Archive for the ‘Worship’ Category

Lilac Photography covered Heaven Fest!

Thursday, September 2nd, 2010

Ellie is just one of my favorites!

http://lilacphotography.com/

I don’t know anything about photography, except that I love good photographs and especially when you are allowed to SEE something in a way you’d have neglected to look. I love the photos that arrest me, cause my heart to beat faster, make me shake my head in wonder. Uh-huh. I do. And Ellie does those. I have some of the BEST photos of my family members from her work.

So, she roamed around and took pictures at HF this summer. I wanted to share them and I have also included a few of the stories of Heaven Fest. People have emailed us and Facebooked us and shared a little of their hearts. There are hundreds of stories, these are exceprts from a few…

Some Photos from Heaven Fest www.heavenfest.com & some great stories, too!

Hello to the HF Team,
I’m sorry I had to work & was unable to hel and volunteerp. However, want to thank you for the whatever you can afford tickets. My wife got hurt on her job and has been out of work for about 7 months now. I have a 15 year old son who wouldn’t have been able to go if it were not for this. My gratitude and thanks go out to ALL of you for what you do. Hopefully, next year, we will be doing better and I will be able to give more. I truly appreciate it! Thanks Again!
B. E. (& son)

JESUS! JESUS! JESUS! The might name of Jesus was all my family heard all day!!!!
I got the Whatever You Can Afford tickets because I have been jobless for 1yr and 8mo and I am going through a bankruptcy.
My 5-year old son made a friend in the ticket line and they shared a bag of chips, as they talked about how they were both (black and white) formed from the dirt that they were walking in. Jesus!
…I prayed with a father that was reaffirming his belief in Christ and prepared to baptize his son. My children joined me at the table (under the shade) and asked what they were doing and I explained what was being done, why it was being done and how it was done. My youngest said, “Alright Mom… lets go… I know Jesus… He died on the cross for me and you and brother.” I look at my oldest son, and he looked back at me. I was a little hesitant because we didn’t have extra clothes or towels… we didn’t have anything. The hesitation subsided and I signed all three of us up. I told the volunteer that we had been through a lot in the last two years: homelessness, no employment, no money…And to the water we went… !!!! I REAFFIRMED MY BELIEF IN CHRIST THROUGH BAPTISM, I BAPTIZED MY OLDEST SON AND MY YOUNGEST SON!!!
After the plunge in the lake my children and I were truly grateful and call it an added benefit because we were soaked from head to toe and no longer hot. We were definitely comforted by the water and the wet clothes!

Thank you Heaven Fest!!!! Thank you Jesus!!!

This was my first year volunteering and I can truly say it was a blessing. Lifebridge Christian Church, leading up to Heavenfes,t had been preaching about 1 body 1 Christ and that is all I was thinking about on Saturday. It doesn’t matter what church you attend but to come together for one day as brothers and sisters of Christ and serve together and make Heavenfest a success was an unbelieveable experience I will never forget. God willing I will be there next year to help again. ~Ana

Thank God for your ministry and all the many people that worked so hard to make it happen. My wife and I were blessed beyond words to be able to volenteer to help with the prayer team. We live 150 miles away and had 23 from the church here in Yuma Colorado so we had limited ability to help. We were assigned to a team to pray in stations all around the campus for 4 hours. We took a couple of breaks to worship in the 24/7 worhsip and prayer tent. We finished with a half hour prayer in the tower. My wife is deathly afraid of heights and I was shocked that she would go up. It was the most wonderful day of prayer my wife and I ever experienced. I can not wait to come back and serve again. I was so amazed at the mulitiudes of servants that were willing to give their all so that God could minister to so many. A God work this awsome can not happen without prayer, great leadership and humble servents. Our part was so small compared to so many but It meant so much to our lives. D and L Smith

I decided to get my church, my youth group, and friends excited to go Heavenfest 2010. We all came out including two of my friends that really didn’t know about God one way or the other, but were excited to go to a massive concert with friends. We all had a great time… I convinced them to stay for the Sacred Assembly, and so we all settled down on the grass and waited for the sevice to begin. Not long into the service, both girls who didn’t know Jesus started crying and both looked and me and said “I didn’t know… I didn’t know that there was Someone out there that cared so much.” I smiled held them and said, well now you know. Both said afterward that for the first time they wanted to go to church, and they now understood why people got so ‘into’ worship services. They felt the power of Jesus. Thank you, thank you so much for this. I have tried for some time to get these girls to even want to talk about God, and in one night, they not only wanted to talk about God, they were believing in Him!” S.V.

heaven fest was awesome. at the hardcore stage…Chad Johnson of Come and Live (great guy get him for next year) asked us to raise our hands if we were dealing with depression so that we could be prayed over. i did this and found everyone around me had laid there hands on me and was praying for me. i had never felt this touched in my life i found myself weeping for joy. It ranks as one of the most life changing experiences of my life.

Hi everyone!

Just wanted to say what a blessing it was to serve at heavenfest!
I personally was the recipient of a miracle during heavenfest: I hadn’t felt well since the birth of my 6th child almost 2 years ago. I think that I have a calcium deficiency as a result of having a baby so late in life and I have a hernia, were my abdominal wall is weakened and tearing due to heavy lifting and childbirth . I had extreme weakness and pain in my joints and I was unable to lift or bend without experiencing a painfull tearing sensation in my stomach.

I felt exhausted and weak and had barely been able to function from day to day which had made me very irritable and hard to live with. When heavenfest contacted me and asked me to be a retail manager this year, I started praying for the strength to serve.

At the leadership meetings, which -by the way -were unlike any meeting I had ever attended, I felt the Lord strengthening my spirit and preparing me to be his hands and feet! I felt an energy welling up inside of me and a calming peace and confidence overwhelming me. During heavenfest I was completely pain free!!!! I carried heavy boxes, cases of water, and equipment up hills and painted and drilled signs in the hot sun and was on my feet for 19 hours and never felt stronger or more energetic!! I prayed for strangers and co-workers boldly and felt the presence of God all around us! I felt love toward all those I came into contact with and found myself praising and thanking God continually throughout the day. At about midnight I realized that I had been using my left arm all day without any pain!! God is so awesome and I know that he equipped me to serve him in a way and with a strength that was supernatural!!
“Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord Almighty” Zechariah 4:6
Annie Baker

I got healed at Heaven Fest last year in much the same way, Annie! Praising God with you! What an honor to serve alongside you.

How perfect is this for today?! God rocks!! Encouraging Word …For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it. ~ Habakkuk 1:5, NLT

Here’s some thoughts for you! Thank you and God bless you! Another amazing year….

Three years of Heavenfest, and three years of being in the presence of God surrounded by thousands. This year was no different. I think our Lord marks this day on his calendar just as we do now. We bring them together for his glory, and it makes him glad. [boldened by Jeanie...love this!] I saw God baptizing people in the lake, I saw God dancing to techno music, I saw God pumping his fist to hard rock, I saw God beating on drums, strumming on guitars, and walking through the front gates holding peoples hands. I saw God smudging chalk with his fingertips, telling jokes and reading psalms. He sat beside me and whispered words into my ear as I prayed at the front gates for all those who passed through. God was everywhere.

The best moment for me was as we knelt with thousands listening to his word during the Sacred Assembly. As we stood at one point with our hands raised and eyes closed hand were placed upon one another in ~ The body of Christ was united. That feeling of having the hands of others on your shoulders was only surpassed when after, bowed down in the dust I felt God’s arms around me in the most gentle and purest of love. It was at that moment that we were asked to raise our eyes to heaven and smile. I did so with tears streaming down. When you seek him – he is there. When you are with him- you know his love. I have been so blessed over the years to only begin a relationship with my father I knew never was possible. Each year at Heavenfest I pray for that for others, and I have seen the seeds be planted in the fields each year. Yes the music makes us rock out, and sometimes cry, the people you meet are amazing, but the time with God surrounded by the body of Christ is like no other.

This event has changed our lives and continues to help us grow in faith each year. Both of my sons made their decision to be baptized after the time they spent with God at Heavenfest. (’08 and ‘09) We have all grown in our convictions and calling to bring others to know Christ. Prayers and promises made in these fields each year have brought our family closer, helped us to forgive each other, ourselves and others we know, reach out to others, and to be better children of God. We were on Holy Ground in Longmont this year. We will never know the extend of all the miracles that happened there that day- but there is no doubt that they happened. One happened to me. I felt God touch me- something that has only happened several times in my life- and because of it, I am humbly and joyfully one step closer to him.

In his Grace, Let’s share our miracles!!!!! Smiles and blessings~ Alison

*Thanks for letting my boys help with clean-up!…. Can’t wait to help next year!!!!!!!!

This? Is my family!

Tags: heaven fest, HEAVEN FEST 2010, heaven fest reports, heaven fest stories
Posted in God's Word, Photos of the Fam, Prayers for a God-full life, Songs I am singing, Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | 1 Comment »

The Summer Sand-Bucket List

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

Earlier this summer I decided to assemble a “sand-bucket” list (wrote about it here and here) of things I needed to do to feel I’d enjoyed summer by its’ end. Well, these cooler evenings and bright, breezy mornings, and the calendar flipping to September (not to mention my grandbebes back-packing it to school) tell me I had better assess. Autumn actually begins September 22nd at about 9 pm here in Colorado, so I have some days yet to correct oversights…how about your Sand-Bucket list? How is it going?

My update below:

My 2010 Sandbucket Summer List ~

Meanwhile…

I tried to “prepare” myself for fall by getting grateful about Pumpkin Spice Lattes being back at Starbucks and assembling an “autumn” playlist of songs at www.playlist.com. I become very melancholy each fall with my approaching birthday. I found 110 songs and they are almost all about September or November. October does not get the music it deserves. Hmph. So that depressed me. {j/k} Sometime this month I’ll go through and keep only the songs I really love and perhaps share it here – because I am nice like that. ;p

Posted in LIST! I love lists!, Songs I am singing, Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | 1 Comment »

Westword’s Heaven Fest Slide Show

Saturday, August 14th, 2010

THE T-SHIRTS OF HEAVEN FEST: Actually one of the coolest bunch of photos I saw.

CLICK HERE to view 42 slides

Photographer, Eric Gruneisen for Westword, took these at Heaven Fest and I loved what he captured this way. These are the people who came: real, everyday people. Some normal, some maybe not-so-much. Some came for just the music and fellowship and fun. Some came to make the Name of Jesus glorious.

I smile at some of these t-shirt sentiments because I love the truth and the creative ways they found to share it and I cringe at others because, though this is my “family” – the whole, big crazy bunch of Jesus followers from every possible denomination and set of values, some of those shirts just won’t play well to others, they won’t know the wearer’s personality or what, in life and experience, has made them choose the shirt they wear. Like any fam, there are some crazy opinions and thoughts out there. You get 30,000 people together and there is bound to be some hilarious differences along with the familial similarities. But they are mine – these people, part of the household of faith.

Love IS the movement

Heaven Fest: Mostly Jesus lover/followers and passionate crusaders. They are people who are willing to live their lives for something other than themselves. And they don’t mind letting you know what they think. And it is too bad that often Christians are the only ones people want to censor.

Definitely register at the site and leave some comments for the slideshow. Tell them your favorites and support the fam, the Body! Someday we may have to do the same for you!

Galatians 6.10

“Therefore as we have opportunity,

let us do good to all,

especially those who are of

the household of faith.”

Tags: Body of Christ, Family of God, heaven fest, HEAVEN FEST 2010, household of faith, t-shirts, westword, witness tees
Posted in God's Word, Photos of the Fam, Songs I am singing, Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | No Comments »

HEAVEN Fest 2010 ~ It was crazy wonderful!

Thursday, August 5th, 2010

Kari Jobe (one of my all-time favorites) leading worship at main stage near the end of the night, mixed with scenes from the day. This is just 4 minutes of over a week of cool stuff, because as soon as volunteers set foot on the property, the miracles and love started flowing! THANKS FOR THIS VIDEO, GREG “HD” VERSPOHL! Love ya! Seriously!

Photos soon!

There are so many great ones I just can’t decide!

www.heavenfest.com

Posted in God's Word, Sacred Romance, Songs I am singing, Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | 3 Comments »

Heaven Fest 2010 – The DAY is just hours away

Thursday, July 29th, 2010

This is HF Week.

It is wild, crazy fun and tiring. In a reeeeeeeaaaalllly good way. Volunteers start showing up to help build stages. Tent companies start setting up. The port-o-potties arrive by the truckfull. The interns order mountains of food and water the workers. Newspapers show up to take pictures and a bald eagle sat watch from a tree backstage today! Nice people everywhere!

Omygoodness: THANK-YOU to everyone who helped build stages yesterday and today. And to people in the office stuffing packets and answering hundreds of phone calls and running errands and keeping us in chocolate!

L O V E all over the place!

Tags: heaven fest, HEAVEN FEST 2010
Posted in Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | 1 Comment »

The Crushing

Monday, July 26th, 2010

So I plopped a small flax seed plant, more as an herb addition than anything, into a bare spot a couple of months ago. Obviously I cannot get enough flax seed to actually harvest and use, but the blue flowers are delicate and very pretty and I wanted to see how how this mega-healthy seed grew.

I mean, come on. This seed is high in Omega-3 Fatty Acids and helps fight cancer, diabetes, heart disease and a myriad of other things that ail us.

So, after the bloom, a very small, maybe pea-size, pod appears. It drys and slightly browns. I stop by and help myself to a pod or two while gardening. I pinch and crush it open, whereupon the chaff disintegrates in my hand and amongst it I find plump, life-giving seeds.

As I place the little sphere in my hand, I realize it is, really, a very delicate little covering, this outer husk. It surrounds the true fruit of the plant, but can be crushed in a second, obliterated with hardly any thought or effort at all. And then it looks like an unusable mess in the palm of your hand – like who would ever even take the time to try to retrieve the revitalizing seed once protected and nurtured? The crushing. And now what?

Some days I am in too much of a hurry and waste it, but today, I realized, the slightest breeze, my soft breath blown on the mess of the crushed husk is all it took to reveal: 10 perfectly shiny, healthy life-giving flax seeds. And the sheer density of the life-potential within them keeps them there during the wind-storm of my breath. The crushing hurt the shell, but the crushing couldn’t take away the future of these tiny seeds. The pod-destroying blow didn’t negate the purpose for which they were created and it couldn’t stop the seeds’ destiny.

“The harvest is past,

the summer has ended,

and we are not saved.”

Since my people are crushed, I am crushed;

I mourn, and horror grips me.

Is there no balm in Gilead?

Is there no physician there?

Why then is there no healing

for the wound of my people? Jeremiah 8.20-22

Two realizations on an early summer morning…

1.

Same with us. God breathes in our direction on the most painful places, the most damaging situations, the most vanquished moment of our lives. My carefully fashioned defenses are obliterated. And? He breathes. And the force of His breath reveals – all has not been lost. The true thing remains. All I am and all He created me to be, the legacy I have to leave…there still as the chaff floats away on the breeze of His command.

Isaiah 53.5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

2.

And we can do that for others. We can be the agent of grace who looks at how the enemy has tried to hurt some one irreparably, tried to destroy the hope and the future plans God has for them and we can breathe life. What the enemy means for harm, that thing that has cut so deep a person cannot even see the way out, we can walk in as an Ambassador for Christ and the blow away the mess, dust off the area, bind up the brokenhearted, bandage the wounds and tell them, “See? You were born to be a beautiful planting of the Lord. The devil may have taken some stuff, but he couldn’t take your purpose. All is well. You are not destroyed. Be at peace.”

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,

because the LORD has anointed me

to preach good news to the poor.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim freedom for the captives

and release from darkness for the prisoners,

to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor

and the day of vengeance of our God,

to comfort all who mourn,

and provide for those who grieve in Zion—

to bestow on them a crown of beauty

instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness

instead of mourning,

and a garment of praise

instead of a spirit of despair.

They will be called oaks of righteousness,

a planting of the LORD

for the display of his splendor. Isaiah 61.1-3

Since I so need it, this cleansing breeze, I must so sow it.

Posted in God's Word, Health, LIST! I love lists!, Prayers for a God-full life, Stuff I actually think, Worship | 3 Comments »

Heaven Fest is…

Saturday, July 24th, 2010

an opportunity

To bring the Church (big “C”) together. To make the Name of Jesus glorious through worship. To get believers out of separate boxes and into the world to proclaim God’s faithfulness together. To bless the City of Longmont and the City of Firestone and Weld County. To work with all the jurisdictions cooperatively, bringing peace to the city. Proverbs 11.11a, “When right-living people bless the city, it flourishes…”

a platform

For making people aware of child sex trafficking and how together we can put a stop to it (Heaven Fest is giving to end child sex slavery and exploitation this year www.love146.org). For raising funds to help end homelessness in our region, for caring for the poor (working with the O.U.R. Cengter in Longmont, applauding their work to pave the road to self-sufficiency in the St. Vrain area www.ourcenter.org). It is to make people aware of child soldiers (another ministry HF will be giving to www.projectak47.com) as young as 4 years old and how we can, together, lift the heavy oppression and ungodly abuse of them.

a chance

To give. To defend the helpless. To see what we can do together. To come together in prayer and unity for the glory of God. And to sing and dance and smile and have a great time!

a venture in faith

Because this is bigger than any of us could ever do. But God just sends people and resources and makes it happen. The potential for great disaster lurks, but somehow, God…He makes it happen. And we look back in awe and shake our heads and give Him the glory! We don’t have the expertise, the resources or the finances to do this, but somehow…and the giving we want to do gets done.

Body life

Where have all these amazing people come from? 1800+ volunteers from churches all over the metro area. New friends. Just today I met a man who’d been part of the Denver gang scene for 17 years, living a bad life. Last year at Heaven Fest, he made the change and got baptised at HF and is living for Jesus today! Everytime we turn around God is sending amazing people our way and I just can’t get over the fact that my whole life I did not know how many consecrated, devoted followers of Jesus were outside my circle. They are everywhere! People LOVE Jesus! It is so cool. And? They give-give-give of themselves so the work of the ministry makes an unbelievable impact!

Get tickets online, click here

www.heavenfest.com

crowd from last year

Posted in Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | No Comments »

How WOULD Jesus Get to Heaven Fest?

Thursday, July 22nd, 2010

www.heavenfest.com

YOU CAN’T WALK IN TO HEAVEN FEST. YOU HAVE TO DRIVE.

HOT TOPIC! http://www.timescall.com/editorial/editorial.asp?ID=22650

And there has been a little bit of a stir about that. I can understand because being green is important these days and if you live nearby, you hate to have to get the car out when you could normally just walk in the the reservoir. And for anyone from Longmont who was planning to walk in, I am truly sorry for the inconvenience (though most of the commenters seem to have such negative opinions I don’t think they were coming anyway). So an editorial in the Longmont Times-Call (see above) actually proposed we HF organizers think about what Jesus might do to get there. And I have.

And, respectfully – if Jesus were coming to Heaven Fest physically this year, with 11 or 12 disciples in tow (or 35,000), I think He’d be driving in. Because He’d know that after months of meetings, a concensus between us (the organizers) and the Longmont Police, the Weld County Sheriffs, and the Colorado State Patrol, has been reached. It has been deemed a huge risk to think of anyone crossing the kind of traffic that 35,000 additional people coming in tot he city will create on highway 119 and the surrounding roads. I am pretty certain Jesus would follow the legal mandates and safety plan decided upon by the many officials who made this decision and who work daily with the community’s best interests in mind. He’d so understand that the safety of everyone attending was important. So He’d drive in. And He’d pay the $5 parking fee (all of which will go to orphans and ministries saving children from sex slavery), in fact – I think He’d overpay because He knows where that koney is going and He’d probably hang out a lot in the children’s area, laughing and eating ice cream and generally forgiving us all for being so ungracious to one another.

We have invited Him to be there. And I hope the people of Longmont and the surrounding areas will see Him, through me, through you, through thousands of other people who come to worship Him that day.

HF TRAFFIC PLAN, click here

DISCLAIMER: These are my personal views and do not reflect the viewpoint or opinion of the Heaven Fest staff or volunteers or the ministry of Worship and the Word Movement. They are just thoughts I had. Stuff I actually DO think!

Posted in Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | No Comments »

Volunteer at Heaven Fest

Tuesday, July 20th, 2010

Click here: http://www.heavenfest.com/involved/volunteers.php through Friday. Only 168 volunteer spots left!

Our HR team is unbeatable. Seriously. They got requests from HF leadership for something like 1800-1900 volunteers to run a festival to welcome 35,000 people to Union Reservoir at Longmont this year. And they have been out to churches all over the metro area and along the Front Range telling the Heaven Fest story and making the vision plain. And people are answering the call! How cool is that?

The volunteer link is only up for a few more days and only 168 positions to fill.

Volunteers are already hard at work

Volunteer already, will you? You’ll help promote a culture of honor, you’ll make the Name of Jesus glorious and you’ll sweat and work hard and get to serve some of the greatest people you’ll ever meet anywhere! Plus? Because we didn’t have to pay some one to do what you’re doing? There will be money for orphans and resources to help end child sex slavery through www.love146.com. There’ll be offerings for the poor and the homeless and Jesus wells dug in India. THAT is what YOU volunteering will do.

Kristie Allbritten and Stephanie Morgan? I am humbled and blown over by you. Thank you. thank you. Thank you. You leave me speechless…

VOLUNTEER, says Tredessa

WHY HF, Dave Powers explains

A Look Back at The Sacred Assembly

The lightening show was straight from the heavens – not some effect added later. An incoming storm stopped dead in its tracks and we just had the coolest worship time at the end of the night! Volunteers help soooooo much! PRAY ABOUT IT THEN SAY YES!

www.heavenfest.com

Posted in Songs I am singing, Stuff I actually think, TV, Movies, Books, and Entertainment, Worship | 1 Comment »

How did we get here?

Monday, July 19th, 2010

HEAVEN FEST IS IN 12 DAYS!

I got the coolest e-mail (well, I was one of 4 recipients which included DP and Tara and Tredessa):

I’m sitting here reflecting on everything right now. We’re 12 days away. Things are really starting to come together. We have an amazing team we nearly had to kick out last night because it was getting late! We’re on a crash course to have [more than 35,000] people. This year we did better on our vendors, our sponsorships, our donations, our materials, our volunteers. Tickes sales are through the roof and climbing…

I guess I’m just grateful to be in this with you guys. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine getting to this place. Love you guys!

-Luke

The thing is? Luke painted a picture we could see. He was a young guy with a cute wife and adorable baby and he came weekly to eat leftovers at my kitchen table and would tell us the story of what Heaven Fest could be. And believe me – getting on board that dream was a defined and specific call of God. I had no desire to fund and produce a festival for the masses, but somehow there, in those summer days of 2007, we decided to say yes.

Dave, Tara, Luke and I “went public” in September of 2007 (Tredessa joined in the spring) and Heaven Fest was born July 26, 2008. Oh, but conceived so much earlier.

The 2010 Leadership Team at the final training July 18, 2010. Crazy visionary, Jesus-loving, self-sacrificing, mission-minded, giving, praying, worshipping, enemy-defeating, gifted, talented, called and appointed people! Oh, I am in awe! {By the way – do you see how Luke is trying to self-promote and be seen in this picture? Yeah. I didn’t think so. Because he doesn’t.}

And I never could have imagined what God would do or the people He would send who are just so unbelievably a-ma-zing! But I feel especially honored to get to work with Luke. He is one unique individual, a true-hearted, authentic visionary and I am so glad I got to hitch my wagon to his star. It is a crazy fun ride.