Perry LaHaie on “Thy Kingdom Come:” Surrender, Sound, and Serving the Nations

With his latest single "Thy Kingdom Come," singer-songwriter and radio host Perry LaHaie offers more than just a song-he offers a testimony of surrender. Rooted in a deeply personal story and shaped by a heart for global missions, the track reflects both LaHaie's Americana/roots influences and his calling to see the gospel shared among the least reached. In this conversation, Perry opens up about the story behind the song, his musical journey, the collaborative recording process, and his vision for how worship can inspire believers to live surrendered lives for God's glory.

Q: "Thy Kingdom Come" is inspired by a powerful personal story of surrender. Can you share how that moment with your friend Speedy still shapes your music and ministry today?

Back in my campus ministry days, Jesus asked me to give away my prized Ovation guitar to show his love to my friend Speedy, who was having an extremely hard time accepting it. God did use it to prove his love to Speedy. But he also changed me.

That guitar represented all I dreamed of doing for God through my music. But my motives weren't pure. I wanted to get a record deal and have my name in lights and do God's music for my glory. And God put his finger on that motive in my heart when he asked me to surrender my Ovation.

That was one of the first big moments in my life that I said "no" to myself and "yes" to God's glory. And it shaped my heart for God. But it has also served as a template for all the times right up to the present when I realize I'm making it all about me. And it reminds me again to die to my "It's all about me life" and live for God's glory. That's where I keep finding my greatest joy.

Q: Your sound has been described as Chris Renzema meets Zach Williams meets Drew Holcomb. How do you balance your Americana/roots influences with creating music that serves as worship?

For a lot of my journey with music, I tried to sound like other artists. To copy some of their vibe. And some of that's natural because as artists we're on a journey to find our voice. For me that didn't come until the last few years.
It has come from the pain of my journey, the hard-won lessons learned, the dying to self, the struggle with shame and depression, the deepening of the gospel in my heart and through realizing that there were genres that especially resonated with me since I was a boy.

At heart I'm a small-town boy from the Midwest. That's where my voice began to be formed. And as all of these pieces of my life were coalescing through the years, I finally found a sound that was authentically me.
And I think that when we find that space and we express our love for Jesus through it, it will resonate as worship no matter what the genre. I think God is saying to us as artists, "Be who I uniquely created you to be and when you are, people will sense it and experience me."

Q: You've partnered with an impressive team of producers and engineers on this single. What was the recording process like at Yackland Studio, and how did these collaborations shape the final sound?

At one point in a session co-producer Stephen Leiweke said, "Perry's spirit animal is the Hammond B-3." He wasn't promoting a pagan worldview (smile), he was saying, "Perry, I get you, I know your sound. It comes through in the grittiness of an instrument that resonates with your story."

Also, I don't know of anyone who's better at producing vocals. Stephen gives you a confidence that you can sing anything really well. Matt Stanfield is one of the great piano/keyboard players in Nashville. He gets each artist's voice and just knows exactly what to play. Nate Duggar (Drew Holcomb) is one of the best guitarists in Nashville. Yet he's humble enough to let this small-town boy from the Midwest tell him the riff I'm hearing in my head and then play it.

When mix engineer Chad Howet first heard my music he said, "Oh, roots American rock!" He knew where to go with "Thy Kingdom Come," immediately. Mastering engineer Sam Moses has mastered for some of the best in the industry. But he treated my track with the same excellence as he would somebody with a household name.

Q: As an artist with Frontiers USA, you're deeply connected to global missions. How do you hope "Thy Kingdom Come" will encourage believers to engage with the Muslim world in particular?

Eric Liddell, gold medal winner in the 1924 Olympics, whose story was told in the film Chariots of Fire, later became a missionary to China. He ended up dying in a Japanese concentration camp during WW2. Among his last words were, "It's all surrender." That's the spirit of "Thy Kingdom Come."

Surrendering our lives to the King who poured out His life for us for one reason alone. Love. And it's His surrender that births our surrender. He puts His Spirit in us and His Spirit moves us to pour out our lives in loving and difficult surrender. There are nearly 400 Muslim people groups across the globe who have no Jesus messengers among them. No chance yet to hear the good news of life in Jesus.

"Thy Kingdom Come," is the prayer that flows out of having experienced the poured-out life of Jesus and longs to do the same for those who've not yet experienced such amazing love. If one person hears "Thy Kingdom Come," and decides to bring the gospel to a Muslim people group still waiting to hear, it will be worth it!

Q: The song echoes the Lord's Prayer. What does "Thy Kingdom Come" mean for you personally in this season of your life and ministry?

When I pray, "Thy Kingdom Come," I'm asking God to bring His kingdom of peace, His kingdom of "Everything as it should be," into my world where everything is not as it should be. This is what Jesus announced when he came, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand." The blind saw, the lame walked, the deaf could hear, the mute could speak, the dead were raised, the good news was preached.

Jesus launched the kingdom of heaven into our world through His life, death, and resurrection. And now we who have been rescued by Him, we who have had His kingdom of healing and forgiveness break into us are called to let His kingdom of healing break out of us to heal our world.

"Your kingdom come," is one of the most powerful prayers I can pray because in the prayer itself is the power to heal our world. But it's more than that. It's realizing that God has redeemed me to partner with Him to bring healing to my world through the good news of Jesus. A healing that is going on now and will be fully realized when He comes again. So, the song roots me/us inside the story of God restoring the world till Jesus comes!

Q: Beyond this single, what's next for you? Can fans expect a new project or tour, or are you focusing on Cast Yourself In and other ministry work?

If it's God's plan I hope to release an album that will include singles I've released over the last few years along with some new songs. I hope mostly to grow more deeply in the gospel and pass on what I learn through music and perhaps writing a book.

I hope to inspire some to pour out their lives in a Muslim people group that's not yet heard the gospel. I hope through my work to inspire many to pray for Muslim people groups still waiting to hear. Check out the Priority 100 prayer app that focuses on the 100 peoples and places in the Muslim world that are key to reaching every Muslim with the good news of Jesus.

Reach out to me if anything I've shared resonates with you! Perry@perrylahaie.com.

For more information on Perry LaHaie, visit perrylahaie.com.  

 

 

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