I’ve been told by our website administrator that the blog has been a pretty popular hangout, so I know that I can speak for Kelsey, Robert, and myself when I say thanks for supporting our writing! : )

I’d like to talk a little bit about our last performance, which was for the women at New Life for Girls in Dover, PA, their families, and the public. Our small groups were again given the wonderful opportunity to speak with a woman residing at New Life. It was purely by coincidence that Mary, the woman who had spoken to my small group last year, was again paired with me, but boy, did I sure go to sleep that night after having a glorious revelation.

Mary is a true woman of God–there is absolutely no doubt in my mind about that. What threw me for a total 360 was that she was not in rehabilitation because she suffered from drug or alcohol abuse. She was not forced into rehab, kicking and screaming pleas of help, by a caring family who knew that she needed the help of the true professional: the Lord, Jesus Christ. Instead, she voluntarily entered the program.

Strangely, after Mary shared this crucial piece of information with our small group, my expectations of hearing a “really crazy story” were lowered. I figured things probably weren’t about to get dramatic, but I just smiled along, trying to grasp onto any bit of her story that I could attract readers with when I blogged about the show. Mary shared with us some stories of growing up in a Christian home, her father a minister, and her mother a firm believer in the salvation of Jesus Christ. Their daughter, however, began to move in a different direction. She moved out of the house and started a successful life of her own with a dream job and a multitude of friends. The amount of money she possessed determined her happiness. She did not develop an addiction to alcohol or begin using drugs. Instead, she simply woke up and decided that she was not happy with the life she was living. She needed more. She enrolled in New Life: the beginning of her new life. She graduated from the program a few months ago and is now working on their staff full-time, encouraging women with radically different stories, but with one common denominator;  their lives were falling apart and they desperately needed a Savior.

Even after speaking to Mary and tearing down after our performance, I felt melancholy about the whole small group experience. I couldn’t help but wonder what God was trying to show me through Mary’s story. It wasn’t until later that night, as I was praying to God before I went to sleep, that I was humbled.

God was able to illustrate my need for Him in a unique way–in a way that I had never quite experienced Him before. It struck me that I didn’t need to be considered an alcoholic or a drug addict before I needed His forgiveness of my sins. No matter how hard I strive every day to be more like Him and live in His ways, the bottom line remains: I am a sinner who needs forgiveness. The woman in the audience who went to jail for theft does not bear a sin that is any heavier than mine, for Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” All. I am not the exception, for there are no exceptions.

But, alas, there is hope, and His name is Jesus Christ. For He paid the price, as Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

I thank God for the blessing of Mary, for she has brought glory to her Father’s name.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Live on,
Katrina

The first thing that was different from other shows was the set-up. It went SO quickly, due to our new and efficient risers. Instead of setting them up from back to front, which we used to do with the old risers, the new risers are set-up front to back, which is something the riser crew will have to get used to. Reportedly, the risers were set-up in fifteen minutes, an amazing feat. Although I am not involved in the physical set-up process, I have the honor of writing letters to our sponsors and those who write to us from different facilities, and got two letters completely finished. Some people who were done with set-up or weren’t doing anything also helped to write letters, so we got about a third of the required letters done. All the letters are handwritten and unique, and we talk about how Shining Light has influenced us and how God has changed us and other people through the experience.  After set-up was complete, we did mic checks and ate a dinner provided by the facility. Then it was time to perform.

We first noticed the students when we heard them yelling outside, which was slightly intimidating. They marched in, one by one, with green hats and yellow shirts. They all had numbers on their backs and were very quiet. I was near the screen in front of the stage to the right, and was able to observe all that was going on. The guards were exceptionally strict; I would NOT want to be caught messing around if I were a student there.

The show went very smoothly from my point of view, but some of the songs lacked some drive since Jeff’s keyboard was malfunctioning and we didn’t have a guitarist.  There were also some mic issues, but the audience really understood the message. For the second show of the year, it was no surprise to anyone that the show wasn’t perfect yet, but it has definitely improved since Teen Challenge. I’ve been to the Northwestern Academy many times, having been in Shining Light for four years now, and it had always been variable in its audiences. One of my first times there, the audience stood up and many were worshiping with us very evidently, but other times, the audience members have catcalled and laughed at everything we did. This time, we had a great crowd.  Many talked at the end during the “Talk Time” and were so appreciative of our coming to Northwestern. One member of the audience was surprised at how quickly we set up.  Another shared about the typical day at Northwestern, which apparently includes a ton of physical training.  After “Talk Time”, the students left in the same conspicuous manner as they came, assembling into perfectly straight lines, making a sharp right turn toward the door, and yelling out their numbers. Then we had our own talk time and talked about our reactions. We concurred that it was a great show, that God really worked through us, but that we have the ability to raise the show to a new level by the time of our New York weekend. Most of the energy we require on stage has to come from true worship, which only comes from giving our all to God. When we begin to do that, our show will be radically better.

It was a fantastic show, and I look forward to see it continue improving. Let’s keep on working hard, Shining Light.

I consider Shining Light to be a vital part of my musical and spiritual background, this year being no different. Shining Light has kept me from being pigeon-holed in classical voice by providing me opportunities to sing rock and R&B type styles. It has also given me exposure and experience in dance of various styles and plain acting. All of these have benefitted my musicality immensely.

But the main reason why I enjoy and appreciate Shining Light so much is because of manifest closeness of God I feel in it, whether on stage singing, writing a letter to an inmate, practicing a dance routine, or having small groups. It is said that the gates are Heaven are near the gates of Hell, and we experience that every time we walk into a prison and perform for the audience there. God uses us as his “shining light” to communicate to the inmates a message of hope, a message seldom preached in those facilities. Shining Light is such a vehicle to get across God’s amazing love, both to the audience and to us; having both seen and participated in Shining Light shows, I can honestly say that I am more greatly impacted on stage than off. Shining Light has been invaluable in keeping me on the righteous path for these grueling High School years. Having a network of passionate, Christian friends is something I wouldn’t trade for the world. I feel so blessed to be able to participate in this group, a group which has a powerful message and is unique in the United States and perhaps even the world in its mode of evangelism.

I have been at Teen Challenge several times, and if I’m not mistaken, this is my seventh time there. Teen Challenge is always a blessing. Local audiences are polite, but not responsive, whereas some facility audiences are rude, and responsive in that way. Teen Challenge, however, is a perfect balance of both elements. Considering this was our first show of the year, and returning members were rusty and new members were…new, the show was still a diamond in the rough. According to some audience members, it was difficult to tell that there were technical errors, but on stage, it seemed like we weren’t up to par. I was extremely impressed that the men weren’t acknowledging our faux pas, like so many others would do in other facilities. Despite our slip-ups, it reminded me that God works even in those situations— He drove through the message we all came to share, regardless of how well we danced or sang. I think that was most evident in the song “The Lord’s Prayer”, when at the end, all the members of the audience stood up and cheered. It was a glorious moment.

After the show, I was on a spiritual high. It’s always been difficult for me to step out of my comfort zone and really give my all to Jesus as I worship; but at Teen Challenge, I finally busted through that wall, and it felt so good. God has really used Shining Light to bring me closer to Him, and it’s been a remarkable experience. Whether it’s our culminating tour, a local prison, or a local community performance, God never ceases to amaze me through Shining Light. It has left an indelible mark on my spiritual walk and shown me the true meaning of the phrase, “God will provide.”

Throughout high school, I was always involved in pretty much any drama that was on our stage, and the wonderful opportunity to play several leads in musicals and plays. I was quite sad to see that part of my life end, and then remembered a wonderful show I had seen presented at Manheim Brethern in Christ Church by Shining Light. So, long-ish story short, I am now a member of Shining Light. Yay me!

Anyway, my first night at Shining Light I knew a total of one person, who also goes to Manheim Central. But that was okay with me, seeing as I’m really not a very introverted person.

Since then, I am proud to say I do know more than one person, and I’m very excited to be making so many friends! The atmosphere at Shining Light is very Christ-centered and inviting, the way the body of Christ should be. It has been such an incredible blessing to me to be able to be surronded by so many Christians who have a heart to reach out to those who are largley forgotten about.

During these past weeks a preparation for the first show, I was really very how impressed how organized the ministry is. Everything is planned out so well, and it really makes the whole experience much more enjoyable. So bonus points to the leadership team!

I also had the opportunity to audtion for a recieve parts in the drama, “Wonderfully, Speacially Made” and a solo for the song, “You are the Truth”. Although this has made for extra practices, I’m pretty okay with it. It provides another chance for me to hang out and fellowship with my friends from Shining Light.

Approaching our first show, I will not deny that I was more or less dreading two things: 1. Khakis. 2. Set-up. First off, I really despise khakis, but I figured I could probably suck it up, seeing as that’s not really the focus of our program. So I moved on. And then set-up. I was mostly apprehensive because I really had (and still don’t) have a clue as to what I was doing. But I really wasn’t all that bad, and I should be much better at set-up by the time tour comes.

Surprisingly, I was not really nervous for the show, maybe because I’ve done similar things in the past. Before the show, our small groups we able to talk with some of the guys who were at Teen Challenge, and it was awesome to see the be so open with where they came from and where they want to head, now that they have God in their lives. I am also currently reading the biography of David Wilkerson, the man who founded Teen Challenge, so it really a blessing to see the fruit of God’s work in his life.

The guys at Teen Challenge (who were not really teens..although I suppose “Teen Challenge” sounds a bit cooler than “Middle-Age Challenge”. Just a thought.) were a wonderful audience and really helped to boost my confidence, seeing as we will soon be facing slightly more intimadating audiences soon.

Overall, Shining Light has been a crazy awesome blessing in my life, and I can’t wait to see where God takes us this year! God bless everyone!

And here’s a sweet verse that I’ll leave you with:

Philippians 2:14-16 (New International Version)
“Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe…”