12/07/2008

Can you believe that the holidays are upon us? Where has this year gone? I guess as I get older, time moves much faster. I celebrated my first anniversary with the Wanda Mountain Boys on Saturday, November 1st. I can’t think of a better place to do that than with our friend JoAnn Clark and the folks at the Barn in Pana, IL.

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Can you believe that the holidays are upon us? Where has this year gone? I guess as I get older, time moves much faster.

I celebrated my first anniversary with the Wanda Mountain Boys on Saturday, November 1st. I can’t think of a better place to do that than with our friend JoAnn Clark and the folks at the Barn in Pana, IL. This is such an awesome place to sing. They have taken a horse barn and remodeled it into a very nice theatre. The crowd was great. Of course, we got to be there for pie night. This boy likes his pie as you can probably tell by looking at me.

The weekend of November 7-8 was a busy one as we were part of the Mid America Gospel Music Association Fall Convention. I have served as a board member and officer for the entirety of the association’s existence and was privileged to serve as president for 2008. Over 25 artists performed for the people at the Centenne Center in Farmington, MO. It was also great to be a part of the Lifetime Achievement Award presentation again this year. We honored Slim and Zella Mae Cox and Marty Moreland with the award. These are some wonderful people and very deserving.

Pastor Bob Green invited us to the senior’s Thanksgiving luncheon held at Southside Christian Church in Springfield, IL on November 12. We had over 150 seniors there for a Wednesday morning concert and a great turkey and dressing dinner with all of the fixings.

Saturday, November 15, we traveled to Junction, IL to sing for the folks at Pisgah General Baptist. This was their Thanksgiving celebration and once again they treated us to a wonderful meal followed by a concert. We had a great time. After leaving there, we drove to Cape Girardeau, MO to sing a Sunday morning service at Iona Baptist. Kevin Rhodes is pastor at Iona. We had a wonderful service.

That evening we traveled back across the river to sing for Pastor Earnest Brown at Alexander Freewill Baptist Church in Olive Branch, IL. Claude’s wife, Shirley, spent time as a child in Olive Branch and this was her family’s home church. This was the first time in many years that she had been there. Claude also sang in this church with his first quartet when he was 8 years old. We had a number of people respond during the altar call and the Spirit was moving in a special way.

November 22 found us in Griggsville, Illinois at the Lighthouse Church. Pastor Gordon Scroggins and his congregation invited us to share a concert and they hosted a soup dinner for the community. During the introduction of the group, he shared a story about how the church came up with the motto, “A church on a mission”. To my surprise, he got the motto after listening to the Chosen Ones sing a song that I had written, “Mission for the Cross”. As a songwriter, I sometimes wonder how the songs are affecting lives. I’m thankful that this song’s message is getting out there and influencing people in some way. Thanks Pastor Gordon for the encouraging words. We had a great time.

November 23 was jammed packed as we traveled to Tower Hill Free Methodist in Tower Hill, Illinois. This is one of our favorite places to sing. The folks always come to worship and have a good time. This church has come to be known to us by something else. A lady in the church makes the best coconut cream pie that we’ve ever had. She brought us one for the bus as well. It didn’t make it home.

That afternoon, we had the privilege to go to a local nursing home and sing for some wonderful people. Our friend, Gloria, from the Tower Hill Church, works at the facility and invited us to come. It was a great blessing to be able to see these folks smile and have a good time.

Later that evening, we had the opportunity to participate in the Pana, IL Ministerial Alliance’s Thanksgiving Celebration. A prayer service was held at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church. This is a beautiful church and we were blessed by the community church choir as well as a message from the Christian Church pastor and the priest. Close to 400 people attended the service followed by a big Thanksgiving meal across the street at the parish hall. It’s awesome to see a community come together, crossing denominational barriers to reach people for Christ.

Before I close, let me wish you a very merry Christmas from all of the Wanda Mountain Boys. You all are very special to us. We count it a blessing to be able to share our gift of music with you. Thanks for your support in 2008 and we look forward to seeing you in 2009.

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