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IAMM Convention
know that we are not the only people to live fast paced lives. Sometimes I wish we could slow down just a little, don't you? But what would we give up? Time with family, the secular work that supplies our needs and some of our wants, the fellowship with friends that we cherish, or the ministries that we are honored to attempt?
I have to admit that I don't always leap out of bed with joy at the things on my list I have to accomplish that day. (OK those of you that know me personally know I don't "leap" in the morning, especially before 9am, but you know what I mean!) I've been feeling overwhelmed with my "to-do" list lately. Too many things to bore you with here, but I finally had a bright idea: Why don't I pray about it?? Wow! What a thought! Seriously, why is it always the last thought to come to mind when you are at the end of your rope? Prayer is the knot that we can tie and hang onto! Then we can hang on and swing there a little longer! I really needed this restful prayer a few weeks ago.
We've been blessed with a busy schedule lately and had actually not intended to attend the IAMM conference in La Porte, Texas this year. Between our fulltime secular jobs and our ministry schedule we didn't think we could make it work. I'm so glad we did! We were able to drive down early on Friday morning and make it just in time to the round table discussion that includes members, the board of directors, and the President and Vice-President giving their visions of the coming year. Sounds like everyone will be busy again!
The IAMM Association, (International Association of Music Ministers) is a non-profit South Texas based Christian Music Association. New Day has been very blessed to be a member for the past year. There are alot of associations you can join, and I'm sure that most, if not all, try to function with integrity and Christ centered messages. But we believe in our hearts that the purpose and function of IAMM is something everyone in Christian music needs. There are association's you can join to help you make "connections", or get bookings, but I wouldn't look to IAMM to further your "career". What you can expect from IAMM is this: Spiritual Accountability. Sometimes that is like medicine: hard to take, but healing.
I didn't think we would be able to top last year's convention with the concert night, but WOW, it was awesome! There were groups there from Texas, of course, but also from Missouri, Tennessee, California, and others I can't remember where their from. The Relations brought the house down again, as usual, and we were blessed to hear Pastor Mooney from New Life with an exceptional trumpet solo. How moving!! The convention was held this year at New Life, graciously hosted by Bishop Holley and Pastor Gayla. To see some beautiful pictures and read more about New Life you can visit www.gaylasmagazine.com and see for yourself! We were only able to attend one day of this 4 day conference, so I know we really missed a blessing.
After the concert on Friday night we headed to dinner near our hotel with a very sweet couple from New Life, Chuck and Debra Rupert. What a great time of fellowship! We've always said between the 4 of us (New Day) that we want to make true new friends along this great adventure of God's calling with this ministry. With Chuck and Debra, we did! So much fun! Can't wait to see them all again!
Posted by: New Day on Oct 22, 07 | 10:26 am | [0] Comments (1836 views)
What we've been up to!
Willowcreek Fellowship: We had such a good time at Willowcreek Fellowship in Plano, Texas. Jim & Nelda were there to greet us as well as Ms. Claire. It was our first singing since returning from NQC so we were motivated, rested and rarin' to go! Willowcreek has a "Branson" night at their lovely church and do a great job of supporting and hosting Gospel music in our area. It is such a blessing to minister to a congregation that is receptive and willing to participate in the praise! We hope to return to Willowcreek in 2008!
Beltline Baptist: It's always fun when you can see friends you haven't seen in years, as well as new friends you've recently made and praise the Lord at the same time! That's what Friday night was all about at campmeeting Beltline 2007! We heard great preaching, heartfelt singing and ate some of the best stew and fried chicken around! See y'all there next year!!
New Beginnings: It was such an honor to be asked to sing for a mission becoming a church and fulfilling a great calling. New Beginnings Mission in Kemp, Texas became New Beginnings Independent Baptist Church on Sunday. The excitement and joy were contagious and felt all over the sanctuary! Hearts of Joy were there as well and so annointed! Pastor Sizemore has made it a mandate of this church to be Holy Spirit guided, and with the Lord leading souls are sure to be reached in this community! We were honored to be a part of their day!
Sept. 30, 2007: New Day had the hand of the Lord upon us today and we all witnessed it firsthand! We were hooked up, tied down and headed to church! Before we even reached the second stopsign out of our neighborhood, we felt a jolt and turned to see our trailer trying to pass us on our left! We immediately began praying for the Lord to stop this trailer before someone was hurt. All we can say is that angels were guiding our trailer!! After jumping a curb, traveling across a lawn, heading straight for the next house, the trailer miraculously came to a dead stop right in the middle of a circular driveway headed downhill!!! Praise God!!! No one was injured, our equipment was not damaged and the neighbor was not even upset about being woken up early! lol Our trailer will be in the shop this week having the hitch repaired/replaced. And since the heavy duty padlock was completely broken in two pieces, we'll be looking for an industrial super heavy duty padlock to use! God is Good!!!
Kelley
Posted by: New Day on Oct 01, 07 | 12:48 pm | [0] Comments (2124 views)
National Quartet Convention
Well as most of you know from our daily updates, we just returned from Kentucky and our very first trip to the National Quartet Convention. We didn't know what to expect, but went anticipating fun, excitement, and great fellowship with others. We were not disappointed!
The Louisville Fairgrounds/Convention area was huge and imagine our surprise when we were told to drive right on up to our booth...indoors! (Can you tell we're not really big city people?) We met wonderful people in the booths around us and learned soooo much!
The first night there was a smaller venue concert with the incredible Booth Brothers and Legacy 5...what an uplifting way to begin the week! I love when you can watch someone using their God-given talent and returning it back to Him in the form of praise!
On Monday evening we went to dinner at Cracker Barrel (surprise, surprise....lol) and ran into Tim Parton, the new piano player for Legacy 5 and the writer of one of our newest songs "Since When". We were finally able to thank him in person for contributing to our project (and beg for more great songs!). We also talked with Susan Whisnant and Joyce Martin, and so enjoyed the encouragement and fellowship with them! The highlight of the week for me personally was meeting Paula Stefanovich. Paula has written some of the most beautiful, worshipful songs ever recorded. We love to sing "Jerusalem" and now "Yahweh" which is her latest and was recently released by The Hoppers who, of course, do an amazing job relaying the wonderful message of the song. It was also great to be able to spend some time with Hope's Call, whom we now consider dear friends. We were blessed to sing at the Southern Spin showcase and meet up with Sunday Edition who are always great fun.
While we were in Kentucky Bob & Pam received the great news that they would be grandparents again next Spring! #4 for them and Jim and I were anticipating our first grandbaby's arrival any minute! I finally couldn't stand it any longer and we left one day ahead of schedule so that I would not miss Jackson Daniel's arrival. I didn't!! The little guy had us wait 5 more days after we returned hom! But he's here, happy, safe and healthy!
The real lesson that we learned at NQC is this: It's not about us, it's not about a big name, it's not about fame, it's not about concerts, and it's not even about you....it's all about HIM!! If we live and sing like we believe that, then how we sing and carry His name will please Him!! And that's all we ever want to do!
Kelley
Posted by: New Day on Oct 01, 07 | 11:38 am | [0] Comments (786 views)
Lubbock/Pampa
Ever been in a situation where you had to decide to go forward or stop altogether? That is exactly where Trinity Baptist of Lubbock found themselves recently. A beautiful building, a willing spirit, but not enough warriors. Instead of taking the easy way to rest and believing they had "had a good run", Trinity decided to bury the old and be born again fresh and new. Trinity Baptist is now The Family Church. New Day was so honored to be invited to be a part of this wonderful new beginning. The excitement was contagious and encouraging from everyone we met. Pastor Dan Reynolds and his talented wife Barbie were such a joy to get to know and we believe this is a beginning of a life long friendship not only with the Reynolds but with The Family Church itself. The day started early for New Day as we left our area for the 6 and half hour drive to Lubbock, so we could arrive in time for the block party. Road Less Traveled, a Christian rock band was on hand to perform for the youth the same evening. I have to tell it was a blow to our ego's when we discovered we were the worship leaders for the "older" crowd. HAHA! During the sound check and system setup, we couldn't understand why our meters were not setting correctly, every time we attempted a sound check, the only thing we could hear was bass. We all know God has a sense of humor, right? Well, he was having fun with us because we finally figured out the "bass" was really the rock band all the way downstairs! The congregation was so gracious to stay for the concert after working all day in the heat to make sure their block party was a success. The spirit that evening was.... sweet. No other way to describe it! We can't wait to get back to The Family Church. By the way, next time you see Bob tell him "Dude, nice suit." He'll know exactly what you're talking about.
When you travel and sing, you get to meet alot of people. You also get to attend alot of different churches. Sometimes you can feel the heart of the people before the service even begins. That's just what happened to us at the Lighthouse Covenant Fellowship in Pampa, Texas. God showed up that Sunday morning and we had church! We were so blessed to meet Bro. Ed Barker, his wife Jennie and his son Dan, along with the entire Lighthouse Family. Any singer will tell you that it's so much easier to sing when you have a lively, participating audience and that is just what we had at the Lighthouse. You always want to know that the message you are bringing about our Lord is being received. We felt that we were also being ministered to and that is so refreshing for everyone's spirit. Lighthouse will soon have a new, larger, beautiful sanctuary and we are looking forward to the day when we can return and worship with them again. I'm also looking forward to returning to the place we had lunch!! I mean, they gave you warm cinnamon rolls without you even having to ask. And everyone knows cinnamon/sugar/chocolate will be in heaven. Right???
Posted by: New Day on Aug 22, 07 | 3:00 pm | [0] Comments (639 views)
Soul Searchin' Concert
We are still on cloud nine from our "Soul Searchin" debut concert August 3rd. In the couple of weeks leading up to the concert we all 4 spent time in prayer with God about our different expectations for that night. I personally was looking for confirmation that we really are doing what God has called us to do. He answered my questions above and beyond what I could have ever dreamed.
We had a wonderful audience that evening with new friends we've been blessed to meet in the past year and old friends that we cherish. It was awesome to worship with everyone there. We invited Southern Spirit, the house quartet from The Grapevine Opry to sing and celebrate with us. They delivered a wonderful performance and we are blessed each time we are able to sing with other ministers of music.
We also wanted to share that night with a purpose greater than ourselves. We decided to try and support our military in the only way we can from home, besides daily prayers! Our gracious audience donated candy, tuna lunch packs, baby wipes, ramen noodles, card games, computer games, twin size sheets, and even dominoes to our military personnel serving in Iraq. We were overwhelmed by the response. I literally could not stop crying while I unloaded the boxes in my den. The kindness shown these soldiers in the name of Jesus was so overwhelming. Now I have to pack it and ship it!! The supplies will be mailed to the Supply Officer at Camp Freedom in Iraq. Thank you does not begin to convey how blessed we are to have friends who gave of themselves for this cause.
And speaking of giving of themselves,,, We have to share with you what a blessing and gift our church home is to us. Trinity Life Baptist in Garland, allowed us to use the sanctuary, set up a relish/fruit and cookie spread, made wonderful posters and more importantly supported us with their presence. We love our church and our pastor, Rev. Russell Rogers. In short we had so much fun, so much great fellowship and such a sweet spirit in the service that we're thinking of making this an annual event!
Thanks to everyone who made this night so very special to us! We love you much and thank God daily for your kindness, your prayers and your encouragement!
Posted by: New Day on Aug 16, 07 | 4:33 pm | [0] Comments (1166 views)
March 21, 2007
Hey everybody! What a whirlwind weekend we had! We headed for Austin/San Antonio on Friday evening, hoping to get a little practice time for the new CD in during our drive down. The traffic was a little heavier than we anticipated as it was also the weekend for the Austin music festival "South X Southwest". I told everyone we should say we went just for that music festival and people would think we were cool. OK Maybe not even then. lol After much driving around and lively debate while searching for our Best Western, which the internet neglected to tell us was located next to the Airport, we were finally all tucked in and ready for our next adventure. It must be noted that during the debate on mapquest directions, I, Kelley was busy polishing my halo, and therefore couldn't participate. No, really.
Anyway, we were blessed to attend the 9th annual South Texas Gospel Music Association banquet and convention on Saturday. We made a lot of new friends, heard some awesome music and testimonies, ate too much, and generally had a great time. We happened to be second on the program to sing, (out of 31 groups) and that turned out to be an awesome slot! They arrange the program according to how quickly you return your information to them. I am using airmail from now on!! We were able to sing early and then sit back, relax and take off my high heels!! ( I am thoroughly convinced high heels are of the devil, lol) Seriously, the music and fellowship were wonderful, and we were made to feel welcome immediately. (Thanks, Norma!)
The next morning we were honored to minister at Beacon Ridge Baptist in Austin. When you walk into alot of churches you begin to be able to discern the real love that people have for one another. This congregation was full of love! Pastor Nelson and his sweet wife were so much fun. And who could forget Deacon! (Deacon is a chihuahua mix, mascot of the church who resides in the church office during services!) They also treated us to a great luncheon after morning services. I left with a full heart, new friends and an awesome enchilada recipe on the back of my bulletin! Can't wait to go back!! The drive home was met with the same traffic getting there, and yes, we did practice a little. Jim describes it as his own personal "mini" concerts. The next time you see Bob, ask him why he practices in traffic with his cell phone pressed firmly to his ear!!!! haha
Winnsboro: If you like to be treated well and love BBQ, we suggest you get on Pastor Jim Edward's good side so he'll invite you to Winnsboro to sing at Hespibah Community Assembly of God! We met up with the Pastor, his Dad, and two of his faithful flock, Mark and Pam, at the BBQ house and had dinner before we set up for the concert. What fun!! We ate way too much then tried to sing our little hearts out! Jim found a kindred spirit, (you know who you are, Mark), Pam found long lost relatives, (The Barkers of East Texas), Bob found out how to lose all his air on the last note sung, and I found out I LOVE Bodacious BBQ. We can't wait to be invited back!
Nashville: How can something be so hard, rewarding, humbling, uplifting, discouraging, encouraging, exciting, and tiring all at the same time? That's how we felt about our time in the Daywind Studio's last week in Goodlettsville, Tennessee. Our first adventure was when our hotel lost our reservations. Yikes! But Lisa from Daywind was incredible and found us alternate rooms until we could move elsewhere. When you are cooped up in a truck with each other for 10 hours straight, I don't care how much you love each other, you want to know you're headed for a nice comfy bed! lol On Saturday morning we headed to our photo shoot. I suggested a beautiful old stained glassed window church or something, but nobody ever listens to me. So we are dreading this photo shoot like a root canal and somehow in the middle of it, it turns out to be a hoot! Our photographer Kimberly was incredible and had just returned from her honeymoon, island hopping in Hawaii. (bless her heart) Lisa from Daywind was there and we just laughed and giggled and cut up, until the boys put a stop to it. Actually we got the last laugh because I have in my possession pictures of Bob and Jim getting their "make-up" done for the photos. (These pictures are in a safe place and can be used against the boys should the need arise.) On Saturday night we drove to Murfreesboro to hear the Sunday Edition in concert. Wow! They were awesome and very nice people. Sunday Edition is Deon Unthank, Amy Unthank and Chris Unthank. On Sunday we spent the day in Clarksville visiting our nephew Josh Matthews and his wife Jennifer for a great day of food and fellowship. Josh is a Sergeant in the 101st Airborn Division and will soon be returning to Iraq for his third deployment. Then it was finally the day of truth, First day of recording! We were so impressed by the studio and the great lounge. The people were wonderful and anybody that sets out M&M's for me has already won me over. It was three days of hearing these sweet words from Jessica our Producer, "pitchy, flat, sharp, perfect, stack that, awesome, isn't this song great, this is not my favorite, Gaw Kelley, (or Bob or Pam, just insert name), You're flat but I love you anyway!" We must admit at one point that the phrase "Your Momma's pitchy" was yelled back to the producer. I'm not naming names, but I'm much better now thank you. LOL Seriously we had so much fun and Jessica was able to get us out of our comfort zones and really show us what God can unleash if we'll just let Him!
Posted by: SSpin on Mar 21, 07 | 4:26 pm | [0] Comments (759 views)
March 13, 2007
We know that God truly does inhabit the praises of His people, and that proved once again to be so true as we were privileged to worship with our friends at Mt Zion Baptist Church recently. It was a night of so much more than music - God was ever present and we were honored to be a part.
Posted by: SSpin on Mar 13, 07 | 4:29 am | [0] Comments (642 views)
March 5, 2007
Just when I think God could not possibly bless New Day more - He shows me that his arsenal of blessings has not even been tapped yet! We just returned from Nashville where we spent 2 days laying the foundation for our new project which will be released in early Summer. To say we had a great time would be the understatement of the century! We had the honor of watching some of the greatest musicians in the industry at work - and to think God put them on our little project is more than humbling. So many stories to tell - so much proof that this is, as Jim calls it, a God thing - but we'll wait until the project release and share those stories. Jessica Harrison, our producer & friend, has proven to be one of the greatest blessings we've experienced so far! Every now and then someone crosses your path and you know without a doubt they were sent by God - that's Jessica!! We'll be practicing nonstop for the next six weeks in preparation for recording the vocals on this project - our schedule is also filling up! As the old song says - find out what God is doing and get right in the middle! We're smack dab in the middle and loving it!!!
Posted by: SSpin on Mar 05, 07 | 4:30 am | [0] Comments (614 views)
January 28 & 30, 2007
God is doing great and mighty things at our home church, Trinity Life, and we were so blessed to be able to minister the Winter Bible Conference this week! Find out what God is doing - and get right in the middle is still true and we're seeing God do miraculous things at TLC - it's definiately a God-thing!! As for New Day, we can't even begin to tell you about the doors that God is beginning to open for us and we're excited, humbled and in awe! Stay tuned for more details!!
Posted by: SSpin on Jan 30, 07 | 4:31 am | [0] Comments (627 views)
January 7, 2007
We were honored to be chosen to sing with national gospel artists, The Greenes, at Trinity Life Baptist Church in Garland. It was our privilege to minister with Tony, Taranda, Brad & John, not to mention Isabella! We are in awe of the warm support and love we feel from the congregation at TLC, and we love you right back!!
Posted by: SSpin on Jan 07, 07 | 4:32 am | [0] Comments (567 views)
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