Interviews

1) Cross Rhythms: read Vicky's interview from 2003

I understand that you became a Christian at the age of seven. Tell me about that.
I grew up in a Christian family - that's something I'm really grateful for. God was a big part of our lives; going to church, Sunday school, hearing Bible stories at bedtime. I'm so thankful for those early foundations in my faith. My Mum began teaching me the piano when I was seven. After our first lesson together, I asked her some questions about Jesus. I did this regularly - usually as a cunning plan to delay bedtime! On this occasion, Mum asked if I wanted to invite Jesus into my life. I said yes and she led me through a short prayer. I remember feeling overwhelmed and tearful, but not knowing why. Now I realise it was the Holy Spirit touching me as I gave my life to God.

How did you become a regular worship leader?
After a lot of practice in my bedroom, I started playing guitar in my youth group band at St Mary Bredin, Canterbury. When I'd been part of the band for awhile, the worship leader gave me the opportunity to lead a few songs. I remember feeling so nervous when I first led and wondered if I'd ever be able to relax and enjoy it! Thankfully that did come with time! I continued to lead worship at the youth group and started training up younger people too. During the following months and years I also played regularly at other local churches, countywide youth events and conferences. Moving to Oxford in 1997, I joined the Vineyard Church. I started leading worship in one of their house groups and later was given a regular slot as a Sunday morning worship leader.

I first came across your name when Beth Redman sang your song "Search Me O God" on Soul Survivor's 'People's Album'. How did that come about?
I wrote my first song when I was about 10. It was during a music lesson at primary school. We were preparing music for our Leaver's Assembly, as my class were moving on to our next schools. I came up with a song idea, based on the theme of 'moving on'. After writing a chorus, verses just kept coming until I had about six, all describing different stages of our time at the school. To my surprise the whole class was asked to perform it! Over the next few years I wrote a lot of classical piano pieces. When I started playing guitar, I found it easier to write songs. As my relationship with God deepened, worship became the focus of my writing. "Search Me O God" was one of the first worship songs I wrote, aged 14. At Soul Survivor 1996, Mike Pilavachi announced that anyone could submit songs for 'The People's Album' project. I sent in a few and "Search Me O God" was recorded by Beth Redman. I received my copy of the CD on the morning of my 18th birthday - a great present!

Not many worship leaders do degrees at Oxford University! Was an academic pursuit a help or a hindrance to your faith?
When I first thought of applying to Oxford to study theology, many people tried to dissuade me. They were concerned that my faith would be damaged or destroyed. Lots of people advised me to go to a Bible College instead, where they felt my faith would be encouraged and strengthened. After much thought, I decided that Oxford was the right option for me. The course was challenging, as I had never put my beliefs under a microscope before! I was grateful that during all three years of my degree I lived in a Christian hall of residence. Tutors such as Alister McGrath and Michael Green were based there. They helped me with the difficult questions that arose from the course. The combination of their Godly advice and being plugged into a great church, kept my relationship with God solid. I definitely came out of Oxford University with a stronger faith, as it had been taken apart, examined, then rebuilt on a very firm foundation.

How did you get songs on the 'Hungry' and 'Holy' albums?
During my first year at Uni, Vineyard Music UK decided to record their first album 'Come Now Is The Time'. They wrote to the UK Vineyard churches, inviting them to submit songs that their members had written. I sent in two, but they weren't chosen that time. The following year, they decided to make a second album ('Hungry'). I decided to try submitting songs again and "There's No One Like Our God" was selected. I did the same for the 'Surrender' and 'Holy' albums, and had two songs accepted for each project. I would encourage writers to keep submitting songs, even if you get turned down to begin with! It's tough, but it's worth finding the courage to try again if you feel God is calling and gifting you as a songwriter.

You've already made considerable ground as a composer. Is singing as important to you as composing?
Yes, I've always loved singing. I remember a particular children's song book I had when I was little. I used to take it up to my room and sing my heart out for hours - I was easily occupied! My Dad has always been a huge '60s music fan, so I used to sing along to the records he played. I was also part of a traditional church choir, wearing robes and accompanied by a pipe organ. So my early days of singing were pretty diverse! Singing and composing go hand-in-hand for me and both are equally important. I really enjoyed singing my own songs on 'Shelter' and look forward to recording more albums in the future. I'm also excited about singing at various conferences and events this year and using my new songs there.

We read so much about the Church losing ground, particularly amongst young people. In your contact with young people, how do you find them responding - particularly to the call to live a life of holiness?
I find it so painful to read about young people leaving the Church in the UK. However, I also find it hugely encouraging to go to events like Soul Survivor and see young people who are passionate about God! I tried to go to Soul Survivor Week B last summer but it was fully booked up - I was disappointed not to get in, yet really excited that so many young people wanted to be at the festival! I know there are a lot of teenagers in the UK who are serious about living holy lives. Many have responded to Rebecca St James's "Wait For Me" book and song, as well as the True Love Waits campaign. Both of these encourage young people to value sexual purity. Seeing lots of kids wearing WWJD bracelets is also really encouraging. One of my favourite moments in the past few years was a ministry time at a youth conference. A guy had spoken on Holiness and announced that the ministry team had black sacks, in case anyone had stuff they wanted to get rid off. In response to the call to holiness, young people streamed forwards and the bags were filled up with all kinds of magazines, substances and other things that they were letting go of. It made me cry. I'm sure similar things are happening all over the country.

What are your hopes and plans for the future?
I very recently gave up my job with a management consultancy firm to pursue worship ministry full time. So, I'm excited to see what God has in store for 2003! I have a number of events booked in and am looking forward to leading worship in the UK and overseas. Conferences in Melbourne and Sydney will be a particular highlight, as they will be my first visit to Australia. I'm also keen to start mentoring young, female worship leaders. Another thing I want to explore more deeply in the coming years is the relationship between worship and evangelism.

2) Streetbrand magazine: Interview link - Page11 or see below

You were born in Canterbury and now live in the States, why did you move?
I’ve always had the USA on my heart, ever since my early teens. It must have been a ‘God thing’ because my parents had never been there, neither had I. I just felt drawn to the country and culture. When I was 19 I said to the Lord “I need to know if this calling to America is You or just my imagination. If its You, please send me an all expenses paid trip to California this year”. Two months later, Vineyard Music, my publisher, called and said they were flying me to California later that year for a songwriters forum. As soon as we touched down in LA, I knew one day God would move me to the States, and it happened a few years after that when EMI Records offered me a record deal in Nashville TN.

Was it hard to make the transition from England to America? If so, how did you deal with this? If not, why do you think this is?
The transition was OK as the Lord had put moving to the USA on my heart for so many years. He gave me a verse out of Genesis 12, where he says to Abraham “leave your country, and your fathers household, and go to the land I’m showing you – I will be with you and I will bless you there”. All God’s words to my heart made the transition easier.

Did you grow up in a big family? What number are you in the family?
I have one sister – Joanna Claire , or Jo as we call her. She’s 18 months younger than me and lives in Canterbury just down the street from our mum and dad.

Who did you grow up listening to?
I grew up listening to an interesting mixture of music. Mum would be in the kitchen cooking and listening to worship music; Keith Green, Don Fransisco, Larry Norman, early Hillsong… then Dad was down in the office room listening to loud, pounding 60s rock and roll – the Beatles and others… I inherited a love for both; worship that is passionate and energetic!

What is Worship In Action and how are you involved?
I come from a family with a strong tie to Missions. My Grandparents have been missionaries in Africa and in Israel, and modeled to us kids that the gospel has to be shown in word and deed. As a worship leader, my passion is for our praise to be far more than just singing songs. It needs to be put into ACTION to touch the world! When God describes the kind of worship He is looking for – in Old Testament prophetic books such as Amos and Isaiah - its clear that His heart wants us to reach out to the poor and needy, the widows and orphans. If we sing and do nothing with our hands and feet, we cannot truly call it worship.

“Worship In Action.org” is an online place for me to share what God is putting on my heart regarding this topic… I’ll be writing Bible studies and articles, and also interviewing others with poignant thoughts on this theme.

Tell me about Painting the Invisible…. Why did you decide on that title?
Here’s the journal entry that I wrote, when deciding what to call my album:

‘Trying to describe the Eternal using earthly words, is like trying to scoop up the whole ocean into the palm of your hand. It’s like trying to count every star in the endless midnight sky. All of our words fall so short; every melody failing to capture the true beauty of the Heavenly.

When humans encounter the Divine, we are left struggling for words; grasping for terms to describe other-worldly beauty. In the Old Testament Daniel saw God and said: “His robes were white like snow, like wool…His eyes shone like a fiery flame”.
In the New Testament John saw Jesus and wrote: “He was like a jasper stone…like an emerald….beside a sea of glass like crystal, with a voice like the sound of a trumpet”. With every use of the word “like”, we see that nothing on earth could accurately provide a comparison for the glory their eyes had seen.

Yet our hearts are so captivated by God that we cannot remain silent. So we search for words and melodies to describe Him…. hunting and rummaging into every corner of language and expression. We are like children with crayons trying to copy a majestic Monet or a Van Gogh. It’s crazy that we should even try.

And yet God delights in our child-like attempts to bring Him an offering of words, melody and song. How incredible. The everlasting King of Heaven is moved and stirred by our earthly songs of poetry and praise.

So we bring our child-like worship to Him, loving the One we have not yet seen, singing to the One who is beautiful beyond our wildest imagination. Joyfully struggling for words, we will continue on our worshipful quest of expressing the inexpressible; describing the indescribable, pronouncing the unspeakable; explaining the unfathomable; painting the invisible.”

Why did you get into music?
Music has always been as natural to me as needing to breathe… If something is going on in my heart, it always finds its was naturally into lyrics and melody. My parents are big loves of music – mum as a worship leader and songwriter, and Dad as a record collector. It’s in my genes, and I’m so grateful for that!

If you weren’t involved with music what would you be doing today?
Other things I love to do are writing and pasturing. So if I wasn’t doing music I’d be writing books, or on the staff of a church. One of my hobbies is juggling – balls, knives and fire torches (yes I’m serious!) so maybe if I wasn’t in music I’d run away with the circus!!

What pressures or challenges do you face as a woman in today's world and what would you say to young girls who may be going through similar?
There are so many pressures on us as girls today…pressure to be beautiful, thin, perfect. The media bombards us with pictures of glamorous photo-shop edited models, pressuring us to match up to those. As a worship leader, I feel like most of society has fallen into self worship, obsessing over appearance and beauty. I believe we need to re-center ourselves on the One who our eyes should be fixed upon! When we are captivated by Jesus rather than ourselves, that’s when we are truly free. So I encourage girls to look to Jesus and fall in love with Him, and refuse to be part of self obsessive culture. That’s the worship God desires – us fixing out thoughts and attention on Him.