Music has always been at the very core of who I am. In 1999, at age 31, I discovered something much greater than the music - a passion for serving my Savior and a desire to influence others through music and ministry.
Bio
It's all about the groove...
The groove...that moment of wonder in music where the experience moves beyond simply hearing the music....you feel the music. That's where the Bill Petty and his music find their home...in the "groove".
Bill sees music as he sees the Word of God. When you open yourself up and allow the rhythm and feeling behind the words to move you, to speak to you personally....it becomes much more than just words on a page or chords on a chart. You don't just hear it, you feel it. It becomes part of you. "Carry the Word of God in your heart like a song..." Which songs live in your heart? The songs that meet you where you are and in who you are. They establish themselves through the groove that they create.
Bill's ministry in music reaches deep into this concept on stage and in person...whether in a performance, leading worship at The Pointe or in his personal relationship with family or friends. It's all about the groove!
Looking back on his life, Bill acknowledges that both music and ministry were always at the very core of the man that God had designed him to be.Born and raised in the suburbs of Nashville,TN, Bill was surrounded by music of every shape and style from the beginning. His father, Bill Sr., put a guitar in Bill's hands at an early age, and his mother, Jane, has a remarkable voice that rings of the early women of country music.
With influences founded through years of performance and writing in most every genre of music, his strongest slant was toward those that are most often identified with their "groove"...blues, R&B, funk.
A hint of ministry direction revealed itself in 1986 as Bill headed to Belmont College. He played in numerous bands in and around Nashville, and in the first Belmont Baptist Student Union band. His first real "Christian" concert experience was also this year - Michael W. Smith at Belmont Baptist. "The Spirit of God filled that place as my heart swelled in a way I'd never experienced before. I still remember the feeling of holding up my hands in praise for the first time. I can see now that this night was only a foreshadowing of things to come....things I could not even imagine."
'86 was also the year Bill began dating his beautiful wife, Cinda. "She is my foundation and my inspiration...my constant supporter and my very best friend"
In 1999, at age 31, Bill gave his heart to Christ during a Sunday morning service at White House General Baptist Church, where he soon moved into ministry, serving as Music Director for seven years. It was during this time that he came to discover something much greater than the music itself -- a passion for serving God and a desire to speak to the hearts of others through music and ministry.
In 2007, Bill joined pastor Todd Bush in founding The Pointe (NorthPointe Church) in White House, TN, serving as Pastor of Worship & Creative Arts and seeking to fulfill the vision that God continues to reveal in his life.
In September 2007, Bill realized yet another "new thing" (Is 43:18) that God was preparing in his life through the release of his debut CD, "Wonder", a collection of ten original songs that draws upon on a vast range of influences -- blues, funk, country, rock, Southern Gospel, Contemporary, P&W -- woven together with an underlying acoustic groove. "Wonder" draws hearts to worship, celebration and reflection, as each song presents a unique message and experience to listeners.
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