Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #298: Mark Schultz Christmas

"Hymns, Prayers and Invitations," the latest album from Rick Lee James, has garnered praise from CCM Magazine, Worship Leader Magazine, UTR Media and more. Written and arranged using hymnals and prayer books for inspiration, this collection of 10 modern hymn-like worship songs will inspire individuals and congregations to draw near to the heart of God. <LYRICS>—in the name of God.</LYRICS> Highlights include Christ Is Lord, inspired by St. Patrick's Breastplate Prayer, Advent Hymn, and the Communion Hymn: The Invitation. Worship leaders will be glad to know that all songs on the album are published through LifeWay Worship. Find Hymns, Prayers, and Invitations on Amazon, Spotify, Apple Music, CD Baby, and at Rick Lee James. .com. Have you ever thought to yourself, man, I'd like to host my own podcast? Well, guess what? You can go to podbean.com/voices and get everything you need to create, manage, and promote your podcast. I use Podbean every week for Voices in My Head. There's easy uploading and publishing tools, stunning templates, custom domains, social and promotional tools, an embeddable podcast player, monetization automation tools, and more. It is your all-in-one podcasting solution. With Podbean, you can create professional podcasts in minutes without any programming knowledge. Best of all, everything is mobile ready right from the start. So go to podbean.com/voices, and when you sign up, use the code voices and you'll get a sizable discount. Podbean, for your home podcasting. Thank you for listening to Voices in My Head. Welcome to Voices in My Head, the official podcast of me, Rick Lee James. I'm a recording artist, a singer, songwriter, an author, a worship leader, and an ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene. The Voices in My Head podcast is your source for discussions on music, literature, movies, pop culture, theology, and more. Now sit back, relax, and listen to the latest episode of the Voices in My Head podcast. And don't forget to let the voices in your head be heard by following me on Twitter @RickLeeJames and sharing your thoughts about today's show.

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas, just like the ones I used to know. Where the treetops glisten and children listen to hear sleigh bells in the snow. I'm dreaming of a white Christmas with every Christmas card I write. May your days be merry and bright. And may all your Christmases be white. I'm dreaming of a white Christmas. Just like the ones I used to know, where the treetops glisten and children listen to hear sleigh bells in the snow. I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm dreaming of a white Christmas with every Christmas card I write. May old days, may old days, may old Be merry and bright, and may all your Christmases be white. May your days be merry and bright, and may all your Christmas is— be wise.

My guest today on Voices in My Head is singer-songwriter, platinum-selling, Dove Award-winning artist Mark Schultz. On October 26th, Mark released his first ever Christmas album, which is available on CD exclusively in LifeWay Christian Stores. The album, simply titled Mark Schultz Christmas, is available on iTunes and all other major digital and streaming outlets internationally. Mark Schultz, welcome to Voices in My Head.

Thanks, Rick. Thanks for having me on. This is fun.

Well, I'm so glad that we were able to do this at short notice today, and I'm glad to be able to talk to you about your new Christmas album. But I just have a couple of getting-to-know-you hard-hitting questions real fast as we begin. All right, yeah. What is your favorite restaurant near where you live?

Man, that's a great question. My favorite restaurant near where I live You know what? Uh, this will catch people off guard a little bit, but it's always been, uh, my favorite breakfast place to go is the Pancake Pantry in Nashville. And so ever since I was a youth director at a church, I would always take the kids there for breakfast before school. And, uh, so it's got a warm place in my heart, but that's the first thing I think of when I answer that question.

Ah, very nice. Well, we would have also accepted Edley's Barbecue, but you know, we've got to— I'm originally from Nashville myself, so I'm familiar with the Pancake Pantry. Uh, one other quick question before we get into the musical questions. How many times have you been confused for the Olympic gold medalist wrestler Mark Schultz? Isn't that so funny?

So when I first, uh, my first record came out, and this is a true story, and I was in Atlanta doing a radio blitz to all these different stations, and I had a song called He's My Son that was, uh, had just come out and did real well. But, uh, one of the DJs there was You know, it was early in the morning, she was really, really busy. And so she looked up my website and up pops this all-star wrestler. And, uh, she knew I was a youth director at a church, but she said, and she was serious. And she said, hey Mark, now we just played your song. He's My Son, really love it. What, what, uh, what role does, uh, wrestling have in your ministry that you do? And I was like, absolutely zero. But, uh, but anyway, yeah, Mark Schultz is an all-star wrestler. But, uh, if you want to find him, go to markschultz.com. If you want to find me, go to markschultzmusic.com. We do too. We have our hairs probably similar, but we have the two entirely different, uh, things we do for a living.

Well, as a person myself whose name is Rick James, I completely feel your pain. So that's, oh, that's right. Well, let's talk a little bit, let's talk a little bit about your, your Christmas album. It's great, by the way. I've been enjoying listening to it. And you've had a very successful career and have released so many great songs over the years. I was just curious as to, while now If I can talk, I was curious as to why now is the right time for you to release a Christmas album.

Well, a couple of reasons. Number one is people who enjoy my music have been asking for a Christmas record for 18 years, and we always think about it right around Thanksgiving time. We're like, "Oh, I should have done a Christmas record this year." And then I think something that really moved it forward was a couple— well, maybe 3 years ago, I wrote a song for my wife about her dad who had passed away, uh, and it was our first Christmas without him. And he, you know, lived next door to us. And so, um, yeah, I wrote a song called Different Kind of Christmas. And, uh, as the Christmas season rolled out, we put it out on the, you know, just on my Facebook just to see, you know, for people just to have. And it was a little video, um, and man, over the last 2 or 3 years, that thing's gotten 20 million views and it's been the number 1 Christmas song on Christian charts on iTunes for the last 2 out of the 3 years. And so we thought, man, maybe it's time to put a whole Christmas record out there so people can have all these songs in one collection and not have to go find, you know, find them bits and pieces everywhere.

And well, that's terrific. And what a great song. I'm glad you actually mentioned that one because the holidays are a very difficult time for so many people, and I feel like that song just resonates with a lot of folks. That's probably why you have so many views on it. Not only is it a beautiful song, but I think it just speaks to really the pain that a lot of people feel, but also to the hope that's there behind it. So I think a lot of people are going to be glad to have it specifically on a Christmas album because it does feel so melancholy at Christmas for so many people to have that. And so, yeah, yeah, thank you.

Oh, that was just the— I was saying, sorry to cut you off, I would just say that, um, what's so interesting about Christmas is it's a joyful time and it's this fun time where people to get together and it's all families and everything, But there's also an element of loss at Christmas, and people don't talk about it as much, but they feel it just the same. And, uh, and so when we put this Christmas record out, it was a tough— it was tough to figure out where to put that song and where to put it on the record, because you can't put it up too high or else it feels like, oh man, that's so sad. But you don't want to end the record with it either because it's, uh, Christmas is a hopeful time. So you have to find the right spot for it, but it just is kind of a microcosm for what Christmas really is. That's the the joy, but also the— there can be some sadness. But I love how that song ends on a positive note to say, even though that the person that may be, uh, it may be our first Christmas without that person that's been, you know, there every year, and they bring such joy and light into Christmas. And when they're not there, it's hard. But also you realize, man, we can carry on those traditions and we can still have that joy and pass that same joy to honor that person that's not there back to the younger generations. And so, yeah, hopefully that song will be healing. I know it has been in the past for a lot of folks around this season. Oh, it certainly is.

It's a great tune, and I know a lot of people appreciate that song. Well, I have— Thank you. I've had the opportunity to work a lot with LifeWay over the years, both as a songwriter and a podcaster myself, and I'm excited that this CD that you have is exclusive to Lifeway stores. So if people want the CD, they have to go through Lifeway. And I guess it was just last year I had Point of Grace on the show, and they had a lot of success with their Christmas album. And so I'm just curious, how's your experience been working with Lifeway on this project? Because there's some really great people over there.

Oh, there sure are. And, and honored to do it, really. I mean, to have— after it's been— again, it's been 18 years, and I wish I would have had this record out a long time ago, but But now it's out, and for them to get behind the record is really special for me. The Point of Grace girls, they had such a great experience with Lifeway as well. It's part of the reason why I'm doing this is because I've been on several tours with Point of Grace, and they're like sisters to me. They spoke so highly of it, I thought it feels like the right thing to do. I'm really excited to see how things turn out.

Well, that's great. It seems like a good match, and they do such a good job with the product that they have. Honestly, I think Lifeway probably has figured out how to move CDs, like actual physical CDs, more than almost any other place I can think of right now in an age of digital streaming. So it's really great. It's really great to have that connection with them, and they have so many great things going with their ministry and with their stores. There's a beautiful track on the album I want to talk to you about that I really loved. I've listened to it a few times now. And while your album is filled with a lot of traditional carols and classic songs, this song is an instrumental song called Snow in Paris. And I just love to kind of know the story behind that one. It's just, it's just a lovely song.

Oh, thank you so much. Well, my wife and I went on a trip before we had kids, and we had a little window of time between touring, and we went to Europe. And we love to see the cathedrals, and it was just you know, so beautiful. Well, it just so happened that we were going to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Paris. And so we're coming up out of the, uh, the metro, and we didn't realize it, but man, it was snowing, and it just— huge flakes were coming down. It was just this beautiful picture. And where we got to our hotel, we stood at the top of the metro stand by the street, and it was just deathly quiet. It was almost shockingly quiet.— and here are these beautiful cathedrals lit up, and there's our little small hotel in front of us. And right off to the side of us is a— it's a little ice skating rink, and there's just— everybody's gone except one little girl. She's wearing a, you know, white cap and a red scarf, and she's just doing pirouettes out in the middle. It's like midnight, and she's just doing those little pirouettes out in the middle of this. And it was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen in my life. And I Rick, you may be like this, but I always get, you know, sometimes I get a melody for something. When I see that, it's just like, wow, I just have this melody. And so I pulled out my little cell phone, I started recording what I was hearing, or, you know, my head anyway. And, uh, and, and that became the, the basis of this track. But now when the record's on, you know, at our house, or when my wife and I are in the car and we're driving down the road— we've been listening to my Christmas record a lot, um— you know, that track will come on and she'll just, she'll look over at me and she'll just smile. Number one, because it was a great moment for us to be on a vacation together. But also, we just felt like sometimes God speaks in the quiet stuff louder than he speaks in the loud stuff. And Christmas is a loud time. I mean, commercials on television and songs and, you know, 24 hours of Christmas music. And it's just, you know, it's— but sometimes it's in those quiet places where it's just deathly quiet, surprisingly quiet, but you see something surprisingly, amazingly beautiful, and it takes your breath away. And it's in the quietness that God speaks the loudest. And, and And that was a song for me for sure. Well, that's great.

So in a sense, you became the music to this person's choreography that you were watching, which is pretty great. What a wonderful idea. It's, you know, the album itself, it's got songs like White Christmas, Silent Night, It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, The First Noel, and several others that are going to be very familiar to many people. It has a few originals on it as well. Is there one on the album that has, uh, that for you is just sort of like your favorite? Like, I just absolutely had to record this one on my first ever Christmas album.

Uh, wow, there's so many of them, you know. Um, well, one thing I'm really excited about is, uh, Little Drummer Boy will be in the, uh, the Nashville Parade this year. Yes. And so, uh, it's going to be nationally televised and it'll be in 100 different markets. And so it'll be really great in a in a Christmas parade in Nashville, a place that's been so good to me that I get a chance to give back to the city. And we're going to get a gospel choir, a huge gospel choir. We're going to do the song on national television. And what a great way to usher in Christmas, and especially in a big public parade, to sing "A Little Drummer Boy" with the gospel choir. And what I love about— we live in such a It's just such a divisive time right now. It just is. And to have, you know, white folks and Black folks and Latino folks and just a little bit of everybody in the gospel choir behind singing the song is just a way to kind of refocus again and say, hey, this is a— this baby that was born was born for all, you know. And so I'm excited about doing that for the National Parade. But I got to tell you, every time White Christmas comes on and I hear the piano come in. It has this 1940s kind of Bing Crosby kind of vibe to it, and it just makes me smile. I just, I just love that so much because it reminds me of growing up at Grandma and Grandpa's house at Christmas and, and what they would have on the radio. And so those are, those are pretty special songs for me, I think.

Well, that's great. You do them so well, as all things. You've had a number of wonderful songs, and the greatest compliment I can ever give I give to an artist is if I listen to you when I'm running, then you've made it in my mind. So you're a person that has several songs over the years that I've turned on, turned the iPod on and listened. So it's, you know, so you've made it in my mind regardless of all your other awards and achievements that you've made. You're officially on the running playlist.

I feel like I've dropped 10 pounds just by, you know, running with you like this. So that feels good to me, especially during this season.

Well, that's great. Well, I know your time is limited, and I want to thank you for being here with us today. But before we end this call, I'd love to know, is there any other things on the horizon, any projects that you have that you're excited about, or anything that you just want to talk about we haven't covered in the time that we've had today?

Yeah, well, this is a special project I have going on at my house. So right now, this holiday season, When I was 2 and a half weeks old, I was adopted by the Kansas Children's Service League and to a great family. And so when my wife and I, we had our first two boys, Ryan and Gus, we thought, man, what's something we can do to kind of give back since, since, you know, I was adopted, it was such a sweet experience for me. So we adopted a little girl from China. Her name's Maya May Schultz. And she's like the greatest thing we got going. She's about 2 and a half years old and so full of life. And, and so I'm currently back in Kansas, uh, at my parents' house with my wife and our 3 kids. And, uh, we've just adopted, uh, a little girl from here in Kansas from the Kansas Children's Service League. That's a tip of the hat to my folks for saying, hey, thank you for adopting me. And in honor of you all, we're adopting a little girl from the same place. And, uh, she's about 7 days old. Her name's Abby Lou, and, uh, she's about 7 days old. And tomorrow it becomes official that she'll be our daughter. And so, uh, the day after, we'll drive home back to Nashville, uh, a family of 6, which is, uh, was quite an undertaking. So that's the project that— that's my next project that I'm working on right there, is learning how to be a dad to 4 wonderful, uh, loud kids.

Well, we are praising the Lord with you on that. I, I'm so glad that you're being a part of that, and I'm so glad that you're being a part of the fundraiser here in Springfield, Ohio for Choosing Hope Adoptions, a great organization. And so we're just thrilled that you're able to be a part of that. Mark, thank you for being on the show today. To everyone listening, I just wanted to remind you once again, it's MarkSchultzMusic.com. Schultz is spelled S-C-H-U-L-T-Z, but make sure you go to MarkSchultzMusic.com unless you're a huge wrestling fan, and then you can go to the other site we spoke of earlier. So Well, Mark, thank you so much for being one of the Voices in My Head this week.

Thank you, Rick. Thanks for having me on. It's an honor. And man, I appreciate you taking the time.

Snow is falling, Christmas Eve. Lights are coming on up and down the street. The sound of carols fills the air. People rushing home, families everywhere are putting candles in the windows, lights upon the tree. But there's no laughter in this house, not like there used to be. There's just a million little memories that remind me you're not here. It's just a different kind of Christmas this year. In the evening, fires glow. Dancing underneath the mistletoe. A little letter from Santa Claus. Won't be the same this year in this house because there's one less place set at the table, one less gift under the tree, and a brand new way to take their place inside of me. I'm unwrapping all these memories, fighting back the tears. It's just a different kind of Christmas this year. Now there's voices in the driveway, family's right outside the door, and we'll try to make this Christmas like the ones we've had before. As we gather around the table, I see joy on every face, and I realize what's still alive is the legacy you made. It's time to put the candles in the windows, the lights up on the tree. It's time to fill this house with laughter like it used to be. Just because you're up in —doesn't mean you're not near. It's just a different kind of Christmas. It's just a different kind of Christmas this year.

Thank you for joining me here this week on Voices in My Head. I hope you'll visit me on my website at rickleejames.com, follow me on Twitter @RickLeeJames, like my artist page at facebook.com/rickleejames, and keep up to date on what I'm writing on my author page on Amazon. There's also the Voices in My Head Facebook community found at facebook.com/voicespodcast. And if you want to follow my alter ego on Twitter, follow my popular Mr. Rogers quote account found @MrRogersSay. Also, make sure to follow my appearance schedule on my website, and if you would like to have me come to your town to do a concert, a speaking engagement, or a book event, you can book me through my website at rickleejames.com. And it would mean the world to me if you would write a review of this podcast on iTunes. The more positive reviews we receive, the more visible this podcast is on the internet. And now the benediction: May the God of peace, who raised Christ from the dead, strengthen you in your inner being for every good work, and may the blessing of God Almighty Father, Son, and Holy Spirit rest upon you and dwell within you this day and forevermore. Amen.