We arrived at our destination late the evening of the 3rd, and, after loading in, partook of a repast that included some very delicious coconut-pecan pound cake, which was just the perfect refresher for a hot July day. After a late night of setting up and sound-checking, we all got some shut-eye at the hotel, and then, next morning, played two Sunday morning services for the good people of the church. We enjoyed hearing a very patriotic and moving sermon and a clip of one of President Reagan’s amazing addresses to the nation.

That afternoon the guys tore down and set up our equipment on the outdoor stage, while we girls performed more intellectual tasks in the closest Starbucks with our green teas in hand The evening came, and we all, after sound-checking and eating, performed a concert for a very large group of people. God gave us a balmy breeze, a cool night sky, a listening audience, and a great deal of fun!

After the concert we were blessed to witness several baptisms, patriotic songs, and then, the great Independence Day tradition: fireworks. The spectacle of color against the dark knit of the sky was very beautiful, and the classic American songs of freedom playing in the background added greatly to the feeling of gratitude that arose in our hearts on such an important anniversary for our nation. We all praised God for the legacy of Christianity that our Founding Fathers have left us.

May God indeed bless America!

~Camille
Editor of Faërie

The next day we had a very pleasant morning. We were treated to a breakfast with some delicious cheese pastries, and then praised the Lord with an hour-long song service. Afterwards we loaded up as quick as possible and drove an hour south, where we were greeted by the good people at First Baptist Church Lilburn, that have been our friends for the course of five years. We set up, sound-checked, and dressed, and then we played a concert for an absolutely lovely crowd. Thanks for the energy, guys! Once the concert was over, the guests had departed, and all the gear had been torn down by our hearty boys, we had a splendid time in fellowship and food with the before-mentioned friends.

We got some good shut-eye, and then arose early on Monday morning to drive an hour back across Atlanta to play at the chapel which is held every week at the Chick-Fil-A headquarters. We had a splendid time. After being treated to a delectable breakfast and some very good conversation, we played a chapel for the friendly, dynamic audience. Once the concert was finished, we greatly enjoyed a tour of the headquarters, complete with fun Truett Cathy memorabilia, an incredible museum of collectible cars (a batmobile was even a part of the collection) fascinating sculptures, and even some sneak peeks and yummy tastes of future Chick-Fil-A additions to their menu.

After such fun entertainment, we all loaded up and drove back to Nashville in some blessedly cloudy weather. Once home we were greeted with a yard just refreshed with rain and the promise of a good night’s rest before the morrow.

~Camille
Faërie

Please tune in, and we hope you enjoy it!

Stay tuned to AnnieMosesBand.com for a full list of airtimes and stations.

In Proverbs 22:6, the Bible reads, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” A wise pastor once said, “Train up a child in the way he should go, follow it yourself, and he will follow you.” How very true!

In the upcoming television show, “Annie Moses Band: Faith, Family and Music”, we feature an extraordinary family that exemplifies how living for God is not only right but truly living.

The story starts with, Annie Moses, who is the band’s namesake. Annie worked in Texas as a hired field hand in the cotton field. She did her best to nurture the musical gifts in her daughter, Jane and by doing so, those seeds of faithfulness and loving sacrifice blossomed through the generations.

The Lord gave Annie’s granddaughter Robin a divine idea in college. Robin Wolaver says, “We had some Suzuki violinists that came and played in our music survey class. There was a little-bitty girl from Asia, and she was so tiny and cute. She had a violin… God spoke to me at that point and said, ‘When you have a little girl, they should do that.’ And, Robin did give birth to a beautiful little girl and named her….Annie. Five more children followed but having a band with six kids certainly wasn’t in their plans.

“We didn’t have any idea this would happen,” says Bill Wolaver. “We did want a large family and wanted to have children.”

Annie says, “As each child came of age, our parents really prayed and considered our talents and our personalities to determine what the best instrument would be. Things just kind of grew gradually from there.”

Around four years old, they each began lessons at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music. During those early years, the children accepted Christ. Their parents encouraged them with prayer, patience and one-on-one practice sessions.

“Eventually practicing becomes like homework,” Alex, second oldest, explains. “You didn’t want to do it anymore than you do your homework. But mom’s rule was always you can quit anytime as long as you’re not down. You have to quit after you’ve had something extremely successful happen — a competition you’ve won or a performance. But when that happens you never want to quit.”

Their discipline paid off. Annie, Alex and Benjamin studied at the Julliard School of Music on scholarship. During that time they felt a God-given desire to form a family band. They never looked back.

Ben says, “It’s just so much fun playing with my siblings. It’s just a really invigorating experience.”

“I have just learned so much about Jesus and trusting in Him through this process,” Annie says. “We grew up reading all these wonderful Psalms where it talks about praising Him with the strings and playing skillfully. So hopefully we will be able to make His praise glorious.”

Anne says, “The Annie Moses Band is really a celebration of four generations of that legacy of faith and family and music coming together and hopefully creating something that’s a very powerful message for our generation.”

Tune in to the Daystar network on Saturday June 19, 2010 at 7:30pm to experience this wonderful program. You will not want to miss it!

On Saturday night we played at the Smoky Mountain Theater, a beautiful center for family-friendly entertainment, surrounded by all the hotels, restaurants, and sports one needs to complete the fun. After being treated to a yummy supper at the steakhouse, which boasted a delicious strawberry shortcake, we played an enjoyable concert for an energetic, attentive audience.

That night we drove a couple hours down to Maryville, Tennessee, where we were set to play Sunday. The men arose very early Sabbath morning to set up, and the women followed them soon after for soundcheck. The morning services went very well, and afterwards we were blessed to catch an extended nap at the hotel. That night there was a full house to hear the concert, and afterwards we enjoyed a delectable supper with a splendid arugula salad. Afterwards we drove the three hours home, sleeping on the way (except for the poor drivers…) so that we could meet the work of the next day with fresh minds.

~Camille
Faërie

After the event we drove down for a quick visit to Oklahoma, where we enjoyed getting to spend time with our relatives and friends in the deep, dark woods of the Kiamichi Mountains, and then back home again. The next three weeks flew by with many household and business activities, and then we found ourselves driving out once more to South Carolina, where a weekend of many engagements awaited us.

On Friday we were privileged to perform at an instrumental conference, and the next day had a great deal of fun playing with the orchestra, teaching seminars, and getting to spend time with the spirit-filled people, all desiring to praise God through their music.

Saturday night we drove forty minutes to Taylors, South Carolina. We soon found out that Taylors is a privileged city, as it is situated not only by what used to be one of the top textile centers in the nation (Greenville, South Carolina), but the town also has delicious sources of ethnic cuisine. We tasted all sorts of delectable specialties from Italy, Greece, Sweden, and Mexico in the course of three meals! Sunday we performed at the beautiful church, which possessed a vivacious, full congregation. It was a very fun concert for us.

And so you have, in a nutshell, what the Annie Moses Band has been up to for the last couple weeks. Many blessings to you all!

~Camille
Faërie

We greatly enjoyed our time there. That Sunday morning we were blessed to hear a very wise, deep sermon on holiness, which was inspiring, nurturing, and faith-building, along with the beautiful hymns and psalms sung. The concert that night was full and fun, and we were even able to see some dear friends from the Fine Arts Summer Academy afterwards.

On the way home we stopped in at our maternal grandparents living deep in the Kiamichi Mountains of South-Eastern Oklahoma, and camped out there for several days. We loved the vacation! The countryside was beautiful in the Spring weather, and the lovely fellowship of our sweet grandparents and the calm environment of their home refreshed our spirits.

Back home for one day, and then out again before dawn Saturday morning for Wilkesboro, NC. To arrive at our destination we took a delightful route through the Blue Ridge Mountains, where we were able to see the vivid green and spacious beauty of old forests, the exuberant beauty of blooming redbuds, and the pure loveliness of the white dogwood trees.

When we arrived we were immediately welcomed by some very, very sweet people, with such kindred hearts and friendly spirits! That night Robin, or more often called Mama in our household, spoke to the audience assembled on the Judeo-Christian ethics set forth in Genesis 3 as the way of salvific living. The words the Lord has put in her heart were very inspiring to us all. The next morning we played a full concert, worshipping Yahweh through music, and were so happy to see so many lovely little people in the service. Children do give such life and light.

After a delicious lunch, in which we had the privilege of conversing with these good, good friends, we loaded up in our vehicles and drove away. The blossoming mountains of North Carolina melted away into the green forests of Tennessee, and, late that night, we found ourselves once more at our dear, sweet home, where the grass is carpeted with violets and sunflowers and dandelions…

~Camille
Faërie

We arrived in Columbus a few hours after sundown and settled ourselves in to the Hotel Indigo. The hotel was very beautiful and unusual, with colorful, Eastern decorations, and architecture styled after Fibinachi’s ‘golden ratio’, which architecture we found rather intriguing, because of our song of the same name. The mathematical evaluations made the rooms feel airy and cozy at the same time, and very comfortable.

Next morning, bright and early, we all dressed and headed to the church-house to celebrate Palm Sunday. The service was wonderful, with the sacred observance of the Lord’s Supper. The sanctuary, built after the model of the Jewish Temple, provided amazing natural reverberations to enhance the music. After the concert that night, we journeyed back to the hotel, and from thence, the next morning, returned to Nashville.

Only three days later, after some hectic laundry turn-around, we loaded up once more to travel South to Florida, which, in the now balmy weather of Tennessee, was promising a very hot climate. We came, at long last, Thursday night, to Port Saint Lucie. A very beautiful town, with a lovely Starbucks merely minutes from the hotel, and the ocean only a few miles away.

The next night, after a leisurely day of load-in and preparation, we ate a delicious supper prepared by some of the church’s own, with a repast that included at least four too many helpings of the delectable broccoli casserole. Gretchen and I were quite in despair of ever being able to put down our forks! Afterwards, very full and warm, we performed for a very fun, rowdy crowd. Thanks, guys, for all the energy!

On the following morning we were blessed to discover the Berry Fresh Café, originally of Port Saint Lucie, that had some of the best food we have ever eaten…seriously (not that we needed more food after the previous supper!). Along with pineapple upside-down pancakes, homemade ice-cream, blueberry fritters, and other incredible food, they had a delicious spread of healthy options, such as whole-grain pancakes, broached pear and spinach salad, and loose-leaf tea. This, added to the beauty of communing outside under a sunny Florida sky, created a most perfect experience.

That afternoon we drove a couple hours to Wauchula, FL, accompanied by the view of acres upon acres of orange farms (I really wanted to get out and pick one, just for the experience, but I forbore, as there was no one to pay for the pleasure…). That night we enjoyed getting to meet and visit with our hosts and hostesses, and the next morning we played at the church in celebration of Easter morning. The resurrection of the Way, the Truth, and the Life gave great joy to our hearts!

After the services we were delighted to see some good friends, who brought a delicious basket of Floridan fruit with them, complete with lovely napkins designed after paintings from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Thanks so much to all your family! After a fun lunch with the church staff, we loaded back into our vehicles and drove on home, where we were to see a plum tree now fully, brilliantly green, with its strong branches housing many vivacious squirrels and robins.

Happy Spring!

~Camille
Faërie

We made good time on the sunshine highway, passing unhindered through Atlanta traffic, over the Georgia border, into Florida, and, finally, to the neighboring towns surrounding Tampa, most of us reading all the way (except for the drivers, of course. No texting allowed!) The great folks at the church helped the load-in and sound-check process to go smoothly, and then we all repaired back to the very spacious, nice hotel rooms for some much-needed shut-eye.

Next morning we were awake before sunrise and driving back for Sunday morning services, just as Sol was shooting hazy, lovely light upon the horizon-line. The worship services that morning were very spiritually blessing, as interwoven with the singing and message were the sacred ordinances of baptism and communion, enhanced with the singing of the beautiful hymn, O Sacred Head Now Wounded by Bernard de Clairvaux. See the hymn’s lyrics here.

For lunch we had a jolly time eating with some of the church leadership at a delicious Italian restaurant, and then, after a quick nap at the hotel, we returned to the church for the evening concert. The house was beautifully filled with a fun, energetic people, and we had a great time playing on stage.

When the concert wound to its close we were able to have some interactive time out back at tables, where we got to have some fun conversations with some of our Florida friends and fans. Afterwards, we tore down the stage, loaded back up into the car, and repaired back to the hotel, where we feasted on some delectable homemade bread, granola, and other goodies given us by some good and thoughtful friends.

Thus, warm, full, and happy, we crawled into bed and slept away the shadows till the early hours of the morning, when our eyes (or rather, the driver’s eyes––the rest of us will be asleep) would once again see the sun rise through the Florida sky on our way back to Tennessee.

~Camille
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