Cadence is a 5 piece Christian rock band from Boca Raton, Florida comprised entirely of family members: Donny Karpinen (lead vocals/ guitar/keys), his sister Carrie Karpinen (drummer), and his wife Brittany Karpinen (vocals) make up three of the five. Jeffrey Sward (bass) and Andrew Sward (lead electric guitar) are brothers and both siblings of Brittany Karpinen. The band was formed out of Victory Church in Boca Raton, Florida. Pastor Don Karpinen is the Senior Pastor and father of Donny and Carrie.

I first heard this band in 2012 with their debut EP Awake, which features the standout song "Forgiveness." I was immediately drawn to their brand of emotional alternative rock which reminds me of Jimmy Eat World except with bold Christian messages.

The new album Home is very worshipful and also very creative musically, featuring upbeat synth rock tracks wrapped around vertical lyrics. I had the opportunity to speak with Donny about the catchy and upbeat worship song "I Believe."

Please tell me the personal story behind this song.

My sister Carrie was the primary songwriter for this song. Her inspiration when she first started writing the song was a good friend of ours who was extremely healthy her entire life, but when she was 18 years old came down with a very aggressive form of cancer. It spread through her entire body until she couldn't walk, and then she was on chemotherapy. As the song sings, "even when the ground beneath me moves." Her sickness was one of those moments when the ground moved, at least here on this earth and our understanding of day to day life. It was one of those shaking moments, and it caught us off guard.

I'm very happy to say that our friend is 100% healthy now, and she is standing and walking strong. It is so amazing, and we are very thankful for that. A lot of people were praying for her. It was a moment and time that challenged our faith in Christ and His promises, when it feels like everything is shaken. That's the story behind this song.

Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song?
Micah 7:7-10 (NKJV): Therefore I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me. Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; When I fall, I will arise; When I sit in darkness, The Lord will be a light to me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I have sinned against Him, Until He pleads my case and executes justice for me. He will bring me forth to the light; I will see His righteousness. Then she who is my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, "Where is the Lord your God?" My eyes will see her; now she will be trampled down like mud in the streets.

John 16:33 (NIV): "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Revelation 12:11 (NKJV): And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

What is the takeaway message?

In the song, the bridge sings "Even in the darkness Light will shine, even in the valley hope will rise," which connects to that Micah 7 passage. What I take away from that is sometimes we are in trouble because we are disobedient or made poor choices. The great news is that God is still faithful, and all He wants from us is humility and repentance.

Revelation 12:11 says we will overcome the enemy by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony. What I take away from that is that when we are attacked and everything is shaken, when the Enemy is trying to whisper in our ear "where is your God now?", because of His faithfulness and because of the blood of the Lamb we triumph over the Enemy. Darkness has to flee. In the darkness Light will shine, and in the valley Hope will rise. We just have to hold tight to Jesus and trust Him in those trying times.

My dad was preaching out of John 16:33 where Jesus says "I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have trouble but take heart, I have overcome the world." My dad taught that you can have peace right in the middle of a storm. That is very much a witness to this world, especially to people who are not Christians.

The Bible says they will know us by our fruit. That can be good deeds and a heart for the lost. It is also about where your faith is when everything is shaken and you are hit by a storm. If you panic and act like people who don't have hope in Christ, what kind of a testimony is that? If you have a testimony knowing we will have trouble but having peace and taking heart that Jesus has overcome the world, that's a great way to witness. People will see our faith and see that it is real.

We have intimacy with the Lord and peace in the middle of the storm. When people listen to the album, we want people to have joy and peace in Christ. I believe with all of my heart that God wants us to be people of joy. We have to understand that this world is not our home. When we look to God and are fully satisfied in Him, waiting for that great day when we are going to be in His Presence in Paradise with Him forever— that's someone who has found their Home. Stop worrying. Stop complaining. Christ has come down and shown us The Way.

Lyrics:
I know You never promised me 
That this would be easy 
But I feel like You turned Your back 
When You knew You were all I had

Then came the fire and raging seas 
A tidal wave of tragedy 
And though my heart is sinking fast 
Your faithfulness will never pass 

I still believe Your promises are true 
Even when the ground beneath me moves  
I will sing of all You've done for me 
Cause Lord I still believe
Oh I believe 

You walk with me through narrow paths 
When my strength would never last 
You were like a lamp to my feet 
In my times of deepest need 

You were with me always 
You never left my side 
Why would today be different 
From any other time 

I still believe Your promises are true 
Even when the ground beneath me moves  
I will sing of all You've done for me 
Cause Lord I still believe
Oh I believe 

Even in the darkness Light will shine 
Even in the valley Hope will rise 
Even in the darkness Light will shine 
Even in the valley Hope will rise 

I still believe Your promises are true 
Even when the ground beneath me moves  
I will sing of all You've done for me 
Cause Lord I still believe
Oh I believe 

Everything about this song and album works for me on many levels. Personally I appreciate musical artists who stay true to who they are as individuals and musicians and use their gifts and talents, given to them by God, to honor Him. What is especially cool about this song is that it is congregational but also great for personal worship time when you are looking for a song to lift up your spirit and fill your mouth with praises to God.

I sing "I Still Believe" at the top of my lungs in total devotion to God. I am very moved by the lyrics "Even in the darkness Light will shine, even in the valley Hope will rise." As Paul says in Ephesians 3:18 (NIV), only "through His Spirit...may you be able to comprehend the width, length, depth, and height of the Love of Christ."

This album is all about finding our true identity in Christ. He is the answer. Heaven is our true Home. This song gives me a lot of joy, and my heartbeat is to please the Lord. I love songs that allow me to have fun and praise God at the same time, and this song certainly does that. I really enjoy how my love of fun, uplifting music and biblical truth is perfectly married in this song. Singing along at the top of my lungs allows me to abandon myself and cry out to Him: "I still believe Your promises are true even when the ground beneath me moves I will sing of all You've done for me ‘cause Lord I still believe." Amen to that!

(Get the song on iTunes here.)