Renew My Heart Today

Songwriting is deeply personal. Though most of the songs I write are meant to encourage others, they are written out of my own experience and often come around to lift my spirits time and time again. The song Hold Me, from my new album Encore, has been a powerful prayer for me recently. I thought I’d share it with you.
.
Hold Me
.
(Verse 1)
Early in the morning
I turn my thoughts to You
Empower me to follow in Your ways
You know all the hard things
I’m facing to get through
Revive my soul to trust in You today
.
(PreChorus)
Caring for the world that You love
Sharing with them healing from above
.
(Chorus)
Hold me, Hold me
Create in me a clean heart O God
Renew my heart today
.
Give it a listen on YouTube or use your favorite music app (like Spotify). You can purchase a digital copy of my Encore album at Gumroad.com.
.

The photo above is a recent picture of the VCS high school Introduction to Guitar and Electric Bass class. I’m so proud of them and I’m grateful to be working with them.
.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support! My you have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. There’s so much to be thankful for!

Coming Events

November 19 (Sunday)
I’ll be leading worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church. This is my last Sunday as their interim Worship Pastor. It is located at 5150 Camden Avenue, San Jose, CA, 95124, (408) 266-4412. The service is at 10:00am. https://www.sjcrc.org/

My Music on CDs and Streaming

Listen to my music for free on my YouTube channel. To purchase physical albums or CDs, go to our website at HeartfeltMusic.org. To purchase digital albums or CDs, go to my page at Gumroad.com. Also, HearNow.com will point to other listening options like Spotify.

Thanksgiving & Gratitude

May this Thanksgiving season be filled with celebration and gratitude for all that God is doing in your life! I am so thankful for my family, for Heartfelt Music Ministry, and for you! I appreciate the many years you have been following me and this ministry. Thank you!

Contributions to Enhance Ministry

Would you consider a year-end gift to enhance the impact or our ministry? We are a 501(c)3 Non-Profit ministry (for your tax write-off purposes). You can donate to Heartfelt Music® Ministry through Pay Pal Giving Fund with no fees taken out.

Building Relationships

Last month, I highlighted Living a Balanced life with the idea of making choices to enjoy all you do and not get burned out. This month, I’d like to touch on how to build and maintain relationships that are positive and mutually beneficial. God wants us to love everyone as He loves them. But, Jesus demonstrated that it’s only natural to be closer to some people (such as the 12 disciples) and recognize some people are toxic and should be handled carefully (such a some Pharisees). In general, it’s best to be inclusive and “love your neighbor as yourself.” Maneuvering through the world of relationships can be complicated and frustrating as well as rewarding and encouraging. Stephen Covey, in his book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (and his book on the added 8th Habit) gives 4 interpersonal habits for us to keep in mind to help us nurture our relationships with others. These have been very inspiring for me. Building relationships is not something we arrive at. It’s ongoing and must be intentional. We make plenty of mistakes along the way. May the following principles help you on your journey.

.

1)  Think Win-Win [Habit 4]
Genuinely strive for mutually beneficial solutions or agreements in your relationships. Value and respect people by understanding a “win” for all.

.

2)  Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood [Habit 5]
Use empathic listening to be genuinely influenced by a person, which compels them to reciprocate the listening and take an open mind to being influenced by you.

.

3)  Synergize [Habit 6]
Combine the strengths of people through positive teamwork, so as to achieve goals no one person could do alone.

.

4)  Find Your Voice and Inspire Others to Find Theirs [Habit 8]
Out of your uniqueness and strengths, find your influence.  Then help others find theirs. Watch out for the 5 cancerous behaviors:  criticism, complaining, comparing, competing, & contending.

.

Thank you so much for being a part of the Heartfelt Music Ministry community. It’s because of your prayers and support that we are able to continue to lead others toward intimacy with God and toward excellence in artistry.

.

Since it’s still summer, you may want to watch my Summer Home Concert on my YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/dpx16y_XN6o. I played all the songs on my latest album, Encore, and wrapped it up with My Prayer for You. I hope it encourages you!

Valley Christian School Begins

I’m continuing to teach music, guitar, worship and video at Valley Christian Schools with both junior high and high school. Last week, I played bass guitar for our first worshipful Convocation.

Summer Concert Series Recap

The Mount Hermon Summer Concert Series was such a blessing. Each concert brought in more people than ever! The last concert with Phillips, Craig & Dean had almost 700 attending.

Encore Summer Concert

Watch last month’s Summer Home Concert on my YouTube channel, with songs from the new album, Encore, (and My Prayer for You). You can hear clips of each song on the album Encore at HearNow.com.

Stay in Touch on Social Media

Follow and share your thoughts on:
 

Jesus Has Risen!

I hope you have been enjoying the build-up to tomorrow’s celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. Join me at the Mount Hermon Conference Center’s Victory Circle at 6:30am for their Sunrise Service (our usual gathering at the Ponderosa Lodge Cross is closed for reconstruction). This week has been a reflection on what drove Jesus to the cross, our seperation from God. We need a Savior. I led worship for a gathering of four churches last night in Santa Clara during Good Friday and it was sobering to share communion as Jesus did before he went to the cross. “Remember me, my life given for you, and the New Covenant of my life in you.” On Easter, Jesus conquered death and, not only completely forgave us of our sin, but empowers us to live in His resurrection victory. May you experience His life in you today and everyday!

The ministry momentum for Heartfelt Music Ministry is creating an astounding influence in keeping with our Mission Statement: Leading others toward intimacy with God and excellence in artistry. We have just selected the worship team for next year at Valley Christian Schools in San Jose. What a joy to train these students to encourage 2300 students in worship during chapels. This winter and spring, I have been training musicians and leading worship for San Jose Christian Reformed Church and San Ramon Presbyterian Church. I’m continuing to mentor through private lessons in-person and through Zoom. I’ve been preparing and producing the Mount Hermon Summer Concert Series, which is shaping up to be an inspiration for those who attend. We’ll have seven concerts this summer. Mark your calendars and join in the fun!

• 6/24 – Buddy Greene, Jeff Taylor and Ron Block
• 7/1 – Southern Raised
• 7/8 – Veritas
• 7/15 – Nicole Nordeman
• 7/22 – The King’s Brass
• 7/29 – Michael O’Brien
• 8/5 – Phillips, Craig & Dean

I hope you have been able to enjoy my new album, Encore. Visit the HearNow.com website to access links to Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Amazon, Pandora, etc. Check out all my products available at the Heartfelt Music website.

Thank you for your continued support and prayers!

Family Time

I was able to spend a few day in Oregon visiting my son, daughter-in-law, and grand-daughter a couple of weeks ago. It was fun being together amidst the combination of snow, rain, and sunny days. They are so precious. I was able to be a handyman for a few days.

Private Lessons

If you are interested in private lessons/ coaching this summer, email me at [email protected]. “Reggie is an amazing teacher with a lot of energy, enthusiasm and love for music and the guitar. His knowledge is vast. My son loves Reggie and waits for his lesson.” ~ Nadiya

Encore Album

Listen to my newest album Encore at HearNow.com as well as my other 7 available albums: Heartfelt Worship, Heartfelt Celebration, Instrumental Guitar – Volume I, Instrumental Guitar – Volume II, Here & Now, Intimacy, and I Wish You a Mary Christmas.

Upcoming Events

• April 9 (Sunday)
  I’ll be leading worship at Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center’s Easter Sunrise Service. It is at 6:30am. It will be located at the Mount Hermon Conference Center’s Victory Circle. [It will not be held at the cross due to Ponderosa Lodge being temporarily closed for remodeling.]
• April 16 (Sunday)
  I’ll be leading worship at San Ramon Presbyterian Church. It is located at 12700 Alcosta Blvd, San Ramon, CA 94583, (925) 543-7772. The service is at 9:00am.
• April 23 (Sunday)
  I’ll be leading worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church. It is located at 5150 Camden Avenue, San Jose, CA, 95124, (408) 266-4412. The service is at 10:00am.

Stay in touch through Social Media

Follow and share your thoughts on:
 

Designing Ministry for 2023

I hope you are healthy and enjoying the start of a new year. Heartfelt Music Ministry is beginning 2023 with a great sense of anticipation! Ministry is continuing through mentoring young musicians at Valley Christian Schools, teaching private lessons, helping churches with their worship ministries, doing concerts, and organizing summer concerts for Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center. I’m specifically working with San Jose Christian Reformed Church and San Ramon Presbyterian Church in leading worship and encouraging their musicians.

.
My new album, Encore, is out with new songs to inspire your faith in Christ. There was a delay in getting the album out because my voice wasn’t very strong in November and December, but finally it’s ready. It is now available to stream through Spotify, Pandora, iTunes, Amazon, Apple Music, and many more. Check out this page: https://reggiecoates.hearnow.com/encore.

.
The music notation and guitar tablature is available for the first song on the album I’ll Worship with My Life. Visit my Gumroad page at https://reggie.gumroad.com/l/worshipwithmylife.

.
Heartfelt Music Ministry is looking ahead to do more concerts both live and online, more training both individually and in groups, and more ministry with churches to lead others toward intimacy with God and excellence in artistry.

.
Thank you for your encouragement for me to continue creating uplifting music and investing in others. It’s exciting to see how music can touch people’s lives. I appreciate your prayers!

Encore is Here!

The new album is out! Relationships are at the center of this new musical expression. It is now available to stream through Spotify, Pandora, iTunes, Amazon, Apple Music, and many more.

Generous Support

A huge “Thank you!” to those who gave so generously to help the new album come to fruition. Your gifts totalled $500, which was the goal! It’s so fulfilling to serve the Lord with you!

Music & Tab

My song I’ll Worship with My Life, from the new album Encore is now available digitally to purchase for only $2.99. It’s fully written out in music notation and guitar tablature.Go to my Gumroad.

Upcoming Events

• March 5, 19 (Sundays)
  I’ll be leading worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church. It is located at 5150 Camden Avenue, San Jose, CA, 95124, (408) 266-4412. The service is at 10:00am.
• March 12 (Sunday)
  I’ll be leading worship at San Ramon Presbyterian Church. It is located at 12700 Alcosta Blvd, San Ramon, CA 94583, (925) 543-7772. The service is at 9:00am.
• April 9 (Sun)
  I’ll be leading worship at Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center’s Easter Sunrise Service. It is at 6:30am. It will be located at Mount Hermon, CA 95041. It will not be held at the cross due to Ponderosa being temporarily closed for remodeling, but will be located either at Victory Circle (Conference Center) or the Pavilion (Redwood Camp).

Join Us on Social Media

Follow and share your thoughts on:
 

Merry Christmas!

On behalf of me, my family, and the Heartfelt Music® Ministry Board of Directors, we wish you a Merry Christmas and meaningful New Year celebration! May you feel refreshed and de-stressed during this holiday season.

.

Two years ago, I did a Home Christmas Concert and created a Christmas album for you to enjoy. This Christmas, may the songs lift you up and remind you of what this season is all about.

.

If you would like to watch it, here’s the link – https://youtu.be/MrUfoSszURM

.

As some of you know, I wrote a Christmas song with a unique slant, I Wish You a Mary Christmas. The song refers to Martha in Luke 10 who was so busy with her preparations that she missed the most important thing. Her sister Mary understood that worshiping Jesus is more valuable to Him than serving. God’s priority is to be intimate with us in a loving relationship, so let’s slow down and worship Him through all we do, in good times and bad.

.

• Hear how it sounds and where it’s available – https://reggiecoates.hearnow.com/i-wish-you-a-mary-christmas
• You can purchase it digitally through Gumroad – https://reggie.gumroad.com/l/GihjX
• You can purchase it physically though our website – https://heartfeltmusic.org/products/#Physical_Products
  .

I am almost done creating a new album called Encore, which will be released soon. This is a collection of six new songs and two medleys of my songs on the themes of God’s Love and Jesus in Me. I’ve finished recording all the songs and now I’m mastering them. What a joy to have new songs to share!

.

This year has been full of ministry. The first semester of Valley Christian School has come to completion. The Worship Teams, Guitar classes and video classes that I teach have been so fun! I am also leading worship and training twice a month with San Jose Christian Reformed Church. I’m continuing to teach private music lessons (guitar, bass guitar, and voice), some in-person and some through Zoom.

.

Thank you to those who generously donated to Heartfelt Music Ministry this last year! We appreciate you so much and definitely couldn’t do this ministry without you! Would you consider a year-end gift to enhance the impact or our ministry? You can donate to Heartfelt Music through Pay Pal Giving Fund with no fees taken out. If you buy anything on Amazon.com and go through Amazon Smile with Heartfelt Music Ministry as your cherity, we receive a percentage of your purchase without costing you anything extra. Same with eBay.com with eBay GivingWorks (listing Heartfelt Music as your Charity), we receive a contribution at no cost to you. Thank you for your support!

.

Upcoming Events

Jan 1 & 15 (Sundays)
Leading worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church, 5150 Camden Avenue, San Jose Ca 95124. Service begins at 10:00am if you’d like to come. You can enjoy the service at home online at http://www.sjcrc.org/videos.

.

Follow us on Social Media

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope you are enjoying some vacation and family time with rest and reflection. I am so thankful for Sherri and my family for the joy they bring me. I’m thankful for Valley Christian School where I can mentor youth through music and influence them toward Christ. I’m thankful for Heartfelt Music® Ministry and the opportunity to create and share my music to encourage others as well as train musicians in worship leading and artistic excellence. I’m so grateful for those who helped us reach our goal of $500 to finish the album Encore. I’m also thankful for you! It’s very encouraging to know you and others pray for me and follow what the Lord is doing through Heartfelt Music®. Thank you for your continued support!

Upcoming Events

Dec 4 & 18 (Sun)
Leading worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church, 5150 Camden Avenue, San Jose Ca 95124. Service begins at 10:00am if you’d like to come. You can enjoy the service at home online at http://www.sjcrc.org/videos.

Follow us on Social Media

New Album and You

New Album Entitled Encore

I’ve been writing songs this summer for a new album called Encore. I just finished the songwriting and arrangements, but now I need to record them and get them ready for publication. Hope to have it ready in time for Christmas.

.

Donate toward the Encore Album – Indiegogo

You can help complete the Encore album by donating through Indiegogo. All contributions go to Heartfelt Music Ministry toward the new album. Click on the thumbnail picture above and read all the details. Thank you for considering!
.

Singing to My Grand-Daughter

In September, Sherri and I visited our grand-daughter in Oregon as we helped my son and his wife move. It was so fun to sing to her the song I wrote for her using my son’s guitar. It’s called You Pick Me Up. The song will be on the Encore album.

.
Upcoming Events

.

October 30 (Sun)
Leading worship with the Valley Christian High School Worship Team at San Jose Christian Reformed Church, 5150 Camden Avenue, San Jose Ca 95124. Service begins at 10:00am if you’d like to come.
.

November 6 (Sun)
Leading worship at San Jose Christian Reformed Church, 5150 Camden Avenue, San Jose Ca 95124. Service begins at 10:00am if you’d like to come.

I’ll Worship with My Life

Since the beginning of August, I’ve hit the road running! This summer has been a respite and refresher in many ways, but now life and ministry gets pretty full. It’s a joy serving the Lord through Valley Christian Schools and the worship teams are gearing up to lead worship in more Chapels this year. Mount Hermon summer concerts went very well and I’m meeting with leaders this week to select next year’s artists. I’ll be leading worship once a month at San Jose Christian Reformed Church and you can join the service online at http://www.sjcrc.org/videos. I’m continuing to teach private lessons through Zoom and in person this Fall, which is very fulfilling to invest in their growth skillfully and spiritually. I’ll continue helping with the leadership of the Mount Hermon Community group.

.

This summer, I’ve been working on a new album and the opening song is an upbeat proclamation of my resolve to worship God with my whole life. The chorus is:

.

I’ll worship with my life
To be a living sacrifice
An instrument to magnify You
I’ll worship with my life
More than all the words I say
I’ll follow You in every way
And love You with my life.

.

Romans 12:1 is my inspiration: “Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”

.

God deserves our worship and love! May we fully take on our spiritual service of worship and completely surrender our lives to Him. I pray that God would bless you this Fall, bringing encouragement and a sense of newness to everything that comes your way.
.

Follow us on Social Media

Follow and share your thoughts on:

.

His Love Endures Forever

Psalm 100 is such an inspiration for us to worship the Lord with gladness! It’s only five verses long, but is loaded with expression and motivation to praise his name. Knowing that the Lord is God, who made us, and deeply loves us, his people, we can respond with shouts of joy, joyful songs, thanksgiving and praise. “For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations (Ps. 100:5).”

.

Come to one or all three of the remaining Mount Hermon Summer Concerts, produced by Heartfelt Music Ministry. Each concert is on Saturday starting at 6:30pm in the Conference Center auditorium. Go to http://mounthermon.org/summer-concerts to get more information. Even though the Phillips, Craig & Dean concert is “Sold Out,” come anyway as we’ve discovered that 20% of the people who have registered for tickets don’t show. We’ll fit you in!

.

Michael O’Brien is an American Christian musician and worship leader, who is an amazing vocalist and pianist. He has released eight solo albums since 1990. He was a touring member of the Heritage Singers before becoming a full-fledged member of NewSong in 1999. He is a Dove Award winner and received a Grammy Nomination for his songwriting. For the last few Christmas seasons, he has toured with the Foto Sisters who joined us at the beginning of our summer concert series. Michael places a high priority on family and will share the miraculous journey of his marriage. Come join him for his first time with us at Mount Hermon as a solo artist. Come join us this Saturday, July 16th.

New Songs & New Album

I’ve been writing songs this summer for a new album called Encore. One song, Hold Me, uses three capos and asks God to renew my heart today. Another song, You Pick Me Up, is for my grand-daughter and is an upbeat appreciation of her cuteness.

Summer Concerts at Mount Hermon

The Mount Hermon Summer concert series is each Saturday, July 16, 23, and 30, 6:30pm. You can sit inside or outside. All concert programs are open to the public without charge. Even though the Phillips, Craig and Dean concert is sold out, come anyway!

Listen to Reggie’s Music

There are seven albums of mine you can listen to through HearNow.com. You can hear the songs on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music, YouTube, and more. If you’d like to purchase my music on CD or digitally, go to our product page at https://heartfeltmusic.org/products/.

Follow us on Social Media

Follow and share your thoughts on:

Streaming Concert This Sunday

This Sunday, September 12, 5:00pm, I’ll be streaming a live concert through Facebook Live sharing songs from my new Instrumental Guitar, Vol. 2 album as well as other songs. The concert will be on the Heartfelt Music® Facebook page. Click Here to join the fun. You can view my last concert by clicking here. There are 10 songs on the album and the titles are:

1. • Abundant Sunshine
   • Oh Snap!
   • Java Jumpstart
   • Worthy and So Wonderful
   • Ruminate on Grace
   • Untied Shoelaces
   • Peacock Blue
   • Building Trust
   • Bossa Nova Baby
   • Andantino

I’ll be explaining a little about each song this Sunday, but you can watch 4 videos I created to highlight how the album was made.

Instrumental 2 Album Production Videos:

• Part 1 – Song Stories
• Part 2 – Styles & Guitars
• Part 3 – Keys & Capos
• Part 4 – Art & Production

I will also be singing at least one song from each of the albums listed below. You can hear how each song sounds at a special page with HearNow.com and these pages will point you to a number of streaming platforms that carry my albums. Check out:

• Instrumental Guitar – Vol. II – 10 instrumental songs
• Heartfelt Worship – 17 of Reggie’s worship songs with band
• I Wish You a Mary Christmas – 10 Christmas songs, originals and familiar carols
• Here & Now – 10 songs both new and familiar with 2 meaningful cover songs
• Instrumental Guitar – Vol. I – 10 instrumental songs
• Intimacy – 20 original songs on relationships
• Heartfelt Celebration – 20 of Reggie’s popular original songs

Hope to catch you Sunday!