Tony Cummings looks at the ministry of US singer and songwriter PATRICK MAYBERRY

Patrick Mayberry (Photo Credit: Matthew Simmons)

Any Cross Rhythms radio listener who's heard his radio hits "Real Help" and "Thank You Lord" or the songs he's penned for other artists like North Point Worship and David Dunn will know that Patrick Mayberry is a skilled crafter of songs. He is also something of a prophet who says we believers have made Christianity just a tad too comfortable. On the release of his debut album in 2023 he said, " We've domesticated our faith so much that we've taken the wild adventure out of it. This whole past season of my life has been marked by stepping out in wild faith. I think the Lord was like, 'You thought this song was for other people, but this song is for you, buddy.' I'm asking God to guide my steps, and I'll just keep taking 'em."

Another insightful Mayberry song is "Lead On Good Shepherd". He said, "Psalm 23 always gets used as a comforting Scripture at funerals when I think it's just such a comforting verse for life. This Good Shepherd promises to walk alongside us every single step of the way - providing for us, protecting us, telling us to rest, leading us by still waters. God's track record has proven He's a good and faithful shepherd, so I'm going to keep following, step by step. I'm going to trust Him, so lead on, Good Shepherd."

Patrick was blessed to grow up in a Christian home and his parents took him each week to a Church of Christ fellowship in Cookeville, Tennessee. As a teenager he became enamoured with rock music, particularly Hendrix and the Grateful Dead. But he called his years at college a "dark season". He explained, "I was still very much figuring out faith and figuring out what every college kid's trying to figure out: What am I even here for? What's my purpose?"

The answer came at Passion 2006. "That was my first experience with corporate worship on a bigger scale. It's funny, because I really was clueless and just kind of a sponge, wide-eyed, taking it all in. I felt like that's when the Lord was showing me, 'This is how you could use music for the Church. If you wanted to do this, I think this would be a cool way for you to use your music.' So I fell in love with worship music."

Over the years Patrick's wild faith adventures have kept him and his family on the move. He relocated from Tennessee to Chicago to serve as worship pastor at Soul City Church. Then I 2018 he was signed to Centricity Publishing as a writer and a flow of his songs were recorded by such high profile acts as North Point Worship, Joel Vaughn and Johnny Diaz. He was then signed as an artist as well by Centricity and in 2021 enjoyed a Top 15 US Christian radio hit with the title track of his EP 'Holy Spirit Come'.

Today his adventure continues. He, his wife and four children have now relocated again to Franklin, Tennessee and signing with Provident Records he has released two singles "Thank You Lord" and "God Is Faithful", featuring Katie Torwalt.