

“This project contains a lot of the stories of our lives from the past two years,” Seay said. “It is a missional record, almost a rebirth of how we’re seeing our faith and how we’re seeing a lot of young Christians respond to the great need around the world and at home.”

While the songwriting process is different for each song, Seay says, the goal remains the same—to create songs that will connect people to Christ.

“I knew even as a teenager that music was my passion, and somewhere along the way, music became a big part of my faith.  My responses to the love and grace of God began to show up in the lyrics of songs.”

Through the years, the Robbie Seay Band has developed a reputation for its honest approach to worship music, which is grounded in community and in the life journeys of each of its band members.

“As believers, we are being awakened to the call of Christ to give of ourselves, to live out life together honestly, in community,” Seay said. “As we find hope together, it pushes us to be proactive in our faith. If you choose God, then you are choosing a life of serving and giving to the poor and the oppressed.  That’s hard for us as believers to confront alone, and that’s where community steps in.”

Seay has seen the larger church community in Houston tested by the influx of Hurricane Katrina refugees, and he has been encouraged by the response.

“For the first time in a long time, I’ve been proud to say I was part of this bigger picture—a bigger church,” Seay said. “We’re always focused on what’s wrong with the church today, but seeing how communities responded to such immediate and desperate need—it was amazing. It wasn’t about race or denomination; it was about serving others the same way Jesus did on this earth.”

This experience and Ecclesia’s efforts in Africa inspired the song “Go Outside.”

“We really just became more aware of the need in the world and of how materialistic and selfish we are. That’s kind of where the record began to go outward. We’ve received hope and grace, and ‘Go Outside’ is about sharing that.”

At concerts, the Robbie Seay Band raises awareness of missions organizations and encourages audiences to put faith into action.

“Faith is fairly stale if we’re not active and aware of the need around us,” Seay said. “When we go back to Scripture, it’s full of loving the orphans, the widows and the poor, and you look at Jesus and who he was and come away with that.

“I hope my music and life somehow may serve to encourage other believers to be proactive in their faith. For it is only as we bless others and offer grace that faith goes beyond words and truly comes alive.”