On the last weekend in April, I went to see my friends, Divided By Friday, perform at DeSales University (near Allentown, Pennsylvania). They were on tour with a popular band called, Mayday Parade. (You can look them up.) In January and February, they toured Europe and the UK with Mayday Parade as well, and in March toured with another popular band called, Breathe Carolina. (I saw them in Philadelphia on that tour as well.) My friends, Matt Morgan and Jose Villanueva, started this band when they were 14. (I met Matt when he was 12 – like many of you, he was one of my youth kids.) They started the band as freshmen in high school, and other than going to class and doing homework, Divided By Friday is what they devoted their lives to. All school breaks, and summer vacations were dedicated to recording music and touring up-and-down the east coast – playing with bigger bands along the way, and local spots on the Vans Warped Tour. After high school, they each studied for a year at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and then left school (in good academic standing) to push Divided By Friday to full-time status. Within a number of months, they were signed by a large, indie record label, Hopeless Records – home to bands like All Time Low, Yellowcard, The Used, and more. They've been with Hopeless for slightly over two years now, have played on 3 continents, Vans Warped Tour again (the full-tour), and are touring with bands that have a million and a half fans on Facebook alone. I enjoy talking about them and telling their story a lot for a number of reasons. A) They're my friends, and I've know them (or Matt, at least) since before they even started the band. So it's been exciting to watch their progression (in all senses of the word - remember they were 14 when they started), and rise in popularity over the past 8 and a half years. B) It's exciting to watch friends' dreams come true – honestly, and with integrity. C) They have shown me an example of what hard work, dedication, and persistence can accomplish. (And, from an adult perspective, how important parental support and encouragement can be.) They started as a tiny, whiny pop-punk band in a town that no one's heard of as high school freshmen, and are now touring the world with large bands and large stages. (And they're only 23 years old.) I tell this story for this, the school year is about to end. Some of you are graduating high school and going off to college. Some are graduating middle school and will be going off to high school. At the very least, everyone (regardless of grade) will be starting some new chapter in their lives. The summer is upon us, and adventure awaits. Dreams are a good thing, and are worth pursuing. But pursue them honestly, remembering that integrity and humility matter, and so does being honorable in one's approach. Use the gifts that are in front of you (rather than wishing for things you don't have), and don't be afraid to be bold. But as always, put and keep God first. (Never sell your soul.) You Belong Here, Ben J Scripture(s):“Let no one despise your youth, but set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Until I arrive, give attention to the public reading of scripture, to exhorting, to teaching. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you through prophecy with the laying on of hands by the council of elders. Put these things into practice, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress. Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; continue in these things, for in doing this you will save both yourself and your hearers.” - 1 Timothy 4:12-16 “Better is a little with righteousness than large income with injustice.”- Proverbs 16:8 Upcoming: Last Open Stage Night 6/6 Last Youth Fellowship Until Fall6/1 Senior Farewell: 6/1 Confirmation Sunday: 6/8 Music: Divided By Friday – Modern Memoirs; Prove It (and all other albums!) Dustin Kensrue – The Water & The Blood Listener– Time Is A Machine |