Bob Kauflin

Sovereign Grace Music

Singer-songwriter, pianist, pastor, and music director ROBERT JOHN KAUFLIN was born 7 January 1955, son of James Kauflin and Margaret Rydeen. He was raised in a Catholic household but had an evangelical conversion experience through Campus Crusade for Christ in 1972. Kauflin started his professional career in 1976 as a founding member of the Christian band and vocal group GLAD. The group was formed while he was a student at Temple University in Philadelphia, put together by George and David King of The Fellowship. Kauflin graduated from Temple in 1976 with a degree in piano performance, and that summer married Julia Ann Chilman. After graduating from Temple, Kauflin and his friends made the bold decision to be a professional touring group. Their first recordings were released as singles via the Olde Towne label. GLAD issued their first full album, self-titled Glad, in 1978 through Myrrh Records. Kauflin continued to sing, tour, and record with the group until 1984, culminating with the album Live at the Kennedy Center (1984). After abdicating his position in the band, he remained involved as a songwriter and arranger through 2010.

Turning his focus to the local church, Kauflin connected with songwriters Mark Altrogge, Steve Cook, and Vikki Cook through the family of churches then known as People of Destiny International, a church planting ministry. They distributed their songs via cassette (Song Service tapes) and produced a live recording called Mighty God (1984). In 1985, he joined the pastoral staff of Fairfax Covenant Church (Fairfax, VA; now Redeeming Grace Church), associated with People of Destiny. In 1986, Kauflin produced The Nations Are Waiting, followed by Arise! Music for a People of Destiny (1987), which included Mark Altrogge’s song “I Stand in Awe.” The following year, Kauflin issued a solo piano album, Heroic Piano (1988), through Diadem Music, featuring arrangements of classic hymns.

In 1991, Kauflin helped to plant Abundant Life Community Church (later CrossWay Community Church) in Charlotte, North Carolina. He led a congregational worship album called Chosen Treasure for Hosanna! Music in 1992. Three more People of Destiny albums followed under the HeartCry label (a division of Word), 1993–1995. In 1997, he joined the staff of Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland. That year, PDI Music became its own label with the issue of Love Beyond Degree, the initial album in the Come and Worship series. Another album released that year, Depth of Mercy, contained the premiere of Vikki Cook’s tune for “Before the throne of God above.” A compilation songbook, The PDI Worship Collection, was published in 2000.

In 2002, PDI rebranded as Sovereign Grace Ministries, and the music label became Sovereign Grace Music. In 2006, Kauflin launched the every-other-year WorshipGod conference and also started leading the singing for the newly established Together for the Gospel (T4G) conferences, for which he recorded four live albums. His first book, Worship Matters, was published by CrossWay in 2008. In 2012, Kauflin and others moved to Louisville, Kentucky, to plant a Sovereign Grace church there, also moving the SGM headquarters to that location. Of Kauflin’s six children, his sons Devon and Jordan have become professional church musicians and songwriters.

Not all of Kauflin’s published output would be considered hymnody. In some cases, he has produced new refrains or new tunes for old hymns, such as “Your Great Name We Praise (Immortal Invisible),” from Upward (2003), which was included in Zion Still Sings (2007), “God moves in a mysterious way,” from Worship God Live (2005), or “O the deep, deep love of Jesus” from Come, Weary Saints (2008). Some of his other songs are considered new hymns, such as “O great God of highest heaven,” from Valley of Vision (2006), which was later adopted into Rejoice Hymns (2011) and other collections, or “Reformation Song,” from Together for the Gospel Live IV (2008), which was included in the Wisconsin Lutheran hymnal Christian Worship (2021).

Featured Hymns:

God moves in a mysterious way
O the deep, deep love of Jesus

Official Site:

Sovereign Grace Music:
https://sovereigngracemusic.com/

Collections of Songs:

The PDI Worship Collection (Kevin Mayhew, 2000)

Books:

Worship Matters (Crossway, 2008)

True Worshipers: Seeking What Matters to God (Crossway, 2015)

Selected Lectures and Interviews:

SBTS, Institute for Christian Worship Lectures (2001–2010):
https://repository.sbts.edu/browse?type=author&value=Kauflin%2C+Bob

WorshipGod Conferences (2004–):
https://worshipgodconference.com/past-conferences/

Tim Smith & Bob Kauflin, “Tim Smith interviews Bob Kauflin” (2008): YouTube 1 | YouTube 2 | YouTube 3

Jonathan Parnell, “Discussion with Bob Kauflin,” Desiring God (12 Nov. 2011): DG

Philip Webb & Bob Kauflin, “Worship Conversations,” Hymns of Grace (19 May 2023): YouTube

Sound + Doctrine Podcast: YouTube

Additional Resources:

Discogs.com: Bob Kauflin | GLAD | People of Destiny

Hymnary.org: Bob Kauflin

Mark Allen Powell, “GLAD,” Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2002), pp. 363–364.

Discography:

Heroic Piano (Diadem, 1988)

Chosen Treasure (Hosanna!, 1992)

GLAD

“New World” / “Born Again” (Olde Towne)

Glad (Myrrh, 1978)

Beyond a Star (Myrrh, 1980)

Captured in Time (Greentree, 1982)

No Less Than All (Greentree, 1983)

Live at the Kennedy Center (Greentree, 1984)

Champion of Love (Greentree, 1985)

Who Do You Love (Greentree, 1987)

The Acapella Project (Benson, 1988)

Romans (Benson, 1989)

The Acapella Project II (Benson, 1990)

The Symphony Project (Benson, 1991)

An Acapella Christmas (Benson, 1991)

Floodgates (Benson, 1992)

Acapella Hymns (Benson, 1993)

Color Outside the Lines (Light, 1995)

A Cappella Gershwin (Light, 1995)

The A Cappella Project III (Light, 1996)

A Cappella Worship (Diadem, 1998)

A Cappella Worship 2 (Diadem, 1999)

Voices of Christmas (Diadem, 2000)

Pure and Holy Passion (Glad, 2001)

God of All Comfort (Christian, 2003)

Receive the Glory: The A Cappella Project IV (Glad, 2005)

People of Destiny (PDI Music)

Mighty God (1984) cassette
Bob Kauflin, Mark Altrogge, Steve & Vicki Cook

The Nations Are Waiting (PDI, 1986)

Arise! (PDI, 1987) LP
reissued as Arise and Worship (Diadem, 1988) CD with songbook

Overflowing Grace (HeartCry, 1993) with songbook

The Wonder of the Cross (HeartCry, 1994)

Passion for His Presence (HeartCry, 1995)

Love Beyond Degree (1 May 1997)

All for You (1 July 1997)

Depth of Mercy (1 November 1997)

Glory of the Ages (1 August 1998)

Lift a Shout (1 May 1999)

Everlasting (1 August 1999)

King of Grace (1 May 2000)

No Greater Love (1 May 2001)

I Stand in Awe (1 June 2002)

Sovereign Grace Music

Upward: The Bob Kauflin Hymns Project (2003)

All We Long to See (2003)

Songs for the Cross Centered Life (2004)

Worship God Live (2005)

Valley of Vision (2006)

Come, Weary Saints (2008)

Psalms (2008)

Together for the Gospel Live (2008)

Next 2009 Live (2009)

Sons and Daughters (2009)

Risen (2011)

The Gathering: Live from WorshipGod 11 (2011)

From Age to Age (2012)

Together for the Gospel Live II (2012)

Grace Has Come (2013)

30: Three Decades (2014)

Sooner Count the Stars (2015)

Together for the Gospel Live III (2016)

Prayers of the Saints Live (2017)

Together for the Gospel Live IV (2018)

Hymns of Grace: Live at Shepherd's Conference (2018)
with Keith & Kristyn Getty, Clayton Erb

Behold Our God (2019)

The Glorious Christ (2019)

Hymns of Grace: Live at Shepherd's Conference, Vol. 2 (2020)
with John Martin

Unchanging God: Songs From the Book of Psalms

Volume 1 (2022)
Volume 2 (2022)

Knowing God (2024)