“When I look, and look again, I see Him everywhere!” - Pete McAllen (Pyramid Park)
(Pete McAllen AKA Pyramid Park, playing in Cambridge, UK)
Pete is a powerhouse. A friend of a friend’s (and now, my own friend), I met him in person at Festival One in 2018 where I also got to see him play live with a full band. A beautiful marriage of excellence and vulnerability, his performance was amazing, but I found that Pete’s ‘powerhouse-ness’ comes more fully from the passion and conviction he has in stepping into God’s call. Shortly after Festival One, I hung out with Pete over dinner (with my friend that I mentioned), eager to listen to his musical and faith journey. But he was quick to turn the tables and encourage, challenge and exhort us into boldly walking, nay, RUNNING on this journey ourselves, because if God is for us, who can be against us?
Let this powerhouse of a guy encourage you to live courageously in your creativity; check out his thoughts below and catch him at the first Heart Of The Artist Showcase for 2019!
On what creativity means to him:
“I think creativity is having an eye out and a heart open to the fullness that is around us. In a word I would say “noticing.” Noticing the beauty when everyone else see’s grey, seeing the potential when others can only see the faults. Then it’s up to us as artists to create something of those moments and making them a little more timeless. When I song write, I’m catching a moment, whether through a voice memo or a few lines of lyrics. This is then taken through a process of inspiration and discipline to create something from that original snapshot of time. I think everyone is creative, and it’s up to us to choose how to express this creativity.”
On what draws him closest to God:
“So many things, but more than any other is probably the act of worshipping Him through songs. Somehow for me, when I’m not doing this regularly in my devotional life I become a little less alive. When I worship, especially in pain or disappointment I find the life of Christ comes quickly upon me again. But I also find huge life and closeness to God by reading the Bible, meditating on it’s truth, and being silent before God. As I have got a little older I find the discipline of stillness and quiet before God to be a great leveller in my soul, bringing peace.”
On how he sees God in creativity:
“When I look, and look again, I see Him everywhere! I grew up in the UK countryside, so whenever I am out in nature, and take time to really stop and breathe in what’s in front of me, I find I’m quick to pray. From staring at a mountain, or the sea or a flat field in east England, it really doesn’t seem to matter, I know He is there.“
On art that has drawn him closer to God:
“There’s a band I’ve toured with recently called The Bright Expression. They released a single called “Cradle” which was about the lead singers struggle with insomnia. She wrote it as an adult lullaby from God to herself. The song is beautiful, lyrically interesting, with instrumental space. But the video just made it come alive, it’s one of my favourite lyric videos I’ve seen, and drew me in.”
“I’d encourage other creatives to regularly feed their souls with activities that will bring them life. Put yourself in places that are out of the normal routine of life. I remember writing a song called “Enemies” in a couple of hours after watching a film I saw in an old arts theatre. The soundtrack was so rich and worked perfectly with the stunning visuals of Greenland. Just an act of getting myself out of the ordinary and giving time to refresh helped me re-engage as a creative. Also, keep at it! We tend to become quickly discourage and give up (I certainly feel this often), but there are people out there who are hungry to be inspired by your art…don’t give up!!”
Check out Pyramid Park on Facebook, Instagram and Spotify, and be sure to see them live at Heart of the Artist on Thursday 7 Feb!
