Yes, It's been over a month! But I do have good excuses!
1. Barely any internet.
2. Busy playing and practicing drums.
3. Trying to spend less time on the PC.
4. Live Recording.
5. Went on Road Trips.
So let me catch you up!
January was pretty much getting my foot healed up and practicing drums, learning A LOT at school and just trying to get deeper in God's Word and in my prayer life! It's been an amazing experience getting closer to God's heart! He has shown me soooooo many new things about himself that I had no idea about! Peace, care, mercy, and just pure love! Makes you feel so whole, never feeling alone- He's just always there to give me comfort or advice, or even a hug when I miss home! I've continued to play drums at my church, Trinity! It's been going awesome! It was a great church with awesome leaders and pastoral staff! So, that pretty much sums up January!
February has been a roller coaster!!!
The Live Christ for the Nations recording was the 13th. Everyone put a lot of work into it and I am sooo proud of them! All my friends played and sang on it. Also, one of my close friends Bethany Stephens actually wrote and sang her song on the recording called "You Deserve it All." A powerful declaration to God! She is an amazing songwriter and an anointed singer and woman of God! I love her to death! Melanie (my best friend) and I were in the Choir for the recording. (And yes, for those of you who know I can't sing must be wondering- how did this come about? well! Since I am on a Student Worship team I am required to be in the choir!) It was A LOT of fun, but also exhausting! You must all listen to the CD and watch the DVD! I can honestly say, there is not one song on the CD that I do not like and is not found int he bible! Amazing! It comes out May 8th! Please please please get it! It's awesome! (www.cfni.org)
JESSICA FREEMAN
MICHIYA TANAKA
GABE ALLRED
MICHIYA
JUAN PARK
JEREMY ALDERATE
JOHNNA ALLEN
WORSHIPPERS
BETHANY STEPHENS
BENSON EAPEN
Singers
MELANIE AND I
MELANIE AND CAMILA
MELANIE AND ANDREW
Valentine's Day was a lot of fun! I got a surprise flower delivery from my parents!!! They are amazing--
The following week was very busy! Wednesday I played for the night service at Trinity, Friday was a night of worship at Lakeshore Church in Rockwall, Texas! Gabe (the worship leader here at CFNI, also leader at Trinity Church) asked me to play along with other CFNI students! It was a lot of fun, the hospitality of that church, and servant hood couldn't even be put into words. Those are the people I look up to and hope to be!!! True servants of people and therefore of God!!!
Then the next day, the 21st of February I traveled to Louisiana with Robert Quintana and a group from CFNI! We left at 8am Saturday morning for our 4-hour drive to LA! We arrived at Natchitoches and were greeted by my friend and peer at CFNI along with her family and the pastor of the church with a Home cooked meal! AHHH! It was great to be around that! Again, hospitality was more than words! The pureness of these people's hearts blow you away! After we stuffed our bellies we had an hour or so long sound check for the Night of Worship later at 7pm. Afterward we went back to the hotel to relax and try to nap! 7pm came around and we headed to the church, prayed up and were off to bring the congregation into the throne room of God! It was an amazing night, God showed up in a great way!
Again, God is just showing me, and I'm sure all of my friends all new things and it's a great place to be in! But it's also a very challenging place to be in because the Devil hates us getting closer to God, means he's loosing his grip on us and we have our faith tested. Anyway, enough preaching! After the night of worship we all went to a sit-down Sonic! SOOOOOOO Good!!! Ahh! The pastor blessed us with that great meal! Great people!
Got back to the hotel and the guitar player and bass (who were rooming together) forgot their key and went directly to the front desk as we went up and discovered they left their door open. SO! I told my friend Benson (a singer) that he should take all their stuff since they left it open! So he did as much as he could before I heard them coming back! This was at around 10pm. They didn't realize their stuff was gone till around 1am! Haha, they even reported it to the front desk. Benson ended up telling them what happened and returned their stuff. It was a great memory! The next morning we had the Sunday morning service and it was again, a blessed time. They prayed over us and took an offering up for us. These people are the real deal! MAN!!
If only every church was like that! A lot more people would be reached.
Afterward, the pastor took us out again to a nice restaurant and blessed us! Seriously...AMAZING people. I pray everyday that they are blessed ten-fold!!! For all my family and friends-- I apologize. The pastor, knowing I'm from New Jersey, made a deal with me to say "Y'all." Now, that just DOES NOT HAPPEN. However, I felt as though the least I could do was say a word in return for all the church had done! So, he said if I liked the food Sunday afternoon I had to say it. And the food was pretty awesome...so yes. YES! OK!!! I SAID IT! Ahhhh! But never again!
=) here are some pictures from the trip!
(L-R) MR.PATTON, ROBERT QUINTANA, JAMIE BIRKENFELD
GROUP PHOTOS!
JAMIE AND BETHANY
PIGLET AND POOH, I MEAN ROBERT AND TIM
JAMIE BIRKENFELD
BETHANY STEPHENS
God is doing amazing things here! A spirit of just selflessness has come over all my friends and myself. It's a great thing to get in the habit of. Just blessing others, whether its in serving or financially! When the Lord see's that we have a pure heart of blessing others and we realize that all we have is actually His anyway, He blesses us in return.
I'm loving being in the will of God. There's really NO OTHER PLACE I'D RATHER BE!
What a great time to grow and learn!
=)
I pray blessings over all of you who read this and whom I love every night!
I speak life over you and believe that God will show you new things in the near future. Go near to Him and He will make himself known to you.
-JMG
