We know country music’s cousin is traditional gospel music. We know that a lot of country songs have religious or moral themes intertwined.
With that in mind, below are seven country music artists who are outspoken about being Christians. We thought we’d let the stars do their own talking, so we included a quote that shows their religious beliefs.
Reba McEntire
photo from www.countryweekly.com
“[Faith] guides me on everything I do. I ask for guidance, I ask the Lord to give me wisdom when I speak, when I think and I always try to be positive and say nice things and it gives me strength throughout every minute and every day.” – McEntire to Fox News
Tim McGraw
photo from www.theodysseyonline.com
“It’s a personal issue. It all comes down to what the Bible says: it’s a personal relationship with God. I’m a private guy, and you don’t want to be out there preaching to people. But faith leads you in the decisions you make. You don’t always pick the right path, but it’s there in your conscience.” McGraw (via Daily Kos).
Kenny Rogers
photo from www.peacecenter.org
Rogers released a gospel album called The Love of God, which included the songs “Amazing Grace,” “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” and “I’ll Fly Away.”
“My mom kind of force-fed us religion. She was a true believer with lots of wisdom. When I once complained about going to church, she told me, ‘You can never be more as an adult than what’s put into you as a child.’ She was amazingly astute for a person with a third grade education.” – Rogers (via Reuters.com).
Randy Travis
photo from www.dallasobserver.com
“When I got into my early 20s, I was going to bed one night — I was still drinking, still using drugs, and probably was drunk or high or both — when I just picked up the Bible and started reading to go to sleep. I was amazed at how well I slept, but even beyond that, the next day, there was this peace of mind that was still there that I wasn’t used to. I never had peace of mind. I never felt at peace with anything or anybody…
“I know I’m forgiven for those things, as bad as they were, in the past. There’s forgiveness if you ask forgiveness, you truly repent, and you do make an honest effort not to do that anymore.” – Travis during a conversation with cbn.com.
Carrie Underwood
photo from www.billboard.com
In a conversation with Oprah, Underwood and her husband, Mike Fischer, talked about their faith and beliefs; when they were dating, they would apparently pray with each other during their phone calls.
“We’ll try to read some of the same stuff every once in awhile and have things to talk about.” – Carrie Underwood during a conversation with Oprah
Johnny Cash
photo from psnt.net
Though it was and is still known as the Man In Black, singing about women and heartbreak, at the end of his life, Cash converted to Christianity. And has was not afraid to talk about it.
“I—as a believer that Jesus of Nazareth, a Jew, the Christ of the Greeks, was the Anointed One of God (born of the seed of David, upon faith as Abraham has faith, and it was accounted to him for righteousness)—am grafted onto the true vine, and am one of the heirs of God’s covenant with Israel.” Cash (via Christianity Today).
Dolly Parton
photo from www.billboard.com
“I try to just depend on that source that’s bigger than us. . . . and kind of energize my batteries with God and praying every day. And just kind of feeling like Jesus is right here close to me and he’s my friend, and I just talk to him and deal with it that way.” – Parton (via hollowverse.com).
