Kari Jobe

Kari Jobe

“The Garden”
Sparrow Records, 2017

Thirty-six-year-old Kari Jobe is the worship pastor at Gateway Church, Southlake, Texas. So congratulations to Gateway Church because having someone like Jobe at your disposal must be something.

There’s a reason she’s won multiple Dove Awards (and been nominated for a Grammy) since her 2009 solo debut and it’s evident once again on this album. Released in February, “The Garden” is an 11-song atmospheric masterpiece (with a beautiful cover to boot) that pairs elements of personal praise with the feel of corporate worship. It also blends traditional instrumentation with synth beats.

The opening title track is a spine-tingler that will stick with you for a while. So is the final song, “The Cause of Christ.”

If you can keep your head from bowing while a voice like Jobe’s reaches for heaven with refrains of “You crush all my fears with Your perfect love” and “I surrender all for the cause of Christ,” something may be wrong.

Reviewed by Jeremy Henderson