Lessons Learned on the Road, Part 2

So, I know this is my second time around with this full-time thing, but I still had a thing or two to learn about living in constant community.
That, and I feel we should be honest about who we are. Sure, we can be serious and we love writing the 'thinking man's' entries, but we aren't serious all the time. Much of the time, we are a little less impressive than that.

On that note, here are a few things I've learned so far:

• Cleaning the van once a week isn't just a rule the office came up with arbitrarily. It is a necessity for anyone who values hygiene and keeping their nose happy.

• Following a TV show when home is hard enough. Doing it on the road when you have concerts scheduled or host homes who either don't have TV or watch a competing show makes it much more improbable. But we don't back down from a challenge... downloads and van rides are our best friends.

• Carl and pants never make it very long. The pants seem to always move on into the afterlife not long after he decides they are his 'favorite' pair.

• Sometimes, the floor really is the best option for sleeping.

• We have a lot of fun on stage. Sometimes, I like to make faces at Carl when he's looking.

• In an effort to not feed us lasagna/pizza/spaghetti, people instead feed us steak. Lots and lots of steak. I think this is a good problem to have, especially for the guys.

• No matter how hard I try, I absolutely can not sleep in a moving vehicle. I'm still optimistic that it will one day happen, but realistic enough to have plenty of vehicle activities in stock (hello coloring books!).

• Carrie and I read through books way too fast. We have a decent library forming in the back of the van. Book donations are always appreciated. We may even trade if you ask us nicely...

• The bigger the dog, the more prone it is to believe it fits in your lap. When it's a 180 pound bull mastiff, this can prove to be a problem for a human much, much smaller than the dog.

• We started out with 7 team members. Over time, we have found that personalities are asexual- they begin to multiply on their own. Right now, I'd say we have about 9.5 personalities on the team right now. As of now, there is no known cure.

• When Eric is backing the trailer up, don't speak to him in terms of 'feet'. He is Canadian and an avid practitioner of the metric system, rendering him helpless when told he only has 3 more feet of space to move in.
  

• When left to our own devices in conversation, it always comes around to poop and occasionally other body functions not generally accepted in day-to-day dialogue. Seriously. Next time you see us, just hang around for a while- it'll come up. Whether in passing or emotionally charged debate, it will happen.

Lessons Learned on the Road

I really wish Blogger let me upload the HD versions of these, the compressed ones don't do it justice...Facebook is getting some larger ones....

Paul Comes to Town!

We are SOOOOO stinkin' happy that Paul is on the road with us. For me it's even more special because it brings back fantastic memories of our past tours together. I have had the pleasure to travel to Singapore on a CTI team with Paul, AND lead a team to Guadalajara Mexico with him as well. Needless to say, it feels good to be on the road with him again.
I would venture to say that Paul is enjoying his time just as much as we are...even though we put him to work almost as soon as he got here ;-)

Morning services in Gilbert, AZ

My apologies

This video started out as a better concept than it turned into. This will be the worst video I post to the blog. If you have anything you'd like to see a video of (what we eat/eating candy/etc) post a comment with ideas.

This video was based off of some thoughts pre show. It somewhat walks you through the physical and the spiritual aspects of getting ready for a concert.... Again, rough, not great, worst that you'll see from me on this blog. 

-ed

The Great Divide

So, we originally planned today to be not only a driving day from Las Vegas to Phoenix, but we had also thought we would visit the Grand Canyon on our way out. This morning, we decided to nix the visit since it would add at least another 3 hours of driving time to our already 7 hour road trip and move it to next week when we have a few days of no concerts. We were all fine with this plan and still got to see the Hoover Dam when we crossed the Nevada-Arizona boarder, which was a pretty phenomenal site to behold.

All in all, we had planned a non-eventful driving day.
But of course God had other plans.

We stopped for lunch in Bullhead, AZ. Instead of frequenting a fast food chain as per usual, we decided to eat at a grocery store instead- eat healthier and, for the boys, get rotisserie chickens to split. Bullhead is in the Mojave desert and not a very big town- in short, assumed to be non-eventful for us. After we paid for our food (which we saved $4 on because my family's old phone number was still in the store's system- score!), we scouted a couple tables next to the deli that we were going to sit and eat at before we continued on our long journey.
Then it happened. As we reached the tables, a middle aged couple sat down with their coffee and donuts on the end, leaving only 6 seats for the 7 of us. Dang it! So, we began to sit down anyway and kind of squeeze 4 of us onto 3 seats (nothing I would recommend for everyday dining) and they began to talk to us. To me, this automatically sends me to my introverted place that always wonders why people can't just follow the social norm and ignore each other. Note: I am naturally a pretty introverted person who doesn't just naturally open myself up to the unknown, including nice people in grocery stores- I mean, you never know how people will react, right?! Luckily, I travel in a group with Carl and Nate who both thrive on social interaction (socialists, perhaps?) and opened up right away to the couple, Dean and Dolly. We told them why we were traveling through, who CTI was.... the usual conversation for us when we meet people not familiar with the ministry.
Then we got to know why they were there: ministry. They live in the Bullhead area and have been regulars at the grocery store for years. The reason they choose to have coffee and donuts at the grocery store is because they willingly and actively place themselves in a position where they can meet people coming through and share the love of Christ with. My jaw dropped- seriously?! How crazy is that! Here we are, a bunch of ragged-looking missionaries, and we sat down to a couple who have taken the Great Commission to heart and are living it out in their own community! I mean, who else but God could arrange that?
We talked for a while over lunch, exchanging life stories, why we have committed to the ministries we have and the blessings and hardships of living out those ministries. We then prayed together and for each other, we gave them our website and ministry info to look into, and then went our separate ways. By the time of our parting, I was just amazed at how remarkable my day had just turned out to be. I started the day off by thinking that, since it was a traveling day, I wouldn't have to socialize much- even with my own team. Next thing I know, I'm speaking to two very awesome strangers, listening to their histories and witnessing how the Lord is using His people to spread the news of His glory in a unique way in a common place- the grocery store.

I guess I can say I have learned/re-learned/been reminded of two things:
1) That we really are a body- I may be awesome at some things, like organization and rocking the bass, but I really fall short in the being-able-to-reach-out-right-away-to-others thing without help. I truly believe this is why we are told in the Bible that we can remain strong in Christ best through community.
2) That Christ calls us to take a leap of faith in our lives. Yes, it is initially to trust that He is Lord and give ourselves completely to Him, but that call doesn't end there. Everyday we are called to exhibit the love of Christ to all those around us and remain open to His love in anyway it manifests- even in people. We must be willing to cross the great divide we humans have created between each other. Like the Grand Canyon, it looks massive- like one could never even hope to get across by just jumping. However, once we make that leap and take a chance on others, we realize that the footing has been there all along-- it just happened to be glass, requiring us to act on faith rather than our limited sensory experiences.

So, even though we didn't make it to the Grand Canyon today, I still got to see it. I faced my own fears about stepping up to the edge of that glass floor and was forced to deal with them by my team. Well, God through my team. I can't say I'm cured of my fear of the unknown person, however I do believe I am a little more willing to take that step of faith I am called to now. What about you?

So I noticed that no videos have been posted to our official blog since Nov. In light of that, I wanted to highlight some of the beauty of the land we have been driving through on our journey. 

-ed

BEAUTY in the BODY

BEAUTY. This is the one word that I would use if I was to describe the tour so far. I have seen so many beautiful things. Some of them the nature of God's creation like the canyons, mountains, and beaches. Other things like the attitudes and generosity of our contacts and host homes. But the most beautiful thing I have seen so far is the body of Christ at work.
Like in 1 Corinthians 12 where it talks about how we are like a body with many parts, each so important and we cannot say to one part we don't need you. This has been so clear to me as we travel from city to city and state to state. I have seen a lot of people, met many different faces, and ministered alongside various denominations. Every where I have been I am reminded that each of us are made differently with different gifts and that's what makes the body work so well. If we all had the same heart for the same people, many would fall through the cracks and never experience the love of Christ. One youth worker in Greely, CO ministers to "unchurched" kids, while another in Wellington, CO encourages the ones who "know it all", then one school in Fort Collins, CO has kids with hearts for Christ, while the next one in Los Angeles, CA we are sent to just needs to know God is there for them, then we go to a jail in Washington that has many who are hopeless, while the next one in Denver, CO we instead are blessed with their passion. Needless to say that is the BEAUTY that makes me fall deeper in love with a God who loves variety and has placed each one of us somewhere where we are able to be a part of the body of Christ. I just count it a privalege to see so many parts of the body of Christ at work this year.

Basking in the BEAUTY,
Carrie

Viva Las Vegas

Our time in Vegas was great.We got to stay with some of Sara's family, see the strip, have a day completely off, and play 4 shows in one day. While the day off might possibly beat the previous best day on tour (the day off in Warroad where we never even got dressed for the day) another fun part was going into the Christian Elementary School on our day off to teach the 3rd grade music classes. We played an acoustic rendition of Hallelujah Jesus while teaching them to play the drums and maracas. They even brought in the 2nd graders to see us. It was great that they think we're rock stars. It gives us a better platform to speak from, and they feel so much cooler since we're taking time out of our day to teach their classes. I really enjoyed our visit and would love to go back.

Lessons for the Gretch

I've been shown two things this past week, and I want to share them both with you.

#1
I was reading in Romans the other day and I was struck pretty hard with this passage: "More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" (Ro. 5:3-5 ESV). I was struggling with a couple things during the week and I was feeling so guilty because I couldn't get over it. I kept telling myself, "Gretchen, you're stronger than this! Gretchen, you are more mature than this! Gretchen, just let it go! Gretchen...WHY do you do this to yourself!?" And when I read this I was just reminded that I am going to have struggles just like everyone else. I think there's this misconception, or expectation (whether we place it on ourselves or it's placed on us from the outside) that because we're "missionaries" everything is going to be all glorious all the time and we're never going to have spiritual or emotional struggle because we're in constant ministry and always talking about God and such. Well, that's just not the case. No matter where we are in our Faith, we're still fallen people...we're still going to make mistakes. And then it happened! I related what was happening to one of our rep songs! Yes, yes, a testimony was born in this moment. It was quite humorous for me because I sing the song Sometimes and Carrie or I talk about this song at every single concert. But it's always been something that we're TEACHING, how "we're all going to fall; we're all going to make mistakes. But when we do, we fall into grace...delight in THAT, don't get caught up in the mistake; get caught up in the grace that follows". This day however, it was a lesson I was LEARNING.

#2
Let me tell you about Carrie really quick...
she's so awesome! Man, I'm so glad I've gotten to know her. I love her! You know how sometimes people ask you how you're doing and you can tell they really don't care what your answer is, they're just asking you out of obligation? Well, it's not like that with Carrie...not at all! Every time she asks me how I am or if she can do anything to help me...even if she asks me several times a day, I know she's being sincere; I know she cares about the answer I give her.

So yeah. Just thought I'd share those lessons with you all...because they've been a blessing to me. Hope they are to you as well.

So long for now.

The Beauty of it all...

So today carl and I had the oportunity togo hiking on the Colorado National Monument, outside of Grand Junction, CO. What beauty! I've seen mountains before, shoot, I've even been on and fell off mountains before! But this is my first trip to the "south western" US area, and I've have never had the pleasure of rampaging around in the "red rocks" of Western Colorado, and the veiws we had were simply breathtaking. Carl and I were constantly muttering out loud (which we do almost inceasantly anyway) about the beauty of God's creation, musing about what creative prowess, and deliberating as to wheather or not we had indeed found the perfect place to pee (we never did, or if we did find it, we didn't make proper use of it!).

Allow me to change gears for a minute (actually, you have no choice, i'm switching gears, willy-nilly as it were. You're only other option is to stop reading right now! But please don't...). We've had some incredible ministry experiences, both that we observed in others or were done to us by others. One of the latest of which was performed in the city of Greely, CO. We had the amazing opportunity of playing at the YFC's Higher Grounds coffee house/skate park. The Audience we had there was not our usual audience of church kids or Christian schoolers. These were the un-churched, or maybe even anti-church kids. And while we felt we were out of our league with them, both the kids and the folks who work there are simply incredible. Without going into any of the specifics, we were informed of how a church in the area had requested that the YFC staff STOP recomending their church to the kids who went to the skate park as they (the kids) made some of the members uneasy. At first I was livid, and wanted to go tell those so and so's what was up. But it was some something that Ryan, the YFC Director said that called me on my attitude- he said that he was not willing to complain or criticize anyopne or thing without attempting to be a part of the solution. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that by my critical attitude I was actually perpetuating the cycle. Carrie reinforced that today in our team meeting when the issue was brought up when she said "it's easy to go around pointing fingers at the darkness, but it's a whole different thing altogether to go and shine a light there" (my paraphrase, as I can't remember verbatim what she said). And I was once again reminded of what an incredible ministry oportunity we have with CTI. We get to go around, and try to shine light into these places, both the churches and the non-churches. To be an example of Christ's love, of the Gospel's extension to all people. And to me that is such a beautiful thing...

While the beautiful remains, I am also convicted by all of this. First of my attitude- if I allow that anger to fester and mature in me, then I will be rendered inefective as a minister in that I will not be able to love those peole who have angered me. Secondly, I am the same as them. I point my finger at them and say "aha, you're the problem" or "I can't believe you are that cold" and I am the same. I do it to them, or to other that don't meat my criteria of "Coolness" or whatever. This is such a struggle for me, being of a naturally self righteous bent. But I'm wrong, and I know I am. God, change my heart on this. Make me able to love those who I believe to have wronged others the same way that you do. Give me Your eyes in all of this. Create in me a clean heart, oh God. And teach me to love as You have loved me.

Some churches...

remind us of certain people. This one in Nebraska reminded us of Paul Vasilko.
So we took pictures.

Prison Ministry

I’d like to highlight one facet of our ministry. When we go into Prisons or Detention Centers, we are faced with two potential crowds. The first is the crowd that came willingly, already Christian, and VERY receptive to the Gospel and our music (standing/singing/shouting Amen during testimonies/etc). The other crowd is the people who decided to come just for something different/a break from the monotony of everyday life. The receptive ones are some of the best crowds we ever play for. We usually mostly play uptempo songs, with worship thrown in and a more evangelistic testimony. We’ll work with any normal standards that the group we’re playing for has. Last Weds we played for a weekly group that meets at FCI (Federal Correctional Institution) Englewood. We found out ahead of time that they usually do hymns/worship with a guy playing guitar with people randomly picking from the audience (and shouting it out of course), along with Bible study. So at the end of our set, since we had more time, we let them shout out some songs and if we knew them, we’d play them. One of the songs was He Reigns by the Newsboys. At first Eric said he didn’t know the chords, someone in back shouted F-C-G. So Eric and Nate figured out the progression, and they started to play. The next problem was figuring out/remembering the words. That wasn’t going so well, so when we noticed two of the guys there were singing it, they were invited up on stage to lead the song. It was great seeing them singing it with all the guys in the room (over 100) singing along. For me, these concerts make up for the ones in churches or schools where we are welcomed with lackadaisical clapping, or significantly less than whole-hearted worship. I’m not saying all churches/schools are like that, but we’ve had our share.

An example Testimony

I’d like to pass on an example testimony, one that I used onstage at a prison tonight. Not word for word, but the same ideas/concept.

To let you know a little bit more about myself, I grew up outside of Washington, D.C. I’m 22 years old with 11 of those years being spent working on sound equipment. But I’d like to highlight some of the highs and lows since I’ve been involved with CTI.

I first heard about CTI in December 2006 at the Urbana missions conference. I was looking for some form of an outlet for my Audio/Visual background and it seemed to be a perfect fit since I like Rock music, and always wanted to tour with a band. The added bonus is that it was in a Christian context. So in January I signed up for a short term mission trip with CTI to go to Honduras for a month with a similar band. Since that point about 2 years ago I’ve seen some incredible things. In Honduras I got the chance to see the beauty of God’s creation in a totally new way (jungle covered mountains, 100+ ft. waterfalls, lemurs....). I got to worship with fellow believers in a different language. We’d play a song in English that they knew in Spanish and be able to worship God in a totally new way. The following school year was my senior year, and I managed to pass with a Physics degree, writing an 86 page thesis (a miracle in and of itself considering how poorly I did in some theoretical classes). Now I’m touring for a full year (August to August) with a band spreading the news of Jesus. In October we got to go to the Philippines where I could get up in the morning (for the first week) and watch the sunrise over a volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean (literally with me IN the pacific Ocean).

Along with that came some new lows. Less than 3 weeks after I got back from Honduras, a friend I worked with committed suicide. I was with him Monday at the end of the work day, and at some point before work the next day he killed himself. It’s the sort of thing that wears on you, because you end up thinking “was I the last person to have a conversation with him.... could I have done anything else differently to change the outcome...” etc. Earlier this year the grandfather that I’m named for passed away while we were training and heading out on the road for the first time, so I missed the funeral. Then in the fall my dad had a major stroke, and my electronics got run over (not to put those on the same level though).

All of this happened while I have been working as a music “missionary”/with a music ministry. God doesn’t promise us an easy life. We don’t get $1,000,000 for accepting Him into our lives. But He does promise that He is coming back to renew our lives, to take away all sin, and all suffering. Even creation waits to be fulfilled (and the next time you see a pacific ocean sunrise, think that it will get even better some day). So if you know Jesus and have a personal relationship with Him, take heart and know that there IS hope, that no matter how low your life seems to get, there IS a light at the end, and that God can work all things to good. If you don’t know Jesus, let me tell you that He is Lord of this Earth, created all this beauty for our enjoyment, and that He loves you. If you want to know more, please talk to the Prison Fellowship staff who meet here every Monday night, talk to us after the show if there’s time before they take out you, or ask Him yourself to show Him to you. He never fails to disappoint anyone who actively seeks His face.

Thank you.

P.S.

Ok....we're all a little sad that we weren't able to hide that lovely news spot from our adoring fans. So, what I want to say is this: Please keep in mind that we had just spent 10 hours in a van and didn't find out about this news cast until 3 hours before it happened. Thus, we do not look like the beautiful people that we really are.
That is all.

14:22 Featured on Local Newscast

CTI Team 14:22 was recently featured on a nightly newscast in North Platte, Nebraska.  They are working with the local Youth for Christ chapter there.  

Here's a link to the story.

Thanks for all your prayers and support!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all.

We'll see you on tour shortly...

No Failure in Obedience

Last Monday ended Partnership Drive for team 14:22, and I can confidently say that that last night of calling our supporters is the one I will not soon forget. It was really only one conversation that I had which sets the night apart for me. I was talking to this guy who I could tell just wanted to get off the phone and go back to whatever it was he was doing. So I said, "Well, before I let you go, is there anything that we could be praying for you for as a ministry"?

"::Long Pause::...Really?"

"Yeah. We pray together as teams before we start work, and we would love to pray for you".

He thought for a minute and then, through his cracking voice, he said, "If you guys could pray for my wife...she's really sick". I could tell he was trying not to cry and that he was really uncomfortable so I just said that we would definitely be doing that and I closed the conversation. As soon as I hung up the phone though, it was as if I could feel the Holy Spirit pulling at my heart strings, "Gretch...why didn't you pray with him THEN? I gave you the perfect opportunity".

At first I just didn't want to pay attention to that. Yeah sure, I didn't think to pray for him over the phone because I was so taken off guard by the guy trying not to cry. But, alas, the moment had passed and now it was too late. I wasn't going to beat myself up about it because there's nothing I can do.

"You can call him back Gretch".

I'm ashamed to admit that If God were there right in front of me at that moment, this would have been my reaction, "You've got to be kidding me Lord! I am going to look like an idiot and a very annoying person if I call him back right now and interrupt him again! Plus, what am I going to say? 'Hey, I know I just talked to you but....can I pray for you over the phone?' I don't think so!"

And that's when I realized that regardless of what the outcome was, the Lord was clearly laying it on my heart to call back. I needed to decide (quickly) whether or not I was going to obey him or deliberately ignore that conviction?

I called him back...and this is how the conversation went:
"Hi Kevin (I changed his name). This is Gretchen from CTI again. I'm so sorry to call you back like this but...I just felt like maybe ...do you...can I...Can I just pray for your wife right now over the phone?"

"uhhmmm (choking up)..."

"If you are uncomfortable I understand, but I would love to do this for you".

"I don't think so right now. But thank you so much..."

"Alright, well, you have a good night. And Merry Christmas Kevin!"

"You too. Bye"

Soooooo....it didn't go as great as I would hope. I felt like an idiot when I hung up. But now when I think about it, I'm pretty sure that even though I didn't get to pray for Kevin right then, he was still moved in some way by the fact that I called him back. Besides, maybe this whole scene wasn't about him needing prayer as much as it was about me obeying the voice of the Lord. I pray constantly that the Lord would tune my heart to his, and that He would give me wisdom in His ways, and mold me into a woman of great faith. Did I think all of that would just show up in my character one day? I hope not!

Being tested is hard work, but the great thing is you will never fail when you obey. Even if the outcome isn't as monumental as you expect, the victory is the mere fact that you did what you believe the Lord asked you to do. There's no failure in that.

*Luke 12:48

Christmas Time Is Here

It's that time of year again. The time where Jack Frost loves to come out and touch our outer extremities, and where pine needles clog up our vacuum cleaners.

And it's also the time where we stop and remember our Saviors birth. I'm very guilty of logging that fact into the back of my mind, and recalling it whenever need be, in order to prove that I really do know the true spirit of Christmas. Funny, that reminds me of a well told story. Jesus was born in a stinky manger found in a dirty, stinky stable outside of Bethelehem. Why? Well, there was no room for him in the inn. I can remember thinking when I was a kid that I'd never be as mean as that mean old innkeeper. Who does he think he is, keeping Mary and baby Jesus out in that place when they could have a good room in an inn?

Then the correlation hits me. This last week, at our CTI Christmas party, Chris Reed shared with us a message that had meant a lot to him. And really all I'm doing is translating the message in my own words. The Bible is the Living Word of God, and it can teach us at any time, and this story reminded me this week of the fact that I am very much like the innkeeper. Christ is too often pushed into the corners of my life because I have a great "business" going on in the rest of me that can't be replaced with anything else, or at least I believe the lie that the business is good.

I want to wish you all an incredibly Merry Christmas, as I have told all the various answering machines that I had the pleasure of talking to during our Annual Campaign partnership drive these last two weeks. And I want to encourage you to remember the parts of Christmas. Christ-mas. "Mas" in Spanish means "more". So, therefore, this word means "Christ more" or "more Christ". At least it means that in my head. Let's put Christ where he belongs, in the center. Not in the stables.

So have yourselves Merry Little Christmases, one and all. For He, who was very God of very God, decided to love us enough to put Himself into tiny, frail, human form. Then He loved us enough to teach us how to live as humans, and then, He provided for us the Way that we could LIVE as children of God. Now that sacrifice is cause enough for joy throughout eternity. Let's show that joy now. To our family, friends, and all who we meet in this awesome season.

Not Mine Anyway

Music.  I love music.  This shouldn't be surprising since I am in CTI for a year, but have you ever just gotten blessed or challenged by a song?  Thanks to a friend I was introduced to a new artist JJ Heller.  I have been listening to her songs and I absolutely love the messages.  Well this morning I was listening to her song called "Not Mine Anyway".  As I let the words absorb into my thoughts I was reminded that I can't do a thing without God.  He's given so many blessings and gifts to each of us yet, there is nothing that we have that isn't already His.  The last line "it's not mine anyway" is such a great reminder that although we may "give more away" what we have to give is meant to be given away.  So I ask myself, What AM I giving away?  I pray that what I'm giving is the best thing I have to offer - God's faithful, never-changing love for us.  Just like JJ said "My name is written on your hands".  Now that's a love that must be given away because it's not mine anyway.

"Not Mine Anyway" by JJ Heller

I don't know what to say

No words could ever be enough

I stand up because you hold me here

Because you brought me here tonight

I could not ever try so hard

I could buy a place in your heart

But here I am

My name written on your hands

Because you paid the debt I owe

Without you we all fall down

Without you we all fall

You make life worth living

You make me wanna start giving

More and more away to you

It's not mine anyway

Give Me Your Eyes

If you have had the pleasure of seeing one of our concerts, (when I say pleasure I AM assuming things because I hate to think that seeing one of our concerts would be anything less than pleasurable) then you may have noticed that we often do a song called Give Me Your Eyes. I like that song but sometimes I have to admit, I do not pay attention to the words that we're singing. "All those people going somewhere, why have I never cared? Give me your eyes for just once second, give me your eyes so I can see everything that I've been missing...." But every once in a while I have a moment when lyrics totally click and I see a real life application of what I've been singing the past four months. Today I had one of those moments:

I was sitting in the team room, listening to all the prayer requests that were gathered the night before during our partnership drive/phoneAthon/annual campaign, and I suddenly felt very overwhelmed. See, during our partnership drive, when we are calling past ministry supporters to see if they would like to continue with their financial support, we also take some time and ask if they have anything specific they would like us to pray for. And then, the next day, before we start working again, we come together as a ministry and pray for them. It's a really great ministry that I think blesses people in unexpected ways.

Ok, so I'm listening to all of these prayer requests and they are breaking my heart. There are people all across the country struggling with health, dealing with death, fighting financially, sending kids off to college, praying for parents to be saved...anything you can think of, someone in this country is dealing with it right now at this very moment.
That's when it hit me: the Lord is answering OUR prayer as a ministry...and we need to respond faithfully.

Carrie stands up on stage every concert and before we sing Give Me Your Eyes, she talks about how the song has become a prayer for our team: how we all wantto see the things we usually miss; to see people that we typically do not. I think this is one way the Lord is answering that prayer.

In response to all of this, I just want to pray for all the people we have talked to in the last couple days...right now (I hope that's ok):

Heavenly Father,
Lord I lift up all these people to you. God, we have had short conversations with them, but YOU...you know them well. You know their deepest thoughts and their greatest needs. Lord I pray that you would pour into their lives in ways that are undeniable. I pray that you would heal the sick, comfort the mourning, give courage to the weak. Jesus, I pray that you would be near in this time of financial hardship throughout this country. You are greater than all of our difficulties God. Thank you.
God I thank you for the opportunity that you have given us, as CTI 14:22, to talk with people; to pray with people. Thank you that you are good. Thank you that you want our trust so that we can see how faithful you are Lord.
God I praise you! I praise you.
Amen.

Lana

Every time we do tour debriefing I'm reminded of so many ways the Lord is ministering TO us as wellas through us. I guess that's a good thing right....since that's the whole point to debriefing.

We just got back from 5 weeks of driving from Willmar to Seattle and everywhere in between. We played in prisons, detention centers, recovery houses, colleges, and churches. And we met HUNDREDS of wonderful people. The north west is full of generosity. We had the joy of staying with amazing people everywhere we went. Praise the Lord!

One lady that Sara and I got to stay with was Lana. She was....ahhh, I can't even explain it, she was just incredible. She kept talking about how impressed she was with us and how their church was so blessed to have us there, but she had no idea how much of a blessing SHE was to US. I had the opportunity to talk with her for a few hours on the last night we stayed with her and she shared with me a lot of her story. She has suffered the loss of a 7 month old son, a broken relationship with her mother, two abusive marriages and the death of the one man who ever really loved her well. She told me how she grew up in a very traditional Catholic church and dealt with resentment toward God for years and years. But...through all her trials the Lord led her to His peace and His safety and His faithfulness.

You should see her light up when she talks about her savior. She starts to tear up every time she mentions His name. It's beautiful, it really is.

Lana has many many stories of how the Lord used her to minister to people at the most unexpected times. One time she was in Wal-Mart, in the check out line behind a mother who had a severely autistic child in her cart. The child was fussing and making a scene, causing everyone around them to look at the mother with disgust and resentment, as if to say, "can't you control your child? You're impossible!" The mother looked back at Lana and apologized profusely, "I'm so sorry...I really am sorry, this is so embarrassing".

This apology was completely unnecessary for Lana, "Honey," she said, "don't you apologize. This is the child God gave you, and he is precious. You do the best you can, and you love him well ok". And then she laid hands on the mother and prayed for her and her son. With tear-filled eyes the mother responded, "NO one has ever done that for me before. Thank you".

It was so humbling to hear that story because in my heart I knew that I currently do not have the courage or faithfulness that Lana has to do even that one simple thing. And I realized that there is so much good that can be done in this life if we are intentional with it. I want the Lord to be able to use me in every situation. I want to be obedient to Him and not worry about what people might say or think.

It's not that I need to necessarily have a plan for every second of my day, I think it's more just being available to God.

Turkey Day Thankfulness

So being the time for giving thanks I was thinking about all the things that I'm thankful for over the past few weeks.  It's been a great tour thus far and God is definitely at work and using us everywhere we go.  So here's a list of things we are thankful for as a team this tour.

T: Times of ministry when least expected and in ways unexpected.

H: Host home hospitality

A: All the friendships made in many states

N: Never-ending generosity

K: Killer meals

S: Singing for 1, 100, 1000.  Each an opportunity to praise a God who is worthy.

G: Guys who carry our suitcases: Ed, Carl, Eric, Nate

I: indistinguishable smells (one theory is that it's from the "G" in thanksgiving :) )

V: Views from the van and outside the van

I: Interstates so we can drive fast and arrive on time

N: New experiences that open us up to just how great our God is

G: Grace given 

I pray that we remember not only the things we are thankful for but more importantly the One we are to give thanks to who has blessed us so abundantly. Thanks for all the prayers and support!!

- Carrie 

Philippines Highlight Video

A LONG awaited video with pictures from the Philippines. Enjoy....



-Ed

From One Eve to the Next

In all honesty, I think the most fun I've had with an audience at a concert was at Pine Lodge Corrections Center. Last week we had the opportunity to play for over 100 women and it was so rewarding. At first I was a little intimidated because I thought they were going to think we were a bunch of dumb kids coming in to play music that they couldn't care less to listen to. But it was nothing like that at all.

These women were incredible! They were so shameless. They sang their hearts out; they laughed with each other; they cried on each other's shoulder; they danced in their seats. These were women who knew exactly what the Lord had done for them and who weren't afraid to express their joy over it.

I saw these ladies and I had no idea what any of them had done, or what choices they had made, to lead them to this place...but I could just feel the pleasure of God resting on them. I think the Lord gave me different eyes that night than I have had before. These women that I was standing in front of were living a life in a correctional facility. They really had no freedom other than to love Jesus. When I looked at them I thought, They are just like me! I am just like them! The Lord delights in all of us equally.

See, the thing is (and this is the thing that I saw while I was there that night) that Christ died on the cross to cover the sins of Eve. In the Garden Eve ate of the forbidden fruit and committed the first sin. EVERY woman/Eve since then has committed sin that is just as devastating to God...But Christ's blood covers over those sins as well. When I (a daughter of Eve) sin, it is just as devastating to God as when one of my sisters at Pine Lodge sin. The beauty of it all is that He is EQUALLY merciful to all of us and sings over us with joy when we lay down our lives at His feet, no matter what it is that we have done; no matter how grave our sin seems...it's nothing in light of the cross.

Hallelujah Jesus!

Strength in Weakness

In the couple of weeks that we have been back here in the United States of America, I have had some time to finally think through and process some of the amazing things that happened to me in the Philippines. And as I was thinking about our trip, one "theme" stuck out to me, and I would just like to share the story behind this "theme". 

It might be helpful to add a bit of context to the situation. Our work was concentrated on three different islands throughout the three weeks we spent in the Philippines. The first island was Mindanao, where we spent our time in Cagayan de Oro City. The second island was Cebu, and the city we spent our time in mostly was also called Cebu. The third island is called Leyte, and the city that we were in on that island was called Tacloban. So, this story takes place right in the middle of our trip, in Cebu, Cebu.

We had just had an incredible week working with the staff at the radio station in Cagayan de Oro, and we were really excited to carry on our excitement to a brand new island, with a brand new contact, and brand new audiences. So here we are in Cebu, with energetic attitudes and smiles as wide as the sea that we had spent the better part of two days crossing about a week before, and we are asked to play in both church services held in Lapu-Lapu City Baptist Church. Well, to be fair, we didn't only play. We were also asked to spend time reading the Bible and talking about it, so I guess you could say that we were asked to run the service like a normal church service tends to be, just all us.

To be sure, we were all very excited about this. Just the day before we had run an all day worship seminar, so we felt ready to put all of our words to action and lead worship for our brothers and sisters on the other side of the planet.

Now, I do need to rewind a bit. In Cagayan de Oro, we heard that Lapu-Lapu Baptist wanted us to have a sermon in our concert at some point, so this wasn't a surprise to us when we got there. And, when I heard that a sermon was needed, I felt God prompting me to take the opportunity to share about him, so I asked my team if I could take the job, and they all agreed. We also decided on having Gretchen share her talent of memorization by reciting a bit of Scripture.

Okay, fast forward again to Friday night, our first night in Cebu. I was in the hotel, reading my Bible, and Gretchen comes over to me, asking what I wanted to talk about in my sermon, and I had a couple of ideas, but I asked her what passages of Scripture she had memorized, so that we could tag-team the event and not just read some passage and preach on a different passage. And, after a long discussion (about 30 seconds) we decided on using 2 Corinthians 11 and 12. So, I proceeded to open my Bible to 2 Corinthians to re-familiarize myself with the passage. And something really stuck out to me when I was reading that night. 2 Corinthians 12 has this passage:  "To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, and in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

That passage speaks some amazing truths, and there in the Baptist Missionary Guest House in Cebu, I knew that God wanted me to share these truths with the Church in Lapu-Lapu on Sunday. So I made an outline, going through the normal process of coming up with an idea, then scrapping that idea and moving on to the next one until I was finally satisfied with what I wanted to share. But then something hit me. Doesn't the passage say that Paul delights in weakness? And here I was almost delighting in the fact that I was preparing a couple of days early and I was going to have all the "right stuff" to say. I knew my attitude was a bit off. So I decided to take the message to heart in an interesting way. I decided that I would take my notes and outline that I had prepared, but I would plan on NOT using them, and simply relying on Christ to be strong in my weakness.

And that is exactly what I did on that Sunday. I simply opened my mouth, and talked about what Christ had showed me in that passage. The first service I talked into a microphone, but the second service was a bit different. I guess God really wanted to make a point about Him being strong in our weakness, because the power went out at the end of the first service, and we played an acoustic worship set and I just yelled out my sermon unamplified for the second service.

But that was simply an act of God. He showed that His strength really is made perfect in our weakness. And He saw fit to show that in an interesting way that Sunday. God was still there, even though our equipment didn't have it's desired power, and we couldn't sound like we wanted to. But does that matter to Him? He wants us to delight in Him, that's where the real worship is, not in our sound.

And what's more, this little exercise in my faith proved to be something more than any of us could have imagined. The passage that Gretchen and I felt we needed to share became our theme for the rest of the trip. Praise God! Without us knowing anything at all, He was preparing us for the next week, when our bodies started getting sick, and struggles began to become a reality. He prepared us by fixing our attitudes on Biblical principles. And with His word in our minds and hearts, we can take anything on.

So, I want to encourage all of you. I decided to obey the promptings that the Spirit placed in my heart, and He blessed me and the whole team to boot. And all I did was realize that He is what my life is about, not me and my ability to speak in front of crowds. I just went up and opened my mouth, like in the book of Acts when Paul and Peter did just that in front of councils and large crowds. And even though I stumbled in my speaking, and I know I broke some of the rules of the "perfect speech", God worked through me, and after both services, several Filipino brothers and sisters expressed to us how they were encouraged by our message and our music, even though the power was out! Truly, it wasn't ever us that impressed them, it was the power of Christ through us. So this turned out to be a theme of sorts for our team for our experience in the Philippines. And Praise God for that.

1422 Departs for Fall Tour

Team 1422 pulls out of the driveway on their way to Montana, starting their fall tour! Be sure to check their booking schedule to see if they are coming to a town near you!

Team 1422 arrives home!

Team 1422 arrived home safely! Their gear made it safe and sound as well!

Salamat Philippines

It has been quite the time here in the Philippines. I could tell so many stories and I'm sure there will be time for that but for now I just wanted to share one thing that has been impressed upon me during my time here and I'm sure I will be thinking over for a long while: God is greater than I can even imagine.
Sometimes I find myself trying to make Him into something that I can understand because it seems it would be so much easier to grasp faith and what it means to follow fully after Him if I can understand Him. I know I'm not alone when I say I want to understand God. If I can label God with certain attributes I can better describe Him to others and I will be able to explain why certain things happen. Or if I can understand why He would ask me to share my story with others this year, I wouldn't be so afraid or nervous. But when I try to make Him into a God I can fully understand, I realize how much I leave out. God is so much greater than I make Him. I can't describe or explain Him in human words and I definitely don't understand all the reasons why He has called me to share my story this year. But one thing I do know, I don't want a God that I can mold and make into something I understand because it's in the mystery and greatness of God that I find my peace.

Sorry for those that were looking to read about a story of our time but hopefully this will cultivate some new thoughts as you search the greatness of our God.
~Carrie

So Close

So we are almost to the end of our time here in the Philippines. It is going to be weird to head home to the different weather, traffic, and food, all things we have come to feel (almost) at home with here. In the next few days we have a few shows, including one at the new amphitheater by Leyte Landing (where a certain American general returned to the Philippines). Please lift our team up in your prayers, our bodies are starting to wear down and sickness looms, we have a bunch of weird travel plans lined up to get back to the states, and (for me personally) a lot of gear to move back and forth. Prayer for all of that, especially our health and travel arrangements, would be amazing. We are looking forward to seeing family and friends again, but sad to be nearing the end of our time here (and the new friends we have made everywhere we go!).
Grace and peace to you all,
Ed

Fun, Fun, Fun

Ok so...I really wish I had some pictures to post for you (and I actually do I just can't post them at this particular time) but I have several fun stuff to share.
First of all, I want to say that we had an amazing time in Cagayan and miss the DeCleenes a great deal. If we didn't mention it before: We got to go white water rafting...IN THE PHILIPPINES mind you! And that was an incredible journey that we will probably refer to more and more this year.
Even though we are missing Cagayan, we are really enjoying Cebu and everyone we have met here so far. We just got back last night from a fantastic adventure to the island of Tingo. 3 things we want to remember about this island: 1) we traveled there by boat...WITH all 900lbs of our gear! 2) We ate copious amounts of shell creatures. 3) We played a concert under the palm trees with a pretty sweet opening act, followed by lots of fun games in the rain with the locals.
All in all...no one would disagree that our time here in the Philippines so far has been wonderful. We have met incredible people, shared the gospel with non-believers, encouraged fellow believers, and have seen the Lord move in very real ways.

I would love to go into more detail but I must leave...we are headed out for a high school concert.

Until next time...please continue praying for us ;-)

REQUESTS:
Team Taiwan (14:21). If you haven't done so already, check out their blog. And continue praying for their health and safety throughout their tour.

Our health and attitudes.

The New J radio station in Cagayan: that they would continue to move people toward Christ through their ministry.

Mary and the rest of our contacts here in Cebu: that we would be able to serve them in the best way possible and that the Lord would be with them as they continue to minister to the schools and churches of this city.

We love you, we miss you all.
Beside you in the Faith,
14:22

Sara and I just realized that we have some photos on this computer so that you can see a bit of what we've done. I'm sure there will be more to come whether next week or when we return to the States, but hopefully these few will give you a glimpse into our lives here :)

An End and a Beginning

Maayong Happon! (Good Afternoon in Cebuano)
Today I write you from the home of our Cagayan de Oro hosts, the DeCleenes, while Ed and a rotating shift of the rest of us pack up our gear for our flight tomorrow. We have officially been in the Philippines for a week, focusing our ministry so far in CDO. However, tomorrow we must leave this beautiful city and fly to the island of Cebu for 5 days of ministry there. We are sad that we can't spend more time with all our wonderful friends at the New J (CDO's Christian radio station), but we are so excited for what God has planned for us in Cebu!

To give a quick wrap-up of what we have done so far:
- 4 school concerts
- 2 worship seminars
- 4 market concerts
- 1 Sunday morning worship service
- 1 outreach concert
- learned Hillsong's 'One Way'- it is a HUGE hit out here!
- given many hugs, autographs and photo opps
- saw the sun rise while swimming in the ocean
- witnessed native tribal dances
- Sara battled a crazy monkey- and won
- went whitewater rafting

Last night while talking, we estimated that we have reached over 10,000 people in just a week! We pray that those who listened continue to work with the radio station who, in addition to offering a positive alternative in music, offers Bible studies and can connect people with local churches for the long-term ministry that we aren't able to do.

Thank you to everyone who has kept us, our partners, and those who hear Christ's message in your prayers. None of this would be possible without your support. Here are a few specific requests we have this week:
- for 14:21 and their continued ministry in Taiwan
-for health. We are only a few degrees from the equator which means a lot of sun. So far, we are all keeping really hydrated and sunscreened (is that even a word?), but continued prayer for this is soooooo good.
-for our flight tomorrow. It's a short jump between islands, but our gear needs all the tlc it can get from the luggage handlers.
-for our drivers from this past week who, although not Christians, volunteered their time and vehicle to drive our gear around and in turn, were saturated with worship and the Gospel. We pray that their interest in Christ continue to grow and develop.
- for our partner, The New J, and everyone who is a part of it. They are doing amazing work in CDO and we pray that they are able to continue blessing the lives of the Christians who live here and can reach out to those who do not know Christ through the medium of music.
-for the people of Cebu who we will come into contact with- that their hearts and ears be open to the message we bring and the love God is pouring on them.
- for our hearts and ears that we may remain mindful of why we are here and what God has asked and is asking us to do.

So that's it for now (at least from me). I hope we can put more photos up soon, but if I could sum up what all of our photos are, I would use the word BEAUTIFUL. God's amazing artistry is extremely evident at every turn here. From the moment we wake up to the moment we fall asleep, we are reminded by nature and the people that God is all-powerful and infused into everything we are and do. Could we ask for a better reminder on this trip?

Hello from the Philippines

Well...we made it! We have been warmly welcomed into the wonderful city of Cagayan De Oro (aka. the City of Golden Friendship). SO...while the rest of the team is playing Apples to Apples behind me...I've decided to let you in on our adventures to the Philippines.

Yesterday (which was Friday for us) was our first full day of ministry. We had the privilege of playing at a high school for about 2000 students and then got to hang out with the De Cleene's at the radio station with the rest of the New J staff.

We ended our day playing at the Night Cafe, for hundreds of vendors and passerbys.

We're switching it up today and doing some worship seminars for a couple local churches....we're so excited to see the things the Lord is doing through the talents of our brothers and sisters here in Cagayan De Oro.

On a completely random side note: Plus 200 Mango Drink is AMAZING!

Until next time...
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
~14:22

Update from the team!

We received a phone call from Nate this morning (evening for them.)

Things are going very well for the team- they're really enjoying their hosts and accommodations, and they've had some great ministry opportunities already. They participated in 3 events today: a concert at a large high school (between 2,000 and 3,000 kids) followed by a smaller Christian school and an appearance at a "night cafe." They're working through some difficulties with their equipment and we're hopeful that these will be resolved soon.

Tomorrow they will begin working with worship teams at two churches, sharing some thoughts and ideas about worship ministry with them, and then leading those congregations in worship on Sunday.

The team hopes to post an update in their own words soon, so check back for that in a few days.

1422 reports safe arrival in the Philippines

Nate called this morning to pass along word of the team's safe arrival in Cagayan de Oro in the Philippines. They have met the DeCleene family and are getting settled in. Check their blog in the comming weeks for updates on their ministry there!

Team 1422 departs!

The members of Team 1422 have checked in safely and are on their way to the Philippines! Check back soon for updates on their trip!

Countdown to tropical paradise....

Early Tuesday morning (tomorrow) we will be leaving for the Philippines! Please keep our travel plans in your prayers as we are looking at 40+ hours of travel. We have to make a bunch of connections, clear customs, have all our equipment meet us, and figure out what day/time it is when we get there in less than a day before our engagements start. Sooooo, that'll be a blast! (in all seriousness we are looking forward to all of this). We've heard stories about the food (it's very important in Philippine culture), weather (hello current typhoon), and snorkeling (amazing), and are now ready to get there and try it for ourselves. Hopefully this blog will be updated once a week, but if you do not hear from us for a few weeks, fear not (keep praying, but fear not) we shall return. We're back in the US around the 23rd of October (I'm a little fuzzy on the date as time zones change quite a bit). Our time in country will be spent on three islands working with a radio station, some established worship teams (kind of a cross cultural worship exchange), and hopefully some outreach concerts. 

To sum up:

Leaving for the Philippines first thing in the morning.

Back later in October

Pray for travel, people we meet, EQUIPMENT, etc.

We'll be having fun!

Peace and grace to you all,

Ed

Hey all! Just wanted to send out a quick shout to all the fine folks who put us up and put up with us on this tour, you all have been great! We have amassed memories which will be spoken of in reverent (and not so reverent) tones for years to come. A bat, throwing knives and home theaters come immediatly to mind.
We also would like to thank all who have been praying for us and supporting us in many ways for this last month of training. It has been grueling at times, but ultimately rewarding. God is so big, and His people are so varied, and we all feel like a part of something so much bigger than ourselves, and that is amazing.
Please continue to pray for us as we prepare for our next adventure: the Phillipines! Pray for flexability and humility for us as we learn about this new culture, and for sensitivity to the spirit to discern how best to reach our fellow humans.
May you all be blessed by that which shall never lose its palor- the Life of Christ.

The Vision of 1422

So we have discussed as a team where we want to be focused this next year. No one decisive concrete answer came from that discussion. However, a basic idea seems to be agreed upon. As a team we want to see people (and thus be able to treat them) as Jesus does(would). The song is "give me Your eyes" and it's included in many concerts for that reason; we want to see people through His eyes. You'll notice a lot of pictures unconnected with our recent travels, I pulled pictures and videos from our pasts (see if you can identify people/places/yourself in any) to show the people and places we have been (and potential opportunities lost/gained). I put more thought than usual into this video, it started as a joke music video idea that snowballed into something serious. Enjoy.

Almost Home

This morning 1422 is in Cushing, MN (pop 65 according to the sign) to play at Lincoln E-Free church. Carl will be preaching and we will be performing for the last time before we arrive in the Philippines. We are all looking forward to being back at "home" and have many stories from the road. 

Some interesting notes from the last few days:

*I might have jury duty soon (weeee)

*Most host homes have pets of some kind (usually at least a cat and then a second). We love animals.

*I didn't eat this well down at school. 

Peace and grace,

It's service time,

Ed

Good to know...

Sharing a drama with the students at Central Wisconsin Christian School

Ribs.

Team leaders... CHEAP!!

Sheboygen Christian HS

Aaron Edwards, CTI summer alum (Singapore '08) shared with his fellow students about his experience.

Oostberg Christian School

First chapel service on this "double header" Friday. This was our time with the awesome middle schoolers! We're headed to the high school this afternoon.

Giddy Gretchen rocks a sheep...

CTI 1422 Episode 2

And we are finally on the road!!! Enjoy this video explaining why it is so good to get away from Willmar (although we will certainly be very happy to get back!).

Peace and grace to you all,

Ed

The tough boys loading out...

Celebrating with the awesome family at Ascension Lutheran in Fond du Lac!

Hellllooo Wisconsin

The band has now moved into the great state of Wisconsin (after a nice long 10 hour drive). Tonight we will play at Ascension Lutheran in Fond Du Lac. The new sanctuary wing is quite nice and we look forward to playing this concert. A brief view of our driving:

1) Person driving (Eric and Sara yesterday) staring blankly at the road ahead.

2) Everyone else falling asleep or vegging out watching the office/ipod..

3) Occasionally viewing the beautiful creation God has provided us.

Another video will be released shortly...

Van life...

Yesterday we spent the day at Oak Hills college, and we want to sincerely thank the students and faculty there for being such gracious hosts.

Today we are driving to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin - about 9 hours. Night night, Nate and Carl!

Breakfast with the Caracios!

Thanks, Tom & Dawn, for a great breakfast before we headed to Bemidji!

More from the Cave in Osage

Nate's Osage fan club

Christening "The Cave" in Osage!

Departing for tour!

Byebye Willmar - see you in a few weeks!