Tony Cummings interviewed Britain's popular and influential worship man STUART TOWNEND

Tony: On "Come, People Of The Risen King" there are some telling lines about people who are winning battles and those who are struggling in the fight. How would you assess the current spiritual condition of the Church in the UK?

Stuart: I'm not sure those lines really have much to say about the spiritual state of the Church as such. I think they just describe the reality of life, that we all go through times of blessing and breakthrough, and other times of struggle, pain and disappointment. The message of those lines is that God's invitation is for all of us to come to him, whether we feel on top of the world or in the deepest pit, whether we feel we are success stories or abject failures, whether we know the joy of his forgiveness or are overwhelmed with guilt - because we don't come on the basis of our righteousness, but on the basis of his. We don't get ourselves sorted out to come to God; we come to God to get ourselves sorted out.

As far as the question of the spiritual state of the UK church is concerned, I'm not sure how to answer it. I see God's people affected by the same kind of concerns that affect the UK as a whole: economic depression, political corruption, the threat of terrorism. And I believe the hope and confidence we have in Christ shines brighter in us when the society in which we live seems darker and more fearful. Certainly at CCK in Brighton we are seeing large numbers of visitors each week, and a significant proportion of them responding to the Gospel as it is preached at the end of each Sunday service.

Tony: What is your favourite memory of the 'Creation Sings' recording sessions?

Stuart: There were lots of really good times. I enjoyed doing the pre-production with Mark, as it was an opportunity to bounce around different arrangement ideas, and come up together with something a bit different. Two minds are definitely better than one in that situation. Also, in the studio, unlike a lot of albums these days, most of the instruments were recorded in the same room at the same time, so you really got the dynamics of playing as a band, and that really brings the arrangement to life. You can actually watch the band recording the tracks on the DVD that accompanies the CD, which I think is fun to watch - even though the fact that we are concentrating so hard on getting out parts right that I think we look like a bunch of miserable old bags. . .

Tony: Any plans for a 'Creation Sings' tour?

Stuart: I'm putting the final touches to a tour that begins in the middle of October, and I'm using most of the band who played on the album, so I'm really looking forward to re-creating that studio sound in live venues. I think there is something uplifting about that kind of folk music, with its rhythms and reels, that makes it a wonderful vehicle for expressing joy to God, so it should be fun!