I smiled at the man's comment as he walked past. Just the day before I thought the same thing. Before me stretched a hillside in a lazy U-shape covered in people. Some sat in lawn chairs or sprawled on tarps; others played frisbee. A steady stream of newcomers poured into the crowd. A stage sat below in the center of the U.
I had found my place under a small tree at the base of the vendor tents. With my newly-wed husband working security at the festival, I had a lot of time to myself, and I enjoyed watching the different people come through. Where I was from, you could tell a Christian by looking at him-- unabashed conservative. At this thing called "Alive," Christians looked like just about any possible style there was-- conservative to Goth.
My husband had introduced me to contemporary Christian music as soon as I met him. He was a concert-shirt kind of guy and wore his favorites often. The idea that praising God could sound like MTV music was not something that my church subscribed to, and I had never heard more than "Friends" by Michael W. Smith before meeting Frank.
Every CD he had I would listen to over and over. Audio Adrenaline and dc talk became early favorites of mine, but I found myself particularly drawn to the strong, vivid messages in Third Day's self-titled CD.
So, here I was sitting under a tree with 20,000 people around me at the second day of the Alive Christian Music Festival. Third Day was about to take stage below. A soft breeze brushed through my hair and the warmth from the setting sun kissed my cheek. Purple hues washed through the sky as the band took the stage.
Third Day quickly won the crowd with their Southern rock feel. The music stood alone—there was no need for bright lights and smoke. Mac Powell didn’t need to dance around the stage to get the crowd going. I bobbed my head and sang along to the songs.
My eyes kept drifting to the sky and the amazing artistry of the Lord. Reaching for notebook to write a description of the sky, I was struck by words that I had even sung many times. “I know you said you gave it all to Jesus Christ/ You said that someday/ Said you would do anything/ But did you mean it?” Tears began to well in my eyes. I had never “given” anything to Jesus—I really didn’t know what that even meant.
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