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This is my sister, Tracy, and me before our first Half-Marathon

I love to run. Well…love might be a little strong. I love the accomplishment I feel after running and knowing I’m doing something good for my body. I also love running with Britt Nicole. Britt and I have been running together now for many years. On days when I’m not running with anybody else, Britt is always there. You see, Britt Nicole is on my iPhone and I love to run while listening to her. She has great music and seems to have such a heart for telling others about the love of our Savior.

Lately, I’ve been listening to her new CD, “GOLD.” I love it…didn’t really expect to feel any differently. The song I really dig right now by her is “All This Time.” The song talks about the day her parents’ divorced, how torn up she was about it, and how God was, and has been, there for her every moment from then to now. There is actually a track where she tells her story and why she wrote the song.

It got me thinking…we all have a story. What is yours? What is mine? We all have reasons to share our story because it shows the hand of God working throughout all of our circumstances. He is there all the time. He is using everything we go through to shape us and mold us into the people we were created to be. Philippians 1:6 tells us to ” be confident of this, that He Who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ.” That means that we can be sure that He isn’t finished with us yet. Our story, His story, our lives, have a purpose.

Consider sharing your story. Leave it in the comment section. I encourage you to think about your life so far and what God has carried you through. I’d love to hear about it and it just might be used to encourage someone else.

Have a great Saturday!

Kristi

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A couple of Easters ago, our church was in a series called ARISE.  During this series, the idea for the song ‘Arise’ developed as I reflected on what Jesus has done for us.  So today, as we  celebrate Jesus Christ’s victory over sin and death, remember this…  Isn’t it amazing that the same power that raised Christ from the dead can live in us!

Here’s a look at ‘Arise’…

Happy Easter!
Russell and Kristi

‘Arise’ from the album Heart Revolution, is available on iTunes.

 

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About three years ago, we began meeting with some other couples about a potential marriage event in Myrtle Beach.  At the time, there were no other marriage enrichment events in the Myrtle Beach area, but we felt that God was leading us to begin this ministry.  We have been extremely blessed to be a part of so many great marriage events over our years of ministry, like Lifeway’s Marriage Impact, where we will be again this summer, and God has continually presented us with opportunities and intersections for encouraging marriages. Out of the initial meetings, the Adore Marriage weekend was born.

Earlier this month, we held our second year of Adore Marriage at the Embassy Suites at Kingston Plantation.  I can truly say that God is good and has blessed this ministry immensely.  When the conference team had done all that was humanly possible, we know that God took the next five steps that only He could.  To Him be the glory for all that happened during and around Adore Marriage.  God presented us with a new ministry team partner, Theresa, whose contacts and skills propelled the conference forward by miles.  And in addition to that, we ended up with about 30 couples from 6 different states who attended the conference.

Most exciting for us is the prospect of adding a second Adore Marriage event each year.  With the Myrtle Beach weekend, we sought to keep costs as low as possible and make sure that the most value was given to couples for the costs they paid.  We have tried to keep the costs as all-inclusive as possible, as well, so that when a couple commits to attend, there are no hidden costs.

In the weeks leading up to our Myrtle Beach weekend, we were presented with an opportunity to take Adore Marriage out to sea on Royal Caribbean later this Fall.  While we weren’t actively looking, the opportunity came up and fell into place through God’s divine plan.  So, at our conference earlier this month, we announced an Adore Marriage Cruise setting sail October 19-22, 2012.  We are very excited to see what God has planned for the future of this ministry.

We have a busy summer of marriage events with our ministry partners Lifeway and the North Carolina Baptist Convention.  We will be leading worship for two Lifeway Marriage Impact events later this summer and those events are always fun.  Hosted at Lifeway’s Ridgecrest Conference Center, the weekends offer a great marriage getaway to the North Carolina mountains, along with all sorts of activities in the area.  We will also be traveling to Ft. Caswell to lead worship for a Pastor and Wives event sponsored by the NC Baptist Convention.

For all of our upcoming events, please visit our Concert & Events page.

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On the set for the Arise music video

Getting in the Way

I was outside spending some time with God this morning. I love the mornings. Not the 4:30 or 5:00 mornings, but the 6:30 or 7:00 mornings. I love to get up before anyone else and get my Bible and go outside on our deck and sing and pray. It does something to my day…starts it better.

Well, this morning was one of those mornings. It was especially nice and beautiful outside and I brought my computer with me to listen to some awesome music. While I was singing, worshipping, lifting my hands to God, I noticed a shadow come over my face. I had blocked the sun with my outstretched arm. I felt like God said, “Make sure your worship of me doesn’t get in the way of Me shining on and through you.” Wow. Wow! How many times have I gotten caught up in the song, or the speaker, rather than the One I’m singing and speaking and preaching about?! How many times have you?

I want my worship to be only for my Creator, my Salvation-Giver, the only One worthy!!

Help me, Lord, to give You praise, honor and glory from a pure heart. Help me not to get caught up in doing. Help me to sit at Your feet and soak up what You are speaking, ever so softly. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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We just went to see the movie “Courageous” for the first time. I wept! There’s no other way to say it. If you have kids, you probably wept, too. I was so encouraged to see a movie that had such a powerful message, was produced well, and had no cheesy acting. I really had nothing negative to say. I saw the director’s ministry heart all the way through the movie. Not to spoil the movie for those of you who haven’t seen it, I want to say we came out of the theater with a renewed sense of our purpose and role in God’s plan as parents.

Sometimes, I know I can lose that sense of purpose when my day seems to be consumed with homework and refereeing. Our kids, Will and Sidney, go to a University Model School, which means they go to school on Tuesday and Thursday and are home on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. We are with them often because of the nature of what we do as Christian Musicians. We are so thankful for that and often sit together for lunch and tell the children how nice it is to be able to have the time we have together. That being said, we, kids included, are together a lot! So we can sometimes forget the amazing privilege it is to have the time we have together. I guess that’s normal – to not take advantage of the time you have when you have it. I don’t think someone would think we’re bad parents for not realizing every moment that the time we have is such a gift.

But isn’t it good to be reminded, once in a while, how the people in our lives are gifts from God? Isn’t it good to sometimes be reminded that God has a purpose for us as parents, and children, to be the ‘gifts’ He created us to be? After all, He knows the plans He has for us and they aren’t to harm us. His plan is to give us hope and a future! (Jeremiah 29:11)

Thank You, Lord, for the little (and big) reminders You give us. Thank You for my kids, Will and Sidney. Please help Russell and me to be the parents You’ve created us to be. Help all of us as parents to be who You’ve called us to be and deny what this world says we’re to be. This is, after all, about You and Your plans. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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Small Youth Group: Student Worship

I’ll cut to the chase: No matter how many people show up, no matter how much money is in your budget, or even how talented you may be . . . worship starts in the heart!

“Sing and make music to the Lord with your hearts.” Eph. 5:18-19

Don’t get me wrong. All those other things help support the worship time, but they don’t necessarily fuel it. For leaders who have a small group, I would like to approach this topic in two ways: first,  by encouraging you to build a culture of worship in the hearts of your group, and second,  by helping you create opportunities for students to respond in worship.

Building a culture of Worship begins with you. Do your students see you worship? As I lead worship I always try to help paint a picture of what worship is . . . and what it’s not. Because of the way our churches are historically setup, most people think Sunday is the only time we worship. We call them, “Sunday Worship Services.” We need to help students understand that Worship is a lifestyle. More than the hour on Sunday or the Student ministry gathering, it has to be a perpetual theme in our daily lives. Giving students biblical insights to all the different ways we may worship is key. Music is just one aspect. There’s also prayer, thanksgiving, tithing, reading scripture, painting, communion, interpretive movement, serving, and more. From my experience, students are eager to know more about Worship and what it means. Everything we do should be an act of worship.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17

As you strive to build this Worship culture in your group there are some practical things that may help students respond:

In a more intimate worship setting, song selection is critical. Songs need to be singable. Don’t try and teach too many new songs at one time. People like to sing songs they know. You’ll soon see which tunes become your group’s favorites. Next, build your teaching times around a particular song and allow the students to sing the song at the end of the session with a new found understanding of what they are saying to God or about Him.

Allow your students to take ownership of the worship. Enlist students to pray, read scripture, or lead music.

Have your worship time in a completely different setting. Occasionally, change locations so it’s not always the same.

Give students a tangible way of responding in Worship (e.g., writing something down, laying something on the altar, bringing an offering, praying for each other). You can also encourage your group to come up with ways they can serve the community as an act of worship.

Ultimately, worship is to be our response to who God is and what He has done. Hopefully, we can all catch the vision of what Jesus was saying when He said that we should, “Worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:24

Russell Johnson is a worship leader, singer, and song-writer. He and his wife Kristi lead worship across the United States and have just released their worship video, Arise. To find out more about Russell and his ministry, check out www.russellandkristi.com.  Also, check out SYG’s site for more student ministry insights.