CTI 14:21

This blog has moved to ctimusic.org

2010-04-06T10:40:00.000-05:00

Hello fans of CTI 14:21!

With the recent launch of our new website, we've moved our team blogs back to ctimusic.org. Stop by and check them out! You won't be able to comment directly on the posts at the CTI site, but they will also cross-post to our facebook page, and we encourage your comments on them there.

Thanks!

The very last week before the end of our winter tour

2010-03-15T18:25:00.003-05:00

Can't believe we have reached the end of our winter tour! I still remember when we had to delay our departure due to the snow back in January, now we are one week away from going back to Willmar!

This tour has been a learning tour for all of us--Learning to love when we're unlovable, learning to be patient with each other, learning to be leaders, learning to reach out, learning to be humble, learning to lead others to Christ, learning to enjoy God's blessings, and learning to become the person God created each one of us to be.

None of us is perfect, but God used each one of us to remind and show others that we don't have to be perfect before God, and there's no guilt and shame before Him. Jesus died on the cross for us so we can have life, just as Romans 8:38-39 said, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." And because of that, we don't need to be perfect and we don't have to be afraid of making mistakes anymore. We have freedom to come before God and receive His love, even as imperfect human beings.

I am grateful for this long but meaningful tour. I learned so much about myself, my teammates and most importantly, God. Even though the winter tour is coming to an end, I know that we will remember this past 3 months and hopefully, remember how faithful and good our God is.

2010-03-09T09:47:00.000-06:00

God is so good, and his hand is upon us!!!!!!!!

I want to tell you all a little story about our trailer. About 2 weeks ago now we were leaving Bakersfield CA for a 10 hour drive to Phoenix AZ . When we arrived in Phoenix we noticed that the wheels on our tailor looked a little wonky. Upon closer inspection we discovered that the axel had actually shifter considerably. The next day we unloaded everything from the trailer and tried to take it to a repair place to find out the extent of the damage. I say try because we didn’t make it very far before calling a toe truck. When we finally got the trailer to the repair place, the repairman lifted it up to have a look, and the axel actually fell off. That alone was enough to show us that it was only by grace that we had made it that far. But the rest of the week was full of blessing after blessing. From finding a perfect replacement, to having a great place to store our stuff, the lord provided. And he always does.

It is so easy to forget how much we rely on his grace everyday. When I get out of the van after a 10 hour drive I usually say “Thank God I’m out of that van” instead of “Thank you God for brining me this far”. But when I saw that we had just ridden 10 hours on rusty threads of metal I was reminded that that trip, like all the others, wasn’t made on wheels and steel, but on grace.

I hope that today you will be reminded of how miraculous it is that you are alive. Your life is short, fragile and has nothing to do with you. And yet, God has given you another day, don’t waste it.

Thank you all for your prayer and loving support.

The love of God.

2010-02-21T01:03:00.003-06:00

oh,

life on the road has it's days as I'm sure you all have figured out by now. I am so blessed to be here with my team as we are still in California, and God is teaching us to choose joy everyday even when we'd rather not (has this ever happened to anyone else?) even when we feel utterly worthless, the joy of the Lord can be our strength!

During the recent (and many) drives up and down the coast of California, God has been teaching me so much about how it's not about my own efforts that makes my relationship with Him good but it's Him. I measure my relationship status with God so often on how much I pray, how much I love, how much I read my Bible and how much I do "good things" but instead I had to realize that it's not me who determines it at all; it's God. And our God is the God of Creation who loves us so much He died for us and died for all the sins that we've committed and are going to commit - constantly reminding us that His love will never fail. He never lets go. It's not by my actions but by His grace and we are called not to live in guilt when we sin but to live in His freedom and ask for redemption which He gives every moment. We are called His beloved, His joy, His delight. .how often does that knowledge stay in our heads and not go down to our hearts? God. . .sovereign over all eternity, ageless, glorious and breathtaking in His splendor. .loves us. God loves us. God loves us. God loves us.

I'm faced with these questions of, 'How does this not change my life forever?' 'How does this not impact the way I see myself, the way I see God, and the way I see the world we live in?' 'How I cannot live for the Lord and put down everything to follow Him?' 'How can I desire to find my worth in other people, other things, in what I do, instead of in the One who made me and called me His own?'

And the thing is, I can't. I can't love God back; there's no possible way. I can't even love myself or other people; how can I love God? But here's the thing: our God is so faithful. We're not supposed to do it on our own, He knows we can't do it alone. Instead He gives us the love we need to love Him, the love we need to see others as He sees them and the love we need to find ourselves in Him and not in anyone else's love. God gives us the desire for what we need--for Him. It's not until we're broken that we see we have nothing and are nothing and know that we need someone else, desperately and our hunger for God is awakened. God uses broken people. God loves broken people, even in their brokenness and sin. God loves us. And when you're madly in love with someone, it changes your life forever.

So take heart, my friends! Even if you don't live in a van with seven other people all the time (and I am assuming you don't. .and if you do, I admire you very much and think we should be friends), know that when we feel like we have screwed up so much and are broken beyond repair, God loves us. .and in His strength we can live for Him and fulfill our purpose to let His glory shine through us. We are broken people. .but God is our strength and our portion forever.

In His love..

CTI 14:21

Crazy for Christ!

2010-02-16T01:56:00.003-06:00

Hey Everyone!
Things are going well and we've enjoyed the last few days leading worship at a retreat for CEC and CBC San Diego. The worship with them was incredible and we were so blessed. This is just a little video to show a bit of what our worship time looked liked. It wasn't always so crazy but isn't it fun to think how we can be CRAZY for the Lord and even crowd surfing can bring God glory!
Blessings to all of you and thanks for the prayers as we keep traveling and loving God deeply.
Carrie & Crew :)

Choosing Beautiful Feet

2010-01-30T21:51:00.006-06:00

So we are now officially in California but just came from a few days spent in Las Vegas. When you enter Las Vegas with all the lights, buildings, and people you'd think this place is beautiful, wonderful because no one would come here if it was ugly. But I couldn't see the beauty as I walked down the streets. Instead when I saw Vegas I saw SIN... UGLY SIN. It hurt as I looked at all the "glam and lights", the women and men displayed as objects, the way people were filling themselves with nothing of worth. How can they not see?? When I think about sin I think how ugly it is. How it tears us up, makes us into ugly beings if we let it consume us. I know that I am a sinner, we are all sinners but the fact of the matter is we are redeemed by Christ!!! I don't have to live in my ugliness because I am forgiven. That night and the following day I had a chance to talk a bit with different people and we discussed the urgency we felt after walking the streets of Vegas. THESE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW! They need to see the ugliness. They need to hear the message of Christ's love for them. They need to fill their lives with the beauty of Christ and let that penetrate their mind and souls. But, how will they know unless I tell them, unless WE tell them??

Romans 10:14-15
"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"

So, I don't know about you but I have a fresh sense of urgency that there are so many still out there living life in ugliness, unaware of the beauty they could possess. Why don't we tell them, why are we shy? Let's not let them sit any longer in their filth but move our feet and share the beauty we have in Christ. I don't know about you but I want "beautiful feet" - feet that bring the good news of Christ to those who haven't heard and don't believe.

Asking for "beautiful feet",
Carrie & 1421

Bear Lake Escapades!

2010-01-22T18:22:00.002-06:00

Hello again!

-For the past week we have been dashing around the great and beautiful state of Colorado spreading the GREAT NEWS of Christ to everyone we meet. This has taken us to Denver Lutheran High School in, surprise surprise, Denver, and also to Englewood Federal Pen. in Englewood, Colorado. Through all of this God has continued to show us Himself and also teach us how to show Him to others. This has been done through us in the prison where God really showed himself to be a God of Wonders through the inmates there at the prison. They were such blessings to us by their stories of redemption and their thankfulness and responsiveness to us and the message we brought. Another blessing to us were the days off that we have. Jim, being the native Coloradan he is, knew a very beautiful lake/hike that we could go to that was somewhat between Denver where we were, and Wellington, where we had to be. So Jim took us up there and we all enjoyed a day of being together as a team outside of the show setting. It was absolutely beautiful! God really blessed us with a day of lovely sunshine and great weather. It was an awesome place to relax and refocus after going nonstop since the beginning of our tour. Currently we are enjoying the last day of our two days off and look forward to what God has in store next! Keep us in your prayers as in theis next week we traverse the Rockies to Grand Junction then onto Las Vegas!

Solo Deo Gloria,
Aaron

2010-01-14T19:04:00.001-06:00

Just wanted to let you all know that things are going great for 1421. We are all staying healthy, having fun, and learning daily what it truly looks like to love God deeper and serve one another with humility. We have given a variety of concerts already this past week ranging from church services to an alternative high school. For me, it's reminded me of how deep God's love is for us, his bride. He loves everyone the same - no matter where they are in life or where they have come from. God sees us all as His children who so desperately need to be loved and learn what true love is. I am challenge each day to lean on God and accept His love with open arms so that I can love others around me with His love because I can't love on my own, I need Him! This photo was from one of the churches we played at in North Platte. It reminds me of the ultimate sacrifice and unchangeable love of the Father.

So, thanks for the prayers and the support of us as we travel all around the West/Southwest spreading the love of God with many as well as learning to love God and one another.

This next week we are in Colorado and then we're off to Las Vegas! :)

Learning to love,
Carrie Joy :)

Arrrrg! Here we go!

2010-01-06T12:59:00.004-06:00

New post in:

We are about to embark on our three month adventure of Winter Tour, leaving behind everything we've ever known at the wonderful ministry here in Willmar and are going to travel to foreign states (to some of us) to see the lands and seas of Nebraska, Colorado, California, and Arizona, to name a few. We will probably burst with excitement as we leave early tomorrow morning and we won't be back until March! With the wonderful game "Stormy Seas" (as you can see in the picture with Carrie) we were given in Wisconsin, and with our pirate navigator Steve and his sword, we will sail our van across the country with great success. Thank you so much for all of your prayers and support--hopefully we'll see you soon, otherwise know that you're in our prayers as we travel.

See you on the other side. .if we make it that far. Avast! Here we go!

Merry Christmas!!!

2009-12-16T14:25:00.003-06:00

Only two more days until our break. Time flies. I still remember the day I arrived at the ministry in August. It's quite amazing and crazy to think that we have been with CTI for over 4 months now.
Thank you, our supporters, for your faithful prayers and encouragements. We can't continue our journey without you. Thank you, our hard working CTI staffs. Thank you for taking care of us and diligently working behind the scene. CTI will not be the same without you.
We wish everyone a very blessed Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! :)

~1421

Annual Campaign Drive Stress Relief

2009-12-11T21:56:00.001-06:00

2009-12-07T19:00:00.002-06:00

We are back in Willmar from our fall tour! well, been back for a week, and it has been a pretty busy week with end of the year projects for CTI: Annual Campaign and the CD.
But I will go back to the fall tour, it was at times very trying for me, and not really physically or emotionally, but spiritually. More then half way in, while at a hotel in Idaho, I was wondering why I hadn't been growing closer to God. I am here on a trip serving Him, and doing what I am called to do, but I wasn't growing. I realized with help from some team members that I wasn't being fed, I wasn't reading the Bible. I was cruising along in the tour, getting by with what I knew in my head, but I wasn't actively reading and searching after God. I got the chance to share this with a Bible college in Steinbach Manitoba during our last week of tour. Reading the Bible and growing in Christ was the theme for the year there.
All tour I saw God using each of our stories on 14:21 to connect with people, from all walks of life. It's cool to think how different we all are, but yet we all have the same need, Jesus, and He is the one that really is able to fill us and makes us whole.
During this time of year, with Christmas right around the corner, remember why Jesus came to earth in the first place. He came to die for our sins, for my sins and yours. Let's praise Him for that!
Thank you so much for all your prayers and support of us, God bless!
Rich

Being Faithful

2009-11-20T00:00:00.005-06:00

Sorry it has been so long in writing on the blog but we have been quite busy these last weeks. For the last 10 days or so we have been "living on the edge" of the statelines that is. :) Washington one day, Idaho the next, then back to Oregon, and back to Idaho for another concert. But thankfully amidst all this driving and traveling the Lord has kept us safe and has been choosing to use us for His kingdom work. The other day we were all in a coffeehouse and we began talking and sharing what the Lord is working in us. It was incredible to listen and reflect on the work the Lord is doing in us and through us. As I sat there, I was hit again with how this year really isn't about what we are doing but instead about being faithful to God's call and living our lives glorifying and praising Him. He has chosen to bring us to prisons, schools, churches, outreach groups, and college campuses in order to share His love with those He wanted to bless this tour. It always amazes me when I think about the fact that God chooses to use us despite the fact that we are broken and sinful people. We as a team have nothing in ourselves to offer but only God's love and His message of grace for everyone. May we be faithful in sharing that message with whomever God places in our path whether it's on-stage or off.

Tomorrow we are driving back to Montana and preparing for our last weekish of being on Fall Tour. Thanks so much for the prayers, support, and encouragement... it means so much to us all.

Faithfully Answering the Call,
Carrie (and 1421) :)

P.S. the photo just shows how we have been able to bask in the beauty as a team as well... God's creation is simply stunning!

On the road again!

2009-11-09T22:27:00.002-06:00

Wow! Can't believe that we have already came back from Honduras and on the road again.

It's only been couple days since we began our tour, and God has already worked in amazing ways in and through our team.
We got to share the love of God with the kids at a detention center, worship with the ladies at a women's prison, celebrate Bo's return at his home church in WA, and see the world's largest buffalo. =)

Please keep us in your prayers:
-Health and safety: the weather is getting colder everywhere we go, and we still have long travel times here and there.
-Team unity: that we can be open to one another and love one another with the love from Christ.
-Focus: may we continue to focus on God, not on ourselves.

Thank you very much for all of your support! We can't do this without you!!!

And here's the world's largest buffalo:

14:21 Off on Their Fall Tour

2009-11-05T09:25:00.002-06:00

Team 14:21 left before dawn this morning on their Fall Tour. They will be heading to the Northwestern Part of the United States and spending a few days in Manitoba, Canada on this tour.

They will be doing quite a bit of driving over the next few days (They'll be in Spokane, Washington by tomorrow [Friday] evening!), so please remember them in your prayers!

Check back soon for updates on what God is doing in and through these team members on their Fall Tour.

- Paul, on behalf of team 14:21

2009-11-01T22:19:00.002-06:00

I know the thought that keeps running through my head is, "A little over a week ago, we were in Honduras." And now we're back in the US and about to leave for our Fall Tour on Thursday. Life is so crazy and it's all going by so fast!

I think my team would agree with me when I say that I don't want to forget the lessons that I learned overseas, and how my perspectives of so many things were enhanced. This year has a better definition to me now and I feel like God was taking me out of myself and replacing my own desires and love with His. To think that we were given the opportunity to go to Honduras at this time and play in so many schools, churches, a factory loading dock, the YFC camp and so many other places, is unbelievable, and I feel so blessed to have met the YFC staff that were huge examples of Christ's love to me, and to have experienced everything that God had in store for us there. We played 40 concerts, overall, in three weeks, and were able to share the Gospel at every single concert except for one. What else can we say? It's such a privilege to even call our God Father, and we know He is so good and gives such good gifts to His children. He is so faithful.

Even in times when we feel like we can't go on, that we are completely inadequate to share the Gospel or to be called His own, He gives us His strength, and we find joy in the Lord and in His promises, that He is always faithful and that He has chosen us to live for Him. That's why we live like we do, why we cry out for God's heart to replace our own and why we count everything else in this world as a loss compared the glory of knowing our Savior. We are set apart, renewed, and changed by His love that surpasses all others. In the process of seeking His heart, we find utter joy in Him. And we learn how to live and how to change. That's one of the many things that I learned in Honduras and not by my own actions, but by His grace. He keeps showing me what's really important in life, how I can be less and He can be everything, and then I learn how to seek His face more every day. His faithfulness surpasses our understanding-our God is so, so good.

2009-10-28T21:35:00.005-05:00

I have so many pictures that would tell the story of our time there but these are just a few to give you a hint into our lives during the last weeks spent in Honduras. The black & white one is Mauricio sharing the gospel with the 400 students at a school. The next is some of the beautiful children we got to play for... i love their smiles. The other ones are of us getting prepped to go to the futbol game which was incredible, and then us at one of the most fun schools as far as audience participation goes. The last one is of our bus that we rode around everywhere in and fit down streets and alleys that I thought no bus could ever go. :)

All this said... our lives were changed and impacted greatly by the people and places in Honduras. As we prep now to continue our stateside touring I ask that all of you not only keep us in your prayers but YFC Honduras as well as they continue the work that God has for them down there!

Learning to love deeper,
Carrie & 1421

Team 14:21 Arrives Home Safely!

2009-10-26T08:25:00.002-05:00

Team 14:21 arrived home safely late last evening. They had spent the whole day traveling and had a pretty lengthy layover in Miami, so they were happy to see the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport.

I've only heard a few of the many (I'm sure) stories of God at work in and through the team members, so check back soon for updates from the team members themselves.

All of their equipment made it safely and their travels went very smoothly!

- Paul, on behalf of 14:21

Update from the Field

2009-10-22T15:21:00.004-05:00

Carrie (Team 14:21's leader) called this morning from Honduras to update us. The team has not had internet access for several days and may not have it again prior to their return to the U.S.

She reported that the team is doing great! They are ministering in the area surrounding the YFC's camp in the Copan region of Honduras. They have been averaging 1-2 outreach concerts per day. In their free time they have been seeing much of what the country has to offer, with Mauricio (YFC National Director) as their guide.

They'll be leaving the camp early on Saturday morning to head back down to San Pedro Sula. From there, the team will catch their flight back to the U.S. on Sunday!

Check back for updates on the team's arrival back in the U.S. and for stories from their time abroad!

- Paul, on behalf of Carrie and Team 14:21

To Love - the greatest commandment

2009-10-15T23:58:00.002-05:00

I know it has been a whole week since writing and we apologize but we haven't had a moment to stop and reflect and I don't have much time now but wanted to fill you all in a bit. Each day has been so full of concerts and new experiences. We have been loving it and being reminded daily that it's not about us and what we have to offer but instead about loving God above all and sharing this love with those we meet. So far we have played 18 concerts in the last 9 days and when we aren't playing a concert we have been doing things like climbing waterfalls (lesson in trust), watching futbol games (lesson in joy), swimming at the beach(reminder of God's beauty), or riding on the bus(reminder of God's sense of humor). :) But through all of this I have been reminded of one thing that is the most important of all. We are called to LOVE. There is no greater thing than to love God with all we are. And when we learn to focus our lives on him then we can pour out that same love onto others. And with all the different concerts and interactions with the Hondurans here we have been given many opportunities to love them and learn how to love one another on the team better as well.

So thank you for all your prayers as we continue with our last 9 days here in Honduras. Tomorrow we head to Copan where Mauricio has a camp which is his pride and joy. We are really excited to see it and be able to spend some time with him there "in his element". We won't have internet so we won't be able to update again but keep praying for us and for YFC here. And may we all be reminded to LOVE God with all we are and LOVE other likewise because when it comes down to it that is the greatest commandment.

Pouring out Love,

Carrie on behalf of 1421 :)

Hola from Honduras

2009-10-08T15:25:00.001-05:00

Hola everyone!!

We are safe here in Honduras. So far we have already played 5 concerts, and even though the weather is pretty hot, we have been enjoying ourselves with our contact Mauricio (who is the head of the Honduras YFC).

Thank you so much for your prayers! Please keep praying for us as we will be playing 3-4 concerts a day, and will be meeting many people everywhere we go.

And as a bonus, we are going to the Futbol game of Honduras vs. USA! We decided as a team that we will cheer for Honduras, and Mauricio was kind enough to buy us all Honduras jerseys for the game, what a blessing!!!

Thank you again and God bless you!!

Kylie and Bo

Team 14:21 Reports Safe Arrival in Honduras!

2009-10-05T21:36:00.002-05:00

Team leader, Carrie VanderHorst, called this evening to report the team's safe arrival in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. The team met up with Mauricio (YFC National Director) and have settled in at the YFC base.

Their equipment made it safely and there were no hiccups in their travels at all!

The team will be splitting their time in Honduras between San Pedro Sula and a camp that the YFC has built in the Copan region of Honduras.

They are excited to play their first concert tomorrow morning!

Check back in the coming weeks for updates from the field!

14:21 Checks In Safe and Sound!

2009-10-05T04:58:00.000-05:00

Team 14:21 had a safe smooth check in this morning at MSP airport.
Check back soon for news of their arrival in Honduras as well as
updates from their time overseas!

Honduras

2009-10-04T14:08:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone!!

We are about to leave and head to the airport today. Our flight to Honduras will be 6:30AM on Monday.
I am very excited, but at the same time a little nervous about being in a different place for 3 weeks.

If you could please keep the team in your prayers:
-Please pray for smooth check-in process
-Please pray for safe travel and safety in Honduras
-Some of the team members are sick, if you could pray for speed healing and recovering, also health for the whole team while we are there
-Please pray for team unity
-Please pray for FOCUS on God
-Please pray for our hosts (YFC), people we are going to meet, and ministry opportunities

Thank you so much for your love, your prayers, your time, and your supports.

God bless,
Kylie

A snapshot of training tour

2009-09-28T20:43:00.002-05:00

Ahhhhhhhhh.

We are back in Willmar (as of two hours ago) and are about to embark on a week of training for our overseas adventure starting next Monday (October 5th). Training tour was absolutely fabulous while it lasted, and now we are pumped for a week of overseas preparation and then leaving again! A huge thank you to all of our hosts, contacts, schools, churches and gazebos: we love you all and we can't thank you enough. You gave us amazing memories and inside jokes that we will be using for the next month at least, I'm sure :)

Here are some pictures from the past three weeks! Enjoy :)

Our Hosts, Thank you!

2009-09-19T21:09:00.005-05:00

We are really grateful for all our hosts, and we are very thankful for all their hospitalities. I (Kylie) personally feel so blessed that we get to meet new people everywhere we go. The stories we have heard from our hosts and the relationships we have built are so valuable and precious.

So, thank you so much our host families!!! You are amazing!

Picnic with the hosts at Pella, IA.

We girls with our host at Milwaukee, WI.

SEEK HIM... FIND HIM

2009-09-17T10:37:00.004-05:00

Last night we had the privilege of for playing at Ascension Lutheran in Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin. Now we had driven from Pella, Iowa after leading Pella Christian High School in a time of worship and came into the evening a bit tired from the 6 hours in the van. But we loaded out and set up ready for action. Julie, who is the youth director, asked us to be a part of the youth group's time before the concert and wanted us to share about ourselves. We answered the question of which animal we would choose to be and after many laughs and such answered a bit about why we were with CTI. When we had each finished answering the questions Julie hit us with a deep question. "You all shared about how God made it clear to you that CTI was your next step, but HOW does God make it clear to you?" Whoa, how to answer that one. Chris stepped up to the plate and shared the verse, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:4). Then shared with the kids how we need to first seek God and in the end His desires will be planted in our hearts and our "fleshly" desires will fade. When we seek God with all we are His desires becomes our desires and we will be able to follow God as He leads because when we seek Him with all our heart we will find Him. (Duet 4:29)

Now you may be wondering why I'm sharing this but it just hit me last night how often I just say things like "God made it clear" or "I just followed His call" without really thinking through HOW I know that or WHY I follow His lead. So I've been thinking more deeply about the whys and hows of following and listening to God's leading. Sure it's not always clear as day, but I am learning what it means to seek Him with all my heart and the joys that come when I am able to find Him and make His desires my own. I have a ways to go, but don't we all??

So thanks to Julie for prompting me in this thought and may we all begin to SEEK HIM with all we are so that we will be able to FIND HIM and follow those desires that will be planted within us.

Learning to Seek,
Carrie Joy :)

"One Way... Jesus!"

2009-09-16T10:00:00.000-05:00

~chris

Leading morning worship for Pella Christian High's retreat

2009-09-16T09:44:00.000-05:00

~chris

Go Bulldogs!

2009-09-12T07:01:00.000-05:00

1421 takes in a high school football game in Boscobel,WI before playing an evening concert sponsored by Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

In His freedom

2009-09-10T16:33:00.003-05:00

well hey there (:

We are officially in Wisconsin at this very moment. And I say officially because for the last couple of days we have been border hopping between Iowa and Wisconsin to find meals or a cherished cup of coffee. We've been playing in the curious little town of McGregor, Iowa, since Saturday and we moved on to Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin, yesterday. So far, life on the road is wonderfully sweet and we are enjoying it very much. Not to say that it hasn't come with lessons and craziness also, because it definitely has. We got the privilege of spending four days in McGregor, being able to minister to two churches, a happy group of people in a park (while we played from a gazebo, of all things!) nursing home residents and several other individuals. God is so good to us and we can't express that enough and how thrilled we are to be meeting all these wonderful people who have blessed us so much. Many of us have already expressed certain lessons that God has been embarking on us in the short time that we have set off on this journey, and already we can see similarities and bridges between these new changes that are happening inside of us. I think one of the main prayers of our team is that God would become more in our lives, our devotions, our ministries, our van, our conversations and our music, and that we would become less. I find myself being too much in my own life; trying to pour out love without being filled or having nothing to pour outside of myself, is impossible. We as 14:21 have a desire for the knowledge of God and how to be models of Phil. chapter 2. So while some of us are very far from home and others are just a few states away, God has been imparting huge lessons on us of worth and of breaking strength. In Christ we are finally satisfied and ready to pour out from His love. Christ's love has completely and utterly overwhelmed us and takes away any scars we might have had before. As one of songs states, we have "received another name" and are worthy to receive Christ's love. Knowing that we are free and that the lie of guilt has been cast off is one of the biggest freedoms I've ever experienced. In turn His love empowers us to go out and pour His love into other people's lives. In His freedom we choose to live, and our prayer is that this year He would fill us up, ready to pour us out and that we would make Him everything in our lives, diminishing ourselves to absolutely nothing without Him.

Ahh, the road...

2009-09-05T11:52:00.000-05:00

Day one, on the way to Iowa...

Team Overview

2009-08-31T22:43:00.002-05:00

Hey all!

This post is coming to you from Aaron Briggs, drummer for 1421! First off let me say that these first two and a half weeks have been so much fun just getting to know each other and our trainers and leaders and also just learning more from God and what his plan is for us. So now then, Lesley for team 1422 kinda did a rundown of their team and a little quip about them so i thought i should give you the pleasure of learning about members from 1421.

First off, our team leader, Carrie Vanderhorst!, Vocals
- Carrie is a crazy baker and makes yummy and delicious creations that don't have a snowball's chance in Africa when they enter the CTI kitchen. She has a killer voice and even killer-er egg shaker skills. She is what keeps us on task during rehearsals and we appreciate her leadership a ton! Carrie is also our spiritual leader and is always the one to lead us in our Bible Study and Prayer, and that is one of the most important things that she can do as our leader and for that we thank her!

Next, Kylie Yueh from Taiwan!, Vocals
- Kylie is also a vocalist, and even though she has a slight speaking accent when she sings it all comes out in a beautiful harmony that makes Simon Cowell go nuts. She is a ton of fun to be around, and despite what she says is amazing at Volleyball :) "Why Would You Do THAT?!?!?!?!?" Anyway, we love having Kylie on our team to lead us vocally! Kylie blesses us as a team by being the helpful one to take out cases, wrap cords, and do anything that we need her to do. She is a blessing to all of us on the team!!

Next up, Steve-O Buhler!, Bass
-Like Ferris, but cooler. My rhythm buddy shreds some mad licks on the rep songs we have this year without breaking a sweat! He is a fun-loving Manitoban who enjoys picnics and long walks on the tundra. Just kidding ya Steve-O :) Steve hails from Brandon, Manitoba along with 1422's drummer, Denny. there are quite a few Canadians on the teams this year which is awesome! Steve is always there to liven up the mood whenever we get down on ourselves or if we have a bad practice. He is the first to say, yeah guys we really messed up that song, but is also the first to hand out compliments when we nail a song so Steve is our encouragement buddy!

Next, Rich Scott, Rhythm Guitar
-Rich's coolest feature has to be his middle name. He has the coolest middle name ever, WEBSTER! :) Being one of the oldest on our team, Rich is always there with the wisdom we need, but is also there having fun just like the rest of us. he is always there for an encouraging word, or the lyrics/dance moves to any 70's/80's or 90's tune :) We are so glad Rich is on our team and that he sacrificed leaving his family and girlfriend for a year! We love ya Rich!

Next, Jim Dernell, Lead Vocals, Lead Guitar
-Aside from carrying a ginormous voice with an even ginormous-er range, Jim carries some powere on teh 6-string as well. not only does Jim have to learn lead for 25 songs, including one by Lincoln Brewster, he also has to sing lead on qutie a few of them. As if doing one or the other isn't hard enough, Jim has to do both, and he excels at them both too! We love Jim for his work ethic getting down the songs and the lead vocals parts and for the fact that he never complains about them! Plus, Jim can sing just about any song by journey, higher than Steve Perry can.

Next, Nicola Losik, Keyboard, Vocals
- Nicola Losik is a piano master. Also, aside from tickling the ivories, she also sings, and very well at that. We commonly refer to her as , the Glue, meaning her diverse keyboard play is really what brings the songs together. Without the keyboard in there, it really doesnt sound the same, so we are glad nicola is with us! Nicola posesses the sweet and gentle spirit that works well on our team because of how we are as individuals. Nicola is always there to give an encouraging word or a smile and will be indispensable on the road when we get tired and grumpy. Thanks Nicola!

Next, Ken Simerly, Sound, Vocals
-Michael Jackson + Steve Perry = Ken Simerly. Ken posesses the great dance moves of Michael Jackson with the amazing voice and vocal range of Steve Perry. Plus, he makes us all sound good form the soundboard. Ken is an integral part of our team not only for his knowledge of sound and electronics but the fact that he is a returning fulltimer means that he can also lead us on the road when we meet certain situations he can show us what worked well for his team last year, and in turn, what we may do this year on our team. We love KEN!

Finally, Aaron Briggs, Drums, Percussion
-Aaron hails form Spokane, Washington and is a multi-faceted musician. In addition to drums, he also plays guitar and bass, and actually tried out for CTI on those instruments but got the position on the drums. He is thankful to God for every moment he spends at CTI with friends, leaders, trainers and the like. He also hates speaking about himself in third person.

Well, its kinda long, but this is us! Team 1421!!!!!!!!!!

For now, GOD BLESS!!!!!
- Aaron

Practice concerts

2009-08-27T20:12:00.000-05:00

~chris

And here's a recent 14:21 picture:

2009-08-26T20:47:00.002-05:00

"You must complete your training..."

2009-08-25T23:23:00.005-05:00

It’s been a week and a half here with CTI, and already I am exhausted. I haven’t put so much effort and been so deeply involved in something for… well, since last year’s CTI experience, but other than that, for a long time. I am really looking forward to diving in this year, and giving fully of myself not only in commitment to the program, but as completely as I can to God and what He has for me. Already He has been pruning and challenging me, getting to it right from the get go there, eh?! But I have been assured over and over again by those who have gone before that it IS worth it. So often I find I really don’t believe that when wagering obedience and devotion to our God. Hmm… Other than that, I think I am pretty set as far as musical challenges go for the year, Lincoln Brewster will have me practicing for the next five years to get that stinking solo. We have a heck of a team, and I am very excited to go out and to grow with them. We’ve got smarts (Carrie), wit (Kylie), sunshine (Nicola), insanity (Steve), wisdom (Rich), ease (Aaron),’I don’t know what you call that’ (Ken), maybe this can become the team name via acronym or something. SWSIWE – Idkwyct…(“I” for short)… oh what will we come up with? However, since this is indeed the first official blog of the year, all this chatter is simply the precursor to the message - training for CTI has begun and will continue, but this is only within the greater context of God's training for our hearts and lives throughout this year - indeed we must complete it!... and press on toward the goal as the year progresses, holding fast to the hope we have in Christ's saving work. Let's see how it unfolds...Day 1...

Meet the new crew!

2009-08-15T21:40:00.004-05:00

Introducing CTI 14:21 '09-'10:

Music In Worship

2009-04-23T19:30:00.004-05:00

Here is a video i put together over break, I hope you enjoy. Its a low quality so i could fit it on the blog, but its still worth it. -TaCo

One more week!

2009-03-27T15:35:00.003-05:00

Greetings from Greenville, IL! We are hanging out here at Greenville College where Christian's older brother, Luke, attends college. Two days ago, we were in Taco's hometown for the third time, and tomorrow, we'll be back in St. Louis for the second time. It's always nice to make stops in places where it's familiar.

Well, our Winter tour is slowly coming to a close. We will be heading back to Willmar in less than a week after being on the road for 13 weeks. Being out on the road, especially for this long, is a unique experience. In times of weariness, we somehow need to figure out how to reenergize, to fuel up, to fight the routine, to take one day at a time, to take one venue at a time, to take one person at a time. It takes a TON of perseverance, but in order to get there, it takes a little bit more...

1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Romans 5:1-5

Those are my thoughts for the week. I hope that you are encouraged!

to my team

2009-03-12T20:56:00.002-05:00

Untitled.

2009-03-09T17:10:00.001-05:00

Greetings from the beautiful state of New York! We are currently housed with the Russels, who's daughter- Beth, was a part of a CTI team in 2005. It's always great to be housed with alumni (or the families of alumni).

Stanley, Laura, Aaron, Taco, Micaela, Ken and I all sincerely apologize for the extreme lack of blogage. We don't purposely let it go so long with out an update.. It just sort of happens. We promise you that from here on out, we'll be better.

Since the last time we updated, we have been continuing our climb of the east coast. We have made stops in North and South Carolina, Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and now we're in New York. We've been so blessed I can't even begin to explain it to you. The amount of love that flows from these people who willingly let us stay in their homes and eat their food is incredible. It's so great to be able to see how God works through these people and how He continually proves His faithfulness.

It's insane to think about how much time has gone by since the beginning of this tour. It seems like it's been such a long time since we rolled out of Willmar back in January, but at the same time I think we can all agree that it's going way too fast. Our time together as a team is growing short. I thank God everyday for my team members- they are the coolest cats ever. I wouldn't rather be spending this year with anybody else.

Speaking of the team, we are sort of falling apart as far as health goes. Mr. Stanlers has been sick for about an eternity now, and Ken hit rock bottom this morning at church. On Friday I decided to play a game of basketball against two of the kids that went to the highschool we had just performed for. This was such a wonderful idea, seeing as how I'm incredibly athletic. To make a short story even shorter, I damaged my foot and now I'm on crutches. This proves to be more difficult that I thought it would, but the team is being great about it.

So yes, keep our team's health in your prayers please! Also pray that we continue to have safe travels and as we come to a close with this tour, my prayer is that we won't lose sight of why we are doing what we are doing. Pray that we will continue to grow together and build relationships with our hosts and contacts.

Until next time, peace out homies!

In Christ,
Christian.

PS: Pictures to come soon!

She just coughs.

2009-02-16T22:27:00.002-06:00

I cough a lot. Some of you are very aware of this and others may not quite appreciate what I mean when I say I cough a lot. When I say this, I mean I pretty much just cough insescently for about two months at a time. As a result, those who happen to be around me on a regular basis just learn to ignore it. Those who are not around me on a regular basis become extremely concerned and ask questions like, "Are you okay?" "Are you choking?" "Are you dying?" or my personal favorite, "What is your malfunction?" I also get offered a lot of cough drops. It's become a bad habit to collect them. See, the problem is not in my throat. It's a latened bronchial infection. That means that it's an issue in my lungs. It's not a tickle in my throat or a cold. There's nothing wrong that a cough drop will fix. However, when I begin coughing in the middle of a Sunday morning church service, and five minutes later, when I'm still coughing, someone is kind enough to get up and bring me a cough drop, I often do not take the time to explain the situation. I just accept the gift and smile gratefully amidst the hacking. I usually just write it off and try to avoid having one in my mouth when I have to sing. But in the last couple days I've been bombarded with medicinal offerings. In the last two concerts alone I was offered 18 cough drops, two jolly ranchers, a package of sweetharts to suck on, and an entire bag of lemon Ricola lozenges. Throw in the 6 cups of water that were offered, and that is definitely a record number for me. As I was sitting at the sound board counting all of that up last night, I found that I was a little overwhelmed by the feeling of gratitude I felt towards those who had offered them all. Here we are playing concerts for strangers- people we had never seen until 5 minutes before the show started- and here they are offering me anything and everything they have in their purses/wallets/pockets/car/etc. for the sake of my lungs. I've seen more people go out of their way to make sure I'm comfortable than I could ever have hoped or imagined. It's tremendously humbling. It's embarrassing at times, and usually a little uncomfortable. I know I don't deserve any of it and I also know that I should be doing the same for the people around me. How many times are there people in need around me that I just don't notice? How often to I empty my pockets/backpack/etc. for the sake of those around me? I guess I'd just like to say thank you to those who have shown me that kind of love in the last few weeks. Thank you to those who just pat me on the back and smile as I cough on them. Thank you for the reminder of what it means to serve, and the example of what I should be doing in the lives of those around me.

And I really do just cough a lot. I'm okay. I promise. :)

My name is Taco

2009-02-04T21:22:00.004-06:00

Hey its el the taco..havent been able to get my account to work, so im posting on micaela's. (smilie face)(smilie face). Its been an incredible past couple weeks. One sweet kickin thing we got to do was take some time off on a free day to just jam out and worship. We endud up putting together a redention of the song "freedom" by the band Full Frontal Sunshine! <-which i will be posting a sweet video of that i put together :D. We also had the opportunity to go to the Kennedy Space Station for free! A generous gift of a host family. So we spent the day there learning about the history of NASA and the craziness of actually getting INTO space. One of my favorite parts of the last weeks was the time we spent at aarons house out in the middle of Georgia. He happens to have acres and acres of woods surrounding his house, so i spent a good amount of time exploring and going on adventures in the woods climbing hills, going through creeks, and around lakes, and up trees. An amazing time getting to walk through the glorious untouched creation of God himself. Sometimes its just healthy to take some time and just stop and think, to just be in awe of Him.

Hooome sweet home!

2009-01-23T14:04:00.008-06:00

Adding on to Ken's previous post, we were in my hometown just a week ago which was pretty awesome. I'm sure some of us can agree that it's always nice to be back home while on tour. While we were there, we held a concert for my church. If anyone from my church is reading this, thanks to all of you who came out and supported us! It meant ALOT to me. I don't really have that much to say about it except that it made me miss worshipping with y'all and leading ya'll into worship.

Currently, we are in Aaron's hometown in Columbus, Georgia where wrestling wildlife is a sport AND probably a means for survival. Something that stuck out to me this week was this marquee in front of a church we passed by while driving to one of our venues. It said, "Our need is not for God to prove His faithfulness, but it is for us to show our own faithfulness to Him. (poorly paraphrased, sorry)." I'm the type of person that needs something proved to me before I actually follow through and do it. Many times, it's easy for me to walk around with that type of mentality towards God. "Show me how powerful You are, first!" In reality, He's already shown His faithfulness towards us and shown us what He is able to do. Jesus walked on water, healed the sick, fed thousands, conquered death, and those things aren't good enough for me?? All He wants from me is to be faithful to Him in all that I do. Anyway, that was something that encouraged me this week.

Psalm 115:1
Not to us, O LORD, not to us
but to your name be the glory,
because of your love and faithfulness.

2009-01-16T00:47:00.026-06:00

Houston Texas, home of Stanley Tso, and 1421 (for the next day and a half). This is our second week on winter tour, we left Willmar on the 3rd and spent a few day's in Bushnell IL at Taco's home church. Then we went to Chicago and spent several days with Laura's family. After Chicago we went to St Louis were we stayed three nights with Kim's family, Kim has done cti summer three summers in a row so it was fun to see her :) From St Louis we drove all day to Dallas were we spent one night, then we drove to Austin and played a concert and stayed the night. Today we left Austin and drove to Houston were we are staying with Stanley's family, we will play at his church tomorrow.
Needless to say we have traveled a long way, and we have had a lot of great times. God is using us in truly unique ways and that is a wonderful thing to be a part of. We would appreciate your prayers as we travel and thank you for your support... and for reading our blogs :)

Here are some pics from our trip so far, these are from all over so I'm not even going to try labeling them all. Yes we went to the Zoo :)

On The Road Again

2009-01-05T20:02:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year to you all! I hope you're doing well. We're off again and enjoying the first few days of our 13 week tour, in which we will be traveling in IL, TX, FL, and the rest of the East coast. So far we've been hanging out in Colin's hometown (Bushnell, IL), where we've played at his church, and soon the camp that he loves so much. Today we spent our day off at Fun City playing laser tag, bowling, go-carting, and playing tons of games. It was AWESOME. Yesterday was Colin's birthday too, so that made this particular stop that much more enjoyable. There was cake and ice cream galore! Not a bad way to spend the first weekend out, if you ask me.

Beyond all that, I'm so grateful to be back. There's nothing like a nice, long, relaxing break to remind me of what it is I'm called to do this year. While it was wonderful to be at home, to spend time with friends and family, and to catch up on some sleep, I must admit that I missed our team, our nasty van (though we have a few more weeks before it really gets all that nasty), the many host homes we've been privileged to stay with, and the music we all love so much. There is a feeling of utter contentment I get every time I'm on stage (or back at the board)- knowing that I am doing exactly what I was created to do. It's a remarkable feeling, and I can only pray that I can be aware enough of God's calling in my life to be in this state all the time. While I realize that I will not always be called to be traveling with CTI, I know that God has a plan for my life, and only by following Him into that willingly will I ever recieve the kind of peace and joy that comes from fulfilling that purpose that God has in my life. I pray this for all of you as well.

Here's a few pictures from our time so far...

These are Stanley wearing Ken's new specs, Colin wearing the apron he got for his brithday, a host brother wearing the Macki cover, and Micaela and Aaron bowling.

Ta ta for now!

Partnership Drive

2008-12-12T13:32:00.001-06:00

Ok, as I see it, there are three major blights on modern society; here they are in increasing order of irksomeness: third – people who talk in the theater, second – those who start honking the instant the light turns green, and first and most terrible – Telemarketers (need I say more).
In light of this, can you imagine how I felt when I got the details on what “partnership drive” actually is? I’m not one of the technologically savvy members of the information generation, no, I’m a face-to-face sort of guy. I don’t spend much time on the phone with friends and family so the thought of calling a complete stranger at home…not a fun thought!
I do, however, love this ministry more than I loath the phoning prospect, therefore I decided to tackle this project with zeal and a “good attitude”. Before we started the calling process Joe (VanderArk that is, development director) told us, regarding negative calls, “Don’t take it personal, they don’t know you, so it can’t be personal.” This became my mantra. I geared myself up, grabbed a calling list, and sat down to make my first call. I got a machine: second, third, etc… all machines or no answers for the first page. I sort of fell into a groove until I got a real live person on the other end of the line (bum bum buhhhmmm). Awkwardly I stumbled through the script as best I could; obviously I was not charming nor charismatic enough and they declined my offer to partner with us in the coming year.
Then followed a string of what I perceived as failures. Answering machines, no answers, exasperated sighs followed by hang ups or begrudging half-hearted participation in the first bit of the conversation only to end in “I’m not interested.” Then there is this countries current economic whatever it is which has a good percentage of our supporters out of work or “just scrapping by” and I felt horribly insensitive for even mentioning money in most of the calls I made.
There was, however, a second and far more admirable portion to our calls, we were taking prayer requests, and even praying for people right on the spot. No matter how bad it got with the partnership spiel there was always prayer, and I love praying. I would trudge through the bits with which I was uncomfortable then with joy and genuine concern ask if they had any specific prayer requests. This seemed to change people’s attitudes toward me; some people were touched, some were indifferent yet nicer, but some (and this I just don’t get) got annoyed! Sort of a “how dare you presume to pray for me!” Then they would hang up angry and I would sit there slightly confused, and (don’t tell them) pray for them anyway. But redemption did come in spite of all the indifference and apparent anger.
There were those calls that had some sort of divine purpose. For instance, a man I talked to; He seem a bit overwhelmed and I could hear his kids in the background. He said he was unable to support us this year (which is no problem) and started to hang up when I asked if there was anything I could pray for him and his family about. His tone softened, “actually yeah there is” he said and went on to tell me they just found out his daughter has a brain tumor. He did not go into any detail , but I could hear the pain and love and concern for his daughter in his voice. I felt a lump in my throat and the heat of tears welling behind my eyes as I asked if I could pray for him right then. I finished praying and said amen; there was no whaling or gnashing of teeth (sorry to be anti-climatic) he just said thanks and hung up the phone. But I got the privilege of being in his life for a moment and I got to share my life with him; I hope he felt how much I care about him and his family and I want him to know that his daughter is in my prayers every day.
After that conversation I started looking at the moments in every conversation where we (the supporter and I) were real and honest. I had more genuine moments with people, I was even asked if I had any prayer requests and then prayed for on the phone by this man who was just straight up nice all around. He was interested in the ministry and what we were doing, and wanted to know about the whole team; he asked if he could pray for me and for the team, and I’m not going to say no to that!
It was because of willingness like his to engage in conversation or prayer that we all persevered and pushed through the negative calls. It’s basically a willingness to share life with one another that helped this bothersome, draining task transcend obligatory duty into a legitimately enjoyable ministry opportunity.
Essentially we (the supporters and the ministry at large) are one community, one body, and by reaching out through this phone drive are offering part of our community, part of our life, part of who we are. Those who accept our extension of life were and are, hopefully, blessed, because I know they blessed me. Well, that’s all I have to say about that. Okbye.
-Aaron

a break from touring.

2008-12-09T01:01:00.003-06:00

hey guys! on the second of december we drove into willmar from madison wisconsin. this marked the end of our fall tour, which lasted one month. many great times were had and countless memories were made. we got to experience canada (for many of us, it was our first) and all of the wonders that canada entails. now that we are back in our "home town", we will be hanging out here for the first couple weeks of this month contributing in cti's annual campaign drive. this means we call people (many of them), and chat with them about maybe donating to cti. my favorite part about this whole thing is that we take prayer requests from the folks that we call and then before we beginning calling the next day we lift all of those requests up to God. it really is an awesome experience being able to get a glimpse into the lives of people from all over the world and being able to pray for them. these next two weeks will be long and hard, so i ask that you keep all of us in your prayers. ask that God would grant us the energy to be on the phone for four hours at a time and that we could truly minister to these people that we are calling.

thank you guys all for your support and caring enough to read our blog posts!
it means a lot, really really really.

-christian.

Snow????

2008-11-30T17:17:00.003-06:00

hey everybody! as many of y'all know from our profiles on the CTI website, Aaron and I are from the south (Georgia and Texas, respectively). therefore, i'm sure many of you can guess that for the past month, we've been FREEZING our butts off up here. we have not seen THIS much snow in YEARS! so today at Christian's hometown, there was a blizzard (our definition of a blizzard)! I was so excited that I asked Micaela to take pictures of me standing in the snow. according to the following video, that photoshoot did not go down as I had planned...

Taco's Taiwan Video

2008-11-28T21:06:00.002-06:00

Canada Tour

2008-11-28T15:44:00.009-06:00

coming soon....

2008-11-24T12:50:00.002-06:00

So, for all of you who are loyally reading our blog, we recognize that you've probably been dissapointed. We hereby apologize for the lack of blogging. Colin has been trying tirelessly to post his "Back from Taiwan" video, and Micaela is writing one as we speak (or, in your case, read). Either way, we promise that something will be posted soon. :) If nothing else, mother always said that waiting is good for you. It builds character! :) Think of how much character you'll have by the time you get the next post. Heheh. Seriously though, we'll have something up SOON. In the meantime, let us know how we can be praying for you. Leave us a comment under this post with prayer requests and we'll get on it. Thanks guys! And happy (almost) Thanksgiving!!!

2008-11-13T13:52:00.004-06:00

howdy y'all this is Aaron...so how's it going? we're doing good getting into the swing of things here in the state and it's going well. we've been in Iowa and Illinois and Indiana and Michigan ,yep all the I states (we'll work backwards to the G state no worries), we have had some great opportunities to play in Christian schools and churches, and as displayed in the picture to the left, this place called Mel Trotter ministries. Mel Trotter was amazing, we played for a group of at risk women and some children. So, as it turns out I am really bad at this "blogging" thing, but I hope I've hit some of the highlights. I want to say hey to all my host home families in Willmar and across the states, well from Iowa to Michigan anywho. not to mention a shout out to my family and friends back home... okbye.

hey all!

2008-11-03T21:49:00.001-06:00

we are back from Taiwan and let me tell you it is quite a change to be in the states again. Less than two weeks ago we were in an apartment in Asia, and now we are at host homes in Iowa. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it, but I'm sure after about a few days on the road I'll get back into the state side swing.
Anyway, a word on Taiwan, we stayed in a city called Don Shwei, it's about a half hour away from the capital, Taipei, really the whole area is like one big city. We played all over the Don Shwei/ Taipei area at all sorts of different venues. We got to tell many people the good news of Jesus and even though we weren't there for the harvest, we were used by the spirit to plant seeds.
Well thank you all so much for your support, and prayer, bye

-Ken

1421 departs for fall tour!

2008-11-01T08:24:00.001-05:00

1421 pulls out of the driveway on their way to Iowa to start their fall tour.

Be sure to check out their booking schedule to see if they are coming to a town near you!

Team 1421 arrives home safely!

2008-10-23T12:48:00.001-05:00

Team 1421 arrived home safely today with al of their equipment! Check their blog soon for updates on their trip!

Update the Third (bum bum bumhmmm)

2008-10-20T01:35:00.002-05:00

(Courtesy of Jeffrey Aaron Stephens, Esquire; and The Honorable Christian Wade Harger, RTB. Title provided by none other than The Terrific Tish Schuh [also known as Laura])

Greetings and salutations to all,

Things are going swimmingly in Taiwan, though we regret to inform you that we will be departing this splendiferous island all too soon. Early in the AM of this the 20th of October the year of our Lord 2008, we performed our final engagement. It was a glorious worship experience meeting with our brothers and sisters who are a part of YWAM, Taiwan.

Now, working retrospectively, we will regail you with tales of our past adventures. Since last we "spoke," we have had the privilege of ministering in a myriad of environments, ranging from orphanages and churches, to schools and homes for troubled youths. Musically we have run the spectrum from phenominal cohesion to utter chaos, but out of the mire and muck we have been extracted (wc2ls) by God. He has turned our paltry attempts to share His love into resplendent glory.

God is amazing! But the price of an hour of internet is not.. meaning we can't afford another hour.. meaning we have to go.

PS we climbed a volcano.

okay bye! love you paul!

Another update from Taiwan

2008-10-09T11:04:00.001-05:00

Here's another update we received today from Laura:

---

Hello Friends, Family, and others!

We hope things are going well there at home! We've had quite a week here in Taiwan. I'm not really sure where to begin. I know we mentioned last week that we have a pretty varied schedule, and it has continued into this week as well. In the last 5 days we've played for a kindergarden (TONS of fun!!!), at another hospital, at the Fishermen's warf, for the YWAM staff, a homeless shelter, a high school, and another convelecent center. It has been wondederful. The hospital we played at was one that we had played in the very first week. When we were there the first time, there was a boy named David that we were able to pray for. He was 5 and very, very sick. When we came back the next time, he had been feeling much better, getting ready to go home, and very excited to visit with us. He thanked us for praying for him and told us that God had made him feel better! It was really cool to see. At the homeless shelter, we were able to perform for about 100 men and then had the opportunity to serve them dinner. Talk about humbling. And we've had experiences like this every day so far.

We've also been spending a lot of time at The Rock in the evenings. We've been able to connect with a lot of students there and had a ton of ministry opportunities there as well. Just the other day I was talking to a couple of girls about movies when they asked me if I believed in ghosts. It was the perfect set-up to tell them about the gospel. We've all been learning a lot about what God can do when we make ourselves available for ministry. We've also been learning a lot about encouragement. Over the last three weeks, most of our devotionals have been on the theme of encouragement. Then on Monday, we lead worship for the entire YWAM base, and afterwords participated in the montly prayer day. The topic of the month (which every YWAM base in the world will be praying about this month) is encouragement. One lesson we've learned is that it goes far beyond words. It is a constant attituted of lifting each other up. To make another persons path easier to travel by clearing the way for them. It carries itself out it words, yes, but also in actions, in thoughts, in prayer, in sacrifice, etc. Encouragement. We all need it. And we all need to practice it. By practicing encouragement the way Christ did, we grow closer to Him. It's awesome.

On a lighter note, we've been able to do some pretty fun stuff here in Taiwan. Last week, we went to visit Taipei 101 and one of the largest night markets in Taiwan. We were going to go to the beach today, but it rained all day. We were able to go exploring a bit in our free time. Just today, we found an Irish coffee shop on the riverfront. We all ate tacos. Yeah... we had Tacos, in an Irish coffee shop, in Taiwan. Can life get better?!!! We've tried things like frogs, blood soup, pot-stickers, porrige (made with eggs and horse urine), and all kinds of other fun things. A team favorite has been the pot-stickers. It's our standby late-night meal. We also went out for a sweet meal involving lamb and clams. I'd tell you more about it, but it all happened in Mandrin, so I don't know much more than that. Most of our meals consist of us pointing at food that looks like it would be good, getting it and thinking, "Hm... I wonder what THIS is..." and eating it anyway. We've probably eaten tons of cool stuff without knowing what it was. The point is, FOOD HERE IS AWESOME!

Here are a couple of shout-outs from the team:

A quick word on Taiwan:
Great people, great city, great food, and we're all still alive. Keep praying for us. We love you all! Bye!

~Ken

Greetings to all.

The most importat thing I have to tell you is that the United States is in desperate need of more scooters.

The second most important thing I have to tell you is that I am alive and well.

~Christian

Everyone else is out galavanting aound the city and didn't get a chance to write down their messages, but we're all healthy and enjoying ourselves! Thank you so much for all your prayers. We love you and miss you!

Update from the team!

2008-10-03T09:31:00.002-05:00

We received the following update from Laura today:
---

Hey everyone!

We're here in an internet cafe enjoying a day off! It's hard to believe that we've only been here for 5 days! Technically, we've been gone a week, but we've been in Taiwan for only 5 days! It's been quite an adventure. Here's how it happened...

It was a dark and stormy night...

Well, no. Actually, it was a bright sunny morning when we left Willmar. Our drive the the airport was ejoyable and uneventful. We arrived at the airport about 3 hours before our flight, only to find out that we no longer had a flight. We were supposed to fly to Tokyo and then to Taipei, all within about 17 hours, but they ended up canceling the flight to Tokyo, which lift us stuck in the US for an extra day. Soooo, we got re-routed to the next available flight to Asia, which didn't leave until the next day. So we flew into Chicago, where we had an overnight layover. Luckily I (Laura) live in Chicago, so my parents were able to pick us up and we had nice comfy beds to sleep in (thank to a few friends!) as opposed to the floor of the gate at the airport. We then flew to Detroit, and then to Osaka, Japan. Upon our arrival to Japan, they informed us that there was a typhoon in Taiwan and that we couldn't fly in until the next day. As a result, we got to spend a night in Japan! Boy was that an adventure! Hahaha. At about 4:00 am we finally boarded our last flight to Taipei. We arrieved on time, met Sandra, our YWAM contact, and started our day!

So far our ministry here has looked different than we thought it would. I guess we didn't really know what to expect, but it was definately a lot less varied than what we've actually been able to experience. So far, we've played in two hospitals, a convelecent center, and residentail home for the mentally handicaped, and a high school. It was inceredible. Each place has been significantly different from the last, and it's been fun to meet people in all stages of life here. Tomorrow we're going down to the fishermen's warf to do some concerts out there. Beyond the music side of things, we've been spending a lot of time at a place called The Rock. It's a free coffee house that YWAM (Youth With A Mission) runs as a means to evangelize and deciple. The Rock offers English classes as well as "hang out" environment where people can come and practice their English with native speakers. We've all had a ton of fun spending time with the students that come. Most of them are universtiy students from the school just down the street from our apartment, so we have plenty in common. There's never a dull moment at The Rock.

Today we're going to downtown Taipei to see the sights with a few of the people here gracious enough to show us around a bit. I've heard rumors of Taipei 101 (which I beleive is the second tallest building in the world), as well as a few other treats that Taiwan has to offer. The food here is incredible and we're all looking forward to eating more of it! Not to mention the fact that we get to spend some quality time with our Taiwanese friends here.

Here are some prayer requests you can be lifting up with us:

~Please pray that we remain healthy so that we can continue in our minsitry.
~We are suposed to get hit by another typhoon this weekend, so please pray for the safety of everyone here, as well as minimal damage. Especially since they're still recovering from the one we had last weekend!
~Pray for the ministry of YWAM and their staff as they work hard to share the gospel and disciple Christians here in Taiwan. ~Pray for 1422 as they start their ministry in the Philippines.

That's all we have. Miss you all, and thanks for all your prayers and support!

Team 14:21 Reports Safe Arrival in Taiwan

2008-09-29T12:17:00.000-05:00

Team Leader Laura Schuh called this evening to report the team's safe arrival and connection with the YWAM staff in Taipei. The team encountered several delays (mostly due to weather) but their equipment made it safe and sound with them as well.

They are looking forward to a month of ministry with YWAM. Be sure to check out their blog for updates throughout their month overseas.

Departing for Taiwan!

2008-09-26T13:49:00.001-05:00

Team 1421 departs for their month of ministry with YWAM in Taiwan!

We're Back!

2008-09-25T12:12:00.000-05:00

Training Tour is over! On Monday, we drove back to Willmar and shared many stories with 14:22 and the CTI staff. Since the tour was only less than three weeks, there are many things that each and every one of us took away from this trip. For me, I learned that prayer is powerful. I also learned that God is always available, and that it's really up to us whether or not we make ourselves available to Him.

I'm sure there are a TON of things that we learned from this trip, but that is just one of very many. So right now, we are back in Willmar getting ready to leave tomorrow for our overseas tour in....TAIWAN! Yup, I'm excited! Since there are a number of things that can possibly go wrong on this tour, there are a few things that I would like to request of you to pray for us about...

- safety for our travels to and from Taiwan
- nice customs agents in Taiwan who won't give us problems checking out our equipment
- our physical, mental and spiritual health
- the receptiveness and openness of the people in Taiwan towards us and God

We will return on October 23, so there's a small chance that we will be posting until then. Also, take some time out to check out 14:22's blog. They will be leaving for the Philippines next Tuesday.

Thanks for reading!

- Stanley

Crystal Lake

2008-09-21T10:38:00.001-05:00

Team 1421 finishes up their set list for Sunday morning service in Crystal Lake, IA.

From Pella to Damascus

2008-09-18T22:46:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone, I want to tell you a bit about 14:21's week

On Tuesday, we played a morning chapel at Pella Christian High, then spent the remainder of the day in the school's common area interacting with the students. I talked to a number of students and many were enthusiastic about music and missions- over 18 auditioned to be on a CTI team !!! It was great to be in the familiar atmosphere of a God-centered school- I felt close to the students, because I was once in their shoes. Being at school made me realize how much I miss my wise teachers/ mentors. Especially you Mr Orr!
Thanks again Pella High School and host families for a great experience!

Tonight and Wednesday night, we had the privilege of ministering at Church of the Damascus Road, a church inside two correctional facilities. I think the entire team would agree that we did not minister to them, but they ministered to us. Listening to the prayers of broken men have the ability to re-break one's heart for God.

The team has been learning about God's grace...
Nothing we can do can make God love us less.
Nothing we can do can make God love us more.
God loves us because He wants to.

I pray we can accurately share God's grace to those we encounter, and continue to give each other grace day to day as we learn and grow.

Thanks for reading! Be Blessed!

- Micaela

Pella Christian High!

2008-09-16T14:17:00.000-05:00

freedom anthem

2008-09-15T15:13:00.002-05:00

yuh dead!

2008-09-14T23:20:00.002-05:00

Concert at Epworth UMC

2008-09-13T23:50:00.000-05:00

Team 1421 played a concert for an enthusiastic bunch at Epworth UMC on Saturday night.

Thanks to Pastor Corby and everyone at Epworth UMC!

paul, paul, paul..

2008-09-12T22:13:00.003-05:00

paul had more fun playing with the inflatable child play fun toyish carnival type things than any of those kids did.

he specifically asked me not to share this with you guys, but i feel as though it is something that needs to be shared. paul actually forced all of the children off of these apparatuses with a stern face and a cold heart.

just kidding of course.

midnight jam session

2008-09-12T13:10:00.002-05:00

swiss apples!

2008-09-12T13:07:00.001-05:00

hey everyone!
its half way through the first week of tour and we are all having a blast!!! Today we are on our way to Jacksonville IL, I think we are playing at a college tonight but i cant remember, either way it will be fun. And speaking of fun, Christian and i invented a new card game today in the van that we call Swiss Apple, Its like the best game ever so you'll have to ask abut it next time you see one of us.
Please continue praying for us, love you all> bye : )
Ken

New team pet

2008-09-12T10:58:00.000-05:00

Aaron found a new pet for the team. The team vetoed his idea.

Concert at Ebenezer

2008-09-10T22:40:00.000-05:00

Worship night at Ebenezer

2008-09-10T10:01:00.000-05:00

Devos at the park

2008-09-09T14:47:00.000-05:00

Driving day

2008-09-09T13:10:00.001-05:00

We started our driving day off today with a rousing crab frisbee (pictures and video to come soon). After we recovered from that we started our drive to Oregon, Illinois.

On our way we stopped at a great local sub shop, called Arthur's. It's been a great day thus far, and we get to hang out with a youth group tonight, so the day is only going get better!

The epic battle

2008-09-08T14:09:00.004-05:00

This is video of an epic battle between Stanley Tso and one of the youngsters at Milan Christian Church. Following the video of the battle, there is exclusive video footage of an interview with the victorious jouster.

Aaron's 1st Attempt at Blogging

2008-09-08T14:07:00.001-05:00

So... we're on the road now, and there are some awesome videos and pictures that y'all should check out. we did our first concert, both a sunday morning worship type thing and a night time youth thing. I was super nervous, but it went well. we did a fortyish minute set and the drama. I don't know wat to tell y'all.

Rainy day rehearsal

2008-09-08T13:07:00.001-05:00

Team 1421 spent their day off today rehearsing. It was a brisk, rainy day, so the natural thing for musicians to do was to play music!

Yesterday we led worship at Milan Christian Church in Illinois and then played a concert for their fall youth group kickoff. It was a great time! Thanks to our awesome hosts and a great church for making our first stop on tour a wonderful experience!

Check back soon for some great videos of the day!

First day highlights!

2008-09-06T23:21:00.000-05:00

Included in these pics are Colin's beef jerky, really cheap gas, and our arrival in Milan, Illinois.

Start of tour!

2008-09-06T07:18:00.000-05:00

Everyone is bright and shiny this morning as we head out for Illinois!

More music rehearsal

2008-09-03T16:44:00.000-05:00

1421 spent another day preparing for their upcoming training tour.

Exhibition concert!

2008-09-02T18:39:00.000-05:00

Training!

2008-09-02T17:10:00.000-05:00

Team 1421 rehearsing for their practice concert.

1421: together at last!

2008-08-31T18:51:00.001-05:00

Welcome the new crew!

2008-08-23T15:47:00.004-05:00

Another fulltime year has started!

Meet CTI 14:21 08-09:

Laura Schuh
Aaron Stephens
Christian Harger
Colin Hornbaker
Ken Simerly
Micaela Tucker
and Stanley Tso

We'll get pictures up in a few weeks, and they'll be posting soon!

Summer's Coming!

2008-05-15T13:23:00.007-05:00

Hey everyone!

Our Spring tour has come to an end and we are busily preparing for summer teams to arrive. I wanted to share some of my favorite pictures from our last tour before I forget about it!

These kids are from the pioneer club we played for in Kansas. The kids were so energetic and unaffected by what was "cool" or "acceptable" - if only we didn't lose that as we got older!

Here are a few pictures of frisbee and football with our friends from St. Louis Chinese Gospel Church. We were so excited to go back and spend a few days with them, and we had an awesome time getting to know them more.

Here's a picture of our "Dare You to Move" drama. It's so rare to get a clear picture of our performances, so I'm always excited when one turns out like this one.

This is Garmin, our GPS, telling us we had to drive on the same road for 303 miles! It was our longest trip on one road. I think we were traveling from Conway, AR to Austin, TX.

While in Austin, we had a great time hanging out with Austin Chinese Church. They took us to downtown Austin to see the University of Texas. After our concert that evening they took us out to get frozen yogurt, then the next morning we played volleyball and basketball before we had to leave. It was really exciting to meet Stanley Tso, who will be joining a full-time team this August!

At one host home, Brad and I got to go paddle boating on the lake behind our house. We saw a gorgeous sunset and got to spend some quality time with the local swans. They got surprisingly close to our boat; I think they were trying to herd us away from their eggs.

We traveled through Buffalo, TX 3 times on this tour. The first 2 times we got to stay with Tim's grandmother at their family ranch. It was one of my favorite stops on the tour. There were horses, cats, and dogs, Brad and I got to see our first longhorns, and we got to visit the zebra down the street!

This donkey was in with the longhorns to "keep the peace." I think this picture looks like something straight out of a fairy tale. He kind of makes me think of Puzzle, the donkey from C.S. Lewis's book "The Last Battle."

The last time we came through Buffalo we stayed with a couple who ran a marriage and family ministry out of their home. Each room was named after a fruit of the Spirit. There was a lake out back and lots of hammocks in their backyard. We were all feeling a little sad to be nearing the end of our tour, so rather than split up to relax in the hammocks, we all decided to stay on one.

We celebrated Jessie's birthday with ice cream and party hats at a hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma! Jessie was sad about turning 19 because it is a high prime number, and she doesn't like high prime numbers. Hopefully our little celebration helped to ease the pain.

And finally, we spent last weekend in Jessie's hometown of Sioux Falls, SD. This picture is of the team at famous falls themselves.

We're nearing the end of our year as a team; in fact, our final concert is coming up on June 8th at 7:00 pm - if you're in the area, we'd love to see you there! Today we got our summer assignments and next week we start debriefing our year together. I thought I'd include some stats from our ministry year for those of you who enjoy that type of thing...

Places we've traveled:
Arkansas
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Maryland
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
New York
Ohio
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
North Carolina
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
Wisconsin
Ontario, Canada
and of course... Singapore!

Ministry Summary:
50 Church Services
46 Youth and Family Concerts
25 Christian Schools
11 Detention Centers/Prisons
7 Colleges
3 Public Schools
3 Homeless Shelters
2 Coffeehouses
1 Retirement Home
1 Kid's Club
... and 9 "miscellaneous" events (mostly from Singapore)

Things I lost or forgot along the way:
Eye glasses
Water Bottle*
Driver's License*
Jessie's Book*
Calculator
Belt*
Face Lotion
Purse*
Cell Phone*
Team USB Drive*
Pajamas*

(*) means found and returned

There's absolutely no way to include in "statistics" the amazing encounters we've had with people from around the world, and the relationships that we've been able to form. There's also no way to include "statistics" about how we've seen God working in and through us this year. Hopefully we'll have the opportunity to talk with you personally about our experiences this year. Trust me - I don't think we'll get tired of sharing our stories!

We are getting so excited about the arrival of the summer teams! If you're a summer team member getting ready to come to Willmar - be prepared for an awesome adventure in discovering more about God, and more about yourself as well.

For all who have been following us, supporting us and praying for us this year... THANK YOU. We have been totally blessed by your encouragement, prayers and financial support. It has been very obvious that we've been covered by prayer over this past year. The safety and health and unity that our team experienced was something only God could do. Please keep praying for those we've come into contact with and had the opportunity to minister to, as well as those who we will meet this summer - team members and students overseas.

Adios for now!

Renee

2008-04-17T13:18:00.002-05:00

So we are in Texas for most of our final tour. Texas is really amazing. its warm enough to go swimming and play volleyball. we have had a lot of "down time" this tour, that basically means that we only play maybe two or three times a week. (not a lot). but we are really enjoying our time on the road. even though knowing we are on our last tour together is really hard... believe it or not, we have grown pretty close together and its going to be a hard split. so please be praying for us in these final weeks, that our eyes remain focused on the true goal of the year. and i also want to take this time to thank everyone who has hosted us though out our journey together. without your spiritual, financial, and housing support our ministry really would not be possible. and our ministry really is a two sided thing, we bring a message to the world, but there is something special that each of us already has and will bring from this year. i know that i will never forget this year.
thank you so much for all that you guys do.

Highlights from the past tour!!!

2008-04-13T21:15:00.007-05:00

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wow, we are Texas ! And the weather is amazing, we are really loving it here. Perfect weather and even more wonderful people!

Let me back up and give you a little rundown/ little insight to our past two weeks of tour....

We started in Iowa and to my delight we spent lots of time in the Dutch town of Pella! Ahh, so awesome....I, unlike all my none-Dutch band members...I was delighted to connect with my roots. We stayed there only a day, but it was still a great time. We played a chapel in the morning at the school and got to hang out for the rest of the day at the school. After that, we headed into Kansas!!

We arrived in Kansas and spent the next two days at Sterling College. We played for the college chapel in the morning and spent the rest of the day doing a lot of recruiting! Really great school, awesome people. The town reminded us all of Mayberry...cute, safe, and unfortunately not a lot to do except star twirling which Jessie and I had the pleasure of experiencing. That night after the chapel service we played for the local Pioneer club for a bunch of rowdy and adorable little grade school and middle school kids. There are some pictures from it below...

We stayed in St. Louis last weekend with our friends from the St. Louis Chinese Gospel Church. We got to stay with the families of two former alumni's of CTI ; Kim Tsui and Eric Hong. We FINALLY got to get outside and experience some warm weather. On Sunday afternoon we went out to a local field and played frisbee and football all afternoon! Eric took us the next day to get Bubble Tea and we all decided to spend the day in St. Louis...very good day.

From St. Louis we travelled to Arkansas. We all stayed with a family from Central Baptist Church and we played in the Central Baptist College for the afternoon and ran back to the church to play for the youth group at night...

...and the weather kept getting better... :)

Then to Texas ! For some of us, it was our first time out or down there. I love Texas. Austin was our first stop; what a great city! We just came back from spending a couple days in Austin, Texas. We stayed with the Austin Chinese Church who treated us like gold. They showed us all around Austin for the day, to the University of Texas, and then to some of the local eclectic shops. We played for a bunch of the youth and young adults from their congregation that night. After a long,exciting, and energetic concert...we were invited for some late night frozen yogurt with everyone.

The next day we were to leave for Sugarland...but our hosts wanted us to catch a little more sunshine before our drive in the van, so we all got together with some friends from the church and had a morning filled with volleyball and basketball. We got to meet one of the future fulltimers, Stanley Tso. Luckily we were able to warn him about full-time; so he's ready now for the fall.

Now that brings us to today. We are in Houston, Texas and we are spending the next couple days just relaxing here, until Wednesday when we heading to another area of Houston. We basically stay in Houston for the next week or so, then move onto another part of Texas.

Anyways....there's some pictures and little catch to refresh and satisfy your curiousity. Please keep us in your prayers. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers! Much thanks!

~ Michelle

HESSTON!!!!!

2008-04-03T18:36:00.001-05:00

HESSTON!!!!! with two S's!!!

- Eli-to still on the road...

in the wonderful town of Sterling, KS

2008-04-03T14:20:00.003-05:00

hellor there everyone!!!!

we've just spent a good TWO days here in Sterling, Kansas. we played for their chapel service in the morning at Sterling College and then we recruited for a couple hours! we had quite a bit of students who showed interest for our program and it was just really encouraging to see. anyways, this town reminds me a lot of Willmar and so i remembered to write something on the team blog. so we'll be heading EAST? (sorry, i'm Canadian) towards Heston, Kansas and will be doing something similar to what we did yesterday at Heston College. thank you for your prayers! and for your treat... this is what i like to do during my downtime!

PEACE OUT!

- Eli-to on the road!

:)

2008-03-24T12:15:00.002-05:00

...And you thot we'd write something while we were on our Easter break!

yah right ! :)

We have about 2.5 days left before we start "work"...

Until then, we are still affectionately yours,

Team 14:21 : Brad, Renee, TIm, Jessie, Eliot, Shawn, and Michelle

...and back to Willmar.

2008-03-13T16:21:00.003-05:00

Wow! What an unbelievable end to an unbelievable tour. The grace and power of God have been evident in our concerts and interactions with contacts in these 10 weeks. A big thanks to all of our hosts and contacts!

I will try to sum up the last few items of our tour, and hopefully find some cool pictures. ;)

We traveled to Bethany Mennonite last Wednesday (March 5), and played a youth concert there. We had a great time hanging out and even got a DVD recording of our concert. After the concert, we played volleyball with their volleyball team (and got properly stomped). Thanks for a great night, Bethany Mennonite!

After housing a few places (thanks, Albrents!), we made it to St. Timothy's Lutheran in Menasha, WI. The past years, CTI has just played their Sunday services - but this year, there was a youth lock-in that corresponded with our coming. We played for the youth and had a blast - and then sent them off to stay up all night while we slept for the next day. We played a few services the next day, and got a chance to speak at their "Adult forum" (a sort of Sunday School class). They drilled us, asked us questions we had never been asked before (not an easy accomplishment!), and even made us eat a lemon slice - rind and all! What a blast - thanks for everything, St. Timothy's.

Next we stopped at Sheboygan for a concert at Sheboygan Christian High. We got to stay with the Hendrickses and were hosted by Chris and his family. It was so much fun to get to know them and be enveloped in God's love there. They even had a prayer room in their basement where they spent time worshiping at times throughout the day. What a blessed group of people. Our concert at the school went splendidly, and we just had a great time. Thanks for everything, Hendrikse family!

Our last two events were Coulee Region Christian School and Cornerstone church. At Coulee Christian, we met the new principal, Dan Odenbach, and spent some time ministering to the kids. Dan is a very neat, dynamic guy who has just been a blessing to the school. His passion for the kids is remarkable, and it was such an encouragement to see the ministry being done there. Our concerts were for an elementary group and a middle/high school group. The school has a great group of kids and we had a fabulous time. Thanks, Coulee!

At Cornerstone, we met Billy Reames and his family, and the youth at their church. They fed us tacos (awesome!) and we got to play in their new Gathering Place (youth room). It was a phenomenal last concert with a great turnout, and we enjoyed every minute we spent there. Special thanks to Billy, who is doing a great work there at the church.

Looking back, I definitely can see the ways that God has stretched and used us this tour. I'm proud of the team members for remaining faithful and staying intentional to the end. We have had some ups and downs, but I think that most of the places that we went we were able to connect with the people and hopefully serve them by encouraging them to give more of themselves to Jesus Christ (a vocation that all of us are given!). Our greatest desire is that we are used by God to speak his words and to call others to His service.

Thank you all so much for following our progress and for your prayers. We are really blessed to be a part of this awesome ministry and serve Jesus Christ with our music. Until later...

A picture of a cat and a rooster.

... it's the best I could do.

- Brad

2008-03-11T23:41:00.002-05:00

we are really close to the end of our ten week tour... only three more days till we go home. so we could use prayer that we stay focused till the end. we really do appreciate all of the prayer from you guys.

the war we're fighting...

2008-03-04T07:46:00.005-06:00

"For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty power of darkness who rule this world and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms." - Ephesians 6:12 NLT

before we headed to the Children's Home that we were scheduled to play at. our contact informed us of how heavy her heart has been during the day (it was an evening concert). she led us into a time of scriptures and prayer. we prayed for courage. we prayed for strength. most importantly, we prayed for wisdom and a sensitive ear to the Lord's spirit. we didn't know a whole lot about the venue. we didn't know too much about the teenagers we were going to encounter except that they're either sexual abusers or they've been sexually abused. we didn't really know what to expect. we were asked to do an acoustic set (meaning, an acoustic guitar, a bass guitar and amp, two eons (main speakers), two mics, djembe/djimbe). for some strange reason, i always have the misconception that acoustic sets don't sound as good and they're not as effective. but that's just me.

we stepped into the room we're supposed to play in. we set up. we planned a set list. we just didn't know what to expect. but, i felt an incredible sense of peace and excitement (contradicting emotions? kind of). i was at peace because i wasn't scared of the venue nor was i scared to approach the kids. i was excited to see how God's going to blow these kids away. i was excited to see how God's going to blow Eliot away. i was excited to see how God's going to blow 14:21 away. i was excited to see how God's going to blow ALL OF YOU THAT ARE READING THIS AWAY!

there's peace in my heart. there's courage that allowed me to approach the kids. there's wisdom when i talked to the kids. there's God. there's God watching every move i make. there's God working in and through me.

we played. we shared. we acted. we gave them all that we had. we managed to get them clapping. we were all having so much fun that we had to change our set so we can have MORE upbeat songs. we managed to get them STANDING and GROOVING and CLAPPING. there was joy. there was celebration. perhaps a slight glimpse of... heaven... for the first time (or for the first time in awhile).

i had a strange urge to approach a young man that was sitting there at the end of the concert. i had a strange urge to start talking to him and ask him how he felt towards our performance. here we go. let the floodgates open. he basically poured out his heart to me. he asked me incredibly hard questions. but it don't matter. God spoke through me. i've never felt so wise before. that's probably because it wasn't me talking. here he is, a teenager who's gone through a lot of trouble in life, physically, mentally and even spiritually. he wanted something. he wants something more. in Erwin McManus' book "Soul Cravings", he essentially mention that we're created and made to long for more. we always want more. God created us to be with him. he IS more. we want more, that's because we subconsciously want to be with God. again, he IS more. that's one of the things that i told this young man. or should i say that's one of the thing that God told this young man during our "three way conference call" last night.

"how do you know that God exists?"

"how do YOU know that gravity exists?"

"well, you can see it, it's all around you isn't it?"

"so why wouldn't you believe that God exists?"

"i think i see what you're trying to get at"

"how do you know that someone didn't just make up the concept of gravity? just like what you said about God)

"you don't see gravity, but you believe it. i don't see God, but i see him working miracles day in and day out. that's why i believe he exists"

"the fact that our paths crossed, that to me, is a miracle already."

"i was legally dead for 2 minutes and was in a coma for 4 days..."

i think you get the idea. i wasn't the only person that had an incredible God story like this to tell. i wasn't the only on last night. we all had an incredible experience.

this is the war we're fighting. it's a spiritual war that requires spiritual strength and spiritual weapons. it reminded me to go back to the throne of Grace everyday. it reminded me that i can't "do ministry" on my own. "Salvation belongs to the Lord". we prayed. he answered. we humbled ourselves. he showed himself.

this is how the story continues...

i requested that we give him one of our CDs. he'd mention to me that music was a big part of his life. he almost couldn't come back out from the "cell" to ask me that incredibly hard question at the end. but i knew it wasn't over. i knew God wasn't going to let him go. i knew that God wanted to use me to encourage him one last time...

i didn't pray "the prayer" with him. i'm not saying that it's wrong to ask people to accept Christ on the spot with you. i think he was "ready". but i didn't want it to be an Eliot type of thing. i didn't want to know that i "converted" somebody. it really isn't about me. i told him to pray last night before he went to bed. i challenged him to challenge God to show up before him...

this is the war we fight...

i said we...

i invite you to fight this war with us...

pray for these three young adults that we came into contact with...

pray for those that we've inspired and challenged and we don't even know about...

pray for those we haven't even met yet...

this is the war i fight. this is the war we fight as a team...

will you fight with us?

"There are tears from the Saints for the lost and unsaved. We're crying for them... come back home!" - Tears of the Saints, Leeland

listening to the radio

2008-03-02T14:21:00.002-06:00

There was a young boy walking out of the woods with a cage that contained several wild birds. As he was walking back home, he happened to pass an older gentleman that was interested in what the boy was planning to do with the birds. The man ventured to ask the boy what his intentions were. The boy said that he was going to play with them. The man asked how he intended to play with the birds. The child continued on and explained that he would start by shaking the cage. Mostly because he thought it was funny to see the birds so very frighted. Then he would poke the birds with a stick and cause even more fear and panic in the them. He also told the man that some of them would probably die of anxiety. After the man heard this he asked the boy, then what? What are you going to do after you are done playing with them? The boy said I'll probably just feed them to my cat. He likes to eat wild birds. Then the man asked the boy if he would be interested in selling the birds to him. He replied pointing out that they weren't worth anything. Then the child asked why he would want to waist money on them, and laughed saying they would just fly away from him as soon as he let them out of the cage. The man agreed saying that he knew all of this to be true, but he is fond of the birds and he didn't want to see them suffer and go to through the fate he had planned for them. So the boy asked if five dollars was fair. the man pulled out his wallet. Then the boy responded saying that maybe ten dollars was a better price. The man pulled ten dollars from his wallet. then the boy, realizing that the man really did want the birds, said no twenty dollars, and not a penny less. The man gave the boy twenty dollars and was on his way with his new birds. When he got to the park, he released them because he hated to see them so scared and lifeless in the cage. But as soon as he opened the cage, they were all gone from his sight.

This is a great example of what Christ did for us. We were in Satan's cage when Christ asked what his plans were for us, he said that his plans included playing games with us. Making us think that wrong is right, and then playing with our emotions. Making us think that we are loved, and then taking it all away from us. After doing all of that, damning us to an eternity in hell with him.

Then Jesus reminded Himself that the Father was very fond of us. Jesus told Satan to let Him purchase us from him. Satan pointed out that as soon as we were released from his cage we would run from Him and His Father. Also that we wouldn't want anything to do with Him. Jesus said that he knew all of this, but that he loved us very much. Then Satan agreed to sell us to Him saying that the price on us was Jesus' blood. Jesus said ok. Satan paused and though for a moment. Then he decided that His tears would be a better price. fine, Jesus replied. Then Satan said the life of Christ was the least that he would take for our souls. Jesus paused and remembered how fond his father was of the humans. He bowed his head slowly and asked His heavenly Father to let his will be done. Looking back up he agreed with a soft broken tone to his voice.

Wow... if this analogy doesn't touch you then something is definitely wrong with you. please pass this along to everyone that you know. thanks.

Timothy Boettcher

this is a story that we herd on the radio during an obscenely long drive.

Snow

2008-03-01T13:12:00.010-06:00

I find myself thinking about snow a lot lately... probably because we're covered in it up here in the hills of Northern Pennsylvania. It was snowy when we got here and it's been snowing ever since. Friday night we left for a concert for a few hours and when we got back you couldn't even see our tracks from earlier in the day. I usually don't like snow, especially when I have to go out in it. But something about this place makes it enjoyable to go out in the snow and walk from building to building. I've even enjoyed driving around in it (which is something that usually terrifies me).

I should explain where we are... on Thursday we arrived at Penn-York Camp and Retreat Center in Potter's County, PA. We're staying in cabins for 5 nights (yay - we get to unpack!) and playing at different churches and schools in the area. (For those from home - it reminds me of Pinebrook, but a little bit nicer!) It really has been a blessing to be able to stay here for the week, and we're taking full advantage of the retreat atmosphere. Several have gone cross country skiing, there have been snowball fights, soccer games in the gym, devotions by the fire, and hours of pool and ping pong in the fellowship hall.

We've had 4 performances here so far - 3 youth concerts and a Sunday service. We've had very different responses at our three youth concerts - tonight's concert had the students on their feet dancing along, while Friday night it was all we could do to hold their attention... but it's our prayer that even when we don't see a response from the audience, God is still working through what we present. We have another concert tomorrow night at a home for troubled youth. Last year's team played here as well and the students really enjoyed it. Please pray that our ministry there would be effective in pointing the kids toward Christ.

Anyway, back to snow... all this thinking about snow reminded me of the different ways the Bible uses the image of snow, in particular - to demonstrate God's power and His forgiveness:

"God's voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding. He says to the snow, 'Fall on the earth,'and to the rain shower, 'Be a mighty downpour.' So that all men he has made may know his work, he stops every man from his labor." Job 37:5-7

"He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly. He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. He hurls down his hail like pebbles. Who can withstand his icy blast?" Psalm 147:15-17

"Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle?" Job 38:22-23

"Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." Psalm 51:7

"Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." Isaiah 1:18

I've especially been impacted by this reminder of His forgiveness. Watching the snow this week - how bright and clean it is, and the way it covers everything that has been there before - has been an awesome reminder of our position in Christ. No matter what happened in the past, no matter how dry and dead the ground underneath may be, we have been covered completely by the purity and righteousness of Christ. Wow.

So, that's what's been on my mind this week. :) Thanks for reading and please keep praying!

Renee

New way to be human (taken from www.xanga.com/selaheto)

2008-02-19T10:48:00.002-06:00

"we are all the same, human in all our ways and all our... pain"...

it's been almost three weeks since i last blogged. i've been trying to develop this entry for quite awhile now. i think it's about time for me to try and "write this on paper" and see where it'll take me. while we were playing at a coffee house one night in Grantham, PA, one of their very own missionary was sharing something along the lines of how he struggled sometimes as a missionary. he felt like he had to play "the perfect christian". that was the very same night that i felt God reaching out to me and screaming in my face. it's been awhile. it's about time again...

a common misconception about missionaries, i believe, is that they have to be somewhat "ready" for ministry. and hence all the sophisticated application procedures from all the missions organizations as well as churches. there's intensive training to ensure that people are "ready for ministry". there's nothing inherently wrong with that. i believe it's an essential quality to have - spiritual maturity, or even just discipline. it's important that people are signing up for what they're signing up for. it's true. but at the same time. that's what gives us the unnecessary pressure that we feel sometimes don't you think? as worship leaders, as missionaries, as Christian bands, or even, as Christians, we feel the pressure. we feel the pressure that we have to be somewhat "holy-er" than the people we're "ministering" to. we feel like we have to have life all figured out. we feel like we can't fail. we feel like, we just can't be "human"...

i'm often asked to write something on the blog from the ministry that i'm a part of this year. i'm often asked to share more with others about the things that i'm learning. i'm often asked by others to update them on what we're doing as a team on the road. when these requests come up, i feel the need to live up to a certain level of expectation. i feel like i have to tell them all these glorious "God-stories". i feel like i need to tell them about how much we're learning as a team, how much we're growing as individuals, how we're getting along really well, how we're traveling to all these cool places meeting new people, how all these lives are being touched and changed "as a result of our ministry". basically, i feel that people want to know that all is well, and that "their prayer" is "working"...

this time around, it's a little different... but not at the same time. you'll know what i mean in a moment... but this is my God-story...

"we are all the same, human in all our ways and all our pain..."

that's a line from the song We Believe by Good Charlotte that we cover. this, lately, has been one of my favorite things to share with whoever i'm "ministering" to on stage. i've been reminded that we ARE indeed, all the same. i was reminded that even though i've been chosen to be a "full time minister" this year, that i don't need to be perfect. i'll never be perfect. i need to STRIVE to be like Christ, but i will never... be Christ, himself. i was reminded that it's ok to struggle. it's ok to slip. i'm not saying that it's ok to indulge in sinning. but it's ok to be a sinner. it's ok to be human!

that sounds like Eliot is starting to be all apathetic about his faith and his walk with God...

think again. i think you're wrong.

"we are all the same, human in all our ways and all our pain...

(so let it be) there's a LOVE that could fall down like rain,

(so let us see) let forgiveness wash away the pain,

(what we need) no one really knows what they are searching for,

(we believe) this world is crying for so much more!" - We Believe, Good Charlotte

that's our message isn't it. we struggle. God helps us. we slip. He encourages us. we fall. He picks us up. we sin... over and over again... he died for us... ONCE and FOR ALL!

that's our message. our message is that we're NOT perfect. we're human. we're all the same. whether it's inmates, Christian students, non-Christian students, seniors, single moms, the abuser, the abused, the broken, the empty, the losers, the nerds, the rejects, the jocks, class clown, the pastor, the average Joe... we are all the same. human. that's what we are. that's who we are. we can't help ourselves. we are all the same. we can all somehow relate to each other. we're born sinful. we're sinful no matter how hard we try. we all struggle. we will always struggle no matter how hard we try. we are... all the same...

that's our message. we are all the same. but God wins! he conquered death and has washed away all our sins, that's only if WE BELIEVE.

so what do we do? I believe... you believe... but so what you might ask. well it might be somewhat of a rhetorical question. but this is why we do what we do - we believe... in this Love. we are just the same as the people that we minister to or maybe even just those that we come into contact with day to day - at Wendys for brunch, at Subway for dinner, at church setting up, at host homes tearing down, on the streets playing ball, and wherever else doing whatever else. we are all the same... the key word in this phrase is this... human in all our WAYS and all our PAIN! that's why we want others to hear the message isn't it? we are all human. we're all sinful. and as a result of a sinful nature... as a result of sin... PAIN! that's why we do what we do...

it's so easy, as a minister, as a Christian (i believe those two words are synonymous), to think that ministry is JUST a responsibility. it's JUST an obligation. it's JUST... part of what you signed up for. NO. i think those are all TRUE. but there's MORE. let me draw ANOTHER example from ANOTHER song that we cover...

"there are many prodigal sons, on our city streets they run, searching for shelter

there are homes broken down, peoples' hopes have fallen to the ground from failures.

there are schools full of hatred, even churches have forsaken, Love and Mercy.

may we see this generation, in its state of desperation, for your Glory." - Tears of the Saints, Leeland

the song goes on to say that "this is an emergency". that's why we do what we do, yea?

"there's a new way to be human"... a line taken from a Switchfoot song. im just stealing this line to develop my blog. i believe that MY new way to be human... is to EMBRACE the fact that i'm human. i failed. i fail. i'll always fail. He won. He wins. He'll always win. He loved. He loves. He'll always love... he can't NOT love. because He himself... is LOVE... we are to live with a sense of urgency, not necessarily to CONVERT people. but imagine this, there're people rolling on the floor with agonizing pain. on the other hand, you've got what it takes to heal the wounds. what would you do? it's not about scoring "Christian points". it's not about a salvation rate. it's about a love. it's about LOVE, Himself

"there's a love that could fall down like rain... let forgiveness wash away... YOUR pain..."

there's a new way to be human... just BE human... and not anybody else... embrace your humanity. embrace... his supremacy, sovereignty... and mercy...

Love. really is more than just a four letter word...

just speak without sound... that's Love...

on the road again...

2008-02-10T17:40:00.000-06:00

>

I have been shamefully neglecting of my responsibility to post on this blog... I don't even want to admit the last time I blogged. BUt I am alive, my team didn't kill me off, or leave me Duluth somewhere :) . Don't worry Mom!

Life is going amazing! I am just sitting here in my host home, in Raleigh, NC and just wondering what it is that I should highlight on these past few weeks...

We have just come out of a wonderful time in Florida! We spent about two weeks there and have been loving the change from our cold-weather homes to the warm, breezy, and wonderfully sunny Southern states! I think we are all perfectly content to "slave-away" in these conditions. :)

We set foot first in Florida and before we had time to get excited, we arrived Pensacola, Florida. We got to spend some quality time with Jolene and Christian McArthur (CTI Alums) for a couple days. Really awesome, they treated us really well! Even treated us to haircuts! I don't know if that is cause Jolene is a sweetheart, or because she was sick of looking at our shaggy musician dos...

Pretty soon afterwards, we were in Navarre, Florida, where we spent time 5 days working in and around the Hurlburt Airfield. We meet up with Greg Copeland "Cope" and his wife Susan and all their adopted kids at the youth group there at the chapel on base. Seriously, one of our favorite stops; hands down. These people have such a testimony and such an amazing journey that they have had to face the past year. In August, Cope's son, Jarren was hit by a drunk driver and died instantly. The previous CTI Team in 2006/2007 had a chance to meet him & found out what a passionate guy he was for his family, Christ, and life.

To be taken away at such a young age was a huge blow to his parents, his sister, family, and his friends in the youth group and church community. We had a chance to work with them during those five days, and believe me, we learned more than we realized. Taught us more about the beauty of life and the beauty of God's love in such concrete terms in just those couple days. The youth just rallied around Cope and his family, it's overwhelming and very touching; blew me away with the love they show and how at the end of the day, they are still able to admit that God is faithful. We had a chance to play in the church, for the youth group, for a outreach night, and at a detention center. It was emotionally draining, but really a blessing.

Cope was pretty sure that the detention center was the reason we were brought to Navarre, to the Airbase. We got a chance to play a concert and present the gospel for some of the young guys there...all of which were around 13-19 about. We were touched and burdened when they came up to us after the concert and just wanted to talk about their lives, asked prayer requests, and just wanted advice...It was really cool.

we learned a lot that week...I can't speak for the whole team, but we all had our own stories to tell after that...

Picture 1 :(trying on the airbase parachute outfits)
Picture 2: (hanging out at the beach)
Picture 3: (with the youth group at Hurlburt )

>
>
">

We then headed out to St. Petersburg for the week/weekend and played a couple school chapels and church concerts/youth concerts. We had a chance to go canoeing in the area, which was a
mazing! Woo hoo....And with pictures to prove our fun, we were content :) After a 3 hour long trip we rush to our concert, filled with sand and salt water, but feeling very happy with ourselves...

We headed to Titusville and meet up with Amanda Beesley (Summer teamer 07' ) and then headed out to Palm Beach to spend more time with Alums - Nick and Kristen Castiglione (Fulltime members 04-05) . Palm Beach had lovely weather and lovelier people, we played for school chapels mostly. School kids are so high on life, especially the middle schoolers...I'm surprised they are conscious at 6 am.

Then it was goodbye Florida and hello South Carolina! I think Jessie and I had the real luxury, cause we got to go to Swan Lake and spend a God-filled morning just getting to do nothing but take in the beauty of the place. Seriously, thinking of the place, makes me feel poetic...

Now we end up in North Carolina! Where I am right now! I love , love it here...seriously...great place to stop, beautiful place. Lovely people, except for the bitter rivalry between Duke and UNC...but thats for them to work out... :) but i like it here.

We just played at Hillsong Church in Chapel Hill, NC this morning arrived in Raleigh this afternoon. It's great, cause this is where our president and program director of CTI grew up, so you can guess all the stories that we will glean from their past life embarrassments . It is very enlightening :)

Such kind hearts and amazing accents...i love the south :) too much , they are too much :)

Anyways, i think we are having to much fun. Tomorrow is a day off and after doing the emails to the office and other "work" related items, we are going to find a mini golf and grasp this warm weather the life of it, and enjoy it for maybe the last time.

Things to pray for:

- team unity
- renewed focus (we are halfway through tour!)
- our families and situations back home that distract us...
- that we don't take life for granted
- Cope and Susan and the community at Hurlburt Airfield
- blessings on the host families that have offered to open up their hearts and homes to us...

...to the southeast...

2008-02-02T14:52:00.000-06:00

We left St. Louis and continued to travel southeast into Indiana. There, we got to hang out with Tim's family and home church, Harvestime Temple. When we arrived, we set up and then spent some time with some of their youth. They have a program there that disciples kids into music ministry - it was a privilege to play a few songs and talk to them about ministry.

We played a concert the next night for the energetic youth group, and even got to have a tour around historic New Harmony (thanks to Sherry and the Boettchers!). It was great to get to meet Tim's family and friends and minister with them.

We traveled on from there to Tennessee. Our route took us near Nashville, so we took an extra hour to stop there and hang out. We made it to the Grand Ole Opry, and then drove around until we ran out of time. Maybe next time we can stop and do something... :)

The Biers hosted us for the next couple of days. It was a blast hanging out with them, and even though Lydia (CTI alumnus) wasn't around, the rest of the family welcomed us with open arms. Shawn, Renee and I got a tour around the area by foot, while the others played games and watched a movie. A big thanks to the Bier family for a very relaxing pit stop!

After that, we drove down through North and South Carolina to Lawrenceville, GA. The people of Georgia got a big surprise - they actually had a half inch of snow, which hasn't happened in 5 years! We weren't sure how many were going to brave the weather, but we're so happy for the good turn out - it was so neat to minister there. We did a youth concert for Grace Evangelical Church, and led worship the following day. While we were there, we had the pleasure of spending time with CTI full-time alumnus, Dale Madden. I believe at last count, we had seen 18 alumni on tour, since we started in August!

From there, we rode down to Ft. Valley, GA, to do a program for Grace Evangelical's sister church, Grace Pointe. We had a blast playing for the youth there. They actually invited 8 churches, and it's a good thing several of them didn't come - because the sanctuary was full!

Afterwards, there were 40 pizzas for us to fill our bellies with, which was more than enough for everyone there. Thanks to the Grace churches for an awesome weekend.

We finally made it down to Florida! We stopped and visited CTI alumnus Jen Auld in Tallahassee before continuing to Pensacola to stay with Christian and Jolene (more CTI alumni!). (I do have a question - whose idea was it to make the panhandle of Florida be Central Time Zone??) Christian and Jolene were so generous with their time and resources, and we are greatly indebted to them for all that they did! It was so awesome hanging out with them and resting. Thanks, guys!

Thanks again - more to come later!