The husband-and-wife worship team Doorpost Songs, Dave and Jess Ray, has a passion for developing Scripture-based songs and resources for a new generation of worshippers.
The name is based on Deuteronomy 6, and their primary desire is to help families become rooted in Scripture through the songs they sing and teach their children. As the parents of three elementary-age kids, it’s especially close to their hearts.
“Hearing the words of Scripture in the voices of children will never get old,” Ray said. “What an incredible blessing to help create those moments.”
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“Doorpost Songs began almost by accident,” he noted. “At the first church we served, our children’s minister asked me to write a song for their fall memory verse. I wrote it and actually liked it, and then I realized that we could do more. So I wrote enough Scripture songs for an album, and we pulled together a group of musicians at our church to record the tracks and a kids’ choir to sing them.
“Once the album was complete, we needed something to call it. Because the focus was Scripture and family, we were immediately drawn to Deuteronomy 6. Ultimately, the purpose of these songs is to help God’s Word become a part of our family life. It’s a way of fulfilling this sacred command.”
The couple has fond memories of growing up in church and crafting their musical skills at an early age. She played bluegrass and gospel music with her family, singing and playing the piano, mandolin and cello. He began learning to play the piano as a child, and started learning guitar when he was 13.
Inspiration
Today, the duo leads worship for a variety of conferences, camps and family worship events around the country.
“We love getting to partner with churches to create fun worship nights that bring the whole family together,” Ray said. “So often, each age group is separated on Sundays, and when we come together, not only can it be incredibly fun but also incredibly meaningful both for parents and kids.
“We also want kids and families to have a deeper love for God’s Word. For many of us, God’s Word is an afterthought when it should be our lifeblood. We want to encourage parents in their role as spiritual leaders. It’s not an easy role, but it’s such an important calling. We can trust that as we seek to faithfully live out God’s calling, He’ll be with us every step of the way.”
The inspiration for their songwriting comes directly from reading Scripture passages and putting them to music; however, they admit it can sometimes be challenging.
“Most of the Bible was not written to be a song,” Ray explained. “It doesn’t have rhyme or meter or symmetry. Even the poetry in Scripture is different from the kind of poetry we use. So a big part of the process is just sitting with a bunch of different verses and testing them musically: ‘Can we find a melody that fits the syllables? Are there rhyming words that we can figure out how to pair? And most importantly, will a kid love singing this?’”
Ultimate goal
The ultimate goal is to create songs filled with rich, biblical truths that will help shape young hearts and minds with the gospel.
“Teaching our kids to be worshippers is one of our most important tasks,” Ray said. “We spend so much time trying to get our kids to obey God and much less time teaching them to love God. But love for God is where true obedience comes from. If our kids are going to love God deeply, they must learn to be worshippers.”
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