Saturday, November 22, 2008

Free Praise Concert

Before I knew about yesterday's free Kutless mini-concert, I knew about a free concert featuring Martha Munizzi. Maybe her name is unfamiliar to you. I'm not all that surprised. Marissa and I only found out about her two summers ago when we watched a movie called The Gospel. She had a brief role playing herself and we really enjoyed the music we heard.

Later we were given a copy of her CD to help Aidan go to sleep. It worked wonders, especially during his colic stage. If it wasn't for prayer, Gripe Water, and Martha Munizzi, we would've cracked a long time ago. We told Martha about this in an email testimony. The staff member who replied to us assured us she would read it and love the story.

Well, back to the present, we took Aidan and our friend Kristi to her concert tonight and were instead treated to a praise service with two other gospel groups. Martha was the headliner. She sang some familiar songs and some that were new to us. And then, seemingly out of the blue, she stopped her concert and began ministering as the Holy Spirit directed her. She called anyone involved in music ministry to the front of the room to speak blessings over them. Half the room was up front! She passed out a handful of freebies, promoting her table in the foyer where more items could be purchased, sang a final song, and then disappeared back stage. The service was over.

Marissa and I wanted to get some t-shirts to remember our evening, so I sauntered over to the table while Marissa went in search of a drink of water. I found the shirts we liked and asked how much they were. I liked the price but wanted to confer with Marissa before making a final decision. I looked up and she wasn't back yet. Then I realized that Kristi and Aidan weren't around either. I finally felt a tug on my shirt and turned to find Kristi standing with Aidan right behind me.

Kristi asked me if I thought Martha would like to meet Aidan and I said that she was probably packing up to leave. Kristi shook her head at me and pointed to her left. "Oh, here she is!" I was two feet away from the gospel singer and didn't even know it! About that time, Marissa showed up. I leaned over and asked Martha if she remembered reading a story about a baby who wouldn't go to sleep unless her music was playing. "The colicky one?" she asked. "Yes!" I was excited. I pointed to Aidan and said, "This is him!"

We talked to her for a few minutes and even got a picture on my phone of Aidan and his favorite lady (I'll post it as soon as I figure out how to download it from my phone). I ended up buying four (4) shirts at half price. Aidan's is the only one that doesn't fit; he's got several years of growing before it will.

Marissa and I both were very impressed with Martha Munizzi's humility. She's a very easy-to-talk-to rock star. And she sings about Jesus. What a treasure to the kingdom of God!

No comments: