My Big Weekend in Knoxville...Singing, Eating and Having Fun!

This weekend I was invited to sing in Knoxville, Tennessee for Knoxville Christian Center's annual "All American BBQ." I sing patriotic songs, the men of the church work all night to grill fantastic barbecue, and the ladies make fabulous sides and desserts. It's one of my favorite times of the year!

My name on the marquee! Neat!

pic taken from www.knoxvillechristiancenter.org

And how cool is it to have your pic on the event advertising? 

pic taken from www.knoxvillechristiancenter.org

This is a picture taken a few years ago when we used the choir. 

If you love your country, patriotic music is so moving.

Here I am singing "God Bless America" this year...

This year my husband and daughter didn't go (he had to work, and she wanted to spend the weekend at Grammy's), so I took along my friend Crystal and we made it a girl's weekend.

We ate really good food, slept late, listened to 80's music on Sirius satellite radio and being girls, talked and talked and talked. It was fun!

Fried green tomatoes and cheese grits with two types of gravy at Puleo's Grille...one of my all-time favorite places to eat!

I also got to meet up with my good friend Tammy from my college days. She made me download an app to my iPhone against my will so that I could watch Jimmy Swaggert podcasts (she loves some Jimmy Swaggert!). ha! She's a hoot!

I even had really good hair days! I'm really feelin' the curly, blonde do I've been sportin' this summer....

I had a great time!

Next trip to Knoxville will hopefully be this fall when we take little G to her first Tennessee Vols football game! Daddy is super excited about that!

Supporting a Brother in Christ in His Music Ministry

Tonight I went to hear my bro in Christ, Elijah Rogers sing at a venue/ministry called KYOVA. He was really amazing! It's important to me to support my friends, so every chance I get to be there for them, I will!

Elijah and I sang together in our former group Crossfire. But, due to my moving, and his living so far away to begin with, we both stepped away from the group. It was a tough decision to make, but one that was best for me and my family. He jumped right back into singing, moving forward with recording a solo CD and booking places to sing like crazy! Me, on the other hand, I've been much more cautious. When you're a wife and a mom, those obligations take priority, so I haven't wanted to do anything that would be a hardship on my family. We've had enough stress, what, with the my husband's job loss and the move and all. I just want to be careful, that's all...do things in God's perfect timing.

But back to Elijah and KYOVA. First of all, Elijah really shines as a solo tenor. He has a very unique testimony (he has a child with autism and is a very young husband and father) and shares so beautifully how God has "brought him through the fire" many times. He gets the crowd going and really ministers...that is truly a gift (check out his website HERE)!

And I just love KYOVA, which stands for "Kentucky Ohio Valley Association" (I think). It is a ministry that provides a place for Christian folks to go every Friday night to enjoy food, fellowship and music. Each Friday night, they have a crowd of around 200 or more! It's incredible! Sometimes it's standing room only!!! The dinner is around 5 bucks and the entertainment is free. They give away door prizes and everyone just has a good time hanging out. I think it's just great. Every little town needs a ministry/venue like that to give folks a place to get out of the house and enjoy the company of others.

I sure enjoyed a night of good ol' gospel singin' and the company of these brothers! Me, Pastor Dale (Elijah's pastor from their church, Lighthouse Baptist in Shelbiana, KY...man, they are gettin' people saved and baptisin' like crazy over there!) and Elijah.

And the dinner they served! UH-MAY-ZING! I was expecting a hot dog or a burger, but they had full-on soup beans, fried potatoes, kraut, cornbread and home made cobblers and pies. It was incredible (thanks Pastor Dale for dinner!). I highly encourage you, if you live in the Huntington/Ashland area to check it out (take your grandparents...they'd love it!).

And have Elijah Rogers come sing at your church or event sometime. You will be blessed!

Working With Your Strengths and Doing Something a Little Different

I have been praying a lot about what God wants me to do in this new season of my life. When you move, whether you like it or not, you are thrown into a sort of "defacto" new season. I think when my daughter goes to school in the fall, that will be an even NEWER season, but that's still a few months away. So, in a new season I am, and I'm wondering what in the world I can do with my life right now that is meaningful to me and the Kingdom (and yes, being a wife and a mom is meaningful, but God is calling me to do other things right now too).

For a while there (several weeks) I was looking at what I didn't have (i.e. a car, lots of extra cash, etc.) and what I couldn't do, but lately I've been praying about what I CAN do. And again, I'm lead to the internet.

I have been a little concerned with having a large presence online, especially for my daughter. So many people have access to personal pictures of my family, my personal thoughts, and a lot of my personal information (where I live, etc.). But when it all comes down to it, I set it up that way, so I can't complain about it. The world is the way it is (pretty evil) and other than remove myself from the web completely and pray, there's really not much I can do but be careful and watchful.

So after serious contemplation and prayer about whether or not to get offline completely, I have decided against it. The world needs Christians online. There's so much garbage on the internet...it makes my stomach turn to know some of the things you can do and see online, but as Christians, I believe we can counter it! We can pray and we can share THE WORD of GOD and the HOPE in JESUS CHRIST! So, I'm here to stay, but now, I'm EXPANDING!!!!!

As I have prayed, I've asked the Lord to show me where my strengths lie and how I can use them for Him and as a blessing to the Body.

Here's what I'm NOT going to do....

I'm not going to focus on how to keep a tidy house and offer organizational tips, because, that ain't my gift ya'll! ha!

I'm not going to blog about how to manage your finances and live a frugal life...not my strength either.

I'm not going to make this a "foodie" blog, although I may post recipes sometimes, because I enjoy cooking, but it's not my passion.

And while I may post encouragements on exercise and eating right (because I'm working on that myself right now), I'm not going to school you in those areas. Again, not my strength (for now).

But here is what I AM going to do...

I am going to offer to pray for you (look for a link to the right to post prayer requests).

I am going to be an encouragement to you.

I am going to start making videos (something new for me) that offer my insights on the Bible and living the Christian life and whatever else I decide to talk about.

I am going to write posts that speak honestly and openly about my struggles as well as my victories.

And I am going to sing!!!! If not for anyone else, as a praise to Jesus!

So, instead of focusing on what I DON'T have to be able to minister to people, I'm choosing to focus on what I DO have, which is the internet, and I'm gonna work the heck out of it for the Kingdom of God! ha!

Stay tuned!!!! And if you have prayer requests, please leave them in the comment section below, or email me... angieacapella@gmail.com

Blessings to you all!!!!