Karen Creel - Lead Worshipper

Moving my blog

2008-03-29T20:29:00.002-04:00

I'm moving my blog to karencreel.wordpress.com

Learning to Celebrate

2008-03-28T16:37:00.004-04:00

8"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins[a] and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.' 10In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Luke 15:8-10 (NIV)

Today I watched the videos from Unleash 2008 at Newspring Church. Perry Noble is a great speaker and during one of the sessions he used the parable of the lost son. One of the things he mentioned was Celebration for new believers. It really hit me that sometimes I don't get pumped up enough about someone finding Jesus for the first time. That's something I need God to help me with. I get excited on the inside, but for some reason I just can't show it all the time on the outside. How about when God just does something really cool in someone's life? Do I get excited about that? Probably not like I should.

I get excited when my Braves win a game, my favorite Bull rider gets that 8 second ride, or whenever David Cook from this season's American Idol nails another song pushing him towards winning the season. If I have that much excitement over these things why can my excitement for new believers not exceed that by great lengths.

In these verses, God says this

10In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Even for just one new believer the angels have a party in heaven for them. Perry talked about God not caring if we recycle or who gets elected next or even if we boycott Disney. He's interested in finding those who are lost. He looks for each and everyone of us and if we just reach out to Him He will find us.

That's my prayer is that I will celebrate more whenever God does something cool in people's lives - especially when He finds them for the very first time.

He is Risen

2008-03-25T14:08:00.003-04:00

Easter Sunday was great. We had a good crowd and worship was awesome. Here is Sunday's set list.

3/23

My Redeemer Lives - Hillsong
When I Survey / Wonderful Cross - Chris Tomlin
You Are My King - Billy Foote
Here I Am to Worship - Tim Hughes

I introduced the song Lead Me To the Cross by Hillsong United during the time of response. Our band will hopefully start working on that soon. I need to find some upbeat songs to start working on. We are wearing out the ones we know. If you know of any great female worship leaders out there for me to check out their stuff please send them my way.

God is good all the time. All the time God is good.

I'm trying to remain FAITHFUL so He can make my FAITH FULL.

Good Friday thoughts

2008-03-21T10:44:00.003-04:00

2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. 4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.

Hebrews 12:2-4 (NIV)

Today is Good Friday. A day where we should reflect upon the death of Christ. If you watched the movie the Passion of the Christ, it only gives you a glimpse of what Christ endured on the cross for you. He went through so much that I could never comprehend the hardships He faced that day. Even if it was just one person He needed to do it for, He would have done it.

There was a time on the cross when God could not even look upon His own son. This is because Christ became sin. God had to turn away as Christ paid the price for my sin. I'm so grateful for all Christ has done for me in my life. I can't imagine living my life without Him. He is the only way to heaven.

"I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

I often have to remind myself that no matter what I go through in this life, Christ suffered much more. Even if I suffer persectution about my faith, I have not died for it yet. There have been so many who have died in the name of Jesus Christ and I admire those people. Is that something that I could do? I couldn't say for sure, but I would hope that if ever in that situation, I would die for my Jesus.

The good thing about the Easter story is that it does not end at the cross. Three days after his death, Christ rose from the grave. That is the best part of all. My God is alive.

So as you go through this Easter season, remember Christ died on that cross for you. He did it because He loved you and He wants you to live with Him for eternity. Christ told his disciples that He did not come into this world to condemn or judge the world, but to offer a way out of the judgment that would someday come. That judgment day is coming and I hope that Christ will be able to stand up for you.

Sunday's set list

2008-03-20T17:27:00.002-04:00

Last Sunday was a good time of worship. Here is the set list for Sunday 3/16.

Trading My Sorrows
Famous One
Hear My Worship
Be the Center

Looking forward to Easter Sunday.

God will supply

2008-03-14T11:36:00.001-04:00

"You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus." Phillipians 4:19
(the Message)

God will take care of me I know. I'm hoping things are going to finally come together her in a few weeks. I'm not holding my breath yet, but i think it's somewhat starting to come together. In the meantime, I'm just going to keep trucking along until it does. I know he'll supply my needs but he may not always supply my wants.

Passion week is coming

2008-03-10T12:00:00.002-04:00

Sunday was a pretty good day in church. Considering we lost an hour of sleep we had a pretty full crowd. Here's our set list for Sunday.

Meet With Me
Enough
You Alone
All who Are Thirsty

I love those last two because of the arrangement we do. They just flow together so smoothly.

we will be finidng out the fate of our building this week and hopefully see about getting some help from the association in finding a new place to worship. I really do love this church and hope that if things do work out, we'll be able to grow and offer some more ways to do Bible study. We'll just have to wait and see.

During our Bible study on Sunday, I was looking through the gospels because I was just bored. I'm being honest here. I use the Life Application Study Bible and i think it is something every Christian should get in order to study God's Word. One of the things that was listed in there was the events for Passion week. Next week (some call it Holy Week others call it Passion week) is the week before we celebrate Easter. I plan to read the Scriptures they have listed in the study guide in order to remind myself of what happened as Christ prepared for His death, burial, and resurrection. I will try to list the Scriputures for you to read as well if you chose to do so. I challenge you next week to reflect on what Christ did for you on the cross and to celebrate the fact that He is alive today.

I am still praying about my future and what God's next step is for my life. I will just have to try to continue being patient and keep walking daily with Him.

Just what I needed to hear

2008-03-03T17:17:00.002-05:00

1 Thessalonians 5:24
God, who calls you, is faithful; he will do this. (NLT)

Romans 12:12
Be glad for all God is planning for you. Be patient in trouble, and always be prayerful. (NLT)

It's so amazing the Scripture you need to hear at exactly the right time in your life. God is always showing me how great He is whenever I get verses in my daily inbox from a particular organization that are what I need to hear at that moment.

Things are up in the air right now with life. About a month ago, I finally let go of some things and said "Ok God whatever happens next I'm with ya." I don't know what my future holds, but I sure know who holds my future. Last night, I just had a really cool time with God. It's not often that I have those special moments and I'm really thankful whenever I can truly feel His arms wrapped around me.

God is gonna take care of me no matter what happens in my life. It's possible I may be moving on to a new adventure, but I don't know 100% about a particular situation. I should have a little bit clearer picture within a week.

For now, I am just gonna be glad for all that God is planning for me and remain faithful to Him.

Everyone's getting the flu

2008-02-25T11:06:00.002-05:00

A few of our band members are currently sick with the flu. Yesterday, we had to make do with the people we had available. It went well though. I had to change a song or two, but we pulled it off. It's great when you have players who are so versatile and can change instruments in a heartbeat. I just pray I do not get sick.

Worship leading is a challenge, but I'm learning so much. This week we will hopefully begin learning a new song. I love learning new songs. It makes worship fresh and real. Sometimes I get tired of doing the same songs over and over again.

Everyone loved Hear My Worship when we introduced it last week. We were going to do it again Sunday, but I had to take it out because it really needs the full band. Hopefully everyone will be doing ok Sunday and we can do it again.

Jamie Jamgochian and Leeland have cds coming out tomorrow. I can't wait to get them.I'm also excited because I am going to hopefully get me an ipod really soon. It will be so much easier because I can upload songs to the ipod and listen to them at work so I can learn some new stuff. Yes I can't believe I haven't gotten one yet. I was hoping they would come down some in price, but it will be a while before that happens. I'm gonna get me the one that can hold like 25000 songs. Yes I am crazy, but do you know how many cds I have and I plan to buy more songs to put on it? Crazy stuff but that's how it goes.

Life is going ok right now. I'm trying to hang in there. Financially I need something better so I can get out on my own really soon. I'm so desperate to get out and have my own place. I know I will finally be settled once that happens.

I'm still praying about after this particular Bible study going on at church to start a women's Bible Study. It's something that has been on my heart recently and I feel like it will work out in the right time.

I'm holding to God's hand trying to hang on for the ride. It's gonna have some bumps and I'm gonna get bruised some, but I will definitely be stronger for it.

Sing to Him a New Song

2008-02-14T10:30:00.003-05:00

Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.
Psalm 96:1

I'm so excited that this Sunday the band is going to introduce a new song to the congregation. The song is called "Hear My Worship" by Jaime Jamgochian and has become one of my all time favorite songs now. The words are so convicting to my heart.

As a worship leader it is so easy to put on a show during worship. My prayer every week is that God would humble me so that all I can do is just truly fall at his feet and worship Him. "Beyond my bended knee, beyond the words I speak, beyond the songs I sing I want God to hear my worship."

The band did a great job yesterday pulling the song together. We will hopefully be learning some new songs over the next month or so to introduce to the church soon. Ministry is tough, but I have been learning so much leading worship here. Our band is starting to come together. A guy in the church was talking to me the other day and said he could tell we had been practicing more because we really sounded like we're connecting more. That's so cool he said that. Guess practice does pay off huh?

I've been doing a Bible study about women in the Bible. I am praying currently about possibly offering it to the ladies in the church. I have to wait until we finish this new discipleship class being offered because we have limited space available at the church.

Things are going pretty well though. Please just pray about my financial situation that God will provide me with a better paying full time job so that I can get my own place soon. I'm trying to be patient, but it's really hard.

Worship Review for 1/27/08

2008-01-30T15:26:00.000-05:00

We have finally been able to do a weekly practice on wednesday nights now that I am down here full time. It's amazing how much people can forget what we practice within a few days. I struggled with a few things on Sunday morning during our final run through, but everything turned out ok. We introduced the congregation to a new song "My Redeemer Lives" by Hillsong. The band had a great time singing that and we are going to be doing it again this Sunday to get the congregation more familiar with it. Here is what we did last Sunday.

Opening Song - My Redeemer Lives

Worship set

Hallelujah (Your Love is Amazing)
I Could Sing of your Love Forever
You Are God Alone
Rescue

Before You Are God Alone I shared a scripture Nehemiah 9:6

You alone are the LORD. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.

Worship was a wonderful time of praise to God. I'm looking forward to another week of worshipping with some wonderful people.

I plan to introduce another new song to the congregation next week called "Hear My Worship." It's become one of my new favorite praise songs and I can't wait to sing it with everyone else.

The first city was Enoch

2008-01-25T15:39:00.000-05:00

16 So Cain went out from the LORD's presence and lived in the land of Nod, [f] east of Eden.
17 Cain lay with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch.
Genesis 4:16-17 (NIV)

It's interesting to see how we are affected today from Cain's actions. McGee's thoughts are that Cain never repented of his sin and continued to live a life away from God ("went out from the Lord's presence"). In today's world there are so many people who are given opportunities to live a life of forgiveness yet choose not to. They live apart from God.

Cain had a son named Enoch and then built a city and named it after his son. McGee says this is probably when the first city was established. Think about our major cities today. They tend to have more problems with crime, hatred, and immorality than most rural places do. I'm not saying the rural areas are perfect, but they tend to be less clouded with the things of this world. Yet, our society is fixated in moving to the city because it is bigger and better. Our human bodies are easily attracted to the sinful desires of this world.

Are there immoral people living in rural areas? There sure are. Everyone is born with a sinful nature. We have to realize that we need to be saved from that life. The only way we can be saved is through the sacrifice that Christ poured out on that cross. There are people living a life of forgiveness in both rural areas and the cities.

Search the Scriptures

2008-01-24T13:30:00.000-05:00

I borrowed one of my dad's J. Vernon McGee books Thru the Bible. J. Vernon McGee has written a series that goes into detail about the Scriptures. I am loving this book. For some, it may be a little to comprehend, but I think it is something everyone should own. I plan to get my own series someday. I'm just reading through Genesis right now and I'm learning so much. He can explain things so simple though and it opens your eyes up to a whole new level. I've really been striving to dig deep in God's Word and I have been enjoying doing this through his series. Though he has passed on now, he has still left behind a great legacy with his books and sermons.

One of the things I found interesting he has said in the introduction was that he did not encourage daily devotionals. Instead, he encourages people to do Bible Studies and really study the Word of God. I could not agree with Him more. He has challenged me to do so. Sure daily devotionals are a great thing to help motivate you in your walk with Christ, but to really understand the Scriptures and what they are saying you have to go farther than that. You must study the Bible, study commentaries about the Bible, find out the history of the Bible. There is so much we should do.

I read this quote in the intro of this book by John Quincy Adams. He was one of our first Presidents in case you did not know. The quote read this:

"Search the Scriptures. The Bible is the book above all others to be read at all ages and in all conditions of human life; not to be read once or twice through then laid aside, but to be read in small portions every day. " John Quincey Adams

He also challenges people to meditate on Scripture verses. Meditating just means thinking about the Scripture, memorizing it, burying it in your heart, and applying it to your life. I am going to try and start memorizing Scripture again. Once a week I plan to memorize a different verse or set of verses.

I hope to be able to start a Women's Bible Study at church. I want to do some Beth Moore Bible studies. She is an amazing woman of God and has some wonderful studies that will be challenging, yet eye opening experiences. I want to see the women of our church grow in Christ and in knowledge of God's Word.

So for now, I will return to reading Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee.

She was kind and shined her light

2008-01-10T15:20:00.000-05:00

32And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Ephesians 4:32 (KJV)

16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:16 (NIV)

I like to fill out silly surveys on myspace when I'm really bored. One of the questions today was to describe yourself in one word. The first word that popped into my head was "kindhearted." I think that I have a kind heart and compassion for other people. It's hard to not be judgmental, but I'm working extremely hard at loving everyone. In the KJV version, of Ephesians 4:32, it says to be "tenderhearted." My heart is very tender and it breaks easily.

In thinking about how I would like to be remembered, there is one thing I would like it to be. She was kind and shined her light. Matthew 5:16 has always been one of my favorite verses and I think these two verses can work hand in hand. If we are kind to others, then they will see the light of Jesus shine through our hearts and come to know Him. We can do this through servant evangelism.

Servant evangelism is probably the way a lot of Christ followers represent Jesus. For me, this is my way of evangelizing. I'm not strong in going door to door and preaching a message to strangers. In my eyes, building relationships is the key to helping others find hope in Jesus Christ. Sure it is hard to be kind to those who hurt us or have an ill manner towards us. However, we must turn the other cheek and learn to forgive, be tenderhearted, kind, and shine our light.

Digging Deeper into God's Word

2008-01-02T11:24:00.000-05:00

There's nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God's way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.

2 Timothy 3:15-17 (The Message)

Something that has been on my heart and mind lately is the fact that Christians (or Christ Followers) do not know the Word of God like they should including yours truly. I love how The Message puts these verses in 2 Timothy. Let's remember that God's Word has so many great stories, wisdom, and truth that we can only get by opening God's Word.

Sure there are plenty of mega churches reaching the lost and growing in numbers. My question is this, "Are they growing disciples or just a building with bodies to fill it up each Sunday?" People don't know simple stories anymore like David and Goliath, Jonah and the Whale, and even the story of the creation. Wow it saddens me to think what my kids generation is going to be like. What are we doing to help those baby Christians grow? I'm tired of simply having "emotional evangelism" within our churches. I'm tired of the shows and ready to go deeper into the hearts of those who claim to follow Christ.

Maybe I am just in a different place spiritually than others, but I love reading God's Word. I love going back to the Old Testament stories and rereading those great adventures I learned when I was a kid. I have a passion to get these stories into the hearts and minds of those people who are wanting to learn more about God's Word.

Of course there are awesome books and Bible studies to effectively help you live your life, but what I'm talking about here is Digging Deeper into God's Word. Not just getting a feel good piece of Scripture to make your weekly dose of Biblical Medicine. I'm talking about learning about who God is, what He has done to teach us new things, how Jesus's ministry effected lives. WE can only find out more about God in His Word.

Ecclesisastes says that there is "nothing new under the sun." God placed the Scriptures in our lives to help us learn from other people in the past. We should learn to have wisdom like Solomon, passion for the lost like Paul, leadership like Moses, and a servant's heart like Mary.

This set of Scriptures in 2 Timothy makes my point. God's Word is available to us to help us learn from our mistakes, exposing our attitudes and hearts, and to help us live out our daily lives. We should strive to read through each book if we can. Start with something simple like the book of John. There are some amazing stories about Jesus and his ministry on earth. You'll be amazed at all the things you can learn just from reading this one book.

So that is my little rant for the day. I may begin teaching a Bible study class and I want to call it Digging Deeper. It may just have to start with the youth in our church, but who better else to begin teaching how to study God's Word than our future generation.

My challenge to you is to go and read God's Word. What a great way to start off a new year. Pick up a New International Version or New American Standard Version of the Bible. They are a little easier to read and understand. If you need help understanding it, get a good study Bible. I use the Life Application study Bible and it is amazing. There are also good commentaries available at your local Christian bookstore. One of my favorite commentaries are the J. Vernon McGee series. He has some great insight into the Word of God. But overall, before you read each day, ask God to help you understand the Scriptures. I'm sure He won't let you down.

Happy Studying everyone!

Worship set for December 16

2007-12-17T13:56:00.000-05:00

I've decided to try and be more into keeping up here with what our worship team does. I've found that other worship leaders have been encouraged by "worship confessionals." Our team has been doing a great job of leading our church into a time of worship. We've had some bumps along the way of course, but we are doing pretty good. Now that i'm living here in Charleston, hopefully we can start doing more rehearsing and start learning some new stuff. For me, I want to start bringing in more Scripture and prayer time as a part of worship. That's something that I need to personally work on and I am sure there are others who probably feel the same.

Since it's Christmas we have been throwing some Christmas songs into worship. I personally love Christmas music, but not necissarily for a time of worship. However, I was asked to sing Christmas songs throughout December which I must comply. Here is our set list from this past Sunday.

Angels We Have Heard on High
Worthy of My Praise
We Are Hungry
Silent Night

Patrick talked about finding hope in our past, the present, and the future. Just know that you can find hope in God if you are willing to open up and receive that precious gift He sent to us - JESUS!

Jesus is the sweetest name I know. I've been catching Charles Stanley's sermons on Sunday mornings as I have been getting ready for church. Last Sunday he was reminding the congregation about the names of Jesus. There are so many names given to Him, but to me the sweetest name I love to hear is Jesus.

I will try to keep letting you know how things go with worship. This Sunday will be all Christmas songs. I haven't decided yet which songs we will be doing, but I will work on that some tonight.

Cloud of Witnesses

2007-11-09T10:13:00.001-05:00

¹Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. ²Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. ⁴In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
Hebrews 12:1-4 (NIV)

Many, if not all of us, struggle from time to time with heavy hearts. The easy thing to do is give up. It may seem like the perfect way out, but in reality we must keep going. There are so many people who endure a much greater hardship than we probably realize. I am so grateful for many things in my own life.

One of the things that I'm so grateful for is my support group. I have so many friends and family who love me and pray for me all the time especially during hard times such as these. Yes, I am struggling with some things right now, but I know they pale in comparison to many others. God is good and I know that He is going to work everything out in His perfect timing. I am doing my best to hold on to that hope. My faith is being tested right now, and I am doing my best to "fix my eyes on Jesus" and keep running this race we call life.

Nothing that I go through can ever be worse than what Christ did on that cross. I love the verses here where it says "you have not resisted to the point of shedding blood." Jesus Christ did so much for me. It humbles me all the time whenever I think about how much He loved me and took my place on that cross. I highly doubt I could die for someone that I don't know. But you know what? Christ did know me. He knows every detail about me. God created me the way that I am. Am I perfect? Of course not!

If you are going through a hard time, be encouraged. Find some people to pray for you, with you, and encourage you. Find your "cloud of witnesses" and keep pressing forward.

News from the music front

2007-10-29T16:47:00.000-04:00

I have a busy week filled with shows and I'm really looking forward to them. I plan to take the rest of the year off from doing any other gigs besides the Church service. I might do a few things here and there, but I'm not planning any big things. Mostly this is due to the fact that I'm patiently waiting to see what is happening in my life.

Life's been pretty crazy these last few months. I have been driving back and forth to Charleston each weekend leading worship for Cross Anchor Church. I absolutely love it (at least I have so far) and I am praying I'll be moving soon.

As far as my music ministry, I hope to continue to move forward. I am praying that next year I will be working on my first album. This is gonna be a leap of faith because I will have to some how come up with the finances to do so. If IH starts up a certain program, I hope to become a part of it and will raise support for my ministry. I would love to do music full time, but right now financially it's not possible. I can't wait to start recording and sharing some new songs with everyone.

My prayer is that next year, I expand beyond the coffeehouses. Sure I think I'll still be doing some of those, but I really want to do more women's conferences, retreats, revivals, Bible Studies, house concerts, and so much more. I need to work on writing some more songs and polishing up my performance. There is another IH artist that I hope to be able to maybe cowrite a song with. That's my goal over the next couple of months is to work with her and try to write a song together. We'll see how that goes.

Hopefully 2008 will be an amazing year for me in music. That's my prayer.

So come to the shows this week for your last chance for a while to hear me sing. By 2008, I will hopefully have some new stuff for ya.

Here today gone tomorrow

2007-10-17T11:23:00.000-04:00

14 How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.

James 4:14

Yesterday, my Grandma lost her last living sister. My Aunt Christine and her were really close. Although they are both in their 80's, it still reminds me that life is short and you do not know how long you have on this earth.

When you say you are gonna do something do it. Aunt Christine moved here to town to live in an assisted living home and was so close to my Grandma. I've been meaning to take my Grandma out there and I've just never "gotten around to doing it." Monday I had promised myself that this week I was definitely taking Grandma out there to see her. Well, it was too late. Grandma did get to see her though a couple of months ago. I'm so glad she did.

You see this Scripture I posted says exactly what life is like. We're here today and gone tomorrow. Your life can be over in a second. What has your life been like? I know I've had to take a step back and see what I can change. Live everyday like it's your last. Do I always do that? Of course not, but I try.

I love the new Kenny Chesney song "Blink" because it says so much about life. It goes by fast. Even though we should make our life here on earth count, there is a much greater life waiting for us if we choose to accept it. It is a life of eternity with the Father. It's yours for the taking. All you have to do is believe.

An update

2007-09-27T20:36:00.001-04:00

18I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.
Ephesians 1:18 (NIV)

I noticed it had been a month since I actually wrote anything on here. Here is an update on what has been happening in my life.

Since July, I have been traveling down to Summerville, SC to lead worship on Sunday mornings. Things have gone really well and I am enjoying it a great deal. Sure there have been a few times I have wanted to throw in the towel, but I know that worship is where I am supposed to be. It has been pretty tough traveling back and forth between Florence and Summerville, but I'm still pressing on. I have had a few interviews for some jobs down there, but nothing has come through yet.

Going back to school has been a topic as of late. If I decide to do seminary, I will pursue a Master of Arts in Religion with an Emphasis in Worship from Liberty University. There may be a possibility of going back to tech or some other school to further my education (in what I have no clue).

This week was pretty tough. I have had a lot on my mind with things in my future. For some reason I had this peace come over me on Wednesday. I'm still a little apprehensive about something, but I can still feel that peace which I can only say came from God. I know things are going to turn out ok in the end.

I just want to be settled. If I'm going to be settled in Charleston for a while, then I want to get started in that. Maybe I'm only supposed to be there for a little while to springboard into something different. I'm beginning to wonder about it, but I'm trying hard to let it go and let God take everything under control.

I'm trying to find time to do more writing. I've been throwing around some ideas here and there, but nothing concrete. There's a chance I may try to cowrite with someone and if we collaborate pretty well then I may start bouncing more ideas around with this person. It will bring a fresh perspective to my music (especially lyrically since she is more of a lyricist). We'll see how things turn out with that.

I want to record in the next few months. Even if it's just a few more songs, I still want to get some stuff down and out so people can listen to my music (that is if they want to). Recording is expensive and right now I do not have the funds to do it.

Photography is another love that I crave and I want to learn more about this wonderful subject. My dream would be to travel the world, take pictures, and write reviews on the places I visit. Sure that dream could be reality, but I have to start somewhere. So I'm digging into local magazines and papers to see if I can come up with some story ideas to pitch to them.

Well there you have it. That's what has been going on in the last month (at least through my head that is). Nothing big to report musically, but things will come about in the right time. I'm holding on. The verse I included was exactly what I needed to hear this week. My heart is so heavy and I just need to continue to seek God everyday in order to see what He has in store for me.

Trusting in God

2007-08-28T22:12:00.000-04:00

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

Trust- easier said than done. Webster's defines trust as "to hope or expect confidently." As a Christian we are told to "Trust in the Lord..." I don't know about you, but I have a hard time always putting my trust in God.

Lately, I have been getting extremely frustrated with where life is headed. It seems as if my heart is somewhere that my body isn't. It feels as if I've got my wings flapping, but I'm going nowhere. Trusting in God is so difficult. I have a hard time "expecting confidently." The Bible tells us we must come boldly before the throne of God. Why can't I have more confidence that God has everything under control. It's so hard to let go of my dreams and my plans because I'm scared of what may lie ahead.

Trusting in God is definitely hard, but I'm willing to work harder at putting my trust in Him.

Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep you on track. Don't assume that you know it all. (Proverbs 3:5-6 The Message)

Cleaning our Spiritual Houses

2007-08-25T10:46:00.000-04:00

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

Psalm 51:10

The other night, I invited my Grandparents over for dinner at our house. My mom and I spent all day cleaning the house for these special guests. Most of my time was spent cleaning up the kitchen by reorganizing the cabinets, clearing off the counters, and cleaning out the fridge. The dirtiest job was cleaning out the refrigerator. It had been a while since we did a thourough cleaning. We had so much stuff we were not eating I just threw it out. Why bother keeping it since it was bringing filth to the other things inside. Right now, the fridge is pretty organized and clean. I know it won't be long before it will become dirty again. If we can clean it out daily and throw out things that aren't needed then it will stay clean. It's tough because I'm a wannabe organizer. Though I get organized, it's never long before I become unorganized. No matter how hard I try it just never fails.

This whole cleaning thing got me thinking about our spiritual houses (our hearts). Each Sunday we come to church and do a good "Spiritual Cleaning of the Soul." Once we leave we feel refreshed and clean ready to start the week. But each day, some kind of leftover gets stuck in our fridge and stays there until we finally decide to clean it out a week later. Daily, we must look inside the refrigerators of our hearts and throw out what needs to go. Whenever we worship God we are inviting him into our Spiritual house. Before you invited God into your spiritual house, get ride of those leftovers and cobwebs that are filling up your soul. You will feel a lot better and more free to spend time with God when you do.

God moments

2007-08-21T21:02:00.001-04:00

Have you ever had one of those "God Moments" where you just know the Holy Spirit showed up and flowed through during worship? Well I had one of those the other day. Sunday morning we did 4 songs for praise time (Freedom Song, Be Glorified, Amazing Love, and Here I Am to Worship). During the last couple of songs you could just feel God moving in that place. Words cannot describe a "God moment."

Leading worship is challenging, but it's those moments that remind you it's all worth it. Trying to figure out the songs, rehearsing with the band, fighting a sinus infection- it's all gonna work out because God is gonna show up and work in people's hearts.

Memorize Scripture - Weekly Worship Challenge

2007-08-13T21:40:00.000-04:00

1 Watch your step when you enter God's house.Enter to learn. That's far better than mindlessly offering a sacrifice, Doing more harm than good.
2 Don't shoot off your mouth, or speak before you think. Don't be too quick to tell God what you think he wants to hear. God's in charge, not you—the less you speak, the better.

Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 (The Message)

Wow to hear those words "don't be too quick to tell God what you think He wants to hear" really hits home. We can come to church and falsely worship. You can raise your hands at the right time, close your eyes in that perfect moment, and sing as loud as your voice can carry. The sad thing is if your heart is not truly in it, then you are a fool offering a false sacrifice. Wow there have honestly been so many times when I have foolishly offered a song of praise without my heart being right. I have worshipped God with "unconfessed sin" stirring in my soul.

As a worship leader it is extremely important for me to work hard at getting my heart right with God. Am I always getting things in order? I have to tell you the truth and say no I don't always get it right, but I am trying so hard.

I just finished re-reading "The Unquenchable Worshipper" by Matt Redman. This is a book I would highly recommend reading whenever you get a chance. It will help you understand some of the different ways we worship God.

My challenge this week is to memorize a Scripture. It doesn't have to be one about worship, but just find a passage in the Bible that has spoken to you lately, and focus on memorizing those verses. The Psalms puts it so perfectly in 119:11.

"Thy Word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against God."

If we memorize God's word, it will help us to make the right choices. So before you enter the throne room of God, spend some time memorizing His Word.

Unquenchable Worshipper

2007-08-05T20:44:00.000-04:00

Things have been going pretty good so far with the new worship gig. The band is getting along so far and it's amazing how well we can put things together on Sunday mornings. Hopefully things will work out for me to move by the end of September so we can start rehearsing on another night and learn some new music.

I found my copy of the Unquenchable Worshipper by Matt Redman. I'm so excited to go back and read this book because it truly changed my perspective on worship. My goal is to read it while I'm up in the mountains and take some notes to prepare me for Sunday morning. I hope to be able to Introduce to people a "weekly creative way to worship." My goal is to come up with different things for people to try within the week to discover unique ways to express their love to God. They might be really simple and they might be more challenging. It'll be a good thing for myself to do as well. We're also singing the "Heart of Worship" which Matt tells the story about this song in the book.

Well it's time to go pack for my trip to the mountains. I can't wait to get there and spend some quiet time in one of my favorite places to be.

Weekly Creative Way to Worship

2007-07-25T17:29:00.000-04:00

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow builds her nest and raises her young at a place near your altar, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, my King and my God! Psalm 84:3

I just thought of a neat idea that I want to share each week with everyone. I want to come up with a creative way to worship for the week. Worship is not just about singing. It's about so much more than that. You can find creative ways to worship God. So tune in each week as I give you a weekly challenge to worship God in a different way.

This week I am reflecting on the above Scripture from Psalms. God cares so much about everything even the sparrows. They even worship their Creator. For this week, I challenge you to take a little time outside and enjoy the beautiful day and listen for the birds singing their songs of worship. I promise it will be a beautiful sound to your ear. Sing along with them by lifting up your favorite praise song to God. You don't have to have a beautiful voice to praise God. He wants a joyful noise not a perfect melody.

When you finish your creative worship time, write down what you heard or felt during those precious moments. It will bring about a fresh new time of fellowship with God.

So Get Ready! Get Set! Go Worship!

2007-07-24T06:24:00.000-04:00

1 How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty!
2 My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

10 Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

Psalm 84:1-2,10

Wow what a great Sunday we had in worship last week. The Holy Spirit was moving in that place. It has been great getting to work with a wonderful group of people who work hard and are extremely talented.
Our theme for this month is Lost based on the tv series. Sunday, Sean spoke about the bread of life. He also reminded us about finding that quiet place where we can just go and listen to God. It's so hard for me to just sit and listen. It's a challenge for me to sit in peace and quiet and try to hear God. It's something that I'll try to work on.

The verses I have here today were the ones I used to share before we sang the song "Better is One Day." The writer is saying that he would rather for one day be the lowest person in the house just to spend time in God's presence than to spend it anywhere else for a thousand days. Wow am I that desperate to spend time in God's presence? Am I that anxious just to get a taste of God's love? I honestly can't say that I always feel that way, but I sure can try.

How to Be Blessed

2007-07-13T21:23:00.000-04:00

I was reading the Beatitudes again today from the Message. I don't always like the way the Message puts everything, but I liked the way they put these. I'll kind of elaborate on my life with each one.

3"You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule."

I feel I'm getting there. He's definitely teaching my how to be poor in Spirit (that's the KJV version's way of putting it).I feel like I'm getting to the end of my rope with how my life is going. I'm ready for a change-something different in my life.

4"You're blessed when you feel you've lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you."

Sometimes I feel like I"ve lost my Christianity. I know I haven't but it feels like it's being taken away from me. It' s mostly because I've let it dwindle. I don't want to feel like I've lost my relationship with God. I long to be with him again.

5"You're blessed when you're content with just who you are—no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought."

Lately in my life I haven't felt contentment with where I am in life. I'm longing for something more. Maybe I've gotten off of God's track for my life only to find disatisfaction. I'm working on trying to find contentment once again.

6"You're blessed when you've worked up a good appetite for God. He's food and drink in the best meal you'll ever eat."

I haven't been as hungry lately for God's word in my life. I want to know more of what it's like again to thirst and hunger after rightousness. My Spirit is malnuturished with God's word and needs to be filled back up. Just like it takes time to get your body back into gear, so does the Spirit take time to be rebuilt up.

7"You're blessed when you care. At the moment of being 'care-full,' you find yourselves cared for."

I long to help others out. I love to be hospitable even though I can't be right now with where I am in life. Hopefully that will change soon. I used to have a heart for helping others. It seems lately i have lost that desire. I want to find that person again.

8"You're blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world."

This is a really tough one. My heart has become impure at times. I know it's because of the lack of time in God's Word. I'm working on getting my life right with God again. I want to be broken so I can be healed.

9"You're blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That's when you discover who you really are, and your place in God's family."

I want to help others get along. I wish all the fighting and hatred would go away. I'm not a very confrontational person. I shy away from it. It scares me todeath. I want to help others see the good in people like I try to.

10"You're blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God's kingdom."

Sure I've been picked on at times because of my faith, but never an extreme point. Have I not done anything strong enough for God to have truly been persecuted. They say the Devil attacks you because you are in God's will and are doing a mighty work for him. Sometimes I don't feel the devil attacking me. Is that because I'm not in God's Will and in tune with God? Possibly but maybe not. I think God protects some people from attack. I pray that if I do ever come under attack that I will be strong and fight back. I don't want to cower away from my faith. I want to stand up for God no matter what. I hope that I can have the guts to do that.

11 -12"Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don't like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble"

Knowing that I'm not the only who faces persecution is a comfort to me. People are going to put me down because I'm a Christian. It's going to get worse and worse as time goes along in this country. It's already happening. We just have to learn how to stick together and hold on to our faith and hope in Jesus Christ.

New Directions

2007-07-11T11:03:00.001-04:00

Over the last year, I have really been struggling with what I'm supposed to do in this musical world. Sure playing gigs can be fun, but I have discovered that being an "artist" is not totally for me. I enjoy playing with other people and sharing the stage, but I have come to learn that I do not like the limelight too much. Most of the places I have played have been coffeehouses. Some have been wonderful places to share my music while others have been extremely challenging.

My heart has always had a passion for leading worship. I love to watch other people fall before the throne of God and worship Him with all of their heart. Listening to the cries of his people as they praise Him for all He has done in their lives brings me great joy. I have finally come do a decision that Worship is to be my main focus in ministry.

In my dreams, I see myself leading worship full time either with a church or part time with a church while traveling to various women's retreats and conferences leading worship. That is something I would love to do. For now, I will be traveling two hours on the weekends to lead worship for a church in Summerville, SC. I am hoping that a full time job opportunity will come open so that I can move down there and become more involved in the church and serve on staff. Doing this worship gig temporarily will be a great learning experience. Anxiously, I am looking forward to it. How great it is going to be to finally do what I love to do. After seeing where this new journey takes me, I hope to begin online classes and work towards a Master of Arts in Religion with an Emphasis in Worship from Liberty University.

As far as writing goes, I am still going to be writing. I need to take more time to learn how to write even better songs. Hopefully in the next year I will have enough songs to pull from and record a great album. I still hope to be able to sing in churches whenever I can, but for now I am taking a break from traveling with my music. Coffeehouses have been great but that chapter has finally closed. There may be a few places I hope to play again, but I will book those later when I have finally settled into a new place in life.

Life is going to be hectic here soon. God is gonna do great things in me I know. I'm working hard to be faithful to Him and just seek His perfect will for my life. He works everthing out in His time.