z Last night (Wednesday) was my long-awaited “Mercyme” concert.
I am a fairly HUGE “Mercyme” fan…the lyrics of their songs penetrate my soul. Their song “Bring the Rain” was almost a motto for our Guatemalan adoptions.
Happily, last night Chase and Trey got to experience “Mercyme” IN ACTION for the first time!
Of course, they know most of the songs because I play them all the time 🙂 I have to admit to not really “loving” music like my husband…I don’t remember band names, song titles, lyrics, or…really..anything…
UNLESS the song stirs me.
(like Cindy Morgan’s “How Could I Ask For More”… and Etta James’ “Sunday Kinda Love” … and a few others- but not many. sigh)
So, as a result, I play the SAME songs over and over and over 🙂 This behavior drives my music-fanatic family quite insane…but..eh…what can a girl do?!
Anyways, after they got used to be being CRAZY (read: dancing 🙂 screaming 😉 the boys really settled in and enjoyed the band.
“Mercyme” concerts have a huge “worship” component. LUV this.
I LOVE worshiping the Lord in a huge group where there is no pressure, no pews, no expectations.
Apparently, so does my 14 year old.
I was nearly brought to (more) tears as I stood by my oldest son as he sang just as loud as everyone else.
As he lost himself to the love of worship.
He let his teenage insecurities drop and he became part of a larger whole that was lifting praise to God simply because God is God. Not for what He gives us…but because He is “I Am.”
I, as a Mom, really and truly want NOTHING more for my children than to love the Lord with all of their heart, soul, and MIND.
Oftentimes, I think I focus on “the MIND” part a bit too much…because it was not focused upon during my upbringing.
I’ve managed to get information in front of my kids that make them feel, intellectually, secure about God. About good vs. evil. About Heaven. About the Bible.
But…
Last night…Chase was learning, more, to Love the Lord with his Heart and Soul too.
I really can’t ask for more than that…For if they love the Lord with all their Heart, Soul, and Mind then all the other pieces will follow.
It was a special night.
One that, I hope, my boys will remember as penetrating their Hearts and Souls in a way that only God can…
The whole event was fun…but this “moment” … hearing my Chase sing with no cares….was a “true moment” I will never forget…
(I was trying DESPERATELY to get a stage dude to take my bowler hat (which is a clone of one on “Mercyme’s” latest album cover…back to the band to get it signed. Um. Yeah. Well. That didn’t happen and, actually, the stage hands were sorta mean 🙂
Before the concert…We enjoyed the fair…
It was just us and ‘the big kids’. This is unusual for us. Yet it was a BLAST! Trey, with his sassy sarcasm, repeatedly mentioned just how “nice” it was actually…eyeroll 🙂
(we won four new fish…welcome ‘home’ fishy friends…mmmwwwhahahaah…)
(and, I ask, WHY is the Momma always the ‘pack mule’? huh? huh?)
Yet….the moment of hearing my son sing his heart to the Lord…remains the highlight of the day…actually of my parenting life in a way …..
I PRAY that this is a moment that it is a glimpse into the future for my Chase…and my Trey…and my Zane….and my Tye..and my Avenita.
Luvs,
Andrea..and my 5 monkeys
Holy cow! Did you have to buy a ticket for the Jamaican banana, too?! We were at the fair yesterday, too. Perfect weather! Glad to hear your teen is growing into a man of God. 🙂 (Have I mentioned I have a beautiful 14yo dd? 😉
There is just nothing like seeing your children lost in the Lord! How wonderful 🙂
What a special moment for sure Andrea with Chase! Long and pray for that day too with my kids.
And… I am VERY jealous all the way over here in Oz that you got to go and see ‘Mercy Me’live. I have their latest album and love it! Love your bowler hat too btw:)
Glad you were feeling a bit better and had a great time:)
Anna
I am thankful that you were not at the fair LAST NIGHT. Those poor people. It is just a horrific accident. I pray for ALL those affected.
Miss you.. I thought of you immediately. And I am praying for you girl! You’re a hero of mine Andrea and …IF this ramps up any of that stinkin’ PTSD ..I know you won’t forget these beautiful pics of Chase worshipping here. How obvious that Satan wants to push those precious things over in our lives and take us back to our “weaknesses.” I had an experience last week that reminded me “The JOY of the Lord is my strength.” Meaning when I CAN NOT find joy — DO NOT have any… HIS JOY will be my strength. And what does he take joy in? Chase’s worship for one…
Yeah…the catastrophe at the Fair (two nights after we were in the exact spot the stage fell) threw me into quite a PTSD loop.
I felt, again, like we ‘barely made it out alive’. Which isn’t a rational reaction but, regardless, is where my mind went the second I heard the stage fell.
It took me a good 24 hours to ‘shake it’. My feelings of overwhelming empathy and grief (like couldn’t stop crying, kinda ‘frozen’ mentally, looping the images in my brain without wanting too) for the terror those people felt, for the injuried being “buried and stuck”, for kids being hurt…
All huge triggers for me.
I still can’t believe such a thing happened honestly.
I SO appreciate you all thinking of me when this happened…for I don’t deserve an ounce of thougth compared to what the true victims deserve…but your friendship here made me feel very understood and loved.
Thank you…
Andrea