photo by Marie Bowen
Day of Prayer means a lot of things to Covenant students. A day of much needed rest and reflection. A day of hall life and fellowship. A day of catching up on school work. A day of opportunities to wrestle with the Lord in prayer individually or with others. This fall, in addition to the student-led sunrise service, tower tours, and the chapel times set apart for prayer for the Covenant community, the local music duo Drakeford closed out Covenant’s day of prayer on Wednesday, September 19 with a worship-style concert.
Hannah King (‘20) who helped plan the music for Day of Prayer personally knows Drakeford and invited this husband and wife duo to come share their music with the Covenant Community.
“My prayer for them was that regardless of how many people came, that they would feel loved and better for coming to Covenant, and I really think that happened,” King said. “I was so excited to see how many people came, because a lot of people came out of curiosity.”
Singer-songwriters Drake and Lucy-Jayne Lanier opened with three worship songs, performed some of their own music, then closed by leading another worship song. Drakeford’s music has a folksy sound that highlights Drake’s finger-picking skill on the acoustic guitar and Lucy-Jayne on the keys. Their harmonies are clear and the lyrics theologically rich, compelling, and thoughtful.
Drake, a native South Carolinian, and Lucy-Jayne, a Brit, met doing mission work with a creative arts team overseas.
“We’d basically go out onto the streets of Istanbul, all over Turkey, and all over the Middle East and central Asia and do street performances,” Lucy-Jayne explained during the concert. “We’d gather crowds on the street and share our faith with them afterwards and build friendships.”
The two musicians fell in love and now perform together in local coffee shops, bars, colleges, and local churches. They moved to Chattanooga three years ago.
“We have just really fallen in love with this town,” Drake said Wednesday night. “We really feel like this was the perfect place to be and a God-breathed decision to come here.”
Covenant is also a special place for Drake. He shared during the concert that the last time he walked across campus was as a 13-year-old who came to know Christ at summer camp in Sanderson 215. As he sang “In Christ Alone,” he remembers the Spirit working in his heart and convincing him of the gospel. He met Jesus that day and now desires to glorify his Savior through his music.
“This was his first time back,” King said, “and to have so many people welcome them—I smile thinking about it.”
Drakeford enjoys not only sharing their music in Christian settings but performing in secular settings as well. Their music together began on the mission field, and they continue to see their music as an opportunity to make relationships with others and share the gospel message of hope and love. Thus, a few of their songs are more tactful to be sung in bars, such as their songs “Stronger than One,” encouraging unity, and “Chattanooga,” a memoir to the city they have grown to love.
One of Drakeford’s most popular songs that they performed Wednesday is “Creation to Salvation,” which appears on their most recent album “The Venture”. Drake plays with a rhythmic strumming pattern and uses spoken word along with a catchy tune to tell the whole gospel story. Covenant students engaged with Drakeford as this song was performed and seemed impressed with his talent showcased on this piece.
King hopes to invite another local group to lead worship and share their music for the spring Day of Prayer, so stay tuned.