Don't give me that old time religion... Give me Jesus! With those words, pastor David Meckley (see photo) of the Christ Church (UCC) of Beaver Springs, Pennsylvania, closed his message, a wake-up call to all Christians to stop looking just like the world, and start living true to the call of Christ. Dave has a heart for the Lord, for revival, for his congregation of evangelical believers. He and his congregation stand true to the Scriptures in the midst of the challenges of others in the UCC denomination who would compromise the integrity of the Truth. I was privileged to share two songs during the 8:30 Sunday morning service at Christ Church on March 11, 2001. I sang "He Brings The Sunshine", followed by "All Of My Heart". By the time I was near the end of the second song, I noticed so many folks singing quietly along on the chorus, that I opened it up for everyone to join in, and it was such a blessing as we vocalized our response to Greatest Commandment: to love the Lord with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength.

So how did I end up in Beaver Springs, Pennsylvania? Thanks to the step of faith of Joe and Lindy Geertz. I received an email in February, seeking to have me come up to sing for a Saturday morning Lenten breakfast, plus a concert Saturday evening, on March 10. As it turned out, this was virtually the only open weekend on my calendar (I normally teach on Saturdays, but our university was on spring break including that weekend). Seeing the open door and their faith in extending the invitation, I made plans to fly up for the weekend. I appreciate Joe and Lindy providing a place to stay, meals to eat, and transportation. I thank them and their Bible group for underwriting my travel expenses.

On Saturday morning, I sang at the Lenten breakfast that is an annual event held at a nearby Lutheran church, attended by folks from various local churches. After the breakfast, pastor Dave showed an excerpt of the Jesus Video, which is going to be distributed soon to 2,000 households in order to saturate the area with the Gospel message so clearly seen in this excellent movie which has been translated into many languages and used to reach others for Jesus all around the world. I led the folks in a couple of praise choruses, and also followed up on the video excerpt with the song "The Ballad Of The Cross".

Saturday evening, I shared a concert at Christ Church. Here is a picture of Joe at the sound board. I appreciate Joe and Lindy helping to get the sound equipment ready for the evening. The church has a nice Roland keyboard, and I shared several songs with piano accompaniment as well as those I sing with guitar. Among the piano songs were "Til Jesus Is All" (the title track of my new album), "A New Covenant", "Higher Are You / He Alone", and "One Final Word" (the last two still unpublished). It was a blessing to share these songs in concert with the faithful folks of Christ Church. I appreciate the prayer time that Joe and Lindy provided prior to the concert. All weekend, I was impressed by their dedication to prayer, to seeking the Lord, to looking for revival among God's people. Their faith is an encouragement and a challenge to my own Christian walk.

Here's a photo of Carolynn at the church during the sound check prior to the concert. Thanks to Lindy for handling all of the details of the visit, and for providing transportation from the Harrisburg airport and all around during the weekend. I should add that it was nice to meet some folks who are as dedicated coffee drinkers as I am! :-) And for me, living in Central time zone, a cup of java helps quite a bit when you not only get up early, but do so in Eastern time! Greetings and thanks to Lindy, Joe, Dave, and all my other new-found friends and brethren in Christ in Pennsylvania. I was blessed by the visit, and I trust that the songs I shared during the three opportunities of the weekend also provided a blessing and encouragement to you. My prayers are with you as you distribute the Jesus Video, and as you seek revival of God's people, starting with your own lives so as to lead by example.

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