Calvary Baptist Church

This morning was my first chance to minister to a church here in Nashville!

A few weeks ago, at an NSAI meeting, I met the music minister of Calvary Baptist Church. We got to talking, and he invited me to come and sing at the church some Sunday. So this morning, Gerald and I packed up the guitars and went to church...

We were asked to open the service, so we did "I Have Decided to Follow Jesus" with dueling guitars (me on rhythm, Gerald on lead). For our solo pieces, we wanted to do songs of comfort, so Gerald did "Do You Trust the Wings God Gave You?" and I did "Abide With Me". All the songs were really well received.

It was a wonderful service. Everyone was very friendly, even before they knew that we were there for the music, and a lot of people came up to us after the service with very kind comments. The message was great too: The pastor preached on the story from Luke when the paralyzed man couldn't get in to see Jesus, so his friends lowered him down through the roof. But his message wasn't about the sick man or the miracle of healing. Instead, he took the theme of "caregivers", and focused on the friends who cared enough to do whatever it took to get their friend to Jesus. It was a great perspective to take on the story, and he branched out to talk about the importance of caregivers, and how Jesus is the ultimate caregiver.

This morning felt like the start of something very good. Actually, with the CWE performance on Friday, this whole weekend has felt like the start of something good. I've been trying to find my specific place in this city for a few weeks now. I know I have a long way to go, but tonight, I feel like I have my feet on the right path.

Oh, and we've been asked back to Calvary Baptist for another service! Can't get much better than that!