What Faith Can Do...

Wow.  It all started with a dream Amy had back in October.  She dreamt that Paul Colman was going to come and do a benefit concert to raise money for our future work in Kenya.  Jason laughed when she told him.  Almost as though his laugh was daring her, she decided, "I'm going to email Paul."  She ended up emailing his agent (seeing that Paul's email address is not public) and was stunned when his agent wrote back saying, "I have forwarded your email on to Paul.  He will be contacting you directly."  Wow.

It was exciting enough just to get a personal email from the very talented Paul Colman, and even more exciting that he was interested in helping us with our cause.  After negotiating the specifics and finally settling on a date, we needed to find a venue.  That was tough.  Our church could barely hold enough people to cover the costs of putting on the event.  Every church we tried was not willing to let us use their facility as non-members.  We even talked to the Concert Promoter at Spirit 105.3 who told us sadly that she thought it was an endeavor we would probably lose money on as "people are being very frugal with their entertainment dollars in this economy."  We wondered if doors were closing because we weren't supposed to pursue this dream for some reason.  So we took it to God. 

We prayed that, if God wanted us to follow through with this, a door for a venue would open within the next two days, and we would walk through it.  We realized that an open door did not guarantee we wouldn't lose money.  But we kept thinking about the parable of the talents.  We also knew that if God opened a door, He had a reason.  And it could be a reason much more important than money. 

Well, the very next day, Calvary Fellowship opened their doors to our event, and plans were again underway.  Scores of friends offered help with advertising, setting up, providing food, and many other tasks.  The Busby family also contacted their friend, Scott Krippayne, to see if he would be willing to open for Paul.  Scott graciously accepted the invitation and blessed us with his amazing gifts.

 

On-line ticket sales before the concert were low.  We had only raised 14% of what we needed to cover our costs through pre-sale tickets. Gulp. But God spoke to us throughout the process, "Seek first My Kingdom, and all these things shall be added unto you."  So we continued praying and trusting, and moving forward in faith.  

In hind sight, this is what we can tell you:  It was not all about the money.  In our minds, it started out as a fund-raiser.  But God also knew it would be a ministry opportunity.  The Spirit of God visibly descended over all of us as Scott brought us to a place of sacred worship through his songs.

We were able to invite a wide variety of friends and family, and I know several in particular who were deeply touched by Paul's candid testimony and sincerity of heart through his lyrics.  Seeds have been planted that God will continue to nurture.  That alone would have made the whole weekend worthwhile, even if we had lost every penny invested.  

We were able to spend some quality time with Paul that was very encouraging to us, and we hope was encouraging to him also.   Life is difficult, and Jesus promises that life with Him will be fraught with trials.  But He gives us brothers and sisters in the faith to encourage and lift eachother up.  The opportunity to minister and be ministered to was sweet fellowship that you cannot put a price tag on.

And as an added bonus, we did not lose money.  Quite the opposite.  At the end of the night, we had netted about $4300 in cash and pledges, with more pledges still coming in.  God is so good to us, and has once again fulfilled His promise that He will do more than we can ask or imagine.     

A special thank you to God, our Abba Father, who made this weekend possible.  And to Scott and Paul who took precious time away from their families to bless us.  And to the many friends and family who helped in various ways.  And to all of you who are helping us follow God's plan for our family by pledging your ongoing prayers and financial support.  May God bless your sacrifices in ways that go beyond what you can ask or imagine!

To view photos of this weekend, go to: http://picasaweb.google.com/scottjack1/PaulColemanBenefitConcert#