Character & Integrity

I have written an article under the Think about It section on the Heartfelt Music website to guide and challenge you with a thoughtful look into what character and integrity means. CLICK HERE to read the full article.

Character and integrity are not merely abstract concepts. They are values that are lived out and permeate every interaction we have, both personally and professionally. As individuals who create and inspire through our artistic expressions and daily lives, fostering a commendable character and unwavering integrity becomes essential not only for our development but for the positive influence we can have on others.

Character encompasses the collection of traits that define a person. These attributes can span various domains such as the physical, emotional, mental, and moral. Together, they serve as a framework through which others perceive us, determining whether we are seen as having a commendable character or a reprehensible character. A person characterized by commendable qualities displays honesty, helpfulness, and respect for others. Such individuals are often viewed as reliable and trustworthy, making their presence uplifting and inspiring. The moral and personality traits that contribute to good character act as guiding principles, directing behavior in a way that is aligned with ethical standards.

Integrity represents a commitment to honesty and maintaining consistent moral principles. It is a trait marked by the ability to do the right thing, even when no one is looking. Integrity demands a convergence of one’s actions, values, and character, reinforcing reliability and ethical behavior. Integrity isn’t about being perfect; it’s about being whole (the word actually comes from the Latin integer, meaning “intact” or “whole number”).

May you experience “wholeness” and integrity in your life and character.

Private Lessons & Coaching Online

Would you like to take your guitar playing to the next level? I am teaching both children and adults online and in person, both acoustic and electric guitar and electric bass guitar. Do you know a friend or family member who would like to take lessons? I am teaching on Tuesdays through May and would love to help you in your music endeavors. Email me if you have any questions.

Devotionals to Encourage You

One of my responsibilities with Valley Christian Schools is to coordinate and create online devotional videos for those who can’t make the devotions in person. There are about 75 of these faith building videos on a YouTube Playlist open to the public. From topics like “Identity in Christ” to “Meaningful Interruptions,” you can be encouraged too.

Vocal Workshop for Singers

Working with musicians who either lead singing in churches or love to sing while playing guitar, there’s always a desire to improve. I recorded a vocal training workshop for a church and now I’m making it available for everyone. I explain the elements of great vocal production, problems to avoid, how to sing with confidence, and more. I majored in Vocal Performance in college and love to sing!

Coming Events

• 6/20 – The Katinas
• 6/27 – Heritage Singers
• 7/11 – Nicole Nordeman
• 7/18 – Phillips, Craig, and Dean
• 7/25 – Fernando Ortega
• 8/1 – Sandi Patty

My hope for this Christmas is for you to be full of joy and wonder during this wonderful season! There are a number of ways to enjoy this Christmas season by listening to my music. I performed a Home Christmas Concert last year you can view on my YouTube Channel. On a previous video, you can sing-a-long to Christmas carols a while the lyrics appear on the screen. My album I Wish You a Mary Christmas includes familiar and worshipful Christmas carols. CLICK HERE to hear the songs on the album and where it’s available. You can purchase this album digitally through Gumroad – CLICK HERE. You can purchase physical CDs though our website – CLICK HERE. You can add Mary Christmas to your YouTube Playlist with this link from my Home Concert last month (CLICK HERE).

Recent Events

There’s been significant ministry throughout November: Training worship musicians through a private workshop with Cornerstone Evangelical Baptist Church; Leading worship music with the Shalom Gathering at Mount Hermon; Weekly private lessons in person and online; Being interviewed on Alden Olmsted’s Podcast regarding my songs written for Mexico Outreach; and teaching guitar at Valley Christian Schools.

Your Donations Make a Difference

It would be an honor if you would consider contributing to Heartfelt Music® Ministry, under-girding and supporting the meaningful and transformative work we are doing. CLICK HERE to make a donation. No fees will be taken out and your gift is tax-deductible since we are a nonprofit 501(c)3, no matter how much. We are so grateful for your continued prayers for our Ministry.

Home Concert November 2025

If you missed the concert I performed at my home last month online, it is available now through my YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFj3zACCORA. I’m excited how this turned out with stories behind each song and sharing my music in a cozy setting. The concert is 45 minutes long with 10 original songs.

New Book Release by Lynn Fox

I wrote the Preface to this book by one of my favorite Bible School instructors Lynn Fox, Psy.D. This book is about the Presence of Intimacy, Passion, and Pleasure from a Biblical perspective. “In a world increasingly captivated by both the complexities of human connection and the search for spiritual fulfillment, it is rare to find a work that so boldly addresses the intersections of two profoundly significant aspects of our lives: sex and worship. Sex and Worship is probably one of the most provocative book titles to grace the pages of contemporary literature, yet Lynne Fox does not shy away from the challenge. Through her insightful prose, she masterfully interweaves these critical topics, creating a tapestry that speaks to both the heart and the spirit.” (from the preface) CLICK HERE to order a copy.

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Home Online Concert & Live Stream

I will be showing a new Home Online Concert this Sunday, November 9, at 5:00pm, but in addition to that, I’ll be Live Streaming a half hour before that at 4:30pm. I can chat with you, catch-up and answer questions. Click this link to join the Live Stream with me: https://youtube.com/live/-OIdJ-WnJn0. Then, at 5:00pm, click this link to watch the new Home Concert – November 2025: https://youtu.be/rFj3zACCORA

The songs I’ll be including in this Home Online Concert will be a variety of my songs from a number of different albums throughout the years. I’ll share stories behind each song and you’ll see me play and sing fresh versions of each song.

• No Greater Love
• Here to Worship
• Windows
• Cast Away
• Reap What You Sow
• Stand Firm and Be Strong
• Touch My Heart
• Hold Me
• Mary Christmas
• Time with You

Podcast: Reggie’s Mexicali Songs

Alden Olmstead has a podcast called 5 Great Questions. After I posted on my YouTube Channel a Playlist of 3 theme songs I wrote for Azusa Pacific University’s Mexico Outreach, he wanted to interview me on his podcast. I led worship music for 10 years during the week before Easter. Alden also went to Mexicali at the same time with his church group. Radically Committed, Go the Distance, and Take it to Heart were the 3 songs. We even included Ain’t Nobody. Find it on YouTube or Apple Podcasts.

Thanksgiving Observance

Mt. Hermon 2026 Summer Concerts

We have already selected who will be in concert for the Mount Hermon Summer Concert Series and the summer of 2026 should prove to be a summer of rich music and faith celebration. Artist/Band line-up:

• 6/20 Katinas
• 6/27 Heritage Singers
• 7/11 Nicole Nordeman
• 7/18 Phillips, Craig and Dean
• 7/25 Fernando Ortega
• 8/1 Sandi Patty

You can reserve seats by going to the Mount Hermon Summer Concert Page

Passion & Tenacity 

Autumn is here and the color of the leaves are beautiful! I hope you experience fulfillment and joy during this season. Thank you for your continued engagement with me and Heartfelt Music® Ministry. You help this ministry stay vibrant and productive.

There’s been a lot of things happening with me over the last month. I’m still developing The Complete Guitar Course with 49 lessons; I just added 30 videos of me playing and singing individual songs on YouTube so you can find specific ones for encouragement; I’m performing another Home Concert November 9th with a personal Live Stream just before it; We just had our annual Board of Directors & Officers dinner (What a joy to serve with these folks!); I’m also teaching guitar and bass classes at Valley Christian School and private lessons both online and in person. It’s a full schedule, but I still have plenty of time to be with Sherri and balance family life. I’m thankful to be doing what I’m passionate about.

On our website, there’s a section called Think About It with helpful ideas to spur us on to excellence and motivation. The recent post is a focus on Passion and Tenacity.

Genuine passion is a deep, authentic commitment to something that matters to you, characterized by focused effort, enduring commitment through challenges, and integration into your identity, rather than just a fleeting interest or a pursuit of pleasure. It involves investing significant time and energy, a willingness to make sacrifices for it, and a deep, often unspoken, internal drive.

A tenacious person is someone who is determined, persistent, and does not give up easily when pursuing a goal. They are resilient in the face of obstacles, with a strong work ethic and the resolve to see things through, even when they are difficult or progress is slow.

How about you? What are you passionate and tenacious about? Our website post goes into more detail.

You can hear the audio for any song on eight of my albums on our YouTube Channel by clicking on the album here:

Encore (8 Songs/Videos)

Instrumental Guitar, Volume II (10 songs/videos)

Heartfelt Worship (17 songs/videos)

I Wish You a Mary Christmas (10 songs/videos)

Here & Now (10 songs/videos)

Instrumental Guitar, Volume I (10 songs/videos)

Intimacy (20 songs/videos)

Heartfelt Celebration (20 songs/videos)

Now, you can also watch me play any of 30 individual songs on our YouTube Channel. You can also watch and listen to the whole playlist. I hope these songs uplift you today!

Reggie’s Songs Playlist
Abundant Sunshine
Ain’t Nobody
Celebrate
Draw Near to God
Filled with You
Freedom’s Challenge
Getting Stronger
Go the Distance
God’s Love Medley
Here & Now
I Can Laugh Now
I Can’t See the Future
I Lift My Love to You
I’ll Worship with My Life
Isaiah 12:2
Jesus Lives in Me
Lord I’m Yours
Morning Come Lately
My Prayer for You
Partly Cloudy
Peace
Radically Committed
Remember
Ruminate on Grace
Seasons
Slow Me Down
Stephanie
Take a Stand
Worthy & So Wonderful
You Will Make a Way

Praying for You

It’s my prayer that you would experience the Lord directing your hearts into the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ. You can enjoy my song My Prayer for You on my YouTube channel by video or just audio. It’s the last song on my Intimacy Album (check out HearNow.com). Also, if you’re interested in learning the song on guitar, the music notation and guitar tab is available at Gumroad.com. Purchasing the physical album or digital album are also available. No matter what life throws at you, I hope you are encouraged and experience the joy of the Lord!

We are so grateful for your generosity!

We have received $390 through the Amplify the Sound of Hope fundraising opportunity. With this, we were able to purchase a year of MOOZ, which enables us to upgrade training musicians online (MOOZ is like ZOOM for musicians). We’ve already started it with new students and they love it. Mentoring students wonderfully enables us to spread hope. Since part of the funds we need to operate are from donations, we are not able to upgrade our website at this time. If you would like to help out financially with either a one time gift, monthly gift, or yearly gift, visit our Donation Page for more information. Thank you!

My Prayer for You Music Video

We need to have our hearts anchored in a way that gives us undeniable stability through it all. In 2 Thessalonians 3:5, Paul tells us that the two things that give our hearts a strong foundation are “the love of God” and “the steadfastness of Christ.” I was reading though the Bible and came across this verse and thought, “What a wonderful prayer for my family and friends.” Watch my backyard performance of My Prayer for You on my YouTube channel. Sherri has beautifully designed our backyard.

Reggie’s Complete Guitar Course

As I mentioned at the beginning of the summer, I’m creating a world class guitar training course, equipping people young and old with the tools to master guitar playing and dramatically impact contemporary culture for good. These dynamic lessons take guitarists from beginner to advanced. The 49 lessons are “spiral” in that they go in order and build on each other. They work best by taking them in order. Yet, you can start at any level and continue from there. It will take a few more months to complete.

Lesson Tips – Think About It

Take a look at some very helpful tips for students regarding Goals & Objectives, Discipline & Desire, and Practicing & Rehearsing. As you pursue guitar playing and look forward to getting better, it’s important to define goals and objectives. In order to keep your motivation and initiative thriving from lesson to lesson, it is essential to keep a balance between discipline and desire. Thinking about the frequency of your practicing is helpful to improve your skill.

Coming Events

Partner with Us in Ministry

I hope you’ve been enjoying the summer? Sherri and I celebrated our 41st Wedding Anniversary last week with an afternoon on the beach in Capitola enjoying the warm sunshine and cool ocean breeze.

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Thanks again for your continued prayers and support. We would not be able to do what we do without you. We are continuing our crowd-funding opportunities to help enhance our message of hope. Your support helps us continue this mission:

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– To train and equip the next generation of worship leaders and musicians.
– To bring music ministry to churches, prisons, shelters, hospitals, and others.
– To produce Spirit-led music that inspires faith and uplifts weary souls.
– To lead worship where it’s needed most—without worrying about finances.

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One family who has been supporting Heartfelt Music Ministry every month for years wrote me last week:

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“Reggie, for many years, you and Sherri have been continuously family friends. You sang at our wedding, which made our day very special. We have lost both our parents and a brother within the last few years and Heartfelt Music has uplifted us and helped us through our sadness. Two of our favorite songs that you wrote are Stand Firm and Be Strong and Slow Me Down. We pray that Heartfelt Music Ministry, through you, will continue to grow and bring people closer to the Lord.”
~ John and Karen Mobley

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Will you partner with us in ministry and make a donation today? You can contribute with confidence knowing your funds are being used for ministry purposes. Every dollar will be going to Heartfelt Music Ministry.

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Help Build Heartfelt Music Ministry

Heartfelt Music Ministry is enhancing the quality of what we offer and creating a foundation for greater impact to a broader audience. The Officers and Board of Directors are inviting you to join us in this quest. Would you help us?

• Pray for us to increase our positive influence of hope and glorify God in all we do.
• Help build our Newsletter mailing list. You can invite friends, or have us invite them, by sending an email to us at [email protected].
• Make a donation toward specific goals and projects (see our fundraising site).

Thank you so much! I’m excited about expanding Heartfelt Music Ministry and providing more resources for encouragement and training. If you have questions or ideas, let me know.

In His joy,

Reggie Coates
President/CEO
Heartfelt Music Ministry
[email protected]

P.S.
Why give via PayPal Giving Fund? Other giving platforms charge a fee. But PayPal Giving Fund is quick, secure, and every dollar goes straight to the heart of Heartfelt Music.

Go to our fundraising page

Anticipating Hope

Thank you for taking time to read this Newsletter, celebrate our successes, and consider how you can help us spur on hope through music. Heartfelt Music Ministry has been inspiring bright hopefulness for over 25 years. Lives have been transformed eternally because of the message and music we share in so many ways. This Sunday, we will be kicking off a remarkable fund-raising campaign to enhance Heartfelt Music’s effectiveness in reaching a world swimming in hopelessness. We live in a very discouraging time. So, we are rising up to turn despair to hope and broken faith to confident assurance in Jesus. I make it a habit to regularly memorize Scripture to keep me focused on following Christ and Psalm 71:5 is the verse for this week, “Oh Lord, You alone are my hope.”

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This summer, we’ve already seen hundreds of people encouraged through Heartfelt Music producing the Mount Hermon Summer Concert Series (come see the Katinas this Saturday night for free!). I’ve been leading worship for a small fellowship, here in Mount Hermon, which has been a meaningful and renewing gathering of believers. I’ve started several projects that will have a global impact on our Mission Statement: Leading others toward intimacy with God and excellence in artistry. I took a break from teaching private lessons since December, but I’ll be starting back up in August. Let me know if you are interested. I’ve had a dream for many years to create a dynamic guitar method that will take guitar players from beginning to advanced. I’ve been spending most of my time this summer creating this curriculum. I’ll be continuing at Valley Christian School as head of their Guitar Studies. This new curriculum and the new material in it will also help these guitar classes.

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By the way, Doyle Dykes is coming to Mount Hermon next Saturday, July 19. He is a master guitarist with a shepherds heart. Don’t miss it.

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Hope you have a fantastic summer! Thanks again for your continued prayers and support. We would not be able to do what we do without you.

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Support through Prayer & Giving

On Sunday, the Officers and Board of Heartfelt Music Ministry will be launching our fund-raising project, which has opportunities for you to help enhance our message of hope. You can contribute with confidence knowing your funds are being used for ministry purposes. PayPal Giving Fund will give you tax exemption and not take out any fees. Thank you for your support in prayer and gifts! Learn more at our Donation Page.

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Guitar Playing Method Course

I’m creating a world class guitar training curriculum, equipping people young and old with the tools to master guitar playing and dramatically impact contemporary culture for good. Through 7 Levels and 49 Lessons, guitarists will systematically go from beginning to advances learning songs, fun guitar techniques, colorful chords, music theory, different music styles, highlighted guitarists throughout history, and much more.

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The Katinas in Concert Saturday

The Katinas are a contemporary Christian music group. They are a family of five brothers. The group’s members sang in church as children, and began playing fairs, soon moving up to nationwide slots opening for artists like DC Talk, Amy Grant. These vibrant singers are both positively inspirational and delightfully entertaining. Come this Saturday at Mount Hermon, July 12, at 6:30pm. Here them sing How Great Thou Art.

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Upcoming Events

Summer Concert Series at Mount Hermon

For the past eight years, Heartfelt Music Ministry has produced the Mount Hermon Conference Center’s Summer Concert Series. I have thoroughly enjoyed selecting the artists with the Conference Center’s leadership. Our hope is for you to find encouragement and spiritual refreshment. These concerts greatly enhance our Mission Statement: Leading others toward intimacy with God and excellence in artistry.

June 21 begins the concerts with popular and encouraging artists over six Saturdays. The concerts are free, but you’ll need to register through iTickets and indicate whether you want to sit inside or outside. Visit the Mount Hermon Concert Series Webpage for information on each concert and links to register. Concerts start at 6:30pm. Click HERE to watch a promo video of the Concert Series. Here’s the line-up:

6/21 – Buddy Greene & Jeff Taylor
6/28 – Point of Grace
7/12 – The Katinas
7/19 – Doyle Dykes
7/26 – Foto Sisters
8/2 – Phillips Craig & Dean

Below are other links to uplift you and give you the opportunity to join hands with us in ministry. Thank you for your prayers and support!

Enjoy Listening to Reggie’s Music

You can check out the many ways to enjoy listening to my music at HearNow.com. There are links to Spotify and many more. The eight albums included are:
– Encore
– Heartfelt Worship
– Here & Now
– I Wish You a Mary Christmas
– Intimacy
– Heartfelt Celebration
– Instrumental Guitar, Vol. 1
– Instrumental Guitar, Vol. 2

“My peace I give to you” – Jesus Christ

This verse is so relevant today. We need His peace and a sense a well being. My song called Peace is right from John 14:27 and accents one of the main messages He gives to His followers, He gives us peace today! Not only does a close relationship with Jesus give us overwhelming love and joy, but he provides us His calming peace that permeates every aspect of our lives. Click HERE to hear my song.

Support through Prayer & Giving

I am so grateful for your prayers and encouraging comments as I draw others closer to Christ through Heartfelt Music Ministry! If you would like to help support Heartfelt Music Ministry, you can contribute with confidence knowing your funds are being used for ministry purposes. PayPal Giving Fund will give you tax exemption and not take out any fees. Thank you for your support! Learn more at our Donation Page.

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