Thursday, November 30, 2006

Daniel: Living in a Modern Day Babylon

Daniel was taken from his home and transplanted to Babylon when he was a teenager. You might feel sorry for him until you hear what Babylon was like. It was the land of opportunity and money. Not only was Daniel taken to Babylon, but he was brought into the king's court (Daniel 1).

They gave Daniel and all of the other king's men in training all of this extravegant food. However, Daniel and his friends asked not to eat the food from the king. Back in those times, to share a meal was to commit oneself to friendship. It was like a covenant. Daniel decided not to compromise. He didn't give into the ways of Babylon and their customs if it conflicted with the will of the one true God.

Babylon was a place that was rich. It had many gods and was very self seeking. The motto of Babylon was: "I am, and there is none besides me." (Isaiah 47:8, 10). Does this sound familiar? Self seeking, rich? It sounds a lot like America.

We have everything and more than we want. Studies show that life in America is getting better while we feel worse. Too many choices leads to unhappiness. Americans are miserable with self absorption.

We don't have to live this way...this false "happy" life. We don't have to give in to every indulgence that comes our way. We have a different King. Our King is the only One who knows the key to happiness. It's totally different than what we would think too.

I'm saying "we" because I'm trying to remind myself as well. I allow myself to get carried away by Babylon at times. Lets all try to live a life like Daniel. We need to be in the world but not of it. With the Lord's help, we can do it!

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Daniel: A Story Not in the Bible

While Brock was reading a magic history book, he came across a story about Daniel. This story is apparently in history books but not in the Bible.

Cyrus the Great would send a daily offering of 6 vessels of wine, 40 sheep, and 12 measures of wheat to the temple of Bel. Everyday, the altar would be closed and locked up with the food inside and be gone the next day showing that the god ate everything.

However, Daniel suspected that the priests and their families were feasting on the "sacrifices" of the king. One day, Cyrus took Daniel to the sanctuary when the food and drink were placed before the altar. He watched as the temple doors were sealed shut.

The next day, Cyrus and Daniel went back to see that the food was indeed all gone. Cyrus was convinced that this proved the authenticity of Bel. Daniel knew differently because he had sprinkled a light coating of ashes on the floor the previous day. At this point, they could see footprints in the ashes that led to what appeared to be a solid wall. They found a secret passageway where the priests were taking the food out each night. Cyrus was so furious that he had the priests slain and the temple leveled.

Daniel was a cool guy. He also made such a difference in his community and really the world. This account was in a book about magic history! He made an impact on the mainstream world as well as the Jewish world. The thing is, he represented the Lord in the world very well. Are we being a good representation of the Lord? Are we making a difference?

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Daniel: My Dream

I had such a vivid dream one night about six months ago. I dreamed that Brock came onstage to do a show drunk. He was a lousy drunk too. He was angry and he couldn't do his illusions correctly. (You must be very sharp mentally in order to pull off illusions.) The promoter of the event ended up pulling him off of the stage.

I woke up in a sweat with the story about Daniel and his friends in the Bible on my mind. I frantically looked up the story. Daniel and his buddies decided not to eat the food from the Babylonian king. Instead, they drank only water (no alcohol)and ate vegetables (Daniel 1). I later found in my studying that when he said vegetables, it also included fruits and grains.

This year, Brock has become a very healthy eater. He only drinks water and eats lots of fruits and veggies. We eat organic as much as possible. Our policy is that if it takes technology to get it on our plate, it's not very good for us. Therefore, we eat mostly meat, nuts, fruits, and vegetables. It sounds much like Daniel.

I'm not trying to debate whether alcohol is wrong or right. It's just wrong for us. The Lord showed me in that dream what could destroy Brock's ministry. Has the Lord showed you anything specifically for you? We are all different and He knows our weaknesses as well as our strengths. He handles us differently at times according to our traits. He may not give you a vivid dream, but He has many ways of getting His point across to His children. He knows how to speak to you and just what you need to hear.

Monday, November 27, 2006

Daniel: Reasons Why I Decided to Study Him

I've been studying Daniel in the scriptures since August. Therefore, I really want to share a few things about him to you this week. First of all, the reason that I'm so intent on studying Daniel is because parallels between Brock and Daniel keep coming up in our lives.

For example, when Brock was beginning this ministry, he fasted for 21 days. He intended on fasting for 14 days, but then felt like he should go for 21. He had no idea why the Lord wanted that specific amount of time. He had heard of people fasting for 3, 10, or 40 days, but never 21. Toward the end of his fast, he went to a church service. During the message, the pastor spoke about Daniel and how he fasted 21 days (Daniel 10:2-3).

Several years ago, Brock had a vision. His vision was that he was in the lion's den (Daniel 6). Brock said that it was so real that he tucked his hands close to his body for fear that they would get bitten. He didn't know what the Lord was trying to tell him because at this point, life was going well. He didn't know if the Lord was trying to tell him that he might have to go through the lion's den.

You know that we all must go throught the Lion's Den at some point in life figuratively speaking. It may not be as big as life or death, or it could be. Are we like Daniel? Do we handle it with faith and dignity or do we kick and scream and talk about how much we don't deserve it?

Sunday, November 26, 2006

New Tricks

Today, we will go to my parents' church. I went to this church for several years before we got married. When I come back here, I am reminded about how much things change. I'm glad with where my life is now. I'm very happy with Brock and our ministry. I was happy back then, too. I cannot complain...I've had a good life so far!

Tonight, we're going to perform some new illusions for this church. Pray that they go well. Also, pray that the message with the trick goes well.

Friday, November 24, 2006

Thanksgiving Day

We had a beautiful Thanksgiving Day yesterday! We fixed a wonderful meal. My mom, sister, and I made all of the side dishes as well as dessert. Brock, who is the meat specialist, baked a very flavorful turkey.

My sister made a wonderful chocolate cake. We started eating on it Wednesday, and it was so good that there were only 3 pieces left yesterday. So, we played blackjack 21 to see who won the pieces of cake. However, we later found that since Brock was dealing, he cheated without us knowing it. Mom said that she should have known not to trust Brock with cards!

After dessert, we rented those 4 seater bicycles. We borrowed two regular bicycles from the owners of the house we were staying in so that everyone could ride. We had such a blast as we rode along the ocean in the warm weather. It also helped us not feel so sluggish after such a big meal.

It was a great day! How was your Thanksgiving?

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Thanksgiving Traditions

Since we moved from Florida in 1991, we haven't had much of a Thanksgiving tradition. All of my extended family such as grandma, cousins, aunts, and uncles live in Florida. Therefore, it became just my parents, sister, and me. So, we began going out of town for Thanksgiving. One year, we went to San Antonio and ate burgers for Thanksgiving.

That particular year, I had a professor in college who was very animated (Mr. Taylor for fellow ETBUers). He would talk to different people as he gave the roll call. He chose me to ask what I had for my Thanksgiving meal. When I responded with burgers, he nearly fell over. Throughout the entire class, he kept coming back to me and saying..."Really, burgers for Thanksgiving?"

This year, we will be in Galveston. My parents, sister, and brother-in-law come into town tonight. We are planning to have a traditional Thanksgiving meal on Thursday in the beach house in which we are staying. It will be nice. What are your plans for Thanksgiving?

Monday, November 20, 2006

Galveston

We are staying at one of my parents' friend's beach house in Galveston, TX. It's great to have this time to get away and relax. When we're on the road or at home, we work. I feel almost brain dead and emotionally dead after our hard fall schedule. It really takes a lot out of us.

The weather is great and Brock's parents came up last night to stay with us for a couple of days. We went shopping at some of the local surf shops. I found some stuff on sale. It's been great so far!

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Houston

The show in Houston went really well. Lots of people gave their lives to Christ. I couldn't even count how many!

The hotel was connected to the convention center by a skywalk over the street. However, the hall in which we performed was at the other end. Plus, our room was at the opposite end of the skywalk. Therefore, I walked the entire length of the convention center as well as the huge hotel at least 4 times within 24 hours. I definately got my walking in. I even had blisters on my feet.

My parents came to the show to hang out with us. Yesterday, we went to the museum which was fun. We saw an exhibit on Benjamin Franklin. Did you know that he helped create the first hospital, fire department, university, and library? He invented tons of stuff.

I was whiped out last night though! I slept 10 hours! I feel great now.

Friday, November 17, 2006

Laundry

I did laundry all day long yesterday. I had to go out to the truck and get all of it. Then, I sorted it and washed the heaps of clothes. It was seven loads of clothes! That means that I invested at least 8 hours into it. Can you imagine literally a whole day of laundry? It had to be done though.

We fly to Houston today in order to perform at a conference there. Pray that it goes well. I just had a dream that we got stuck in traffic and took a long time at a restaurant and missed the whole thing!

Also, The Miracles of Jesus airs today at 1pm Central Time on Discovery Times. If you get this new network, watch it and spread the word to others to watch it.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

Happy Fun Day

Yesterday, we had a happy fun day. We went to get our hair cut and highlighted. Our stylist is so great and she is trying out for a reality TV show about hair stylists. She's made it to the final round and all she must do now is send in a video. So, her boyfriend came in and was videoing us as she did our hair. Brock was giving her advice on how to make her video. It was fun!

Then, we met some people to eat at one of our favorite Mediterranean places. Of course, the Cocoa Tree followed. We had so much fun. The owners were there and after tasting one of Brock's creations (which is a hot brownie cookie topped with fondue chocolate and homemade whip cream), they named it Brock's Extreme Brownie Explosion!

After the Cocoa Tree closed, we went to a place to do kareoke. It was hilarious! Brock sang "She Bangs." I sang one of my favorite songs with a bunch of people "Love Shack." Then, the kareoke lady called up two of the guys in our group, the two new girls, Alisha and Shannon, and some guy named Bill that wasn't with our party at all. Once they got up there, the song that Brock had chosen for them was "The Wheels on the Bus!" What a happy fun day!

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

A Comment From FX

This is just one of the comments we've heard since FX. The Lord is doing big things in Prattville, AL!

I went to the Freedom Experience in Prattville, Alabama for 2 of the
days and I'd just like to say that it was the most fun/entertainment
we've seen around here in a while! Thanks for that! And not only was it
a blast but it came with a very important message too. You've inspired
so many around here, and I'm one of them. You opened my eyes to what is
greater in life, and turned me around, along with many others, I'm
sure. Even my family has noticed a difference in me. So, once
again...Thank you so much!!!

Go to http://sdenise519.blogspot.com/ to see another one.

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

The Tour is Over

This fall, we not only did Freedom Experience, but we performed in cities all over the country with the Hidden Agenda tour. It was difficult because this tour was just us. We would drive to a city, set up for 4 hours, perform for 2, and tear down for another 2. For half of that tour, we had no road manager, so it was extra tough. However, last night we performed our last show on that tour and it went great! We ended well for both FX and Hidden Agenda.

In celebration of being done with the big loading shows, I'm getting a massage today. Not only does my body take a beating loading in and out, it does during the show as well. I push the big props onstage and off. Then, getting in the illusions is hard on my body too. I'm so sore today that I might have to tell the massage therapist to go easy!

Monday, November 13, 2006

Kentucky Shows

We are in Kentucky doing a couple of shows. Last night, we performed with Chaos on Wheels. It went rather well except that the floor was sticky, so the bmx team had trouble. Many of them got hurt. I was up in the balcony watching and could see that after they got off of the ramps, their bikes just stopped but the guys kept going. Many times, they flipped over their bikes. It was rough for them.

For us it was difficult because the audience seemed fifty miles away because the bike ramps separated us from them. However, the camera guys did a great job, so many people watched the screens.

This morning, we woke up at 5:30am in order to go and perform on a local news show. It actually went really well. Usually, it's difficult to do live TV especially with an anchorman as your volunteer. You never know what they're going to say! The girl at the station today was really cute and fun.

Pray that the show goes well tonight. Pray that we will have supernatural strength. We are rather tired.

Sunday, November 12, 2006

Both Rest and Play

Yesterday, I ended up doing both. I woke up rather early yesterday, but I went back to bed and had a leisure morning. Therefore, I got a lot of rest in the morning. I dug around the bottom of drawers and the closet in order to find enough clothes to wear this week, so I didn't have to do laudry.

Then, Brock and I had a late lunch at our favorite thai place. We ran some errands, killed time at a bookstore. Then, we went to a small record store where MuteMath played in the afternoon. They barely had room to move! There were about 50 people crammed around display tables. We were directly behind them, so all we heard were them and their monitors. It still sounded amazing! Even Michael W. Smith came to observe them perform. Then, we ate at one of our favorite mediterranian places and went to the Cocoa Tree.

It was a great day of rest and play. Now, I feel like I can make it through the next couple of days in Kentucky. Pray for the shows tonight and tomorrow night.

Saturday, November 11, 2006

Rest or Play?

A lot of times, it takes a couple of days for the tiredness to catch up to me after a FX. I always get physically tired as well as spiritually and emotionally. We pour out so much at FX that it's completely draining.

This is my problem: it's Saturday and time to go play. Everyone wants to do stuff and have fun including me. However, I don't have the energy. Not only that, but we leave again tomorrow to do two shows in KY. I need to rest in order to even be able to make it through.

I'll let you know what I ended up doing...whether I did the mature thing and rested or listened to the little girl inside of me that wants to ignore all of the headaches and responsibilities and just play for one day.

Friday, November 10, 2006

Party!

Last night, we had an after tour party at our house. It was the only time everyone could get together, so it had to be on the day we drove home from Alabama. I thought that I wouldn't enjoy it very much because I was going to be too tired. We drove home, unloaded our stuff, and I jumped in the car and went to the grocery store to buy all of the food we were going to cook. Then, we both began cooking. Brock grilled steak and chicken. I cooked potatoes, baked beans, corn bread with Brock's special butter concoction on top, and tossed some salad. It was yummy!

I enjoyed myself immensely! The Group 1 Crew guys were dancing and being crazy. We ate, laughed, danced, watched Brock do magic, ate from our chocolate fountain, and just hung out. It was so fun!

Thursday, November 09, 2006

A Changed Community

What an Freedom Experience! We finished with a bang! We had 547 first time decisions to follow Jesus. Think about the impact that is going to make in a small town like Prattville, AL. Last night, every time Brock said the name of "Jesus," the crowd clapped and screamed for joy. That wasn't the case on the first night. This community has definately changed.

My theme song for this year at FX is one of Group 1 Crew's songs called "Forgive Me." The chorus goes like this:
"Ye though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I won't be scared cause You're holding my breath. I only fear that I don't have enough time left to tell the world that there's no time left."

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

A Historical Moment at FX

Last night was such an awesome show and it was so packed that it felt like the last night. We stuffed people in chairs and in the aisles. After the bmx team performed, we sat people on the floor all around the ramps. People were everywhere! It was great because we saw another 243 people make first time decisions for Jesus. The Lord is doing amazing things in Alabama!

The punk band joined with the hip hop crew for a song again last night. It was incredible! The song that the hip hop group sings is already so moving that when you added the instruments toward the end of the song, it peaked your emotions!

Also, last night, Tim Byrne accomplished something on a skateboard that has never been done before. He did a triple kick flip BLINDFOLDED! It was amazing to watch. In fact, a lot of the other artists and athletes came out on the stage to watch him try it. He missed the first time. Then, he tried to gain his balance and it took him a while before he tried it the second time. On the second try, he nailed it! We saw history in the making last night!

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

A Good Problem to Have

We packed out the venue last night. We usually don't pack out the place until Wednesday night and never the first night. Now, we're trying to decide what to do about tonight and tomorrow night. It's a good problem to have, yet, still it's a problem.

Our prayers are working. We saw 205 people give their lives to Christ last night!

Sunday, November 05, 2006

FX in Prattville, AL

We are beginning a Freedom Experience in Prattville, AL. We ask for people to pray for 4 things at FX:
Power of God; we cannot save people, only God can do that.
Protection of the artists and athletes as well as audience members.
Provision; there are always little needs that come up.
People that will attend.

Also, pray for the artists from Eleventyseven and Group 1 Crew, Brock, me, and Shannon, Chaos on Wheels, Tim Byrne, our office staff, and the volunteers. Thanks for your prayers. We need them!

Cold Show

The temperature in Johnson City, TN had dropped considerably over the night, and it was in the 30's yesterday. We performed in this small auditorium. There was no backstage room on the stage, so I had to unpack the illusions down in the loading area right beside the big garage door where we loaded in from. It was freezing. The whole auditorium was chilly, but down in the "garage" where I worked, it was literally freezing!

During the show, I bring out illusions and set up all of the props onstage. I also participate in many of the illusions in this show. While I'm not onstage, I'm tearing down the illusions that we've already performed. Therefore, I spent a lot of my time down in the freezing "garage" area.

Also, all of the illusions that I perform in are alluminum. Since these illusions had been in the freezing area, they were freezing too. I didn't realize how much cold could affect you. My hands wouldn't work correctly. I was slower on my movements and reaction times. Oh well! It was worth it! The show was good and people were saved!

If you would like to see Shannon's take on the road, go to her blog www.sdenise519.blogspot.com.

Saturday, November 04, 2006

Crazy Times

We perform in East Tennessee this afternoon. Then, we'll drive home and arrive late tonight. Tomorrow, we drive to Prattville, AL to begin another FX. It's crazy busy! Pray for strength and endurance.

Friday, November 03, 2006

An Agenda

My favorite part of the show last night was when Brock spoke after the invitation to follow Christ. He said that if the audience was offended that he shared his beliefs with them, then don't watch TV, or a movie, or a concert, or get on the internet, or even go to the grocery store. Everywhere you go, people have an agenda. Brock says that he has an agenda, too...it's Jesus Christ. He's just not hiding it. He also says that he cannot help talk about the One who saved his life.

Then, he said that it's time for others who have a relationship with Jesus to have this agenda as well. It's time for people to stand up for what they believe. At this moment, Brock stood up from his stool and walked toward the front of the stage. The audience began to clap and then one by one, stand up. It was very moving. We were all making a stand for Jesus both physically and figuratively right there together!

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Planes and Sleep

Yesterday, our plane left two hours late due to fog. This caused us to miss our connecting flight to Myrtle Beach. Therefore, we landed at 4:36 and our show began at 6pm. It was crazy, but we were able to get everything ready and began the show only 10 minutes late. The show was great! The church was an old movie theater. It was cool looking.

I must have been tired because I slept until 9:45 this morning. Those of you that know me know that this is rare for me. The hotel room was dark and the temperature just right. The bed was soft and everything was optimal for sleeping. It's a good thing because I need to rest up for this loaded week!

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Busy, Busy, Busy

Last night was a blast. We ended up eating out together. There were ten of us. We had the back room of the restaurant to ourselves which was nice. Then, we went trick or treating/Christmas carolling around downtown Franklin. We got lots of candy and wierd looks. We ended up at one of our friend's house who was having a party. Brock did some magic tricks that were really fun! Of course, we ended the night at the Cocoa Tree where I enjoyed the best caramel apple in the whole world! It also had chocolate on it and was rolled in toffee. Yummy! So, we had tricks and treats! Sometime today, we should have our carolling experience video up on myspace.com/brockgill.

We fly this morning to Myrtle Beach. We do a show there tonight and tomorrow night. Then, we drive to Johnson City, TN Friday. We perform there on Saturday afternoon. After the show, we'll drive home, spend the night, then, leave the next day for Freedom Experience in Alabama. We'll be there Sunday thru Wednesday. It's going to be crazy! Pray that it all goes smoothly and that we'll have supernatural strength to get through it.