On This Day

Hello Friends!

Today is a pretty special day around here. It is, in fact, Truth Bomb's sixth birthday. And for some reason all day I keep writing "third" rather than "sixth". Maybe it only feels like three years? Not really. I don't know why I keep doing that. In commemoration of this special occasion here are two photos. One from "then" and the other, "now".

It's bad when your own photograph makes you laugh! In the photo from '05, Kaitie's bass was almost as big as she is! She wasn't even 12 years old yet. And Andrew was still shorter than me. He's got me beat by about a half-foot now! My "little" brother no longer.

On January 23, 2005 we played "Today" -- the first song we ever wrote -- at the end of the last service at our church. And by "last service", I literally mean it was the last service at that church, ever, before it closed. It was a sad day. And I was so nervous! My hands shook so bad I was surprised I could still play. We recorded our performance of that song on a cassette tape and that's what we used to book our next couple shows. To this day, I'm still not sure how we got any bookings!

Oddly enough, the closing of our church was the reason we decided to start a band in the first place. Andrew and I had been playing in the worship band and we had every intention of continuing. But when the church closed, we no longer had a place to play music. We were writing our own songs by then too. So we decided we'd try to play at any churches that would have us. And play we did! About every other week on average that first year. It's just like God to take a sad occasion and use it to make something good and entirely unexpected happen.

Blessings,

Christin

Gravity is the Difference

Hey Friends!

How have you been? I can't believe I haven't blogged yet this year! Or rather, this decade! How did it get to be 2010 so quickly?

This past year has been interesting for us (Truth Bomb). I can't even quite put my finger on the difference between this past year and the previous years, but something has definitely changed. I think it's for the better.

Maybe it's just that we're getting older. We're no longer a kid band anymore. Except for Kaitie, she's still only sixteen. But she has always been mature. Even still, there's a big difference between the eleven year old she was when we started and the sixteen year old she now is. She no longer complains that band practice is taking too long and she wants to go outside and play :).

But I think it's more than just the fact that we have checked off a few more years from our lifespans. There is a weight to what we do. A weight that I don't think we felt when we started. We feel the gravity of what it is God has called us to. Or maybe it's just the weight of knowing God has called us. Period.

There were shows that we played last year in which we did not know if we would all survive. We did not know if the concert was going to end suddenly with one of us collapsing and being rushed to the hospital, rather than closing out on our rendition of "How Great is Our God" as we'd planned. There were shows that we did not know if our van would carry us safely to the venue. Would the front end fall off and cause an accident? Would the van overheat and burn up? Would we just break down in the middle of nowhere? But we had to go. We had to play. We had to sing. God had given us no out. This is what He called us to do. And do it, we will. We have no choice.

It's amazing how much more a song means to you when you think it might be your last. It might be the last time you play that song for an audience. It might be the last time you play that song ever. It might be the last song you ever play. These thoughts attach a great weight to a song. To a show. To a calling.

Gravity is the difference. Being in a band is no longer about lofty dreams of fame and fortune. No longer about the glamor of tour buses, sold-out shows, and #1 singles. The gravity keeps our knees on the ground.

~Christin