Bio: Brett Barry
CD: The Joy of Losing

The joy of losing; is such a thing really possible? If so, what and how much do I have to lose to experience it? I mean, losing, as we usually know it, is anything but joyous. In fact, it's utterly painful.

Barry ponders for a moment, "Perhaps it should be called, 'The joy that comes as we understand who we are in Christ and begin embracing the process of letting go of this life in order to receive the reality of life in Him'. But that just seems a bit long for a title."

Penned and produced by Barry, The Joy of Losing is the result of a seven year process: three years of wrestling with God (and losing), two years of emotional and spiritual restoration (and a lot of writing and worshiping) and nearly two years of recording. "I took the scenic route with my recording," says Barry. "During our down time of restructuring, I've been working a full-time job and recording on evenings and weekends, mostly in my studio. It's been a tough two years for sure, but well worth the effort."

Down time? "Yes, I spent 13 years on the road building my music and ministry career - and then God quickly shut everything down for a season of restructuring - mostly me. When I realized things were coming to a halt, I thought He was just giving us a much needed rest - that it meant we'd be off the road for maybe six months or so. It really meant we'd be off until I learned some things. Though I've learned a lot, I've mostly learned that I'm a really slow learner."

A proficient singer, writer and worship leader, Barry cites initial influences as James Taylor, Eagles, U2, and early Amy Grant. He began his songwriting career as a staff writer and developing artist with Star Song records, and later released his debut album The Adventure of a Lifetime under the Crossroads Records label, an Indie company out of Nashville, TN. When Crossroads failed, due to a bad distribution deal, Barry continued on his own, releasing several more albums while performing roughly 100 concert and speaking engagements each year throughout the U.S., Canada and abroad.

By the end of the initial restructuring years, God had birthed in Barry an intense passion for worshiping Him with every aspect of his life. A desire to disciple others, especially lead worshipers, had also been ignited. "When my schedule got quiet, I realized I didn't know God the way I thought I did. And I eventually saw that I didn't really know who I was either (I believe this is a core problem of the Church at large). To understand who we are in Christ, we must first come to know God though Christ. As this happens, our perspective changes, broadens, because we begin to gain our identity and purpose based on God's intense love and overall plan for humanity, rather than on how our personal needs or circumstances appear. And it's here that we become truly helpful to others in their process of becoming - in advancing the Kingdom of God."

In light of this, Barry says The Joy of Losing is more than an album, it's a tool for putting agreement in the mouths and hearts of worshippers as they listen and engage. "Agreement with God, regardless of how things appear, is the key to His power being released into our lives and circumstances. Ultimately, it's how we stand, how we overcome."

Brett Barry - The Joy of Losing... passionate, intimate and compelling, it's a reflection of the breaking and overcoming process, a deep source of encouragement and strength for our faith journey. From the powerful and absolute opener, I Believe, to the longing, yet joyful heart cry of I Can't Wait, the listener is compelled to enter in, give all and to then live with reckless abandon through complete agreement with God - because God really is who He says He is. And, as Barry sums it up, "This is how it is."