Evan Agee: Live from Richmond Indiana

I heard something on the radio while I was at lunch today. "We miss out on many blessings because we do not endure through hardship.". Tha statement is somewhat at odds with human nature and that’s probably why I like it so much. Whether it’s church-related problems, or some other situation we forget that God will use us and the lessons we learned through that hardship to help others through the same hardship. Something to ponder…

The Anchor is coming up on Saturday and I’m really exicted about it. I hope that everyone that attends enjoys it. I think its going to be a great time and I know that the band will have a great time playing for it.

I’ve mentioned the website for Unseen on here a couple of times, but I thought that it was worth mentioning that I made some updates to it last night. Mainly there’s actually information on there now. If you’d like you can check it out at http://www.whatisunseen.com/. It’s not finished, but it’s taking shape.

One thing that we’re going to be incorporating into the site at some point are resources for people interested in Christian books, movies and music. We hope to have a reviews and rating system setup so we can make recommendations. We’ll see what happens with that, it’s a lot of work.

Enough on that for now, how about you bookmark the Unseen website and check it out once in a while? Or, take advantage of the easy-to-remember domain and memorize it.

Yahoo! News - First Invisible Galaxy Discovered

Wow… is it me or is this headline just a little strange.

I’ve been a Christian for nearly 7 years now, but I’ve never really gotten into Christian music that much. Most of it, I thought, was very corny and contrived. Usually when I’d hear most praise songs on the radio I’d quickly change the station and, usually, say outloud to myself “CORNY!”. Well, now I know what I was missing. I’ve been listening to some groups lately that have changed the way I worship.

My friend and band-mate Adam has turned me onto some groups that are just out of this world. Isreal and New Breed is the main one that I’ve been listening to, but I’ve also been turned onto Hillsong and Delirious. I had never heard of these groups, but now I wish that all Christians were familiar with these groups so they could experience them.

Israel and New Breed
Israel and New Breed are a powerhouse of musical talent. I liken most of their music to Dave Mathews Band, though they’re actually pretty different. I think it’s the drummer that makes me think of DMB. Israel Houghton is the name of the worship/band leader. He’s a wonderful musician and serves as the lead vocalist for most of the songs. With about 13 members, the group is very large, and you can tell when you listen to their music. There are so many subtle nuances that I’ve hears something new each time I listen to it. Their jazz-esque style makes their sound increadibly exciting to anyone that likes fusion.

Hillsong + Delirious
This group took me a little longer to appreciate. They’re very much similar in style to the majority of praise bands. Their songs are mostly slower and reflective. However, the one thing that sets them apart from many praise groups is their lead singer’s voice. Her voice is almsot haunting. In particular, the song “I Give You My Heart” gives me chills almost everytime I hear it.

I highly suggest that you check out both of these artists. You won’t regret it.

My cousin Anton is a youth leader in New Castle and he has been doing lots of great things with the youth program at a Presbyterian church over there. One of the things that he’s working on is a youth camp called Project 4.12. I’ve been working on some promotional materials for him for the last few weeks and I’m getting ready to start on their website, which is http://www.project412camp.com.

The idea of the camp is to give local youth a chance to serve their community and therefore be an example of Christ to people that might not otherwise ever see the evidence of His existence.

Kristen and I are planning on going to the camp this June and helping out. We went to a similar camp last summer and had a great time. Unseen is also going to be the praise band for the week, so that should be a great experience.

If you’re a youth leader or a member of a youth group, you might take a look at Project 4.12 and see if it’s something you’d be interested in.