Happy Belated Thanksgiving! It’s been a crazy, but good month so far, with so much to be thankful for in the midst of a very messy, sin-filled world. We see God providing for people in the midst of their brokenness.
In light of this, we wanted to highlight the latest band being sent out of the Indy Cru office. It’s a brand new team with new content, called Anthem City. Their goal is to bring hope to those who are marginalized by others or by their own choices by introducing them to the one who chose to join them in this messy life in order to save us all from our sin and ourselves. We got to witness the dress rehearsal and it brought me to tears, it was so good. Their performance breathed new life and meaning into songs we already know well and the testimony sprinkled throughout was powerful. Here are a couple of excerpts from their updates:
Nov. 17th– Last night we had a wonderful show down in Bloomington, IN. We teamed up with Wheeler Mission Men’s addiction recovery program at Camp Hunt. These guys are taking 6 months to start their journey of being drug or alcohol free and at the same time learning how to walk with God. It is an amazing atmosphere and program.
The little chapel made for a great intimate atmosphere as we rocked out Transiberian Orchestra’s version of Carol of the Bells. Roughly 70 people were in attendance. The common theme we heard after the concert was “I have heard these christmas songs all of my life and this is the first time I understood them and why they are so important”. We did do comment cards and there were 5 first time decisions for Christ and a bunch of recommitments. Praise the Lord for his love and grace upon those men!…
Nov. 28th—One show recently was on Nov. 22nd at Westville Correctional Facility. We were blessed to perform in an auditorium that had its nuances and unique odor, but it was a great huge room that allowed us to be loud! 110 men were in attendance and they were into the whole show! 17 new brothers in Christ and 60 recommitted to a life with Jesus!!! Praise God! The band was blessed to have post concert conversations with the guys and story after story of hardship and desperation. Scanning the room I saw smiles and prayers being lifted, God worked hard in that room that night and chaplain Brian was impressed… He wants us back to help expand his ministry.
Keep praying as our schedule is ramping up big time starting tomorrow Nov. 29th. 8 concerts in 9 days. As well, crazy equipment issues keep showing up. And they are different ones at different venues. So, I am slightly suspicious the enemy is trying to thwart our efforts. Pray to keep him at bay and that those distractions are not evident to the audience.
As for us, Karl’s been busy doing more international email migrations. This time it was Latin America, and it’s amazing how many unexpected issues can come up. We also housed more students for MC training, only 4 this time so my laundry pile was modest by comparison to some of the other training weekends ☺. It’s always fun to interact with them. Lastly, since Karl works for a team in Orlando, they occasionally would like us to show up face to face, so we will be heading to FL for a few days next week. We’re thankful for a couple of people who will be able to be the adult presence in Anja’s life while we’re gone. Wishing you eyes to see and ears to hear what God’s up to in your messy world this Christmas season,