Tornado-Ravaged Joplin, MO

As I drove through the tornado-ravaged neighborhoods of Joplin, MO on my first disaster relief trip earlier this summer, Chris Tomlin‘s “I Lift My Hands”* played on K-Love (90.7 in Joplin). While my mind attempted to process the devastation and the loss for this community, God provided this simple response encouraging me to, “lift my hands to believe again.”

I lift my hands to believe again
You are my refuge, You are my strength
As I pour out my heart, these things I remember
You are faithful, God, forever
~ Chris Tomlin, “I Lift My Hands”

During my second trip to Joplin, as I was serving on a siding crew for CBN’s Operation Blessing‘s first rebuild in the city (see video), Christy Nockels‘ newest single, “Waiting Here for You,”* played. Of all the songs we heard the first day on the build, that one brought a unique sense of peace to the tasks at hand.

If faith can move the mountains
Let the mountains move
We come with expectation
Waiting here for you, I’m waiting here for you
~ Christy Nockels, “Waiting Here for You”

Hope in Joplin, MO

Joplin is waiting for a much-needed extra dose of God’s presence to descend on a grieving, tired and broken city. Some of them are waiting in hospitals, others at homes of friends and family, and others in tents behind their own uninhabitable homes … but they are waiting and hoping for a promised new life after the storm.

You are everything You’ve promised
Your faithfulness is true
And we’re desperate for Your presence
All we need is You … Waiting here for You
~ Christy Nockels, “Waiting Here for You”

When life breaks this bad, there’s only one hope for survival, for healing, for new life. There’s only one source of strength and hope that can carry us through the pain, uncertainty and loss. As Joplin faces the overwhelming road to restoring their city, I can’t help but want them to hear these reminders of God’s love and power in the midst of difficulty.

If I could I would play K-Love through a very large megaphone over the city while emergency workers, city employees, residents and volunteers continue the hard work of debris removal, grief, insurance negotiations, confusion, rebuilding and hope. Hope can be hard work … to keep hoping when all you can see around you is destruction, broken lives a mile wide and six miles long.

Be still, there is a healer
His love is deeper than the sea
His mercy, it is unfailing
His arms are a fortress for the weak … Let faith arise
~ Chris Tomlin, “I Lift My Hands”

With a megaphone pointed to the rest of the world, I would share the work of Operation Blessing, the Christian Broadcasting Network’s disaster relief organization (CBN/700 Club). Complimenting the efforts of Samaritan’s Purse, American Red Cross, Salvation Army and the United Way, OB’s US Disaster Relief team, led by Jody Herrington-Gettys and Dan Moore, coordinated the debris removal requests and home repair needs of Joplin residents affected by the tornado with the help of OB crew staff, equipment and volunteers**.

Siding Team for First Operation Blessing Rebuild in Joplin

Support of Operation Blessing, via time and finances, brought new hope to the Joplin community. Ongoing support of OB will continue the flow of hope into devastated regions of the US and 105 other countries around the world. For those of us graced to be living in less-ravaged seasons of life, we have the opportunity to pass on that grace to others in need. We can be a river of Christ’s love winding around Joplin and Birmingham, Ukraine and Thailand, Sudan and Haiti during these difficult days.

Be still, there is a river
That flows from Calvary’s tree
A fountain for the thirsty
Pure grace that washes over me

So let faith arise
Let faith arise
Open my eyes
Open my eyes
~ Chris Tomlin, “I Lift My Hands”

* Download Chris Tomlin’s “I Lift My Hands” from his 2011 release, And If Our God Is For Us, and Christy Nockels’ “Waiting Here For You” from the Passion 2011 release, Here For You, on iTunes.

** To volunteer with Operation Blessing, complete the volunteer form on their website or call (757) 226-3407. Volunteers need to be at least 16 years of age, and 16 & 17 year-olds must have a waiver signed by a parent. They currently provide housing and meals for volunteers able to travel to devastated regions in the US.

sixsteps/EMI Worship Artist, Chris Tomlin

There is one human voice that affects my soul like no other … when I hear Chris Tomlin sing the songs with which God (and sixsteps/EMI record labels) has entrusted him, my heart finds a healthy rhythm, my mind pauses ever so briefly to breathe new air and my spirit adjusts itself, realigning my psyche with God’s presence in the day (I’ve even wondered if my blood pressures drops just a tad).

Since first becoming acquainted with CCM’s favorite worship artist six or seven years ago, I have appreciated both his singing and his songs … style and content. Due to the popularity of his music, his voice quickly became a familiar one in the music mix and I found myself able to pick it out easily amongst all the other voices.

But, when life kicked in to overdrive in 2009, Chris’s voice became the one voice I wanted (needed?) most to hear (followed closely by Sara Groves, Brandon Heath, Addison Road and downhere). His music offered the one soundtrack – with accompanying lyrics – that could settle my spirit and squelch the rising tide of anxiety in an extended season of uncertainty.

I know as a single woman this would have sounded highly suspect to share about a single man (and maybe it sounds even worse now that he’s married) – and I know for many married individuals they may share similar responses to hearing their spouse’s voice (while other music lovers may favor CCM artists such as Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Matthew West and JJ Heller) – but it wasn’t about that. There is a wooing of our hearts that only God can do … and He chooses to do that through His Spirit and His people.

Chris Tomlin's Newest Release, And If Our God Is For Us

I do respect what I know about Chris, I value His investment (along with Louie & Shelley Giglio) in Passion conferences (focused on making Jesus famous in the world, specifically through this generation of college students) and I have come to trust his heart based on his public faith lived out over the last decade or so … but I don’t know him enough to comment on much more than his music … thus the subject of this post.

Sing, sing, sing
And make music with the heavens
We will sing, sing, sing
Grateful that You hear us
When we shout your praise
Lift high the name of Jesus

As I’ve tried to process the unexplainable whys surrounding my reaction to Chris’s voice, God gave me a glimpse of the benefits of inviting Jesus’s voice in our lives … seeking it, hearing it,  listening to it, responding to it. I am not in the habit of praying to hear Jesus’s voice in my day-to-day ordinary – nor my most desperate – moments. I have prayed for God’s guidance, provision and will for my life. I’ve prayed for clarity, help and hugs, on occasion. But I don’t remember ever longing for His voice – or even using that specific terminology – like I have recently.

For someone who struggles to feel safe in the word “love,” I believe this new longing for Jesus’s voice represents one more step on the journey toward truly loving God and wanting God vs. appreciating God and worshiping God (all good though). Desiring Jesus’s voice just seems a bit more personal and engaging than requesting His direction and provision (although still important).

What’s not to love about You?
Heaven and earth adore You
Kings and kingdoms bow down
Son of God, You are the One
You are the one

The “fact” of God’s love will turn into the “feeling” of God’s love as we grow in our experience with Him on a personal basis, finding true security and rest in His arms (and in His power). Even if that “experience” involves an intense battle with fear, an extended ride on an unwelcomed roller coaster of circumstances or unbearable, seemingly unsurvivable loss, He promises victory (Deuteronomy 20:4,  1 Corinthians 15:57), He promises help (Deuteronomy 33:29, Psalm 28:7, Psalm 33:20, Romans 8:26) and He promises rest (Matthew 11:28).

You are the love that frees us
You are the light that leads us
Like a fire burning
Son of God, You are the one
You are the one we’re living for

In John 10:27 Jesus states, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (KJV) Am I familiar enough with His voice to hear it – to pick it out of a crowd of voices, like I can Chris’s voice – and with enough confidence to obey it?

This past August I took a little detour through Indianapolis, IN on my way to help my son move back into his Kentucky college dorm. Indianapolis isn’t exactly on the way to Kentucky from southern Illinois, but enough so that I could justify a brief stop at the Indiana State Fair for an evening with Chris Tomlin and tobyMac (the encore alone was worth the price of gas … “City On Our Knees” into “God of This City” capped by a once-in-a-lifetime, shouldn’t-be-missed joint rap of “Jesus Freak” … catch a glimpse of the latter on YouTube).

Christy Nockels, Life Light Up

Due to the kindness of music colleagues, I was backstage waiting for the show to start as both bands were getting ready. Chris, his band, fellow sixsteps worship artist Christy Nockels and others were in the vicinity, and I enjoyed a few minutes of introduction to Christy (a new favorite voice). I guess I could’ve said hello to Chris, but, in looking back at the evening, all I really wanted was to just hear him sing. There’s only one thing better than hearing “Our God” on the radio, and that’s singing it along with Chris and 5,000 other people. Fortified with another precious hour of Chris’s music, I went on my way.

Sing, sing, sing
And make music with the heavens
We will sing, sing, sing
Grateful that You hear us
When we shout your praise
Lift high the name of Jesus

As I considered the level of my passion for Jesus’s voice, I found myself questioning, “Do I detour from the day’s activities just to hear it?” “Do I truly value the opportunity to just stand in His presence?” “Do I feel re-equipped for the uncertainty ahead after hearing Him?” “Do I long for the next opportunity to take in His face, His encouragement and His Spirit?”

Me w/ Louie Giglio, Pastor, Speaker & Founder of Passion Conferences

As I was first becoming acquainted with Chris Tomlin’s music, I was offered tickets to attend one of his concerts. I loved just being there in the presence of that music (albeit way up high), but another more significant thing happened that night. Because of my desire to hear Chris’s voice, I also heard Louie Giglio’s voice for the first time. Louie quickly became a favorite speaking voice for the Gospel message (I encourage you to watch him online at Passion City Church).

And since then I’ve been introduced to Christy’s voice and Matt’s voice (worship artist Matt Redman) and Kristian’s voice (new sixsteps worship artist Kristian Stanfill) … all voices that have fed  my spirit and encouraged my walk. Voices I may not have heard had I not first attuned my ears to hear Chris.

In the same way, tuning our ears to Jesus’ voice leads us to other voices that join with His in the sharing of the hope of the Gospel … Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Paul among other Biblical writers, as well as other national speakers (ahhh … Beth Moore, another noteworthy voice in my repertoire) and local pastors. Jesus is the beginning and the end of the Gospel message, but He’s also a channel to other voices of encouragement, affirmation and counsel … not to mention the fact that He left His Spirit with us on earth to continue to be His voice.

What’s not to love about You?
Heaven and earth adore You
Kings and kingdoms bow down
Son of God, You are the One
You are the one we’re living for

Chris’s voice has given me a glimpse at Jesus’s voice, encouraging my pursuit of and trust in the One voice that can truly heal, satisfy and save. I think this may have been God’s intent all along for His unique anointing over Chris … that Chris would be a voice of Christ in this generation, a direct connect between us and Him … an instrument of His goodness. And, if record sales are any indication, there are hundreds of thousands of people who have responded to Chris’s music in the same way that I have.

On a side note, imagine if Chris would not have responded to the call God put on his life as a teenager …

Passion 2011 Conferences

Will I/we respond to His voice? Will we respond to His call for each of us? Will we trust Him with the one, one thousand or one million people whose lives are saved by Christ through our voices of obedience? We may not be called – and positioned – to be His voice to 22,000 college students packed in Atlanta’s Philips Arena and Georgia World Congress Center this past January or to thousands more in Ft. Worth’s Convention Center April 1-3 (Passion 2011 conference sites, college students can still register for Ft. Worth at 268generation.com/passion2011), but will I/we voice His praises, His provision, His promises and His hope when given opportunity?

I can’t help but reflect back to my recent posts, “The Song You Sing” and “Songwriting.” To whom might my one voice, if I raise it high enough (and somehow God makes it sound a little better ) and sing long enough, offer that glimpse of Christ? Who might God possibly draw closer to Him through anything I might say, sing or (even easier on the ears) write? He continually gives us His songs to sing to a world desperate to hear them.

Sing, sing, sing
And make music with the heavens
We will sing, sing, sing
Grateful that You hear us
When we shout your praise
Lift high the name of Jesus
Chris Tomlin, “Sing, Sing, Sing” from Passion: God of This City

The band downhere released the song, “I Will Follow Your Voice,” on their award-winning CD, Wide-Eyed and Mystified. I’ll close with a few of the lyrics … as only Jason Germain and Marc Martel can sing them (hear a live version of the song on YouTube):

With every channel on
We don’t know where we belong
Help me to hear Your voice
Above all the other noise

I will follow Your voice
I will follow Your voice
I will trust Your choice
I will not fear

I will follow Your voice
I will follow Your voice
Not my will but Yours
Be done here…

(Did I mention that Chris Tomlin, Louie Giglio and Christy Nockels are all on tour together right now? Visit www.christomlin.com for concert dates and locations.)

Add to the Beauty by Sara Groves We come with beautiful secrets We come with purposes written on our hearts, written on our souls We come to every new morning With possibilities only we can hold, that only we can hold Redemption comes in strange place, small spaces Calling out the best of who we are And I want to add to the beauty To tell a better story I want to shine with the light That’s burning up inside It comes in small inspirations It brings redemption to life and work To our lives and our work It comes in loving community It comes in helping a soul find it’s worth Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces Calling out the best of who we are And I want to add to the beauty To tell a better story I want to shine with the light That’s burning up inside This is grace, an invitation to be beautiful This is grace, an invitation Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces Calling out our best And I want to add to the beauty To tell a better story I want to shine with the light That’s burning up inside

“And I want to add to the beauty, to tell a better story.” Sara Groves

The more I see God work through Hope Shows (and Sara Groves and Christian music radio and everyone else who has partnered with us this year) to tell the story of prison ministry, the more I understand my commission to keep telling the story of the struggles, needs and hopes of our nation’s inmates, former inmates and their families.

But it’s been a hard-fought battle to acquire this peace with prison ministry … a lot of letting go of past passions and people I valued, a lot of trust that God had a plan for the broken pieces I held in my hands, a lot of confusion over next steps, a lot of support in the confusion, a lot of tears tears followed by a lot of renewed determination, a lot of pain and a lot of hope. And God has provided  a lot of guidance, provision and confirmation … often not as much as I wanted , but definitely as much as I needed.

Sara Groves challenges us to respond with beauty to life’s challenges in a podcast from a chapel service at Gordon College (recorded in the fall of 2008*). She examined how we can respond to life’s difficulty and disappointments … either with anger, hurtfulness and violence or with love and beauty.

“That, I feel, is our great choice,” states Groves, “whether we respond the way the world would respond or whether, throughout our lives, we counter-intuitively, by the grace of God, not of our own strength, but through the great gift of Jesus Christ, respond with beauty in a world that is absolutely starved of it and absolutely void of it. And in that way we give good connotation to the message of Jesus Christ.”

She encouraged the audience to help narrate this Gospel story that desperately needs to be retold over and over again. “If you do this, your life is going to reverberate – it’s going to sound off like a cellist in a war zone.” Groves was referring to a story she told about a cellist who responded to great loss experienced during the Bosnian War by playing his music in the middle of a bomb crater that had killed innocent men, women and children. “Many people say the media attention from that … hastened the end of that war.”

Author and megachurch pastor, David Platt, poses a similar choice in his New York Times best-selling book, Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream, “You and I can choose to continue with business as usual in the Christian life and in the church as a whole, enjoying success based on the standards defined by the culture around us. Or we can take an honest look at the Jesus of the Bible and dare to ask what the consequences might be if we really believed Him and really obeyed Him.”

Platt consistently communicates his passion for re-telling the story of Jesus and His concern for those who need our help and our Hope. “I believe that God has uniquely created every one of His people to impact the world. Some may count it as idealistic, but I believe it is thoroughly biblical, rooted in Psalm 67:1-2, yet covering Scripture from beginning to end. God is in the business of blessing His people so that His ways and His salvation might be made known among all people.”

As a college student I lacked self-awareness, self-confidence, spiritual maturity and purpose, and my response to the challenges of that season of life resulted in depression, accompanied by a lack of direction (and more anger than I’ve probably truly owned) … and God, in the way that only He can do, brought beauty from the pain through family, numerous opportunities for professional growth and a supportive community.

From this foundation, He’s equipped me to respond to a second season of loss and change over two decades later with greater confidence, hope and faith … and a deepened belief that God was in charge, on the job and on task working to do something new with new pain, fear and uncertainty.

It has not been easy. This season continues to challenge and stretch me in areas that I would often choose – on my own accord – to remain comfortable and, well, less-stretchy , but, if I would have chosen an easier path, I would have missed it. It being the “bleacher girls” at Lincoln Correctional Center praying for Sara Groves and her band before the prison concert (you’ve not heard prayer until you’ve heard these faithful inmates share their hearts with God … it was a true “Chorus of the Saints”). It being the joy and appreciation on the faces of 500 inmates at a Sara Groves concert. It being conversations about prison ministry on the nation’s largest Christian music radio network … and so many other its.

This time around He’s invited me to share the comfort He provided me years before with others deeply in need of the same comfort of connection, commission and community. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ” (2 Corinthians 1:3-5).

As we pass on our Comfort, our Hope and our Confidence our lives tell the story of God’s active, engaging, unfailing presence on the journey – as He invests in us, we are equipped to invest in others. We can respond to past pain and shame with beauty in the present and hope for the future.

And I believe God has designed our individual responses to take the form of ministry unique to our experiences. I have nurtured various ministry interests for many years, testing the waters in the areas of depression, art therapy, career development, parenting, but I never felt commissioned to move forward with any of these interests until I was asked to produce a prison concert.

What is so very interesting to me is that, through Hope Shows, I now have the opportunity:

• to care for those struggling with depression and loneliness, common mental health issues for our inmates
• to facilitate the availability of musical instruments and craft supplies in prisons – and instruction for both – through donations of treasures and talents, and by doing so encourage inmates to discover their beautiful new identity in Christ through the creation of beautiful works of art
• to talk about skill development, education and career planning with soon-to-be-released inmates and former inmates
• to empathize with – and speak into – the needs of families of inmates left to live life in the absence of an incarcerated parent/spouse.

God, in His goodness, created a new portrait of hope from my life’s pieces as a beautiful, unique response to pain, sin and loss. I believe He has a beautiful, unique response for each of us willing to seek Him out and go where He calls. My joy in the journey comes from a simple peace that I’ve found my place in His story for me … and as Sara says, “by the grace of God, not of [my] own strength, but through the great gift of Jesus Christ.”

God has redefined beauty for me in my professional endeavors during the last eighteen months. Beauty has shown up in:

• a former inmate who attended one of our first Hope Shows benefit events unaware of the prison ministry focus for the night … and his response in support the prison show.
• God’s orchestration of the first Hope Shows prison concert featuring Sara Groves and her band at Lincoln Correctional Center (LCC), a women’s medium-security prison in Lincoln, IL.
• the prayer of an amazing group of female inmates inviting God’s blessing over the concert (these ladies became affectionately known as the “bleacher girls” because they watched the event from the bleachers in the back when they weren’t assisting us)
• witnessing 500 female inmates tune their hearts in to an evening with an amazing songwriter, whose heart was tuned in to the women in attendance.
• the scarred face of a beautiful African American inmate smiling and singing … I will not forget her.
• a former inmate, and friend of Hope Shows, getting her first (post-incarceration) job after two years of looking for a position following her release from prison.
• a group of male inmates requesting a Hope Shows event at their facility, and one of them asking, hesitantly, if he has to be a Christian to attend (I assured him he would be invited and welcomed).
• an email from a former LCC inmate expressing her appreciation of the Hope Shows event she attended prior to her release (our first email from a Hope Shows prison concert attendee).
• the investment by INO Records and Sara Groves to produce and release a live recording of the Hope Shows prison concert, and then donating proceeds from the project to future Hope Shows events.
• hearing the ladies of Lincoln Correctional Center singing, “Carols,” with Sara Groves and her band on K-Love, the nation’s largest Christian music network.
• encouraging comments of K-Love listeners in response to K-Love Morning Show posting the link to the video from the Hope Shows prison concert with Sara.
• a few moments with my sister’s friend – the one whose story God used to get my attention about prison ministry – now the mother of a young son managing a successful business.
• and, a personal addition … an invitation to Prison Fellowship headquarters in Lansdowne, VA to meet with a team of individuals committed to prison ministry. The teenager who read PF Founder Chuck Colson’s book, Born Again, and the young lady who visited a family friend in prison, drove on to the sacred campus as a woman called to partner with this invaluable team … only God can orchestrate these opportunities. (Read “If You Spend Yourself …” for more on this journey.)

This is beauty. And I deeply desire to add to it …

–

* Visit iTunes to hear “Gordon Chapels: Art, Music, Justice – Chapel, November 3, 2008″

“You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody.” 2 Corinthians 3:2, Paul reminding the Corinthians that their lives testify to the ministry of the Gospel of Jesus Christ about whom Paul had taught them.

While I’m on the topic of songs and testimonies (see previous post, “The Song You Sing“) … I must pause to visit Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 3:2-6. A frequent letter writer in my youth (before email, texting, IM and cellphones), these verses have long been marked in my Bible. If we allow these words to settle on us, we’ll find renewed cause to be the message of hope to those who need Christ. “Christ in you, the hope of Glory,” Colossians 1:27.

(A quick plug for my incredible pastor, Doug Newton, and his Say Something sermon series … for a blessed message on Colossians 1:27, listen to “A Most Impressive Testimony,” Sunday, November 14, 2010)

We can reflect His character, His priorities, His love and the fruit of His Spirit such that others can see Him – and hear Him – in a new way, experiencing the Gospel through the songs He writes in the lives of believers.

“You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of the human heart.” 2 Corinthians 3:3

Paul addressed the opportunity believers have to tell the story of the new covenant of grace, as presented through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus … replacing the old covenant of Moses based on the law etched in stone, i.e. the ten commandments. Because of Christ we now have the choice to extend grace and mercy or to extend the law and judgment to others with whom we find ourselves in community. (WWJD … Arghhh. )

And how I struggle with this on occasion. As the years mature us, hopefully grace grows in us (as it humbles us, of course), but I still find myself assuming a defensive stance against certain people and certain circumstances.

But, I am learning how the tone of my testimony can facilitate hope and trust vs. discouragement and defensiveness … and this possibility of ministry gives us all something for which we should keep striving. I have said many times, I’m not perfect and I’m not aiming for that, but I would love healthy. Healthy emotions, beneficial responses, balanced priorities and undeterred, unstoppable hope for myself and in others. I want to be a song He can sing to those who most need to hear Him.

“Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God.” 2 Corinthians 3:4

Just prior to a dramatic life change almost a year and a half ago, I attended a conference of PR colleagues on the campus of Biola University in Los Angeles. Their president, Dr. Barry Corey, shared a statement that day that has nested in my heart and mind during the sixteen months since, “The antidote for uncertainty is not certainty; it is confidence that God will bring to completion what He started.”

He was addressing the uncertain times in higher education (and uncertain that season of my life proved to be), but he was right about the One in whom we should place our confidence … and it’s biblical, “For you have been my hope … my confidence since my youth,” (Psalm 71:5) and “Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.” (Jeremiah 17:7)

One paraphrase of this verse states, “Such trust have we – We have the fullest conviction that God has thus accredited our ministry; and that [believers] are monuments of his mercy, and proofs of the truth of our ministry.” (Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible)

The concept of another entity bringing credit to a ministry was made real to me last week as Sara Groves released a live Christmas CD project recorded at our first Hope Shows prison concert last December. One credible, critically-acclaimed recording artist shares her experience with our ministry and our website traffic jumps up 10-fold, donations to the project re-energize future events and at least one of the CCM-related enewsletters I receive on a regular basis featured both the CD and Hope Shows as the lead story last week. I fully believe God used Sara to accredit the ministry He placed in my hands, and I am so thankful for her testimony to a Hope Shows prison concert.

WE can be Sara Groves too! We can sing of God’s work in us and around us, encouraging and blessing acts of mercy and love done on His behalf. We can stand center stage, with confidence, and proclaim the truth of His power in and through His people, His church.

“Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.” 2 Corinthians 3:5

I love the use of the word “competence” in this translation (NIV). As I have sought God’s direction for new purpose and ministry focus – a new song – I have watched Him use areas of present strength, experience and passion right alongside past failures, pain and insecurity. My only rest comes when I remember in Whom I will find both competence and confidence as we write each measure of this new piece. This song has simply not been about me, but about Him … with a great desire on my part to work in harmony with His will.

I can celebrate one measure of success and moments later hit a low note in a measure of frustration. I have, more than once this past year, felt like God was calling me to take the stage for this new life in prison ministry, only to find the curtain has yet to come up on this performance (signaling a continued season of practice and preparation).

(Forgive the brief horse metaphor, but if you were to see me during a frustrating or fearful moment, you would understand the relevance of it …) If you’ve seen Disney’s new film, Secretariat, you know that a horse prancing about at the gate waiting for the freedom to run its race is not a pretty site. (Did you know that some horses have to go to “gate school” to learn to deal with the moments after being loaded in … I know, where do I sign up?)

The starting gate is a place of tension … as is the scene backstage at a concert just before the curtain rises. The musician paces with anxiety and anticipation, waiting for their turn to share their song with the audience God has entrusted to them. Will I sing well enough? Will I remember the words? Will they sing along? Will they applaud? Taking one last deep breath before showtime, the best thing we can do is to place the performance in God’s hands to will and to do what He chooses through our music. I’m just words and melody ’til You’re here with me / An unfinished symphony ’til You breathe in me / All the parts yet incomplete ’til You move in me / Let me be the song You sing (“The Song You Sing,” downhere).

New ministry, new direction and new relationships can bring new fears, new challenges and new lessons to be learned … but through it all new stories are written, new songs sung. There is only One who makes us worthy and the struggle worth it.

“This is the story of your life,
You decide how the rest is gonna read.
This is your chance between the lines to redefine
What kind of legacy you leave.
This is the story of your life
And it’s a story worth telling.” Matthew West, “The Story of Your Life”
(From his new release, The Story of Your Life)

I know that every artist I mention is my favorite, but what Matthew West has done with his newest project, The Story of Your Life, has raised the bar in this industry. After inviting people to share their stories with him, in order to sing on their behalf, Matthew produced a brilliant, compassionate, educational and moving project that you’ve got to hear to fully understand it’s worth in God’s kingdom. He committed to tell their stories, and he did it magnificently.

In fact, he chose to take on their pain in order to share in and communicate their struggles, their grief, their journeys, their victories. (Watch Matthew talk about this responsibility …)

In her book, Say Yes to God, author Kay Warren (wife of pastor/author Rick Warren) writes, “Deliberately choosing to enter into the experience of a fellow human being sets the stage for God to make an entrance. … Choosing to suffer with proves our love for our Savior and at the same time proves to the least, the last, and the lost that there is a Savior who loves them.”

I believe God has called Hope Shows to a two-fold ministry to our prison communities … first, to visit them. Called to present the hope of the Gospel message through Christian music, faith-based films and other Christ-centered media, Hope Shows up with music artists, actors, producers, directors and speakers uniquely equipped to bring light in darkness.

Second, we serve as conduits of their stories to the church. Called to remind believers to “visit those in prison” (Matthew 25:36) and to “remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners” (Hebrews 13:3), Hope Shows produces benefit events and other resources designed to voice the needs and hopes of incarcerated individuals, as well as those who have been released to re-engage the outside world.

They need us to care, while they’re inside and after they get out … financial assistance, spiritual guidance, emotional support, basic requirements of shelter, food, clothing and community. These men and women, boys and girls need us to remember them in order to live lives that testify to our ministry of Christ among them. They need us to deliver the song of one Hope written by the One who gave His life to write it, and to sing songs of mercy, grace and love on their behalf … resounding the truth of Matthew 25:36.

“And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18

The Song You Sing by Downhere Black lines, white pages … I’m waiting to be filled in The right notes arranged are only a beginning Into the silence Your Spirit breathes Strike up the chorus and sing to me —– Chorus: I’m just words and melody ’til You’re here with me An unfinished symphony ’til You breathe in me All the parts yet incomplete ’til You move in me Let me be the song You sing I have tried to make a life but I cannot create it Soaring high in solo flight, but I cannot sustain it Voice strains, chords ring out of tune There’s no music without You. I can do nothing without You How I’ve tried it on my own I have fought this all my life but Now I feel it, now I know I’m just words and melody Let me be the song You sing

I’ve been taking singing lessons for just over a year … thankfully for the auditory world I am  NOT referring to vocal training, but a season set aside to learn God’s purpose for my past, my pieces, my profession, my passions … allowing Him to orchestrate my next song.

As I shared in my first blog post, A Desire to Dance (October 2007), the following quote encouraged me forward on a difficult journey through depression fifteen years ago:

You must remember the music of the past to sing in the present and dance in the future.

Having spent the previous ten years connected to the Christian music industry, it was an appropriate metaphor to latch on to … with lots of music to process.

And therein lies one of the great beauties of music, it’s variety of tone, mood, tempo and beat. As music accompanies memories, songs compose a soundtrack to our lives … songs that celebrate, remember, mourn, express and bless our souls on the journey.

Songs hold within them a breadth and depth of emotion and experience often difficult to communicate via any other media. Words and melody work in harmony to tell the stories of our lives.

If you follow me on twitter and/or facebook, you probably know that I became a fan of the band downhere last winter (yes, a little late to the party on this one, but love ‘em). The lyrics to their recently released track, “The Song You Sing,” uniquely resonated with my journey:

“I’m just words and melody ’til You’re here with me
An unfinished symphony ’til You breathe in me
All the parts yet incomplete ’til You move in me
Let me be the song You sing”
“Song You Sing,” by downhere

Christian or non-Christian, many of us have – or will – encounter distinct seasons of hurt, help and healing. It’s these seasons, I believe, to which Paul refers in Romans 5:3-4, “we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

As we struggle to reconcile our past with our present, what do we do with the past music of disappointment, shame, loss, pain, despair and regret while seeking to live joyously and victoriously in the present?

We choose to sing of His love, strength, power, help, forgiveness, redemption, provision and presence … in the shower, at work, doing laundry, with friends, in tears, with joy, through fear and grief, we can be the song He sings. If we trust Him to orchestrate all of the notes and write His Word on our hearts, our lives will reverberate the story of  hope and grace to those around us.

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” 1 Peter 3:15

“They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” Revelation 12:11

Look forward to lots of tweets, greets and meets with readers. Blessings … Robyn

Somewhat unfamiliar with all three acts, it was a day to become acquainted with new people and new music. As songwriters, performers and people, the Downhere guys have acquired a new fan. Although I’m currently hooked on their “How Many Kings” Christmas project … I am armed with digital downloads from their newest project, “Ending is Beginning,” for some post-holiday play.

Jason Gray and Lanae Hale were equally engaging … the students listened as they shared songwriting struggles and success. During an acoustic set that evening, Jason shared his thoughts behind his newest project (and song), Everything Sad Is Coming Untrue. Inspired by a quote of Samwise Gamgee in “The Lord of the Rings,” Everything Sad Is Coming Untrue focuses on renewal. “God’s redemption plan is already in effect. It’s not for ‘someday when,’ it’s for right now, in this moment. Even when the worst is happening, the seeds of its undoing are already sown,” states Gray.

He caught my heart … and, even more, my hope. Could the difficult season undo itself? I’ve experienced how God brings blessing in the midst of struggle, without question, but the presence of long-term struggle can diminish future expectations. Survival defines success, brokenness becomes the norm.

This fall broken pieces started to find their place in an unexpected but fulfilling new ministry opportunity, Hope Shows. Hope Shows advances the surrounding hope of Christian music where it’s most needed, including prison concerts. The ending of a twelve-year career in higher ed marketing has turned into a significant new beginning in the process of sad things becoming untrue.

Those of you who have birthed, adopted or fostered children have experienced fear and stress – mixed with excitement – prior to the arrival of a new child turn to feelings of fear and inadequacy as you tend to the new life in your hands. Childbirth marks the end of a season of pregnant preparation and pain, and the start of a new life, a new thing … and it doesn’t take long to realize you don’t have a clue as to how to take care of this infant being.

That’s how I feel about the new ministry that God has called me to … and as parents count on Him to teach them to raise their children, I find myself equally dependent on Him to direct the paths of this new organization. I’m excited about the new project, but overwhelmed by the care it will require to grow.

It’s the season for new birth … for saving, life-giving, redeeming hope found in the only begotten Son of God. In the midst of my uncertainty, I’m choosing to celebrate new direction, new vision, new sad things coming untrue.

Moving forward often involves letting go … and at least for a season, I am letting go of a few prior investments, including this earlier idea for ministry. Single Hope was my idea for a blog, but Hope Shows was His idea for a comprehensive ministry … and it’s the right fit. The Hope Shows team would love your prayers and support and we tend to this young organization.

Called to one Hope this holiday season, Merry Christmas … Robyn

Better days are gonna find you once again
Every piece will find its place

“Broken” from Broken Bridges and performed by Lindsey Haun.

I share a popular appreciation for stained-glass windows and hope to soon realize a long-held interest in creating stained-glass art.

A few weeks ago I observed a stained-glass class in session, viewing projects at different stages in the process … etching the pattern, cutting the glass, breaking the pieces, smoothing the glass edges, covering the edges with copper, fitting the pieces in the design and soldering the pieces together.

It’s a pain-staking process – literally – cutting, breaking, sanding and soldering (in addition to the constant risk of cutting yourself on the glass ), but as the new creation takes shape it quickly becomes apparent that all the pain and effort is worth it. When the light shines through the finished product, it’s spectacular … extraordinary.

Like many others I’ve found myself pretty overwhelmed by the broken pieces of my life wrought over the years, and no more so than when my professional life broke this summer.

I didn’t lose hope, as God has brought me far enough along in the journey to trust Him more than I have in the past, but I did find myself holding a bunch of pieces … unsure of what to do with them. I’m thankful I had pieces – experiences, failures, skills, mistakes, education, strengths, weaknesses, productivity, passions – but I had no clue of what God may have in mind.

I also had a promise. A few days after I was released from my job, a new acquaintance told me that God had given her a word for me (a new experience for me ). She said, “He’ll show you what you’re supposed to do.” She also told me to wait on Him for the new thing He had in mind.

So with pieces in hand I decided to finish what I had already started, while I waited for God to reveal His new plan. I went on a twelve-day Christian music festival tour observing three successful festivals in the northern US on behalf of AgapeFest. I continued the foster parenting process I had begun in June, and am currently in the middle of a nine-session training program. And under the name of Hope Shows I promoted two concerts on “The HOPE Tour” with Fireflight, Remedy Drive and Abandon … shows I had initiated months ago.

I knew that two of the pieces I was holding were event production experience and a passion for advancing Christian music, but, as much as I enjoyed the opportunity and the bands, I knew after promoting these dates that my professional life was going to need to be about a little more than this long-term. I’m not knocking the life of a promoter … it’s a tough, risky business and I respect those who invest their career in it. But I just felt God had given me a few other pieces that this path wouldn’t completely satisfy.

Those pieces included a deep desire to encourage people struggling with depression and a previously dormant interest in prison ministry.

While contemplating a future for my pieces, I had a fateful conversation with Jeremiah Beck, station manager and morning co-host of WIBI (AC Christian radio station, Carlinville, IL). We had plans to partner in an upcoming Remedy Drive concert in Springfield, IL. I suggested we make the event about more than just a concert and threw out the idea that maybe we could provide an incentive for people to bring new CDs for a prison library “or something.”

He responded with, “Do you want to do a concert in a prison?” to which I said a resounding, “Yes.”

Over the next few weeks piece after piece began to fall into place. Event production … advancing the message in Christian music … marketing and fundraising … AND … a re-awakened interest in prison communities, previously stirred in me following a family friend’s incarceration, and now deepened through a personal understanding of choices and situations that can hold us captive. When one of the prison chaplains shared his concern for the emotional health of the women in his facility, I just smiled. I think God plans to use my experiences battling depression to encourage these women … and many others, I hope.

A simple question about a concert has already led to two “Hope Rocks with Remedy Drive” shows/fundraising events, the incorporation of Hope Shows as a nonprofit organization, the development of the Hope Rocks Campaign “to advance the surrounding hope of Christian music,” a December prison show with Sara Groves, two prison visits and numerous new contacts in the prison system.

I don’t have all the answers for every piece I’ve been holding, and I’ll keep waiting on Him to put a few more into place, but, for the ones He’s put together, I am so thankful. The peace that comes with purpose cannot be overrated.

I had some creative ideas for the future , but He’s taken these pieces and done something even better than all I could “ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20). I can’t wait to get Sara Groves, WIBI and WCIC in front of 600 women inmates this holiday season. I pray His light will shine through this new work He’s created on to each community with which He connects us.

I just finished listening to a Beth Moore series called, “Delight in Him,” in which she challenges the audience to “get all the way in … commit … spend yourselves on behalf of others … pour yourself out. … You cannot delight from a divided heart.”

“God never wastes anything. Nothing about your life, if you entrust it to Christ, will ever have been in vain. Nothing. Every hurt turns into something that means something. Every loss turns into something that means something. Every loss turns into a gain in Christ. Every time. Every pain, every failure,” she states. “Keep moving your feet … one day you’ll understand all of it.”

In her Bible study, Stepping Up, Beth reminded me of Psalm 126:5-6, “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.”

I don’t understand all the pieces in my possession, but I’m all in … and at some point, I trust, so will be the rest of the pieces.

Hope Shows advances hope through event production and related resources. Focused on spiritual, emotional and relational wellness, the organization connects hurting communities to the one Hope of healing. The Hope Rocks Campaign serves as the primary communication initiative of Hope Shows, accelerating the distribution of Christian music to individuals and communities where it is most needed.

God of Justice, Saviour to all
Came to rescue the weak and the poor
Chose to serve and not be served

Jesus, You have called us
Freely we’ve received
Now freely we will give

We must go live to feed the hungry
Stand beside the broken
We must go
Stepping forward keep us from just singing
Move us into action
We must go

“God of Justice” by Tim Hughes

These logos are a representation of the many organizations that brand "Christian" as part of their name. Organizations represented by these organizations are not endorsing this blog.

I have worked at a Christian college, technically a “Christ-centered” college, as stated in the mission. I’ve read CCM Magazine on and off for years, a publication that changed the meaning of their acronym from “Contemporary Christian Music” to “Christ. Community. Music.” And I recently attended a trade association meeting for the Christian … maybe I’ll just let them remain nameless , where we discussed a possible name change due to the perception problem accompanying the word “Christian.”

I’m in marketing. My father can attest to my early career development activities in this field (as a toddler I fancied Glen Cambell and made numerous requests to hear “Rhinestone Cowboy,” in elementary school I advocated strongly for Jimmy Carter after we received a “color” photo of him during his campaign – you know, personalized just for us – that I taped to the wall, in my teen years I assisted my dad’s company with trade show events and signage, and my college years were spent on AgapeFest executive staff.) My professional marketing experiences include CCM artists, various non-profit organizations (advancing industries serving the deaf, AIDS, Habitat, TN film and video production, etc.) and for-profit corporations (one of my favorites was the Tennessee Bun Company – great name and wonderful CEO, but I also had some fun with a treasured rubber stamp store). The majority of my time over the last twelve years has been invested in advancing Greenville College and AgapeFest.

Marketing a “brand” effectively proves a key focus of all organizational marketing activities. Branding, defined as “the creation and development of a specific identity for a company, product, commodity, group, or person” by Michael Levine (head of Levine Communications and author of A Branded World), results in a goal actualized, a promise kept. The successful positioning – or repositioning – of a brand in the minds of consumers requires consistent, coordinated, intelligent activities produced with integrity, purpose and creativity.

Because of my experiences in Nashville, TN and job responsibilities that have involved advancing Christian music academic programs and events, I have spent over twenty years revisiting the brand “Contemporary Christian Music” (CCM). Some in the industry are concerned with the perception of CCM music – or simply Christian music – within the greater music industry and in contemporary culture. CCM has been criticized for its quality, the integrity of the industry, its relevance in today’s society, and for becoming a genre like Country music is a genre. (I’m still trying to figure out why this is a bad thing … I support the call for the improvements in musical quality, ethical practices and business models, but I want the “genre.” I want Christian radio to surround and encourage me in the mornings and during the work day, and I want Christian music to affect the thoughts and actions of my teenage sons and their friends.)

I’ve also witnessed the marketing and programming efforts on the part of Christian colleges to advance the academic excellence present at many of our institutions. In addition to other factors, sub-par programming at some Christian schools have fostered a “less than” perception for the broader community. Many colleges, including Greenville, have modified their official mission, replacing “Christian” with “Christ-centered” or other related phrase in part to reduce the negative baggage that can accompany the “Christian” label.

It’s not just industries and corporations who are abandoning “Christian.” Individual use of replacement monikers abound on facebook and other social networking websites. Although willing to be identified as a believer, many Christians identify their “Religious Views” by a Bible verse, spiritual quote or related phrase.

Here’s what I think … We can rename – or re-brand – our music, our organizations and our religious affiliation with “Christ-centered,” “Christ-follower,” “Kingdom worshiper” … or whatever new phrase becomes the accepted standard, but if Christians and Christian organizations/industries don’t change internally, we’ll just botch the next moniker. If we make choices that poorly brand our label or allow the media to poorly communicate the brand, we’ll continue to battle perception problems for each new descriptive. Or worse yet, we can choose to abandon the external reference to Christ all together …

I propose we re-brand “Christian” … re-position the label in the minds and hearts of our local and global communities. It will start with individuals. We can re-invest time in scripture and prayer. We can re-consider God’s response to the poor and disenfranchised. We can re-connect with God as Trinity – Father, Son and Spirit. We can pursue change internally in order that our external behavior changes others’ perceptions of “Christian.” Unless we walk with God on a daily basis through the means of grace He’s afforded us through His Word, prayer, fasting, Christian community, and healthy life choices, our testimony is likely to damage the brand we committed to uphold when we accepted Christ as Savior.

Branding is more than logo development and color recognition. It also involves product quality and customer service. At its broadest scope, branding could be defined as everything we are, do, think, express. In “Christian” terms, it’s our testimony. We “brand” Christ in our homes, at work, at church, in our communities and in our closets (you know, where we supposed to be praying ). We brand Christ with our attitudes (ouch), our service, our selfishness, our goals (for good or for bad), our tithes (or lack of), our driving (again, ouch), our outreach to our neighbors, our in-reach to our families and friends. We will never be perfect, but we can be different. God’s Spirit in us appropriates a new marketing plan for our lives.

Beth Moore differentiates between Christians walking in the Spirit and Christians functioning without the Spirit in her Bible study, Living Beyond Yourself.  Based on Galatians 5:22-23a, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control,” Beth advocates for a changed life brought about through a deeper indwelling of God’s Spirit. How is this accomplished? Abide in Him.In John 15:5 Jesus states, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

Attending church on Sunday morning is one corporate means of abiding in Him, but God is very personal. He’s all about one-on-one interaction. He desires that we abide fully through morning prayer and Bible study, through how we engage (or wisely opt out of) each day’s activities (music, television/movies, work, hobbies, relationships), through our evening commitments, and through our 24/7 connection with – and surrender to – His will, so that fruit will be produced through our lives for the benefit of others.

As Christians we should seek to define our “brand” with the fruit of excellence, compassion, integrity, grace and purpose. Imagine how unified groups of Christians walking in the Spirit can affect a church, an organization, a community, a musical genre, the world (which I have yet to see ). We can be empowered to “keep the promise” for which God created us. Advance the Kingdom.

AgapeFest Student Staff Devotion

I’d like to open the morning with the reading of Moses’s words as presented by The Message in Deuteronomy 32:2-3, “My teaching, let it fall like a gentle rain, my words arrive like morning dew, like a sprinkling rain on new grass, like spring showers on the garden. For it’s God’s Name I’m preaching.”

The NIV sub-titles this chapter, “The Song of Moses,” and how appropriate this is to the devotional today. When you strip away the PR efforts, the stage and lights, the hospitality tent, the grounds crew, the radio interviews and the trash, AgapeFest is about songs … songs that teach.

It’s been almost 30 years since I first started listening to Christian radio and over 25 years since I attended my first Agape Music Festival in 1982. I later volunteered for the festival as a senior in high school and served on Agape executive staff for four years as a student in the mid-80s. After graduation I moved to Nashville, TN where I lived for almost ten years, seven of those married to a CCM artist, and have worked in various ways with AgapeFest for the last twelve years.

I find it interesting to watch the industry move in two very distinct directions … some artists are embracing the worship movement with remarkable focus and grace while others are taking steps to distance themselves from the CCM industry in pursuit of mainstream ministry and/or success. I’m quick to acknowledge the tangled web woven by the mixing of ministry and money inherent in Christian industry, whether that be in music, the church or even higher education, but I am equally concerned by the growing sense of ambiguity seemingly inherent in a mainstream focus. The message that once refreshed us, now seems – in many cases – a little watered down.

In the end what’s come to matter most to me is the song – a contagious combination of music and lyrics capable of communicating more truth to more people in more memorable ways than many church sermons will ever do. God’s redemptive message is equally present in Chris Tomlin’s, “Made to Worship,” and Aaron Shust’s “My Savior, My God,” as it is in Sanctus Real’s call to lifetime love in “Don’t Give Up” and Steven Curtis Chapman’s reminder to appreciate the time we have with our children while they’re young in “Cinderella.”

I do believe some are called to mainstream ministry and can effectively navigate the challenges in doing so, but I believe Greenville College and AgapeFest have been charged and blessed to carry the mantle for intentional music ministry, starting with the festival and continuing with our Christian music and music industry studies academic programs. We have a calling, recognized over 30 years ago by a group of GC students, to advance music that falls gently on the unchurched (albeit at a high decibel level ), arrives like morning dew for those growing in the faith … that sprinkles scripture on new believers and that showers the saints with encouragement. Whether the teacher goes by Skillet, Mercy Me or David Crowder, Christian music offers an effective tool for advancing the kingdom.

Martin Luther once said, “For whether you wish to comfort the sad, to terrify the happy, to encourage the despairing, to humble the proud, to calm the passionate or to appease those full of hate …, what more effective means than music could you find?”

When Brandon Heath shares, “the thing I find most amazing/In amazing grace/Is the chance to give it out,” I am reminded to forgive again. Matthew West encourages me to press forward knowing that “history is in the making” and Sarah Groves invites me “to be beautiful,” even when life choices haven’t always been pretty. When Point of Grace sings “turn up the music” I often turn up the volume  … and when Chris Tomlin interrupts my day with “Amazing Grace” I breathe. I stop moving 150 miles an hour and I breathe. I remember that God’s yolk doesn’t require the hectic pace at which I function so often and I welcome the opportunity to regroup in the mercy only He can offer.

A perfect God willingly offers imperfect human beings the opportunity to share in the furthering of His gospel … He’s equipped songwriters and performers to communicate this message through music and He’s provided us the means to put these teachers on a stage in front of 5000 teenagers, youth leaders, college students and community members. “May the words of our mouths, the mediations of our hearts, the works of our hands and the decisions of our committees be pleasing in your sight O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14 with added italics). Amen.