Jars of Clay and life...

I went to a Jars of Clay concert Tuesday night with performances by Derek Webb & Sara Groves. It was outstanding! I was really excited to see Sara Groves as she has quickly become my favorite female artist! I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed Jars of Clay- there songs bring back a lot of memories.

I still remember where I was when I heard there first single, Flood, 10 yrs ago. I quickly made a purchase of their CD and became a fan. I remember the breakup of a guy that I had been seeing for three years off and on and listening to World's Apart, confident that this breakup was the Lord's will. I remember Chris and I's early dating days and driving home late at night, don't worry kids it wasn't too late, listening to their new CD If I Left The Zoo. I can still recall the feeling of driving on the freeway with the windows down and heat on during the month of December wondering if Chris was going to purpose soon, while listening to No One Loves Me Like You. For Taylor's birth I made a collection of my favorite songs to be played while I was in labor and she happened to be born while River Constantine was playing. Then while Chris and I made a fresh start with our lives in Maryland two years ago at the Pastor's College they came out with their Who We Are Instead album. This CD as well as the song Sunny Days will always remind me of the PC. And my most recent memory happened a few weeks after Trevor was born. The sleep deprivation started to kick in one Sunday afternoon and I had just gotten both kids down for a nap. Those of you who are moms know what a miracle it is to get both kids down at the same time!! I took the God given opportunity to lay down myself and just as I started to drift off Trevor woke up crying. Knowing that Chris should be home any moment and feeling on the edge of a breakdown I took my bible and the IPOD outside to compose myself. I sat on the front porch but my new child had a great set of lungs and even with music and the door closed I could still hear him crying. So I moved to the van. We had just purchased Jars Redemption Songs (their best yet in my opinion) CD so I played that in the background. I listened to I Need Thee Every Hour and God Will Lift Your Head while reading the Psalms and had a good cry. Chris' car pulled up next to the van within five minutes. He looked over and saw me crying and has this look of "What in the world...?" He kindly went inside and cared for Trevor while I sought the Lord.

All that to say I had to laugh when they announced at the concert that they will be coming out with a new CD this summer. Just in time for the birth of our third child in August!