#GmalaBenefit Concert 2012

A post from Concert Organizer, Melissa Kereji:

A little over a year ago, when first asked to use my marketing skills to help promote a benefit concert, I couldn’t have been more excited. The concert would raise money and awareness about Engadi Ministries in Guatemala. Friends of mine from church would be taking the money that we raised and giving it to the ministry during their mission trip. I was stoked to be a part of something greater than myself, something that would bring glory to an awesome Creator.  With a little bit of luck and a whole lot of prayer, the event happened, and we raised a lot of money for a great ministry.

When asked to help with the event this year, I was unsure if I should agree to help and take on the responsibility. Between school, interning, and work, I felt as if planning one more event was the last thing I needed.  I reluctantly agreed to help anyway. God has been quickly showing me that despite my best efforts to plan things, ultimately His plan is so much better than mine and I should be using my time and energy to glorify Him.

As I was thinking about the upcoming show, I slowly realized that because of the insanity that is my life I would need a great team to help me pull off the planning and marketing of this show. God quickly provided me with the exact right people to get this thing off the ground and running. So here’s a little bit about each of them and the things that we’ve been working on to make this whole thing happen:

• Mitchell Blom—My partner in crime, who has been an integral part of getting all the bands to play for this show. Not only has he volunteered his own time and that of his band mates, but the entire show was his idea.
• Ryan Tablada—An audio tech geek who can handle whatever question comes his way and can help inform me and the bands of what needs to be done on the audio side of things.
• Levi Gordon—A very innovative friend of mine who has helped develop marketing plans, promote the show, and even hang posters. Not to mention his role as host of the show.
• Matt Robertson—Our leader and liaison with Rolling Hills. Without him we wouldn’t have been able to do any of this. From making sure the venue was free, to contacting all of the right people, this show wouldn’t have happened without him.
• Myself—The term promotion is key to my involvement with this show. From having posters designed to coming up with innovative ways to market this show, I have been blessed to be a part of this team.

I would also like to give a special thanks to Tyler Hays, a friend of mine from home, for his awesome poster design.

Now, on to the good stuff!

We are running a Twitter Promotion! Our posters have gone up on Belmont’s campus and are continuing to be put up various other locations. Take a picture of our poster and tweet it with the location and the hash tag #GmalaBenefit. The person who takes the most pictures at different locations gets in FREE with a +1 for helping promote the show. Happy poster hunting, and we hope to see you all at the show on February 18^th!!!

Benefit Concert for Engadi Ministries

Title: Benefit Concert for Engadi Ministries
Location: The WareHouse
Link out: Click here
Description: This concert will help to benefit Engadi Ministries and the team of college students from Rolling Hills Community Church that will be traveling to Guatemala March 4-11, 2012 to help them. Engadi’s goal is to create a place where impoverished boys can grow up into mighty men of God.

Bands playing are : The Weight of Glory / My Red & Blue / Bayland / Cautioners / The Skeleton at the Feast
Start Time: 19:00
Date: 2012-02-18

A Reflection On Priorities

Priorities. We all have them, and they change according to where we are in life. When I was a little girl, I was concerned with having fun. As I got into middle school my priorities became my friends, and watching any and all TV appearances by the Backstreet Boys. In high school my priorities consisted of boys, making good grades, and being a part of the youth group. When I was in college a few years ago, my priorities centered on the leadership positions I held (student government, bible study leader, RA, worship coordinator), hanging out with friends, working a job, and classes. All good things. All important things in fact. All necessary priorities.

But here is what I did not always make that list: my relationship with the Lord, and being involved in church. I got caught in the trap that the ministry work I did, was my time with the Lord. If I led a small group that day then I could check “God time” off the list. If I went to a worship gathering for college students? God time, check. If I had an RA event and I talked with my residents? Well, I was doing some sort of ministry work, so I can totally call that God time. Let’s be honest though, none of those are real substitutions for my personal time with the Lord.  I could hardly do these same things to a friend, and expect our relationship to be good. I, we, surrounded ourselves with good things. We need to make school a priority as students. Building relationships is essential. But if Jesus is not our number one priority, then everything else suffers as a result.

One other quick thing I wish to share with you. I went to church every Sunday. I went to church, but I never got involved. And I used my other priorities as reasons why I could not join a community group or serve in the children’s ministry. In college, you live in a unique world where you are surrounded by people who are in the same place in life, same age, and all seeking to find themselves. But I forgot, I need the church and the church needs me. We all need people that have a little bit more life experience to learn from and also those that are a little younger to pour into. We need each other. Being a part of the body of Christ should have been one of my priorities. I can see that now.

What is important in your life? What are your priorities? Do they need to change?