CAFO + The Worship Initiative Introduce New Music on ‘The Father to the Fatherless’

DALLAS, Texas (Aug. 23, 2024)
Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO) and The Worship Initiative (TWI) have partnered in a rare collaboration to write and produce three new worship songs reflecting God’s heart for the orphaned and vulnerable. The new songs will debut at the CAFO2024 Summit in Nashville, Tenn. before being released to the public on Sept. 20, 2024.

The new songs titled, “Faithful to Me,” “Home in the Family,” and “What a Father’s Like,” were written to help God’s people know, love and worship Him as the Father to the Fatherless (Psalm 68:5-6).

“Throughout history, Christians at their best have been known for their special care for children the world discards,” said Jedd Medefind, CAFO President and former head of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives under President George W. Bush.

“This care reveals God’s character to the world – the One who is both all-powerful and yet also so tender and near to the most vulnerable. We long for the Church and all people to know this God more deeply, and worship music can play a vital role in that.”

Following the release of the music, CAFO and The Worship Initiative will provide a full suite of resources – including devotions, song chords, charts, lead sheets and more – to further equip the church and worship leaders across the country. Resources will be made available for free beginning Sept. 20 so that worship leaders can learn and incorporate the music into their services for Pure Religion Sunday (also known as Orphan Sunday) on Nov. 10, 2024.

“For any believer, understanding God as Father can be such a beautiful thing, but also a hard concept for those who don’t have an earthly father,” said Robbie Seay, Executive Vice President of Leader Development and Content at The Worship Initiative. “For us to look to the Word of God, sing that, and proclaim that, is a powerful thing.”

A fresh story of collaboration
A group of songwriters, artists and theologians gathered at The Worship Initiative studios in Dallas, Texas on Feb. 15-16 for two days of prayer, fellowship and songwriting sessions. Many of the songwriters had personal experience with foster care and adoption, both in their own families and in the ministries where they serve.

Pastor and theologian Stephen Newby, currently Baylor University’s Chair of the Study of Black Worship, described the transformation he and his church experienced through adoption as “transformative.”

“It was as if the scales were dropped from our eyes,” Newby said. “We became more aware of the simpler things and it changed our hearts. We relinquished our preferences, seeing the needs of someone else as more important than our own needs… [adoption] had a big impact on my life. I became more sensitive to the Holy Spirit in caring about the things the heavenly Father cares about.”

Worship leader and songwriter David Gentiles, writer of “Thank You Jesus for the Blood” and other beloved songs, also participated in the project. Gentiles and his wife have fostered and adopted two children in their hometown of Houston, Texas. He said he witnessed something “miraculous” in their church when 60-70 percent of their church body was involved in some way with foster care, adoption and serving vulnerable families.

“It was remarkable, it totally changed the language and spirit of that church,” he said. “I think when a church begins to bloom in its heart for the orphan, there’s actually this community-gelling aspect – just this supernatural melding of the hearts of that Body – and they become even more unified because they are offering their lives to one another.

“It’s beautiful to see.”