Southern Gospel News SGNScoops Digital

Christian Country at the Creek

Creekside Gospel Music Convention has several new and exciting events occurring during the week of music and fellowship in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, on Oct. 27 – 31, 2019. Running consecutively with Creekside is the inaugural Christian Country at the Creek.

Leslie and Dennis McKay of McKay Project and M.A.C. Records

Tuesday night, Oct. 30, after the 2019 Diamond Awards and evening concert, event goers will travel from the Smoky Mountain Convention Center, to the Creek Stone Inn, located less than one-half mile from the Convention Center at 4034 S. River Road. A fun $5 pizza party will begin at 10:30 p.m., ushering in the Christian Country at the Creek kick-off, featuring artists Jessica Horton, Tonja Rose, and the McKay Project.

Rob Patz and Gerald Crabb

Wednesday, Oct. 30, Christian Country at the Creek begins at 8:45 am at the Mill Creek, 2772 Florence Drive, with The McKay Project. On Thursday, Oct. 31, Gerald Crabb will begin the day of Christian Country. In these two full days of music, fans will hear over 30 artists,  such as: Bonita Eileen, Pardoned, Carol Barham, and more.

Jessica Horton and Tonja Rose

Each evening, concert goers will join with those at Creekside, to enjoy Southern, Bluegrass, and Country gospel music on one stage, at the Smoky Mountain Convention Center.

For more information on Christian Country at the Creek, Creekside Gospel Music Convention, the 2019 Diamond Awards ceremony, as well as accommodations and VIP tickets, contact Rob Patz at 360-933-0741, email events@sgnscoops.com, or click HERE.

For more Gospel music features, read the latest SGNScoops Magazine HERE.

Listen To Todays Gospel Music Here

3-Fold Cord Ministry and the McKay Project return to the Mid-America Truck Show

Album available from 3-Fold Cord Ministries

3-Fold Cord Ministry and the McKay Project returned to Louisville, Kent., for the Mid-America Truck Show on March 28 – 30, to offer support and encouragement to truck drivers. The men and women that make up 3-Fold Cord Ministry are drivers themselves, or have been drivers, and understand the challenges of being on the road. 3-Fold Cord Ministry offers hope and encouragement through CDs, books, printed materials, podcast, radio programs and music.

McKay Project

Attendees came to meet the members of 3-Fold Cord Ministry at their booth, and to check out the newly released publication, “Real Life Stories – Trucker’s Edition 1.” The book contains true stories of real truck drivers and their experiences while navigating the highways across the country.

Visitors also browsed through the hundreds of FREE CDs with great music and messages created to inspire, encourage and challenge the listener as they drive down the highways. In addition to the free CDs, Lonesome Road Volume 1 and Volume 2 were made available. Both of these great albums have positive country and Christian country music geared toward the driver. 

Speaking of music, McKay Project returned to the Mid-America Truck Show for the third year as the musical guest for 3-Fold Cord Ministry.  Dennis and Leslie McKay make up the husband and wife duo of McKay Project from Columbus, Miss. They have an Americana style that brings a mix of blues and country to gospel music in a live acoustic setting. They performed live every day of the Truck Show to an enthusiastic audience.

Real Life Stories

For Information about 3-Fold Cord Ministry, contact Gary Rayburn at 618.383.2107 or www.lonesomeroad.org

For information about McKay Project, visit them on Facebook: @McKayProject

Mid-America Truck Show: www.truckingshow.com

3-Fold Cord Ministry Partners are Lonesome Road Ministries, Channel 21 Ministries, Good News Distribution, J & A Ministries, ACT, Trucker’s Friends Network, and CRI Ministries.

For more Gospel Music news, read the latest SGNScoops Magazine HERE

2019 Vernon Alabama’s Gospel Music Weekend

Vernon Alabama’s Gospel Music Weekend will be held Sept. 6 – 7, 2019 at the City Auditorium in downtown Vernon, Alabama. This family-friendly event is open to all ages and groups. Admission is free.

The weekend will feature multi-talented gospel artists showcasing a variety of musical styles, including Southern Gospel, Christian Country, and Bluegrass. Evening concerts begin at 6:00 p.m.

Many artists appearing are M.A.C. Records recording artists, including Jesse Reece, Jessica Horton, McKay Project, Carol Barham, Kenny Gardner, and Amy Richardson.

Also appearing are special guests the Bibletones, Eagle’s Wings, Day Three, Chronicle, Hope’s Journey,  The Riders, Gloryland, and Zion’s Way.

In addition to the nightly concerts, this year there will be a Saturday afternoon showcase concert featuring various regional artists. Concessions will be available.

Artists interested in performing during the showcase are invited to call the promoter listed below.

General admission is free, however, VIP passes are available this year. VIP guests will receive special priority seating, a bag of merchandise, and a private meet and greet reception with the artists. VIP passes are only $25.

Artists wishing to participate in the showcase, or for more information and VIP passes, email info@macrecords.net or call 662.889.2829 . For more information about the artists, sponsors, hotel accommodations, and restaurants, visit facebook.com/macnightofworship/

Leslie McKay: Wake Up Call

Leslie and Dennis McKay of McKay Project and M.A.C. Records

I imagine most of us are familiar with the term “wake up call.” If you are staying at a hotel, you may request a wake-up call at a certain time and a member of the staff will call your room to ensure that you wake up. Another definition of a wake-up call is something that happens to get your attention or to prompt you to change course, realize or recognize that you need to do things differently, or take stock of your life, etc.

Recently, we were staying at a hotel in Birmingham, Ala. After a long, but fun day of shopping we settled in for the night. The next morning was going to be an early one because we were heading back to Mississippi to be in church. We needed a good night’s rest. However, around 1:30 a.m. we were horrifically jarred from our sleep by the fire alarm going off in our room and the repetition of a woman’s voice telling us that a fire had been detected in the building and we needed to evacuate immediately.

We jumped up and after taking a few minutes to gain our senses, we threw on some clothes, grabbed blankets and headed out the door and down four flights of stairs. I would venture to say that very few people use the stairs in a high rise hotel or even pay attention to where the stairs come out of the hotel. When we emerged, we were in a basement parking garage and near what looked like a loading dock. We could hear the sound of fire trucks approaching. The hotel alarm was still blaring and the woman’s voice was repeating the message over and over to evacuate. We made it to the street level and saw other people like us that had dressed quickly, hair in a “hot mess”, and walking toward the front of the hotel. We followed.

You can imagine what was going through our minds…is it real or is it a prank? If it is real, what did we leave behind? If it is a prank, then I hope they catch who did this because it is not funny.

As we approached the front of the hotel, there was a group of people dressed in formal wear sitting leisurely in the front lobby. We noticed them earlier in the day. They were there to celebrate a wedding. Obviously, from their calm appearance, it was apparent that this was a false alarm and there wasn’t a fire in the building. Wow!

We entered the lobby of the hotel expecting someone to take charge and provide directions, but that didn’t happen. We expected to see firemen enter the building, but that didn’t happen either. After a few minutes, the alarm stopped and people were just standing around looking at each other wondering what to do next. When nothing happened, we went to the front desk where the clerk seemed to be doing business as usual (giving directions to the pizza delivery guy that had just arrived) and asked about returning to our rooms. “Oh yeah, there is no fire… you may go back to your rooms,” was his response. You can imagine that tempers were high. As sleepy people grumbled about the interruption, we entered the elevators and went back to our rooms to attempt to get a few hours of sleep before starting the day.

You may be wondering, “Where is she going with all of this?” or “What does this have to do with anything?”  As I returned to bed and began to try and calm my mind to go to sleep. I felt like the Spirit downloaded some info on the inside of me about that whole experience.

Everyone at some point in their life will experience a wake-up call of some kind.

You fill in the blank:
My “wake up call” happened when _________.

It can take a variety of forms. In 2018, my husband was in a restaurant when a car came through the glass wall and hit him (miraculously, he is okay). That is an example of an extreme “wake up call”. The wake-up call could be unwanted medical news, money trouble, job loss or change, a relationship going south, or any number of things. Sometimes a wake-up call is out of our control while other times we bring circumstances upon ourselves. I want to share some thoughts that I had after our recent hotel experience which I think relate to real life when it comes to a wake up call.

Leslie

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN THE WAKE-UP CALL HAPPENS?

1. Go With It – Move.  We realize what is happening, we take inventory, make the necessary adjustments and we keep moving. That night in the hotel room, we assessed what was happening, got up, got dressed and got out of the building.

In Acts 9 in the Bible, Saul was faced with a wake-up call when he was blinded on the road to Damascus and heard the voice of Jesus. Previously, Saul was a major persecutor of Christians and was on his way to Damascus to kill more Christians when he encountered Jesus. At that moment, Saul was confronted with who he was and who Jesus was. He immediately became willing to do what Jesus instructed him to do. Saul continued on the road to Damascus but the purpose for his trip was dramatically altered and his life was forever changed. Saul became Paul (Acts 13). His wake-up call produced an adjustment in his life that took immediate affect and he kept moving on for Jesus instead of against Him.

2. Stay in Chaos and Confusion. The wake-up call happens and we stay in a state of chaos and confusion; constantly scrambling and trying to keep our head above water.

My daughter and I laugh at my husband. He is a very deep sleeper and when he was jarred awake by the fire alarm he had no idea what was going on. For a few minutes, he was standing up, sitting down, standing up, sitting down, and scrambling just to get awake enough to process what was happening in the hotel room.

In the Bible, Jonah is an example where his wake-up call found him in a state of chaos and confusion that he brought on himself (and others). God told Jonah to go to Nineveh and preach repentance to the people. Jonah didn’t want to go so he ran the opposite direction. He made his own plan and boarded a boat heading for Tarshish.

Jonah’s actions affected more than just himself.  While out to sea, a monstrous storm came up and the crew was terribly afraid because they thought they were going to die. They called out to their gods and even threw their cargo overboard to lighten the ship. In spite of all that chaos, Jonah went below deck and fell asleep. Either that was some serious denial or he really didn’t yet understand the gravity of his situation. Eventually, the members of the crew decided to cast lots to see who was responsible for the awful storm and it fell on Jonah. They woke him up (another wake-up call) and asked him how in the world he could sleep and who he was and what he had done. He told them he was a Hebrew who followed the Lord God of heaven who made the sea and dry land. Jonah told them he was running from God.  The storm got worse and they asked Jonah what to do. He told them to throw him overboard because it was his fault. The crew didn’t want to throw him over and tried to row in spite of the storm but it grew wilder. Reluctantly, they threw Jonah over and the sea became calm.  As if that wasn’t enough, Jonah was swallowed by a great fish. In the belly of that fish, Jonah answered his wake-up call and repented and agreed to do what God asked. He went to Nineveh and preached to the people.

Sometimes we bring the circumstances for our wake-up call upon ourselves by the choices we make and many times those choices affect other people. In the story of Jonah, the crew was affected by his choices. They probably sacrificed valuable items when they threw their cargo overboard in an effort to fix the situation. Even after the crew knew they needed to throw Jonah overboard, they put it off and tried in their own power to row back to land.

Isn’t that sometimes how it is? Our world may be in chaos and everyone around us can see what is going on and they are trying to help us, but we have yet to wake up. It wasn’t until Jonah was alone in the belly of the great fish that he surrendered and decided to obey God. The fish spit him out and this time when God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, he went.

The point is not to stay in a state of chaos and confusion but recognize that God only wants the best for us and surrender to Him.

I Corinthians 14:33 tells us that “God is not the author of confusion, but of peace…”

Philippians 4:7 reminds us that “the peace of God, which surpasses every thought will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

3. Do Nothing.  Perhaps the wake-up call produces a fear in us that we can’t overcome and we just stop living. We are paralyzed and too afraid to do anything. We gather our resources around us and hunker down like we are waiting out a storm that never ends. Maybe we even convince ourselves it isn’t real and if we ignore it then maybe it will go away. Remember, the wake-up call should act as a catalyst in many cases to get us to move forward or do something different.

That night in the hotel lobby, no one was gripped by fear and it was obvious that most thought it wasn’t real. We figured that if we just ignored the fire alarm and warnings they would eventually stop. Even the hotel staff continued to conduct business as usual.

In Numbers 13 and 14 in the Bible, the Israelites had left Egypt and escaped from Pharaoh and reached the border of Canaan. God told Moses to send 12 spies into the land of Canaan to scout out the land. It was the land that God promised to give to the Israelites. However, when the spies returned they were so afraid of the giants living in the land that they convinced the people not to move forward. Caleb and Joshua were the only ones of the twelve that believed God’s promise that they could take the land. God was not happy with the people of Israel because of their lack of faith and their complaining. He declared that none of the people over 20 years old would enter the land that he promised with the exception of Joshua and Caleb and their descendants. They wandered another 40 years in the wilderness. Their fear and decision to do nothing resulted in the delay of receiving or moving into the land that God had promised them.

When the wake-up call happens in our lives, it can be scary but we can’t let fear grip us and rule our lives. Fear is a liar and God is not about fear.

II Timothy 1:7 reminds us that “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and a sound mind.”

Psalms 27:1 tells us, “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom should I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom should I be afraid?”

Leslie McKay

I believe wake-up calls are part of life. Some are more intense than others, but we have a choice as to how we respond. I believe God has a purpose and a plan for each of us and wants the best for us. When those wake-up calls happen in life, I want to challenge you to ask yourself, “What can I learn?” Then…get up, dust yourself off and keep moving forward. Your best days are ahead of you!

By Leslie McKay

Leslie McKay is a writer for SGNScoops Magazine and is also a member of McKay Project with her husband, Dennis. Together they are McKay Project and own M.A.C. Records. Find out more about Leslie McKay here.

For more Gospel Music news read the latest issue of the SGNScoops Magazine HERE.

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Southern Gospel Weekend To Be Featured On Andrew Brunet and Friends

Southern Gospel Weekend 2019 to be featured on Andrew Brunet and Friends

(January 27, 2019) — Andrew Brunet and Friends is honored to have the opportunity to spotlight Southern Gospel Weekend, on Jan. 29, 2019. Southern Gospel Weekend is an event that takes place in Oxford, Alabama on March 21 – 23. The show will feature special call-in interviews with Rob Patz, publisher of SGNScoops; the Connells, Clearvision Quartet, the Williamsons, McKay Project and many more.

Andrew Brunet, TV show host shares this: “You will definitely want to tune in as it will give great insight on what Southern Gospel Weekend is all about and give you a sneak peek on the artists that will be performing there. Special thanks to Rob Patz of SGN Scoops for giving us a chance to help promote such an awesome event.”

Andrew Brunet

The episode will air on Tuesday evening, January 29th, 2019, from 7-9 PM on BikerTV.org, as well as Roku, on the BikerTV Channel.

To find out more information about Andrew Brunet and Friends, you can visit their Facebook page.

Find out more about Southern Gospel Weekend HERE.

Lonesome Road Ministries Hosts Sixth Annual 3 Fold Cord Conferenc

Lonesome Road Ministries Hosts 6th Annual 3 Fold Cord Conference

Lonesome Road Ministries recently hosted their sixth annual 3 Fold Cord Conference in Carmi, Illinois, to celebrate the life changing work that God is doing on the highways throughout the country.

Lonesome Road Ministries was started by Gary Rayburn as a tape ministry to truck drivers in early 2000. It has evolved into a “whosoever will” ministry that distributes thousands of free CDs each month with music, testimonies, and messages about the love of Jesus through their mailing list and the network of 150 plus Channel 21 chaplains around the country.

Barbara Fairchild and Roy Morris

The ministry has expanded to also include radio programs on several stations around the country plus a television show. Lonesome Road Ministries is truly “a church without walls” as they receives calls and messages daily about the life changing effects of sharing the gospel through the various ministry outlets.

James Payne and McKay Project

Six years ago Lonesome Road Ministries (formerly RIG Ministries) decided to start the 3 Fold Cord Conference in Carmi, Illinois as a way to bring drivers from around the country together and those partnered with the ministry for a few days to celebrate the life changing work that God is doing through the CD ministry. They decided on the name 3 Fold Cord Conference because of the principle found in Ecclesiastes 4:12 which says, “And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.”

The 2018 conference was held recently at Trinity Assembly of God which is the new home to Lonesome Road Ministries.

“It is an honor to partner with Lonesome Road Ministries, Chaplain Gary, and his staff. The work they do daily to spread the gospel around the USA is in line with our mission at TAG (Trinity Assembly of God). When Lonesome Road needed a new home for their ministry, it was a NO Brainer for us at Trinity Assembly of God to step up to the challenge. Soul winning is their heart. Soul winning is our heart. Most importantly, soul winning is GOD’s heart!!” The 3 Fold Conference was exactly what we prayed it would be: uplifting, inspiring, and challenging. Soul winning through sharing personal testimonies is the Gospel at its best!” – Pastor Lee Hicks, Trinity Assembly of God

The 3 Fold Cord Conference was jammed packed with music, prayer, testimonies, preaching, fellowship, food, laughter, celebration and so much more. The conference kicked off on Friday at noon and continued through Sunday at noon. The weekend featured artists and speakers from around the country such as Barbara Fairchild and Roy Morris, James Payne, McKay Project, Joe Arview and family, Dan Duncan, Roger Barkley, Jr., Sonshine Road, Jim and Ann Davenport, Jackie Bowling, and Bill Schell.

There were many amazing moments throughout the weekend. Gary Rayburn shared recorded testimonies and we heard personal testimonies from those in attendance about the impact of Lonesome Road Ministries on their lives. Thousands of letters were laid out on the altar and we were called on to come up and pray over those needs and thank God for the blessings. On Saturday, Pastor Lee Hicks of Trinity Assembly of God, challenged everyone to go deeper and get out of our comfort zone.

Other highlights during the weekend included a Friday night session with music and testimony by Barbara Fairchild and Roy Morris. Saturday night was a double feature with the combined music, testimony, and preaching of McKay Project and James Payne. The conference wrapped up on Sunday with worship and a dynamic message by James Payne.

Of course, a gathering such as this wouldn’t have been complete without great food and volunteers. A team of wonderful ladies from Trinity Assembly of God provided food for everyone on Friday night, Danny and Roda Dennis of Rodan Trucking provided lunch for everyone on Saturday, and Kevin Whitten of God’s Grill provided lunch on Sunday. We honor those wonderful volunteers for giving of their time and resources to bless everyone that attended the conference.

“We had some great participation from my new church family – Trinity Assembly of God. They went above and beyond anything I expected from them.  We had great participation from our youth in our church. The ladies were great with decorating the church and gymnasium to making sure the hospitality room was stocked up. I can’t say enough good things about Trinity. The men were great in helping set up tables, parking, security, cleanup crews, and shuttle drivers for our truckers who had to park about a mile away.  The sound crew was excellent and we appreciate Jack Baker Photography for all the great pictures.

Of course, I want to say a very special thanks to my Pastors Lee and Robin Hicks. Without their support and bringing Lonesome Road Ministries to Trinity, we couldn’t have continued this conference.  This was our sixth year and by far the best as far as participation.  I am looking forward to our seventh 3 Fold Cord Conference in June 2019.” – Gary Rayburn, Lonesome Road Ministries

For more information about Lonesome Road Ministries, check them out online at one of these locations:
Lonesome Road Website: www.lonesomeroad.org
Lonesome Road TV: www.rigtv.org
Lonesome Road Podcast: https://rigpodcast.podomatic.net/

*Photos Courtesy of Jack Baker Photography (www.jbakerphotos.com)

Benefit For Paul Warren

On Saturday evening 11/17/18, Kenny Gardner Family, The McKay Project and Jessica Horton, gathered together in Calhoun City, Ms. @ Grace Fellowship. It was an evening of benefit for Paul Warren, Kenny Gardner’s Brother-in-law. Paul has been hospitalized at MD Anderson in Houston,
Tx for 2 months. If you would like to contribute any gift we would really appreciate it. Go to PayPal and type in this address:
Ewarrenbelleame@yahoo.com
Here are a few pictures from the event.

Jessica Horton with McKay Project

Jessica Horton with McKay Project

Friends and family praying with the daughters of Paul Warren

Special Guests On The Strictly Southern Show!

Strictly Southern Show Friday 8/24/18

9-11 am CST

Vonda’s special guests will be Dennis and Leslie McKay. The show will be featuring Artists you will hear at the upcoming Vernon Alabama’s Gospel Music Weekend which is hosted by The McKays and MAC Records.

You can tune in HERE

WPIL 91.7 FM is the home of The Strictly Southern and Strictly Country Show hosted by Vonda Easley and is located in Heflin, Alabama.

The Show will also be videoed on Facebook Live where you can view and participate on “The Strictly Southern With Vonda Easley Page.”

Don’t forget to tune in and join in the fun….

Calling all prayer warriors…..

Calling all prayer warriors…..

We have just learned that Dennis McKay was involved in an accident earlier today. Leslie, Dennis’ wife was meeting him for lunch at Subway in their hometown when a driver runs through the restaurant and struck Dennis.
Leslie saw this happen as she was driving up to meet her husband for lunch.

Calling all prayer warriors…..

Please pray for Leslie as she waits to hear from doctors and Dennis as he undergoes the tests. He is having some pain in his side and has an injury to his leg.
Thank you.

Vernon Alabama’s Gospel Music Weekend: Where is Vernon?

McKay Project to appear at Vernon Alabama’s Gospel Music Weekend

Through social media, folks have seen the fun we have at Vernon Alabama’s Gospel Music Weekend, and they say, “Hey, I want to come to Vernon.”

However, then, they follow it up with, “Where is Vernon?” I just have to laugh.

Every time I describe where Vernon is located, I always find myself thinking about the things I have come to love about Vernon. It is a wonderful town with southern charm and a down-home feeling of community that is just part of the South. It is the kind of town where everyone is your neighbor. It’s the kind of town that is perfect for an event like Vernon Alabama’s Gospel Music Weekend, which will be held from Sept. 8-9. We are excited to host more than 20 Gospel artists from across the country for two days of great concerts, fun, and fellowship that can only be found in a community like Vernon. It’s like magic.

Vernon is steeped in history, and I did a little checking to see just how far back the city of Vernon goes. Vernon is the county seat of Lamar County, but the county hasn’t always been called Lamar. It started out as Jones County and was abolished in 1867. Then, in 1868, it was established again as Sanford County, but that was done away with. Finally, in 1877, the county was named Lamar County. Just like the county, Vernon wasn’t always the name of the town. It started out as Swayne but was changed to Vernon in 1868 in honor of Edmond Vernon, who also served as the first mayor. I found copies of old newspapers online with news and happenings for Vernon, and it has always been a thriving town with lots of life.

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