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VICKY
BEECHING:
I'm most thankful for celebrating twenty years of walking with Jesus! I
became a Christian when I was 7 years old and now in 2007 I am 27. He's
been so faithful to me throughout all my life, and I'm incredibly thankful
for that! I'm also thankful for Starbucks’ recent invention of the
Cinnamon Dulce Latte ; ) although I think that already existed in 2006!
I'm also thankful for my niece and nephew Jessica and Owen. They are so
cute and they are teaching me how to relax, and play, and regain a childlike
sense of wonder about the world.
CHRIS
RICE:
I am most thankful this year for a new sense of creativity in my life.
It has been so much fun to explore not only new music, but other kinds
of art (like painting and writing). Also, so much of my work this year
has taken me out of my typical Christian surroundings, so I am also thankful
for new challenges that come with meeting a lot of people who have different
beliefs than I do. It's stretching me and growing me in ways I never
imagined.
BETHANY
DILLON:
There are SO many things I've been thankful for this year... the sweet
friendships I have in my family are priceless to me! Something else I
am increasingly thankful for is my journal-- it's such a precious time
for me to sit down with those weathered pages, my Bible, and a pen, and
process the season that He has me in. I'm so thankful that He's wired
me to come ALIVE when there's a blank page in front of me!"
DAWN
RICHARDSON (Fireflight):
I am thankful for God's Grace. Too many times I have let my worries get
the best of me and I start to lose hope for the future. But every time
God ignores my doubt and comes through anyways! In the end I can see
that God was in control the whole time, and I am just so thankful that
he doesn’t give up on me even when I give up on Him!
TREY
PEARSON (Everyday Sunday):
So far in 2007 I am most thankful for the time I was able to have with
my grandma, or as we called her, Mammy. She passed away March 26th of
this year, and she was just one of the most amazing women of God I have
ever known. She was so strong in everything she did. She finished the
race running hard, and she made a huge impact in so many people's lives,
including mine. My grandpa (Papa) passed away exactly two years before.
I was super close to them. Sometimes, I would go over to their house
at midnight or one o’clock in the morning just to hang out, talk
about the Bible, or to play Tetris. Ha. They could destroy anyone I knew
at Tetris. When he passed away, I moved into an apartment area on the
back of my grandma's house. I have just been so blessed to spend the
last two years with such an amazing woman. But I am so thankful that
she is home with our Savior now. She's no longer in a wheel chair and
no longer has the struggles of this world. But she'll always be in my
heart.
SARA
KELLY:
I am going through an extremely grateful season right now. In fact, I'm
all mush, so don't get me thinking too hard or I might cry. I could say
my parents and sister who brought me through the toughest season of my
life in the last 2 years, or my best friends Joy and Julie for always
holding me accountable and making me think. But instead I will say my
band members, Brandon and Adam, who know how to truly rock, but still
have the heart of worship I have always dreamed of having in a band.
They are truly inspiring, and I am blessed.
JASON
DUNN (Hawk Nelson):
I am so thankful for family. I'm currently at home in Canada and have
been noticing how much they've done for me over the years! I'm also thankful
for cheese. I don't know, it just tastes good!
NATE
SALLIE:
I’m thankful that God has ruined me for an ordinary life in 2007.
I’m thankful that He has restored, rebuilt, and redeemed my life!
I’m thankful that He’s opened our hearts to family expansion
through the miracle of adoption.
JESSIE
DANIELS:
This year I'm most thankful for God's faithfulness and blessing. I think
sometimes we either take advantage of the fact that God always pulls
through or we don't Him to. Meanwhile His word says that if we are obedient
to Him, we will be blessed.
Thank Heaven for 2007: 20 Music Artists Share What They're Most Thankful
for in 2007
by Tracy Darlington
It’s
easy to become obsessed with what we don’t have - But why not take
a second and thank God for what we do have, and for what He’s done
for us in 2007? Some of your favorite artists did just that. Here’s
what they’re most thankful for this year:
JEFF
FRANKENSTEIN (Newsboys)
This year, with all the traveling we have done, I am most thankful for my
wife and family. Every time I come home off a long trip somewhere, my wife
is there ready to greet me at the airport with her beautiful smile. She helps
me recover from being run down and tired on the road before it's time to
head out again. I am also thankful for my bandmates whom I have walked with
for almost 15 years. It's great to work with people you admire.
LACEY
MOSLEY (Flyleaf):
We have so many things to be thankful for. We are obviously thankful for
our friends and family, as well as our amazing fans. Having people who
feel our passion and our faith and meeting them out on the road is a true
blessing, and it's the whole reason we make music and get out on the road.
TRICIA
BROCK (Superchick):
This year has brought with it lots of changes--a new album, moving to Nashville
(again), and I think mostly feeling a bit grounded for the first time in
quite a while. I moved to Nashville with my sis and another roommate a
few months ago, and it’s been such an interesting change. We’ve
found a church that we really enjoy and so look forward to being here on
Sundays to go! And she and I are in a Bible study together and have grown
in a spiritual way more than I thought possible. Yes, we’ve lived
together most of our lives and the last 8 years on the road, but we have
found that studying the Bible and being vulnerable together in a different
way than we've ever been has brought us closer still. It’s been such
an amazing time of being more vulnerable than I've ever been with her.
God knows just when we need relationships to deepen and how to bring out
those phases in our lives. She is such an amazing woman, sister and friend
. . . and the older I get, I just feel so blessed to have the family I
do, who love me and push me toward God’s best for me. So, I guess
the thing I am most thankful for this year is my big sister, Melissa!
KJ-52:
This year I'm thankful for my new son being born. This is my first child
and I'm very excited about this blessing that God has given.
JILL
PARR:
Gratitude seems to have lost a certain flavor in today's busy world. Although
I strive to give thanks for the many blessings in my life, I'm sure I fall
short. With that said, when I actually sit down to write out all that I
am grateful for, I am overwhelmed. I am eternally grateful for my husband
who leads me and holds my hand along the path. His obedience to God is
a daily reminder to keep striving for the goal and never stop, despite
the bumps in the road. Of course, my 4 exceptional kids keep me humble
and young at heart and I am grateful for each of them. It's an incredible
thing for you to know how great you're kids are but when someone else out
of the blue tells you a story of an act of kindness or compassion that
they performed all on their own, it takes my breath away. I'm grateful
for the privilege God has given me to nurture their hearts in the palm
of my hand. I'm thankful for great friends who I can live in community
with. I'm thankful for their prayers, for the dinners we share and the
laughter they provide. And lastly, but most important, I'm thankful for
a Savior who is always near, who's grace is bigger than my sin, who's love
is one I will never understand but will always strive for. I'm thankful
that He has taken me on the long road to enjoy the beauty of the journey
and to reveal Himself in the storms and in the sunshine. I'm thankful for
the people He has allowed me to meet along the path!
NATHAN
PICHE (Article One):
When asked to write about my favorite memory from 2007, I thought about
it, and decided to say that I am thankful for everything! It sounds cliché,
but it's true! At the end of 2006, Article One was signed to Inpop Records.
As a Canadian, being signed to an American label is a big deal, and 2007
has been a lot of fun because we've had the opportunity to actually bring
our music to the US and tour down there. On a personal level, I also believe
we've been able to grow deeper as a group, and we've been fortunate to
have an amazing pastor get involved, to pray for us and encourage us spiritually.
At the same time, I definitely can't forget about our friends and families
who have supported us for so long, and continue to do so. The music industry
can be very tough, yet all of us in Article One feel extremely blessed.
For that, I am thankful!
SARA
ACKER (Inhabited):
Last year was a really tough year for me because we had to make a lot of "faith" decisions,
which resulted in walking through a lot of valleys! So this year it has
been amazing to see God answer all the prayers I prayed last year! I am
thankful to see the sunlight after last year's storms! For all of those
reading this, if God has given you a dream, don't ever sell out or change
for anyone! He will be the one to make it happen! He believes in you more
than anyone ever could!
MARK
GRAALMAN (Sanctus Real):
What I'm most thankful for this year would have to be God's wondrous grace
and the promise that He gives each of us of a hope and a future! He's promised
us that His plans are to prosper us and not to harm us. I am just so thankful
that I can always look to his promises for my life and know that He is
faithful to do what He said He would do even if circumstances seem scary
at the time! I'm making some big decisions this year that will affect my
whole family and I'm thankful that I can know that as long as I'm seeking
first God's kingdom, by the time this little blurb will is published in
a magazine sitting on a bookstore shelve somewhere, God will have once
again worked all things together for the good and once again proved Himself
loving and faithful!
JANNA
LONG (Avalon):
I am most thankful for my husband Greg and my two daughters, Julia and
Lillian. They are what keep me grounded in this crazy life. The smiles
my girls give brighten the darkest of days, and Greg's love and friendship
sustains me.
MICHAEL
ANDERSON (Building 429):
The last big event that happened to me was my wedding on June 24th 2006.
I know it is not in 2007, but nothing interesting has happened to me yet
this year. My 1-year anniversary is coming up here soon, which is really
exciting, and believe it or not we are actually going to be home on that
day! I am so excited about that. I am so thankful for my wife, Hannah.
She is one of the most amazing people I have ever known. To find someone
who loves Jesus as much as she does and who supports me in what I do is
a hard thing to find. She never questions what I do and always challenges
me to strengthen my relationship with Christ. I believe that Christ has
to be the center of any relationship, and if each person loves Christ first
then that will cause them to love each other even more. Being married is
one of the most amazing things that has happened in my life. One can not
describe how wonderful it truly is. Another thing I am so thankful for
is my relationship with my band mates, Jason and Jesse. This past year
has been such a growing experience for all of us, and I have never felt
more of a brotherhood in the band. The encouragement these guys give me
is amazing. You need people in your life to hold you accountable, and these
guys are great examples of that. We all work together to build each other
up in Christ and to make sure we are following God's will for us. We all
know we need each other greatly if we want to grow in our spiritual walk
and if we want to grow the ministry of Building429. How can we minister
to people if we are not being ministered to ourselves and if we are not
one strong unit? I believe people can see right through us if we are not
spiritually strong. I am so thankful for the guys in the band and this
wonderful ministry God has gifted us with. It is such an honor to get to
do what we do for a living.
TAMMY
TRENT:
Here I sit in front of my computer screen ready to type out some brilliant
new idea of "thankfulness" for the year, and yet the same thing
comes to mind each time I begin to type. I am sooo thankful for Hope in
my life this year. Hope refuses to be submerged. It is powerful and buoyant.
When life's difficulties weigh us down, Hope brings us back to the surface,
giving us something to hold on to and keeping us from going under. Hope
is knowing there's a way out, a way through - a way at all. Because Jesus
is the way, He is our Hope!
Tracy
Darlington is
a freelance writer, and her work has appeared in Brio, Breakaway,
YS, CCM Magazine, Insight, Susie Magazine,
and other publications. She has interviewed countless Christian musicians including
Rebecca St. James, Delirious, Newsboys,
Leigh Nash, Barlowgirl, Krystal Meyers, Joy Williams, Pillar, Michelle Tumes,
and many others. In her spare time she can be found riding horses or listening
to
music
and
sipping
a Venti 3-shot sugar-free vanilla latte. Visit her online at her
blog where she talks about Music, God, dogs and coffee. You can also look
her
up
at
Twitter and Facebook.