Search - Fernando Ortega :: Fernando Ortega

Life and Worship Rich and Full

M. Christensen | Colorado | 11/16/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is on of the finest Christian albums available. It represents rich new territory for Fernando Ortega without neglecting what he has done so well in the past. Ortega canvases the whole range of life experience from a well thought out Christian worldview that never degenerates into the drivel that marks so much of CCM.



"California Town" is romance at its barest essence without sappy sentimentailty, but sentimental nonetheless in a good way. One will be suprised at "Dragonfly" and "When the Coyote Comes." The songs are hard to classify which is good. Each has a bit of a bluesy, gospel flavor and a country-pop twang to boot that will leave your toes tapping every time. They may be the best songs of the lot and certainly the funnest.



The next three songs, "Sleepless Nights", "Shame" and "Noonday Devil" expresses a realist sort of spirituality that grapples with the difficulty of the Christian life. The songs do not wallow in self-pity, reductionistic ditties or the sort of psychobabble that passes for Christian reflection so pervasive today. "Sleepless Nights" calls the anxious heart to hide in Christ. "Shame" deals with the harsh reality of failing to meet false expectations that drives so much of our behavior. Shame from real guilt is good and leads to repentance. Shame from false guilt is crippling. "Noonday Devil" is a clever stab at mortifying the flesh and temptation. To do battle with sin, we must despise it with a holy hatred.



"Mildred Madalyn Johnson" is a wonderful little song that seems so out of place in our self-absorbed culture. What I like about this song is the lost art of paying the homage and honor that our elderly citizens deserve. What a tribute to grandmothers so dearly loved. Switching gears, "All That Time" expresses the difficulty love must endure in relationships if it passes the test of time.



Fernando Ortega is perhaps the best hymn revivalist of our day. No one has treated the hymns with such sensitivity and care for their treasures. "Rock of Ages" and "Immortal, Invisible" are no exceptions. As good a lyricists as Ortega is, I think he realizes that he cannot match the depth of orthodoxy and orthopraxy that the classic hymns have achieved. One must especially meditate on these two selections, saturating your mind with their truths almost with the same intensity and devotion one would to the Scripture itself. "Immortal, Invisible" is one of my favorite hymns. When I heard this rendition I was immediately enraptured with its beautiful yet haunting melody. I will never sing that hymn again without thinking of Fernando's wonderful adaptation.



"Take Heart, My Friend" reveals more of the heart of Ortega's godly spirit. It is a salve for the soul of the fainthearted believer who wonders if he'll make it. He will - God promises to complete what He began, and He uses fellow believers as divine encouragers to the task.



The album concludes with a final hymn, "More Love to Thee" written by Elizabeth Prentiss. Any Christian woman who has read her fictional diary of the struggle for womanly godliness, "Stepping Heavenward" will aprreciate this famous hymn she wrote as well. We thank you Fernando for reviving it."

Fernando Ortega

Maryanne Zaks | 09/13/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Same beautiful voice. Some song choices not to my liking, but thn again, there are songs on the CD I really like. I guess this is not too much help. Mazie Z"