Three Kings in this city!

In a different direction this weekend, went to Memphis, Tennessee, with my church choir, to tour Graceland and sing concerts in two churches.

Graceland was amazing. I have blogged about Elvis before, (click here )--a kind and ultra-talented man who took kind of an, um, distracted side trip from his Christian roots. But he always eschewed the title, "The King," saying, "There is only one King--Jesus."

We also visited the site of the assassination of Martin Luther King. There had been a strike of sanitation workers. The basic issue had been lack of timely paychecks, as I understand it. And you know the rest of the terrible story.

Then, the reason for the trip: We sang in two churches, in Memphis and Brownsville.

The response ministered back to us. The first church we sang in stood up during one of our songs, "Something Happens." Click here for an online performance I found.

Well, something happens with that song, all right, it'll knock your socks off, but it's the first time I sang in a choir that got that response and it was awesome to know I was part of something the Lord was using to really bless people.

And did they bless us back, with lasagne, Southern fried chicken, fresh vegetables, chocolate chip pecan pie, and so on.

Before the second service, we had prayer time and I asked that the Lord minister to us through His people again--with their response to the songs, I mean.

And they did. The second church stood and clapped during a third of the songs!

I mean, right in the middle of a song, if they liked its message, they'd stand up and clap. Like for "How Great Thou Art."

And click on "When I Don't Know What to Do." The solo in our version was sung by a young woman who came out of a very rough background, mom and sibs in jail, to graduate with honors and attend college now. She has never sung in a choir or anywhere else before. And in "Cry Holy," "Grace," and again in "Something Happens."

The pastor made us sing the fun "Hallelujah Anyhow" twice.

It was exhilarating in the spirit. And such freedom for the Spirit.

Makes you think the Lord meant every word in Psalm 149 and Psalm 150.