News & Reports
Pastor Gary N. Fraley went home to be with the Lord on Saturday, November 14, 2020, after a brief hospitalization with COVID-19. He was born in Klamath Falls, Oregon, on April 7, 1941, and was the first of four sons born to Norman and Geanne Fraley.
“The fellowship with old and new friends is what blessed our family the most this year. Some of the best fellowship happened while watching the volleyball tournament and hanging out at the lake Friday afternoon.”
With some simple protocols in place, the class enjoyed three amazing weeks of classes—including music theory, history, songwriting, hymnology, children’s choir, conducting, choir, and orchestra. A highlight this year was the new level—Advanced Sound Foundations.
More than 120 families gathered from around the country for a time of encouragement and fellowship. Due to the COVID-19 protocols, some families were hesitant to attend the conference, not knowing how it would go. While the additional guidelines were inconvenient, each one who came was strengthened and encouraged by the fellowship and messages.
“Before I came to Journey, I was bitter at God. I was going through a hard time in life.” So began one Journey participant's testimony. This young man attended the young men's Journey to the Heart in Big Sandy. As he began to spend time meditating on Scripture, God showed him things from His Word that he had never seen before.
God wants to share His heart with us. Don’t just gloss over that. Stop, and let it sink it in. The God of the universe wants to share His heart with us as His children. The question is, are we willing to turn aside from the busy things of life to seek His face and give Him the time and the place to share His heart with us?
Sometimes God's greatest blessings come in strange packaging. The need to cancel the Big Sandy April Family Conference, our largest event each year, came with a wave of disappointment. Little did we know the tremendous blessing that would come as a result of this change in plans.
We know it is easy to grow discouraged in the midst of canceled events, adjusted travel plans, and social distancing requirements. But what if, wrapped up in the midst of these challenges, God is giving us as believers an opportunity to go deeper than ever before in our relationship with Him?
We will stream a free session each evening from April 27–May 1, beginning at 6:30 pm CT. The content from these sessions will not be available again until after September 15, so be sure to catch them when they stream live each evening!
In the last several weeks, you have probably had your inbox flooded with emails about how restaurants, supermarkets, and other businesses are responding to the COVID-19 virus. Fears and concerns are evident in most newscasts or interactions with people we know.