The Listening Porch

Music: The Universal Language | The Listening Porch with Ray Hughes | Episode 2

Starting from a passage in Ray’s book 107 Things I Forgot to Say, Ray and Eric explore how music becomes the language of those who laugh, live, long, and love. The conversation moves from laughter as warfare and healing, to music as the breath of life, to songs that hold the ache of longing, to melodies born of love itself.

This episode touches everything from Psalm 2’s laughter of God, to the cry in Appalachian bluegrass, to Korean worship melodies that carry generational pain and hope. It’s a rich, wandering conversation about sound, spirit, and the way music reveals God in the hidden corners of the human heart.

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Join Selah Creatives: Get access to all of Ray’s online courses, teachings, monthly live Zoom gatherings, and a community of over 100 like-spirited creatives → selahonline.teachable.com/p/selah-creatives

Support Ray on Patreon: Receive his personal poetry, prose, and creative writings not shared anywhere else → patreon.com/rayhughes

Visit Ray's Website: RayHughes.org

Songs that Changed History | The Listening Porch with Ray Hughes | Episode 1

In this first episode of The Listening Porch with Ray Hughes, we explore a question that has echoed through history: If the church changes the way it understands music and worship, can it change the world?

From Luther’s hymns to the songs of the Wesley brothers, every reformation has carried a sound. Ray unpacks how music, creativity, and worship not only shape the church but ripple outward into culture itself. Join us on the porch as we rediscover the power of song to awaken hearts, reform communities, and carry the purposes of God into the world.

In this episode, you’ll hear about:

• Why every revival and reformation has a sound

• How music has historically shaped faith and culture

• Worship as more than music — a language of heaven

• The role of creativity and wonder in carrying God’s purposes

• Why the church’s song matters for the world’s future

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Join Selah Creatives: Get access to all of Ray’s online courses, teachings, monthly live Zoom gatherings, and a community of over 100 like-spirited creatives → selahonline.teachable.com/p/selah-creatives

Support Ray on Patreon: Receive his personal poetry, prose, and creative writings not shared anywhere else → patreon.com/rayhughes

Visit Ray's Website: RayHughes.org

Deep Roots & Tangled Limbs P6: Heirlooms and Inheritance

Storytellers are the guardians of memories, Ray tells us.

In this episode, Ray shares some of the memories of his early years and how the stories of our lives give shape to the people we become. 

These formative memories of family history encourage us that our memories, even the darker, painful ones can become a wellspring of hope and redemption for generations to come.

 

Visit The Listening Porch online for more inspiring episodes. You can help support the show by becoming a Patron at patreon.com/rayhughes or sign up for one of my online courses at www.rayhughes.org  Also, check out my beautiful, handmade ink pens at redriverturning.com.

Check out Stephen's Makers & Mystics podcast here. 

Note: This conversation was recorded in 2022. 

*This Podcast Series is produced by Brightbell Creative.

Deep Roots & Tangled Limbs P5: Places of Encounter

The Places we love have a profound ability to awaken wonder in our hearts and fill us with a sense of purpose and destiny. 

In this episode, Ray shares about his love of Wales, Scotland and Ireland a how a prophetic encounter set him on a lifelong course of discovering how deeply these lands were woven into his heart. 

 

Visit The Listening Porch online for more inspiring episodes. You can help support the show by becoming a Patron at patreon.com/rayhughes or sign up for one of my online courses at www.rayhughes.org  Also, check out my beautiful, handmade ink pens at redriverturning.com.

 

Note: This conversation was recorded in 2022. 

*This Podcast Series is produced by Brightbell Creative.

 

 

Deep Roots & Tangled Limbs P4: Music, Misfits & The Life of King David

In this episode, Ray Hughes shares from his lifelong study of King David and shows how this misfit shepherd boy’s unwavering pursuit of God's presence shaped his legacy as a poet, worship leader, and king.

Ray emphasizes the timeless relevance of David's story, highlighting how his longing for God expressed through music continues to inspire generations and shape the language of worship today.

 

If you'd like to dive deeper into Ray's teachings on worship, creativity and the life of King David, you can sign up for his online courses here. 

Visit The Listening Porch online for more inspiring episodes. You can help support the show by becoming a Patron at patreon.com/rayhughes or sign up for one of my online courses at www.rayhughes.org  Also, check out my beautiful, handmade ink pens at redriverturning.com.

 

You can learn more about Stephen Roach's creative work and his upcoming creative arts event at The Breath and The Clay

You can listen to Stephen's art and faith podcast here. 

Note: This conversation was recorded in 2022. 

*This Podcast Series is produced by Brightbell Creative.