Piano Portrait: Scandalous Grace

Posted by John on Dec 22nd, 2009 | no comments

This past summer I changed the reason why I compose piano works.  Instead of just composing music on a whim for my own pleasure, I now write music for people who inspire me.  These “Piano Portraits” are unique musical gifts that really do last a lifetime!

One of my customers, Deb Ingino, shared with me a video of her daughter, Melissa, receiving her Piano Portrait entitled “Scandalous Grace” on her 21st birthday.

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Deb Ingino approached me about composing this piano work as a surprise gift for her daughter, Melissa, who is turning twenty-one this December. As we discussed Melissa’s personality and passions, her past and her dreams for the future, it was clear that her parents hold a deep reservoir of love, respect and admiration for her. They look up to her for her grace, wisdom and loyalty.

Outwardly petite, this lamb has grown the heart of a lion. Her fervent advocacy for the weak is seen through her giving and support of Living Water International and lobbying Congress on behalf of Invisible Children. She will not rest while the world around her suffers.

As I read these words from Melissa, this music poured out of my own heart at one sitting. It was a sacred moment, a meditation, that led me to my own worship of the God she describes.

something is broken in this world & i want to hold my tiny palms against the wounds so the Healer can later restore …i’m just a girl in a red hat. A lily among thorns. A dreamer. A free soul with a heart that is deeply Rooted. i believe in scandalous grace. i can survive living simply, as long as my friends and family are close. Someday i want to paint the nails of prostitutes. i treasure the art of listening and genuinely receiving even it means remaining silent.i believe in the practice lectio divina. i have a heart for the feeble and broken. i appreciate loyalty and honesty.i think the study of fine tuning in the universe is mind-altering. i believe in altruism and empathy. i’m a little dirt clod made from the dust but hold the Breath of my Creator. i was once dead but now i am alive. <><.

Scandalous Grace is composed in honor of Melissa Ingino. May God grant her many more years in His service.

Melissa sent me this video to express her gratitude.

Click here to learn more about Piano Portraits!

OR

Click here to contact John personally about giving a Piano Portrait to your loved one!

The Cure For Shyness

Posted by John on Dec 20th, 2009 | no comments

I discovered something in the last two weeks that has freed me from a lifetime of shyness.

It has changed the way I view myself in the workplace, in social settings, and how I relate with my children. It has greatly reduced my fears of success and of failure, and thus has opened me up to try new things.

The moment of discovery occurred while listening to Brian Tracy’s Success Mastery Academy during the drive to work one morning.

Mr. Tracy was saying that we limit our ability to succeed in business when we do not like ourselves. He had the listener repeat “I like myself!” over and over again until they sincerely mean it. At first I sneered at this exercise, but what shocked me was how difficult it was for me to say it. I realized at that moment:

I don’t like myself!

I started examining myself, “Does God like you, John? Yes, He delights in me. Do other people like you, John? Yes, I have many friends. Then why don’t you like yourself, John? I don’t know!” I resolved at that moment to say, “I like myself!” throughout the rest of the day as an experiment.

The impact was powerful and immediate. I couldn’t say it without smiling. I found myself greeting strangers instead of walking with my head down. I felt empowered to look at my employer in the eye instead of feeling guilty for no reason. I actually enjoyed our Christmas parties this year instead of watching from a distance.

The cause of my shyness and false guilt was clearly my dislike of myself, though I never realized it before. As far as I can tell, much of this stemmed from years of spiritual abuse during childhood. To stay in the good graces of my spiritual leaders I had to maintain a “look” of humility. I would beat myself up emotionally until I felt humble enough. I disliked myself into a spirit of sadness, and that worked at the time.

In God’s goodness, He doesn’t leave us in our broken state. He ever-so-graciously brings us to these break-through moments of self-discovery, at the right place and right time, for our good and for His glory.

Do you struggle with shyness or false guilt?

If so, what keeps you from liking yourself?

Idea Music: Relax And Dream Awake

Posted by John on Dec 16th, 2009 | no comments

Deb Ingino, president of My Wired Style, sent me this wonderful testimonial:
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Hi my name is Deb Ingino and I just had to leave you this message to tell you how much your music is inspiring me!

If you are familiar with DISC temperament wiring, I’m wired with D/I characteristics and of course one benefit is our amazing capacity to accomplish many things but sometimes it is at the risk of being so high energy it is difficult to unwind. And of course staying wound up for too long can create a block of innovation and ideas.

When I first heard your composition “Dancing With Fireflies”, I was immediately drawn to the beautiful melody and afterwards noticed that I felt a bit relaxed. I then listened to several more of your compositions such as “In The Shadow Of Your Wing”, “The Golden Road” and more. And noticed that not only did I feel relaxed but I felt a flood of new ideas come to mind while listening. I guess giving my mind an opportunity to really relax and unwind was a catalyst to these new thoughts and ideas.

As I continue in my role of President of My Wired Style, I start my day with reading a book from Proverbs and listening to 8 of your amazing songs. Oh and one more thing, our company just finished a video called Give The Dream Wings and we’ve chosen your sweet song “Daddy Daughter Dance” as the musical piece for this video.

So I just want to say thank you, thank you for sharing your amazing talent and thank you for helping this wound up executive from New York to relax and dream while awake!

Deb Ingino
My Wired Style, President

To find out how you can license John’s music for your media project, please visit John’s music licensing site:

Life In HD

Posted by John on Dec 14th, 2009 | no comments

The other morning my son was watching a popular kids show in High Definition (HD), and the camera was zoomed in on the hostess. It seemed to me that she had not slept much the night before they taped the show because I could see bags under her eyes. HD certainly lets us see imperfections with greater clarity.

Like HDTV, social networks like Facebook and Twitter allow us to see imperfections and negative trends in others more clearly as well. It seems the more connected we are, the more transparent and honest we are forced to become.

My own small town of Arlington, TN, experienced this first hand over the past couple of weeks as Mayor Russell Wiseman’s conversation with Facebook “friends” hit the national news. I don’t have enough facts to make a fair judgment regarding the situation (nor do I care to), but my point is that there is a big [Remove] button next to our own posts for a good reason. I have clicked that button many times myself.

When we choose to live in HD, we place ourselves under a social microscope where we are held more accountable to the truth. Our imperfections appear more frequently, but our sensitivity and attention to them lessens each time someone else’s jump to the forefront.

Pretty soon, we’ll realize just how imperfect we all are. Sadly, we may start to accept our own imperfection on that basis.