Jul. 24, 2008 - Let Me Tell You A Story...

   It's only when we're high enough to feel like we're flying that we realize how far we have to fall should we stumble. We try to make it to that point where we feel unbreakable, untouchable, invincible - high enough to make it past gravity's pull to that place where we couldn't fall even if we tried. But who tries? ...You'd think that when someone gets almost there we'd be gathering around them to encourage and strengthen them. Reminding them that God is bigger and that He will be their strength, encouraging them to never lose faith and always reach for more. You'd think that when someone slips and falls, we would consider it a tragedy. You'd think that as the body of Christ we would run to our fallen brother or sister and pick them up and dust them off and say, "Don't give up."

Let me tell you a story.

    Once upon a time God created...In His great and wonderful plan for His creation He had a place where He wanted to put one of His daughters. As He fashioned her and created her, He was constantly whispering to her. "I am going to put you in a position where you can be a light for Me. I am going to let you be a role model, an example, someone people look up to. You will be a leader in your generation. A household name. So many will see you as their hero. So many will want to be like you. When they look at you, I want them to see Me. Just hold tight to Me."

    As this little girl grew up, the plan God had for her life started to unfold. Different situations and circumstances suddenly shot her to the top of billboard charts, her name was written on t-shirts and her face appeared on the magazines. God gave her a stage where she stood and thousands of precious hands reached out to try and touch her - she was their hero. She said she believed she was where she was to be a light. And she was.  ...Not everyone liked her though. Actually, there were those who hated her without reason. There was pressure from her peers to mess up. They just wanted her to mess up. Even her Christian brothers and sisters were waiting for her to mess up. ...And she did.

    At that, we shook our heads and said, well, there goes another one. But that's NOT what God said. All this time, He's still there. He's still whispering gently, "Don't give up. Just hold on to Me. I know there's pressure, I know there's temptations, but just hold onto Me. Don't give up on Me, I'm not giving up on you. I'm putting you here for a reason - don't take your eyes off Me. I'm your Strength. I love you, and I want to love others through you. Be a light for Me. Look to Me. Just hold on to Me. I'm holding on to you."

    But this world is trying so hard to drown out that whisper. And her brothers and sisters are still turning away from her. She needs us the most right now. God doesn't give up on people. How are we going to show God's love to those who don't know Him if we can't show His love to those who do? Jesus said "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

    It's time we realized that loving people includes everyone. Even those that you would have never even considered loving or praying for. This little girl is struggling, and if her brothers and sisters don't step up and be the encouragement and the support and the love that she needs, she could fall. There are so many temptations. It's time we stopped just letting people fall into them. I'm praying for her, and I believe in the power of prayer. We can do more than we think. God's bigger. If you would like to join me in prayer for her, if you would step up and be the encouragement and the family she needs...then I guess you need to know her name. It's Miley.

Check out my new song.

Danya <><

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Jul. 7, 2008 - On The Road Again...

Well, for three hours at least. haha. We're about to head off for a mission trip, and I'm completely stoked! God's been doing some pretty big things, and I can't wait to see what He's gonna do this week! I really want to see the stars again...for those of you who are familiar with my songs, I wrote "thank you for the sky" last time I went to this place. :)

ROCKETOWN went amazingly fabulous! The band was the tightest it's ever been and the crowd was totally into it. We had the jumping and the screaming going on. And it was awesome! God totally moved. People were crying and laughing and worshiping. I felt like I was flying! It was sweet!

We've got a couple of other big things coming up...I'll fill you in on all that when I get back. Until then...I'm in the middle of nowhere with God and the stars. :)

Danya <><

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Jul. 2, 2008 - "Everybody with your fists raised high - Let me hear your battlecry tonight"

Have you guys heard the song "Frontline" by Pillar???? I just discovered it. It's like 4 years old or something. But it's amazing. It's on my playlist. At the bottom. (Hey, just saving the best for last.) You should really listen to it. I liked it so much I went to Lifeway the day after i heard it and bought the CD it was on. Yeah. That doesn't usually happen. But I figured, hey why not? It's the album Where Do We Go From Here. It's pretty sweet.

So I've been working on a lot of new songs lately. :) I'm thinking pretty soon we're gonna start working on recording a new CD. It won't be any kind of fast process, because I'm not exactly sure all of the songs that are suppose to be on it. I write constantly, and with the last CD "The Speed of Dark" almost didn't make it onto the list. Funny story. I was actually in the car on the way to the studio and I looked at my Daddy and said, "I think I want to record 'Speed of Dark' instead of the other one." What I should have said was, God's doing something big with this song and if we don't record it, we could be in trouble. hahaha. But seriously, that song took me into a whole new season of my life. I think this next album is going to do the same thing. I'm hoping for a complete full-band, 10 to 12 tracks album. Don't know how long it's gonna take, but we'll get there. :)

I'm very excited about the new songs. The lyrics are definitely a step up. See I wrote most of the songs on the last CD when I was 14 years old. Actually...I wrote all of them when I was 14...except I wrote Set Me On Fire at 13 and Speed of Dark at 15. Weird huh? haha. So you could say I've grown up a little bit and my writing has grown with me. The music's gonna be a little fuller and deeper as well, I think. Anyway...

So thank you to all of you who sent up prayers for my back. It's been doing better. I've been having to take it a little slower than usual, which doesn't fit very well with my schedule. But I'm managing. It's not convenient to be a musician without roadies. But thankfully, God's providing that too! I let the guys do most of the lifting and actually one of my friends who's coming to the concert needs a ride with us, so he'll be drafted into the moving/lifting department as well. :) I'm very stoked to play at Rocketown. I know how perfect God's timing is, and I know we're not there by accident. He's gonna do some awesome things!

Anyway...I smell something yummy in the kitchen, so I think I'll go check that out now. Have a great day, and don't forget to check out that song!!!

Danya <><
start.a.fire.

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Jun. 26, 2008 - If you leave this thing blank, it says Untitled Entry...therefore it's titled. Like you don't have a choice. It's very odd.

I think that I just need to make one thing perfectly clear...

Ruffles Sour Cream and Cheddar chips are the most amazing snack food ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously. I've had like three bags since yesterday. It's quite unhealthy.

The air-conditioning upstairs is broken again. Don't ask me why. I don't know. I just know that it's not my fault! haha. The boys have taken over our bonus room as their bedroom, being that it is the coolest room in the house. We've moved most of the instruments in there and so my lovely siblings and I are learning the concept of sharing. Derek needs his drum time, Danya needs her piano time, and David...well he just like the cool air and the couch. hahaha. I stole all the fans we have and put them all in my room because I like my bed. So if you walk into my room, you will either be blown away (cuz they're all on high), or you'll have your eardrums collapse with the annoying BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR of the one fan and the BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ of the other. :) Although it comes in handy when I sleep...blocks out all the other annoying noises of our creaky house..which can be good or bad I guess. Good because I won't wake up when the wind blows and the whole house goes:  CCCCCRRREEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKKKK, but bad because if a serial killer somehow broke into the house I would have no clue. Scary. Subject change.

ROCKETOWN is a week away! That means that any of you lovely people who live near Nashville (cough Dylan cough) need to mark your calendars! It's gonna be super fun. Ryan - ya'll remember Ryan right? - is playing with me at this one, which is super cool, cuz he played with me at my first concert. :) I'm pretty excited!

Oh, guess what?????? I went to this amazing conference last weekend, and met some awesome people, but made the mistake of trying to carry all my beautifully heavy equipment all by myself. Yes, because Danya is a brilliant child. And now Danya is a brilliant child with a thrown-out back. Lovely. It's much much better than it was on Sunday and Monday. You should have seen one of my friends...she kinda freaked out just a little bit when I told her about my back...let's just say I had my own personal doctor for a while. "No bending, lifting, running, reaching, dancing, stretching..." and I'm like, is breathing ok??? hahaha. Yeah it was fun.

Sigh anyway...am I leaving anything out??? Oh we had VBS this week too...that was fun. Especially with my back. They gave my group the 5 year olds. Yes. Brilliant. Give the handicapped leader the 5 year olds. haha. Whatever. It was still fun. :)

God's doing some pretty cool stuff in my life. :) I can't wait to see what's gonna happen. :)

Danya <><

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Jun. 14, 2008 - Much Much More

Lord Byron, an English Romantic poet of the 1800s, lying on his deathbed uttered this quote, which has been on my mind since I came across it. He was not a Christian and did not believe in God. And this is his statement:

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Jun. 10, 2008 - I know, I haven't updated in awhile...no need to remind me

ONE YEAR.
I am not even going to try to sum up in this little blog what God has done in my life over the past year. This week was the one year anniversary of when I quit basketball and left that world to go after something I knew God wanted me to do. I left my comfort zone, I followed the dream God gave me...and wow. God has done so many amazing things in my life...He's surrounded me with such awesome friends...and now He's opening even more doors! It's like...okay...round two...

It's incredible. I saw old friends yesterday. You know, from last year. And I suddenly realized how much I had changed since I saw them. I am a completely different person! And I wouldn't trade who I am now for who I was then. I might have answered you differently about six months ago...but now I can say it with confidence. God's moving, and I'm so honored He's taking me along for the ride! As long as I'm with HIM, I'm good. :) I'm very excited about what's happening.

Last week we played at a music venue downtown called The Muse. Not my first choice for a gig, but it was definitely where God wanted us to be. There were curse words and blasphemies written all over the walls...the bands that play there are usually gothic/demonic/metal type bands. It was really a miracle we even got in. But God worked. And one of the guys that came said it was one of the most awesome worship experiences he'd had. I'm like, GO GOD! And then on that Saturday we played at RAISE THE PRAISE in Portland...and that was amazing too. God's just working in so many ways...I can't say it enough. I'm like, hello?! If you can't see God moving, where are you? Cause you're definitely not where I am. Things are happening. Open your eyes...it's time for our generation to get out of its little "i-don't-want-to-offend-anyone-or-impose-my-morals-on-you" state (which is really just an excuse for being LAZY and trying to escape CONFRONTATION) and start acting like we're the Christians we say we are! Let's go!

















Danya <><

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May. 28, 2008 - You've Got Your Victory...Will You Remember Me?

Have you noticed that we get really tired of the same old stories? For instance, if, for the rest of my blogging life, I only talked about Acquire the Fire, most of you would stop reading this blog. Because you would already know what it was going to say. In fact, if I only talked about Acquire the Fire I would probably stop writing the blog because I would get sick of telling the same story over and over again. Stories get old. Memories fade. And a lot of times...we forget.

That's where it gets tricky. We forget. And we stop telling the stories. That's the problem though, isn't it? We tell stories...that's all we do. We just tell stories. We don't do anything about it, we don't learn from it, we don't act on it, and we still expect life to be different! But it won't be...if all we do is tell the stories.

Don't get me wrong, stories, especially stories about life-changing experiences, are amazing and should be told. But don't just tell them. Don't just talk about it! When you go on mission trips and to youth camps this summer and have these God-moments, don't just come back and talk about it. LIVE IT. That's why the story of Acquire the Fire made such an impact on my life. That's why I told it to you. Because those amazing, wonderful people that I went to it with didn't just come back and talk about it. They DID something about it.

It's been two weeks since that last day of Tutorials. And it still gives me chills when I think about it. If GOD did all that in five weeks, just imagine what He could have done if we had only been willing to be used by Him at the BEGINNING of the school year instead of waiting until the end. What could have happened if I had just chosen to LOVE or to accept the people God placed into my life? Well...I guess it wouldn't have been a miracle then, would it?







Danya <><
start.a.fire.

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May. 20, 2008 - Aquire the Fire Part 5: Just One

I am now going to attempt to conclude a never-ending series. Because God will continue to work, He is now, and no one can do anything to stop that. My God is big, and as I learn more and more about Him, He gets bigger and bigger. Tutorials are over now. But the journey is just beginning.

That first Tuesday, after everything was over, Briana and I were sitting in her car waiting for everyone to get out of class so we could go hang somewhere. We both knew something had happened. But it didn't really matter what. That Tuesday we all took a stand because we love Jesus. But we knew something had happened. Someone had been touched. And even if it was just one person...it was worth it. As we were talking, Briana said that she felt like we were suppose to perform a skit at the end of the year talent show. The talent show was held during the lunch hour and it would be a prime opportunity. Students and parents would be attending. She said that she wanted to do the Everything Skit. Now the Everything Skit is an amazing story, and it's one that you see and it changes your life. But in order to do it, we would need people and practice time and it would be really hard to put together. But if God wanted it to happen, it would happen.

God wanted it to happen.

... Now I'm going to sidetrack for a moment from the skit, but I'll get back to it. I want to tell you guys what happened that Thursday night. I had just gotten confirmed to play at a pretty big music venue here in Nashville, so I called my friend Rachael to tell her. She was totally excited for me, of course. But something else was on her mind. She started talking about what happened on Tuesday and how much we had inspired her. She said, "when you guys stood up...I knew I should be standing too." God had been working on her. We talked for an hour or so and I was blown away by the words coming out of her mouth. I started praying for her and talking to her more. I sent her the Everything Skit youtube and after watching it, she got more excited than I've ever seen her. She performed the skit with us, and I saw God start to transform her. I saw prayers that I prayed over her and her family answered. I saw a light in her eyes. I spent the day with her on Sunday and was amazed at the questions she asked and the passion she had. And I knew...that she was the one. If we had only touched one person that Tuesday...it was her. I was so thankful.

Ok back to the Everything Skit. God wanted it to happen. He provided the characters, he provided the practice times and places, and he provided the stage. I was blown away. The hall monitors at Tutorials even let us leave the lunchroom to go practice during one of the lunch hours. That doesn't happen!

I'm leaving out a lot of the story. I'm not mentioning the little miracles that happened all through-out the five weeks, because I don't have enough time. But I will tell you that we all saw God in a real and tangible way.

The last Tuesday...May 13th...we performed the skit at the talent show. We got through countless attacks. Some kids laughed at first. We closed the show. So a lot of people were anxious for it to be over. But then it started. The music played, the story began...and suddenly...the room was quiet. And when it was over...the room was filled. That's all anyone was talking about. It had a powerful effect on our student body, and on us. And we knew it had been a God-moment. Even if it had just been for one person.

We found out a few hours later that someone had rushed out of the room after the skit...gotten a teacher...and had them pray with her. She was saved that day.

Just one.

And even if it's for just one person...it's worth it.

Click here to see the Everything Skit. We aren't performing this one, but it's the same one we did. It will impact your life.

Danya <><

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May. 16, 2008 - Acquire the Fire Part 4: My God Is Big

I want to show you guys a picture. Actually, a few pictures, if you don't mind. I want you to be able to see and learn just what it was that we did on that Tuesday. I want you to feel the passion that's made its way into our souls. I want to show you some pictures and facts that we learned while watching the Indescribable video. I want to show you how BIG my God is.

And God said LET THERE BE LIGHT.

And light, which travels 182, 282.397 miles per second came shooting out of the mouth of God, shattering the heavens and lighting up space.


The sun is 8.31 minutes away from the earth...if we travel at light speed. And this light is so powerful that if we even look at the sun from earth for longer than a very brief amount of time, it can cause partial blindness to our eyes. The sun is "about 1 million kilometres across. This is a size that is almost difficult to imagine. There are 1000 metres in a kilometre, which means that the sun is 1,000,000,000 metres wide!!! ...The sun contains 98% of the matter in the solar system." - quote
   And the sun is one of the smallest stars in the universe! There are thousands of others. The sun is a speck compared to the vastness of the Milky Way galaxy...take a look:

Do you see it? on the left there...that little dot...that's the SUN! You can't even SEE Earth.

And the Milky Way Galaxy is just one of hundreds to thousands of other galaxies that God has created!

Approximately 23 MILLION light-years away...we find another galaxy. A galaxy made up of stars much larger than our sun. It's called the Whirlpool Galaxy.


And it's just there. It doesn't have some scientific purpose. It doesn't contribute to anything on earth. It is simply there as a beautiful work of art that our BRILLIANT Creator made to bring glory to Himself. And if you look deep down into the whirlpool...if you go into it and go right down into the bottom center of it, you will see something that will blow your mind. Our world was created and revolves around one thing, check this out guys:


My. God. Is. Big.




My. God. Is. Big.

Danya <><
start.a.fire.

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May. 9, 2008 - Aquire the Fire Part 3: Indescribable

    Monday morning, I knew what we were suppose to do on Tuesday. God had put a fire inside of us that wasn't going to die, and our passion was growing. And I wanted to speak to my lunchroom. It was the only time of the day when everyone was in the same place at the same time, and I knew that was the perfect time to stand up and share the gospel with the student body. We had made the mistake of thinking that just because it was a Christian school, everyone there was a Christian. And that was not true. No one had ever shared the gospel with these kids without assuming they already knew about Jesus. ...So I was going to.

    I called up everyone who had gone to Acquire the Fire and shared my vision with them. I wanted to start something called "The Five Project" and make the last 5 weeks of school something worth remembering...something God would be proud of. Everyone got really excited. We were going to stand up on Tuesday and let our voices be heard. We were going to let the kids know who we were and Who we served. We were going to stand up and be unashamed. And on Tuesday, as everyone stood up around me, I was going to share the Gospel.

    There was only one problem with our little plan. We didn't have permission from the authorities--as in, the hall monitors and the administrator. Now, I didn't think that they would say no to a little kid who came and asked them if she could talk about Jesus during lunch. But still, we didn't know what else was going on, and it might be difficult to organize with everyone in different classes and whatnot. In fact, not being able to reach anyone to get permission started me on second guessing myself. I do that sometimes. And right as I was almost to the point of saying, you know what, maybe it's not the right time...Briana called. I knew there was no way I was getting out of it. And she let me know that as well.

    Tuesday morning, as I walked in the doors, I was gathering up the courage to go talk to the hall monitors when...I looked up and saw our school administrator standing right inside the doorway. ...Needless to say, I went straight to her and started talking to her about what was going on. And she was all for it! In fact, she said one of the hall monitors had wanted to show a video during lunch and I needed to go talk to her. Well, that hall monitor happened to be walking around the corner towards us at that very moment. (I'm over here thinking, well hi, God, how's your morning been? It was so obvious He was there.) After a short talk, the hall monitor (Mrs. Jennifer) and I headed upstairs to the study hall room. Everything was going perfectly. She showed me which video she wanted to play, and we talked about what I was speaking on. She said I was her confirmation that she should show the video. Apparently, God had been working on this for awhile.

    The video, called "Indescribable," was 30 minutes long. Mrs. Jennifer said that she would start the video as soon as everyone got their food, and we could stand up and speak after it. We were taking up the whole lunch hour, which might annoy people, but we didn't care. The part of the Five that was in Study Hall with me was ecstatic! You could feel something different was happening. We even got permission to get the rest of the group out of class early so that we could pray before lunch!

    The video was amazing. The video, with the speaker Lou Giglio, took us throughout space and showed us just how small and insignificant we were compared to the great big glory of God. 10 minutes into the video, the whole room was quiet. After the video was over, Josh prayed and I started talking. I don't remember exactly was I said...but I do remember that every eye was on me the whole time, and everyone listened. After it was over, the hall monitor stood up and told everyone it was time for class...but if they wanted to talk to us, they were excused.

    We only stayed down there a few minutes. Actually, the person we were talking to was not one of the people we thought we were going to talk to. It was a boy in our group who was struggling with whether or not it was time for him to step up and share his testimony. When we got to class, the atmosphere seemed different around the entire building. It was an amazing feeling. The afternoon, a few of us went and hung out together talking about different things we could do the next few weeks...God was moving, and there was no doubt about that.

Danya <><

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