Wednesday, September 26, 2012

My good friend Erin sent this devotional to me September 22nd. The whole day I had been kind of hoping for a word from the Lord. This was exactly what I needed to hear. Thanks Erin! xo

"Trust Me and refuse to worry, for I am your Strength and Song. You are feeling wobbly this morning, looking at difficult times looming ahead, measuring them against your own strength. However, they are not today's tasks-- or even tomorrow's. So leave them in the future and come home to the present, where you will find Me waiting for you. Since I am your strength, I can empower you to handle each task as it comes. Because I am your Song, I can give you Joy as you work alongside Me.
Keep bringing your mind back to the present moment. Among all My creatures, only humans can anticipate future events. This ability is a blessing, but it becomes a curse whenever it is misused. If you use your magnificent mind to worry about tomorrow, you cloack yourself in dark unbelief. However, when the hope of heaven fills your thoughts, the Light of My Presence envelops you. Though heaven is future, it is also present tense. As you walk in the Light with Me, you have one foot on earth and one foot in heaven."
Exodus 15:2, II Corinthians 10:5; Hebrews 10:23

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Stories from Tour

Well well well... I'm finally getting around to writing this blog. It's been about 5 weeks since we've all been back home from Europe, but I'll do my best to summarize and minimize. There are just so many stories to sort through ;) 

TMJ Trauma

I think it was maybe like 2-3 days before we left for Germany, I was feel so much tension in my body. My head, neck, jaw were all really tight. I was still able to open my mouth, but I just felt like maybe I should try out this osteopath that my friend insisted upon before I left. It must have been all the stresses of preparing for tour, planning a wedding, and just the busy-ness of life that set off my jaw. When I was done at the osteopath my mouth was almost fully locked. I could hardly open at all to drink. I was spilling things all over me. It was hard to eat anything. I was in a huge panic. The osteopath said that it might take a 48 hours to start to feel better. It was the second day... and nothing. I was still in pain and extremely limited jaw mobility. In frantic worry I went to my chiropractor for an adjustment. He gave me some exercises to do that seemed to help slightly. Needless to say, I was in terrible shape. That same evening at 11pm, I was to catch my flight.

Tour Schedule:



I tried to make the best of it. I had a great group of people with me, but to be honest it was very wearing on me. It increasingly got worse with the lack of sleep and non-stop traveling. We were meeting so many new people and seeing so many sites, and I felt like everyone was having the time of their life but  I had to take a back-seat approach. Every time I smiled or laughed it was so painful. 

Germany 

The first show I played in Spaichingen, Germany I brought an ice-pack with me. During the middle of my set infront of maybe 130 people or so I broke down in tears. I confessed to the audience that for me to sing was painful and that I wasn't sure exactly how I was going to get through the tour, but only that I knew God wanted me there. I explained how sometimes we are most effective in our weakness. I encouraged the audience that whatever they're walking through, no matter what it may seem, that God is a good God, and has GOOD plans for us. Peering through my own tears I saw so many people break down. I then attempted to sing the last song. I didn't expect to cry-- I felt like it was a rough start to a 12-show tour, but afterwards one of the organizers came up to me and said, "Amy... we don't normally show our emotions like that in public. It was so neat to see how so many people connected with what you were saying. Thank-you..." I suppose his words to me was the fuel for the rest of the tour. No, it wasn't pleasant to experience all this discomfort, but if God was going to work through me in that way, I didn't want to get in his way.

Amy & Erin in Austria
Jake at Mozart's birth place

Austria

In Austria I seemed to get a little more sleep, and my muscles started to relax. I remember waking up and running to my friend Erin Wyga, "Erin! I can open my jaw a little!" Erin was so wonderful. She gave me a huge hug. Erin was always massaging me, providing anti-inflammatory cream, and just always making sure I was okay. What a huge blessing. That day I have to confess was one of my favourite. We toured the city of Salzburg. It was beautiful. Lots of sun, laughs, and beautiful sight-seeing. That was the day we got to visit Mozart's birth-place! I think Jake was in his glory. In the evening we played in a really cool underground restaurant built inside a cave!

Switzerland

Switzerland is beautiful. I mean, any place in Europe seems to be breath taking. I think another awesome memory I have is staying with a lady named Iris. Her house had the most beautiful look-out from her backyard. You could see a castle lingering in the clouds. What is more, she had this beautiful baby-grand piano. I immediately gravitated to Claude Debussy's "Clair de Lune" and Beethoven's "Sonata Pathetique" lying on her piano. Back home I rarely get time to play these beautiful classics. I was real rusty but I was soaking up every moment. I'm currently actually trying very hard to make time to polish off these pieces. I was so inspired that day.

Amy Gets Lost

One thing I'm still learning about myself is that I always get lost. I could take two turns on a street in Europe and get lost. My defense is that everything looks the same there, but I am partly blond. Anyways, I forget which city it was... maybe Rumlang? We were setting up for sound check at the church and I asked if I could take a shower quickly (since it's completely necessary after traveling in a packed tour van for 3000 hours). I was lead by a lovely girl named Rebekka to her house. We went through the grass, trees, goats, tomatoes, took a couple turns. I don't know why, but I wasn't really paying attention. We arrived at her house and I quickly stepped into the shower. I finished up as fast as I could and ran down the stairs and stepped out the front door. It was thundering and lightning, and was quite dark. I couldn't remember which direction we had come. I kept on wandering in various directions and was continually getting more soaked. I saw some goats... (or were they sheep?...ha.) and I started to walk towards them. I realized that the path I was on all of a sudden stopped. I had to trudge through a garden. My feet were covered in mud. It was lightening still. I looked like an idiot probably to the neighbors. I was half laughing out loud and half petrified. The thunder was so intense. I walked by one fenced gate.  A dog started barking at me and I decided to run back to the house. "Hello????" I said. "Anybody here?" No one was answering. I froze in fear. Was I in the wrong house?  I wandered in every room. Complete silence. All of a sudden someone came down from the stairs in a towel. She must have been showering too! I was like, Oh shoot. That's not Rebekka. I wasn't sure if she spoke english, so I felt awkward. "Um...Church? Where's church?" She seemed to understand and we were both laughing as she pointed me in the direction where to go. I ran as quickly as I could to the church. My outfit was soaked. I looked like a Raggedy-Anne doll. I explained to the audience that night what happened. They were most gracious ;)

Courage

In Basel (Switzerland), we ran into the most adorable girl. She and her mother were out on a date night. They were quietly watching from back of the room. Afterwards the mother came up to us and said her daughter wanted to meet us. She had told her mom, "Mommy, ...when I grow up I want to be a singer just like them...". The girl was moving herself around with crutches. I believe she had a form of Spina Bifida and was paralyzed in the legs. I was so touched by her. Here she was, barely able to walk, and yet she was excited about her future. And so she should be. She was a reminder to me that God is not limited by our own weakness. A common theme throughout this trip ;)

Nicolas

We met Nicolas on our last day. We heard a soulful, determined voice echoing from one of the alley-ways in Heidelberg (Germany). We passed him by and then just seconds later my brother Ryan was like, "Hey guys... lets go listen to that guy". I was a little hesitant. I wasn't sure if the man would feel comfortable if we gathered around him to listen. His name was Nicolas. He was singing in English surprisingly, cursing in one sentence and then praising God with the next sentence. He immediately welcomed us in his circle. "Hey you guys, do you mind just sparing a little bit of change..." He began to give us a list of reasons why he needed the money. "Hey man", my brother said, "do you mind if we buy you some lunch?" "Umm...okay, but only something small..." Ryan quickly ran off to grab Nicolas a burger. We started to ask about his life. He started to tell us one story after the next of all the pain and abandonment he had experienced in his life. All his hopes and dreams had been reduced to his life as a beggar on the streets. I got the sense that he had some kind of spiritual background. I wanted him to know the love of God but I wasn't sure how to start that kind of conversation. When my brother returned, he said, "Hey Nick, do you mind if we pray for your food? Just ask God to bless it?" With tears in his eyes, and a real humble smile Nicolas said, "Sure friend. I'd love that". After we prayed he wiped his tears. It was as if he hadn't experienced love in such a long time. We invited him to the venue we were playing that night. He showed up.
Nicolas (Heidelberg, Germany).

Reflection

There is just not enough space here... not enough room or time to write everything down. I think what touched me the most about Europe was just connecting with people. The human journey is the same where ever you go. Joy, sorrow, hardships, victory,... all these things find their way into every human life. I think often we tend to isolate ourselves thinking our struggles are so unique. Thinking this way  can become lonely. I'm not going to sit here and paint a rosy story about my own life. I have my own challenges. Some of them I share openly, some I keep hidden. One thing I do know, we all need hope. We all need purpose. But above all, we all need LOVE. The need for love is so prevalent. I see it all around. I myself and desperate for love. I need it to survive. When I feel not good enough, when I feel insecure, incapable, I need the love of God that reminds me I am his treasure... that I am everything He intended me to be. The fact that God uses me, despite my flaws, is incredible. To think he would use someone like me who lost my voice years ago, and someone who suffers from TMJ to be a singer, just shows God's heart. He uses the WEAK things of this world and the broken things of this world to demonstrate his power. Through our weakness He is strong. And through His love, we are made strong. Understanding God's heart for me changes everything. His love empowers me to the impossible. His love has no limits.

Thank you.

Laura Osburn (Germany)
I was so blown away by people's kindess. Complete strangers who were taking us in, praying over us, blessing us, loving us. A huge thank you goes out to Timo Schmidgall. Timo was my main contact out in Germany who had never booked a tour before but did the most spectacular job. He set up all the housing, meals, venues, instruments, equipment, transportation... we wouldn't have gotten anything done without him! What is more, he was the perfect bass player to accompany us on stage! I must also thank his beautiful wife Sonia for all her love and support. Next is Karl Honemeyer. Karl was such a joy. Always positive, always light hearted. He brought so much to the band with his tasty guitar licks. What I also appreciate about Karl is that he is a great conversationalist. We had many thought provoking conversations. His wife Sabina was also so gracious for allowing us to borrow him for two weeks. Beautiful people. Jake Ivens is dedicated to the core. Whether I play for a crowd of 15 people, 500 people, in Guelph, or in Germany, Jake is always willing... always available. He has such a generous and fun spirit. Laura Osburn, what a bundle of energy. Laura traveled with me as my opening act. What a pure delight to be able to listen to her sing each night. She is so sincere, so talented, and just a really good friend to me. I also appreciated our in-depth conversations in the car. Erin Wyga, what a completely essential role she played. She kept us all sane, organized, well-kept. Mind you, she does have strange out-bursts or hunger pains in the middle of the night ;) haha. Ryan was definitely appreciated on this trip. He was a huge help, not only with percussion, and manuel labour, but with comic relief. We appreciated his many creative voices he would do for us. Actually, I think we were all talking in various accents throughout the trip. Good times. Ryan also took the time to stay behind with me during one day when I was feeling too pained to go out with the crew. He just has a good heart. Just a good, kind, brotherly heart :)
Peter didn't come, but I missed him like crazy. Peter created all of our posters, promo, charts/schedules... the whole bit. The fact that I knew he was praying for me 24/7 was a huge blessing. 

Prayer Request:

So much is on the go right now. A couple big changes: Getting married in December, and moving to Michigan. I plan on setting up tours in the US in the new year, so I'm excited for all the many new adventures along the way. One thing that I do ask... I tell audiences where ever I travel: I suffer from headaches/migraines and TMJ on a regular basis. I've suffered with it for 7 years. I believe one day God will heal me. If you remember to, I would so appreciate your prayers. Often I don't feel equipped to do this calling God has placed on my life, yet I've seen His power prevail even when I feel almost useless. I believe God will one day restore my health. I'll blog about that miracle later.

I love you all. I really do. 

~ Amy  

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Monday, June 11, 2012

I'M ENGAGED!

For the first time in a long time I feel like I have no words.

I have been single my whole life. I had never dated anyone, kissed anyone, been intimate with anyone...nothing! Some people might look at me as if I'm strange. I've had many 'non-Christian' friends/acquaintances tease me my whole life because I didn't date, but that was fine by me. I believed that even though I had no clue what my future husband looked like, God did.

I look back at my life and just think, wow... God is so so faithful. It hasn't been easy the whole way through. I remember a few nights I would cry out to God with big fat ugly tears asking him if he had forgotten me. All my other friends seemed to be living the picture perfect life, but I was going through life on my own. As music ministry became more intense, I remember last summer feeling so overwhelmed. I told God, "Father ...I'm at my wits end. This is too much. I can't do this a lone..."

Amy Savin Engagement | June 2012
Then along came Peter. Actually, Peter was there for a long time. I met him 4 years ago... just a few months after he had been baptized. He had flown out from California with my brother's friend, and they visited my family for a couple days. I had spoken only very briefly with Peter. I knew only a small portion of his life. I knew that he had experienced some pretty heavy life trials. I appreciated his heart back then. I remember one conversation we had in the car with my younger brother about Salvation. Listening to Peter's answers to my brother's questions I remember thinking to myself, "Wow... Peter really has a good head on his shoulders". But that was it. Never had any feelings for him, never hoped for anything with him.


To make a long story short, Peter felt God placing me on his heart ever since then, but it wasn't until this past summer when Peter flew out to shoot my music video, that God gave me the same conviction. FOUR YEARS LATER! Life is funny isn't it?

A good friend of mine, Lindsey Minaker once told me, "Amy... you don't ever have to stop what you are doing to go look for a spouse. You just keep on serving the Lord, and loving Jesus the way you know how... keep walking through with the calling God has placed on your life, don't look to the left or right, and you will find that person along the same path God has set in motion for you..." How right she was. Little did I know that God had been preparing Peter for a life of music ministry for the past couple years, working with other bands, and experiencing touring life on the road. What is more, Peter is so gifted in all the areas that I'm not! If you take a look at my website, album art, or any of my online presence, that's all Peter for ya :)

DEAR SINGLE WOMEN:
I don't know much about relationships, (honest to goodness I don't), but I feel like this has been true for me: love the Lord with all your heart-- serve him regardless of all your crazy circumstances. Seek first the KINGDOM and then the rest will be given to you. Don't feel like you need to put on a show or go around impressing guys. Just love Jesus. The right guy for you is the one who falls in love with Christ who is hidden in you.


THE PROPOSAL:
While Peter was living in California for the past several years, he was born in Michigan, and currently lives there now. As of late, I've come to realize Michigan is one of thee most beautiful places in the entire world. Here are some snap shots from just a couple days ago.
Mackinac Bridge (Michigan's Lower Peninsula)
Mackinac Bridge (Michigan's Lower Peninsula)

Any of you ever heard of Mackinac Island? It's a beautiful little Island only 3.8 square miles (9.8 km2) located in Lake Huron. It is part of the US state of Michigan. We took the Ferry over Thursday morning and spent the day roaming the whole Island on foot and on bike. It is like a place stuck in time; no cars are on the island. It was honestly like I was in a dream. Everywhere we went was just so breathtakingly beautiful. What is more, I was with my favorite person in the whole world. This past year I've actually been through so many changes and challenges and life has been a little overwhelming. When I arrived on the island I felt like a different person. I told Peter, "I don't ever remember being this happy.." It was so refreshing to just rest and soak in the day. We walked in and out of little shops, bought some delicious fudge, saw Fort Mackinac (built by the British during the American Revolutionary War), and hiked through some of the paths through the woods.

Towards the end of the day, Peter asked me if I wanted to go tour the Island one last time on our bikes before we left. I told him I was exhausted but if he wanted to, I would. When we rode around this time, a lot of people had left and the look-out points by the beach were still and quiet. Half way through our bike ride Peter and I started playing tag. I would smack his arm and ride off and he had to chase me. Eventually we got tired and Peter suggested we stop and rest by the water for a moment.
We parked our bikes and sat on the rocks. He held me close. When we got up to leave I was trying to zip up my jacket. He took my face in his hands (I'll never forget)... and he said.. "Amy I love you so much..." He started to shake. He asked me if I was nervous. I started to laugh. "No...! Why would I be nervous?" I replied. Then I realized what he was about to do. He was hoping I was just as nervous as he was. Haha.

"Will you marry me?"

I started to cry. I guess I knew he would ask me eventually, but when you see God's plan and promises being fulfilled in front of your eyes, it's overwhelming. It's no secret--  life can be full of so much pain. We all know that. But I think without the tears and the heartache, we could never truly appreciate the blessings. Peter means the world to me. His love for me and his love for Jesus humbles me every day. I'm so so blessed to get to share my life with him. Please pray for our journey, for our mission, for our road ahead. This is only the beginning.



My eyes are a little wet as I write this. God is so good. If there is one thing I have learned in this life, it's that God is good. All the time.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

April Showers Bring May Flowers


University of Waterloo
Hellloooo out there! It's definitely been a really long time since I've blogged about my daily adventures in the music scene. What can I say, this past May has been pretty eventful, partly due to the fact that during this time we are finalizing all the last minute details for our upcoming Europe tour. I think at the moment there is something like 12 different shows scheduled in a matter of 16 days.   I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to survive... I don't normally do THAT much singing in such a short period of time, but I just really felt like God placed this trip on my heart and so I went with it. Our contact Timo in Germany has been working so diligently and generously for my team. Couldn't do it without him! Anyways, I should probably stop talking about Europe right now-- since I feel I could talk about it forever. I'm overwhelmingly excited. I'm excited for great memories, new
relationships, good food, good music (hopefully ;), and just to see what God is doing through his people over seas.

Back to Ontario Canada:

I've been having so much fun at the different venues that I've been invited to play.

I did a youth conference at the University of Waterloo and ran into some old Guelph acquaintances. I couldn't remember their names, but we all agreed that our faces looked familiar. We seemed to talk about our lack of name remembering skills for quite some time. Too funny!

Sound-check @Faith Church (St. Thomas, ON)

When I was done my 1 hour set for all the youth, I sat down and had coffee with a lovely lady named Alice. Though she was a complete stranger, she totally welcomed me into her life and before you know it we were laughing our heads off about our various life adventures. What a sweet woman. She began introducing me to a bunch of her friends and family that were helping out at the event. It was just so refreshing to feel so connected to a group of people who I had never met.

Another highlight of May was a concert I did at Faith Church in St. Thomas. What a beautiful experience. I want to say a special thank you to the crew there who was so hospitable. Marty-- you especially. Such a servant heart. The whole night ran so smoothly. I loved the various artists that showed up: Joel Larmer, Darin Martin, Laura Osburn. So much fun to listen to y'all! I have to also thank 105.9 Inspire FM. The whole crew there (Scott, Dave, Richard) was so key in promoting this event. (I feel like this blog entry is like a CD insert of thank yous). Peter, Ryan, Jake, Andre, Erin--- so blessed to be able to work with you. Oh-- I must also mention, the last song of the night, I was accompanied by a beautiful 13 year old girl Hannah who sang a long with me. What a talented little lady. God has great things in store for you young lady!

Last but not least, it was such a thrill to return this month to Signet Christian school. The kids are so entertaining, funny, lovable, and talented. I taught them the entire song to "Sleeping in the Sun" in like 5 minutes. Mind you, they had the words in front of them, but even to catch all of the melody was impressive ;) One of the students was able to record part of our little session. Watch below:


What is next on the immediate agenda? Well--- as some of you already know, I've recently signed with Nashville label Mission House, and I'll be debuting "Bigger Houses" in the US. I've been humbled to see Canadian Christian radio stations really soak up that song, so hopefully it can be just as warmly received by our sister country ;) I would like to be able to do some touring in the US as well, but there are a few hoops I'll have to jump over first. The closest I may get to any State at the moment may be some gigs out in Windsor, ON. I'm currently looking at stetting up some venues there so if you'd like to jump on board, I'm looking at sometime towards the end of July or August. So, there you have it. I could have written a lot more, but it is getting late and well, sometimes you just gotta make it short(er) & sweet.

Thank you to those who are keeping me in your prayers. I couldn't do this without your love, and prayer support. Praise Jesus for you!

~ Amy

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Amy Savin Live (Grimsby, ON)

Amy Savin LIVE  (Grimsby, ON)
Amy Savin LIVE  (Grimsby, ON)
Amy Savin LIVE  (Grimsby, ON)

Monday, April 2, 2012

April 2nd, 2012

Last night I talked with a man who came out of poverty, and told me: "Amy, when I was a child, my biggest aspiration, my biggest goal in life was to own a motorcycle. I didn't hope for anything else, because I couldn't see or dream up anything more. When we can't see past our own circumstance, we hope for the lesser things. I never knew God's grace... I never knew he would bless me beyond my wildest dreams..."

Monday, March 19, 2012

"Sounds of a Send-Off"

Amy Savin & Jake Ivens at "Sounds of a Send Off" (Fergus, ON)  03/17/2012
Amy Savin & Jake Ivens at "Sounds of a Send Off" (Fergus, ON)  03/17/2012

Friday, March 16, 2012

Turtle in a Bucket- A Friendly, Spiritual Application

Today I rescued a little turtle. If you've known me for quite awhile you'll know that's what I do. I save wild robins, little froggies, ...turtles :)

I love where I live. These little creatures teach me so much about God. Amazing.

The turtle had been crossing the street. We all know how fast cars are, and how slow turtles are. I temporarily put the turtle in a bucket, and kept him by the front door. He immediately was trying to escape. I watched him struggle for a bit, but then I tipped the bucket slightly so he could slide out. At the first site of freedom he scurried his little webbed feet from the porch into the grass, and hid under a pine bush. I was just about to let him be when I thought, "Hmm... he's probably trying to make it over to the pond which is a 10 minute walk from here. He'll never survive."

I decided to go fetch him again. This time when I tried to catch him he was far more anxious. I put him into the bucket for the second time and noticed he was trying much harder than before to climb out. I grabbed my keys, jumped in the car with the turtle on the seat beside me, and headed for the pond. The whole time he looked petrified, angry, and confused. If only he KNEW that I was helping him, taking him to a far better place, he wouldn't be so anxious. It hurt me to know that he was so miserable and frightened out of his mind, but I kept driving. The end would be totally worth it.

I arrived at the pond, and put him onto the dry dirt and grass. He seemed caught off guard. Again he started scurrying away climbing over long leaves, tall, straw-like grass and shrubs to get to the water. I thought again, "This guy is going to have a real hard time climbing over all the stuff. I should just get him more directly into the water". Funny, when I tried to pick him up the third time, he let me. It was as if he was starting to understand. I was actually helping him. 

When I finally placed him in the water it was so cool. He was in his element. He was so cute. Bobbing his head in and out, playfully swimming. Okay-- I get too excited I know.

Here's the thing: the whole time I was thinking about God, and the way He sees us. I'm sure that so many times God has to put us in "buckets"and we cry and complain, and get upset with God because we are going through so much pain. We think He is out to get us. We don't trust Him. We are afraid.  What if you knew He was taking you to a better place? What if a beautiful pond was just around the corner in your life?



Can I remind you that God LOVES you? He has a perfect and beautiful plan for your life. Gosh-- He is so good...to think He would even take time to teach me that lesson today.

Be blessed friends.

much love,

Monday, February 20, 2012

Sara Groves

I never used to listen much to Sara Groves growing up. I started paying attention to her within the last couple years. It is so rare to come across a song-writer so profound in her writing, and in her life. Sara's lyrics rise above so much commercialized Christian pop that we hear on the radio. It's more than just being honest, it's being completely immersed in her songs. She has no difficulties being clever, or compelling, because everything she writes is so real.

I look at someone like Sara, and I think how beautifully her ministry through music go hand in hand with her missionary work in the poorest, or most abandoned places of the world. I feel like Sara is an exmample of what can happen when God reaches in and controls ALL parts of our life.

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive and inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." Colossians 3:23-24



Tuesday, February 7, 2012

February 7th, 2012

Jesus wasn't just HOLY, he was an incredibly brilliant TEACHER. Following in his footsteps (though counter-culture), leads to LIFE. Not just eternal life, but life abundant here on earth. When you are tempted, or feel discouraged, choose the higher road. Choose Jesus. His way works. He created you.
~Amy

Monday, January 23, 2012

Feeling, Faith, and Fact


 Three men were walking on a wall-- Feeling faith, and Fact; When feeling took an awful fall and Faith was taken back; So close was Faith to Feeling, he stumbled and fell too; But Fact remained and pulled Faith back, and that helped Feeling, too! ~ anonymous

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

January 17th 2012

"Don't read your Bible, or pray because you feel guilty if you don't do it. God doesn't need your pity. When you read or pray, do it because you are excited that your creator is communicating with you! He wants your relationship, not your religion".
~Amy