Sunday, July 3, 2011
2011 Marengo 4th of July Celebration
It is a hot, sunny day. A perfect day for July. The kind of day you remember when you reminisce about summer picnics and festivals. It’s a great day! We enjoy hearing some other acts perform. The sweetest thing is when Sarah Wilson calls her daughter to the stage to perform “Sing, Sing, Sing” with her. Such endearing charm as her little lady sings and does motions she learned at VBS the prior week. Makes you smile.
Time to unload and set up! Out come the amps, guitar cases, fans, cases with cords and cables, pedal boards. Drums, drums, cymbals, drums, and more cymbals out of the van and on the ground. Up on the stage it goes to begin the “race” to get it all set up and in working order in a timely manner…there is an audience out there waiting after all. Sound check…another sound check…then another…then another…
It is so hot Jason has a towel soaked in ice water around his neck - and is still hot! A cooler full of bottles of water is essential! Not to mention praise the Lord the town of Marengo rented a tent for the crowd!
Speaking of the crowd, there is a great one today! We are so thankful and excited to see so many friends and family! It is fun and such a blessing to see familiar faces come to support our guys! I even get to see my friend from 13 years ago! Tia Wilfong is down here with her kids and her YSB group raising funds for their Florida trip! They are working hard and super excited! How great it is to see her and hear about her busy life and important work as mama and youth worker! Then I turn around and there among our family members is Jeff and Shelly Minton from Clean Socks Hope! They are the last people I expect to see all the way out here in Marengo! What a blessing they always are!
Jay and Libby talk Martin’s wife, Corina, into taking them around the area to check out the games and moonwalks. She is the sweetest lady and they love her dearly. I smile to see them walk away down the street with her, Libby’s hand in hers and, no doubt, chatting her ear off. Grandma Jane buys them nachos. Then they go find a seat on the top of the bleachers to wait for the show to start.
Set up done, sound checks done, box fans blowing, sun shining, sticks up, picks in hand, pedals on…it’s show time! “…Defining Ezra begins in 10, 9, 8, ……3, 2, 1!” Cue the guitar intro to “We Shine”…I love that intro!
Martin, Jason, Ory, and Gabe knock it out of the park today with something like 8 songs. A range of sounds, from Switchfoot to Fee to their own bluesy sound. Rockin’ it out for the Lord of Lords. The crowd is fun and responsive. Great set guys!
They take a 5 minute break and come back to lead 3 songs for the Community Worship Service to close out Faith Day of the festival. We worship together in song and Jason steps up to the mic to bring the Word.
Boy does he bring it! I'm standing here wishing I had of recorded it!!! My man is boldy proclaiming the Gospel in this town. He leaves nothing to question. He speaks of sin and depravity. He tells it how it is. No sugarcoating for him! How I love it when he is passionate. He continues and reminds us of Who forgives and grants us salvation. He tells the crowd of grace and how without such grace we could never have saving faith! Off in the very near distance storm clouds have formed and are making their presence known! A very impressive wall cloud is making its way towards us when Jason gives an altar call and then closes the service. A young lady, in the midst of the rising concern the clouds are causing, comes forward to pray for her husband. Such a sweet spirit to think of him and ask for prayer when most everyone else is plotting their “escape” plans…lol
The moment Jason says, “Amen.” Every person is on their feet packing up and heading out! Sissy and I are putting the merch away. We are up on the stage breaking down instruments and equipment to get them to safety from the storm! We put the kids in the van to keep them out of the weather. Several people help us out and we get the guitars and other equipment put away and secured, but it has become evident that we don’t have enough time to get the drums all broken down and put away! Thankfully, Ory opens the overhead door on the building behind the stage and we are all carrying the drums and cymbal stands into there. Then there is the sound guy’s tent to see to. He is here alone and we notice that he is frantically trying to zip up the “walls” of his tent! Some of us rush over to help him and the wind is trying its best to thwart our efforts! Finally, right as it starts to pour and the thunder and lightning are getting loud, we get the last side zipped! Whew!
Now we make our way into the building to break down the drums and put them away. Apparently, the tent zippers aren’t holding well and Martin, Corina, and Gabe are helping the sound guy keep the flaps pulled shut so he doesn’t lose thousands of dollars worth of equipment!
Finally, the worst of the storm blows through and we are able to load the van. We are outta here! It has been a wonderful afternoon and we won’t forget it! God is amazing and He greatly blessed us this day. We couldn’t ask for anything more! We pray that the Lord be glorified and His gospel advanced through the music and preaching of His Word. I am so proud of our guys and the way they shared their God-given talents today! I love the way God uses us all – musicians, wives, Mom, Dad, brother, friends, and kids alike – to make it happen!
Thank you Mona and the town of Marengo for having Defining Ezra today!!
