Report from Jasper & Mt. Calvary Baptist

Thanks so much for praying. This week has consisted of leading worship at Celebrate Recovery at Texas Avenue Baptist, as well as leading worship at a revival with the whole band at Mt. Calvary Baptist in Marysee, Tx. As a result, I’m just now able to report from last weekend.

Jasper

I took this picture to show the setting. The blue tent in the middle of this pic is Hillcrest Baptist church's booth. Hillcrest has been setting up this booth for several years now. They collect books and Bibles throughout the year, and they give them away as a ministry to the town. (Brilliant idea!)
While they do this, they also get names & phone numbers for give-aways. This has been a great ministry, but they felt they could do more and be more intentional. I was working with Jeff, the youth pastor, with some other outreach stuff, when Benny, then chairman of the outreach team, caught us witnessing to people using the 10 commandments, and giving away frisbees. He thought this approach would be perfect at the Jasper Fall Festival.
What this looked like, was some people handing out books, coffee, cookies, and directing the kids at the fishing pond (for prizes). All were ready to share their faith, equipped with Gospel tracts. Some handed out soccer balls with the wordless book colors on them. As they handed these out, they shared what each color meant. They handed out 300 balls!
Some did surveys. A group of about 5 young girls surveyed many people, and made them think about eternity using questions.
Some worked with me and roamed around to have 1 on 1 conversations with people all over. We mostly worked beside the booth with million dollar bills, and the 10 commandment test. Many people were taken to the foot of the cross. We called people to repentance and faith in Christ, and invited them to be a part of the body of Christ at Hillcrest Baptist Church.
Another praise was how much God provided for my family. Many of you know that Sara and I take a "whole family" approach to nistry. Ministry is not my job, but rather, family's calling. They often travel with me on over night trips, even though our family is young (ages 8 months - 7 years). This helps us get in the habit of fighting the spiritual battles that come with this kind Gospel ministry work. God protected us there and back. Sara did an amazing job, with a Christ-like attitude.
To God be the glory for all the people who heard the Gospel, for it is the "power of God unto salvation."

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Mt. Calvary Baptist Church Revival

On Wednesday, October 7, 2009, we were invited to lead worship at Mt. Calvary Baptist in Marysee, TX. There were about 50-75 young men and women there, as well as 25-50 children. Many adults came to support their young people.
Cliff & Matthew played with me, and Cody ran sound. Bro. Russ Hortman from Hardin Baptist Church gave the message, and challenged everyone to live the the life that God wants for them, starting with obedience to the Gospel. The response was tremendous, and there were 3 professions of faith, as well as many at the alter seeking God.
When you think about it, pray for the ministry of this church. There are so many young people coming on Wednesday nights to their programs, but their parents have little to do with the things of God. Pray that whole families will be won.

I can't thank you enough for all your support. For those of you that brought this mission to the throne room of heaven, no that God received glory as you participated in His kingdom. He indeed answered prayers, which is nothing short of a miracle.

Stay faithful! THE LAMB IS WORTHY!

Freedom Tabernacle

So this July 4, we had the opportunity to minister to the Freedom Tabernacle church in Kountze, TX.  The most kind-hearted church that we go to all year.  Dahlton and Lisa Smith are the Pastor's there, and they are always such gracious, Christ-like hosts.

There are 3 things to point our from this trip. 

1. Flexibility of Matthew, Cliff, and Carlos! - Not that I'm the most organized person, but when we leave our families to go serve the Lord, you can guarantee we've got a plan of attack.  This time, we had a very loose plan, and under the leadership of Pastor Dahlton, we were instructed to follow the Holy Spirit.  As a result, timing and setlist go out of the window, and each person has to be responsive to the Holy Spirit, as well as ready to follow me as a leader.  Everyone accomplished this.  We changed the set up time, sound check time, setlist, and even keys to the songs within the set list.  The group wanted to worship.  We let God lead, and we served the church that was gathered by communicating with them (did our best), and the Aragon crew was ready and flexible.  Credit it to Christ growing us together.
2. Tent analogy - This year, they went out and found a flat bed trailer for us to play on.  That got us off the ground, and gave us line-of-sight for everyone that was there.  The Aragon Project is about encouraging people to go share their faith.  As we moved to songs like "Shine On," and "Bringing Beautiful Feet," this analogy came to me.  Because we were in the tent and up on the trailer, our vision beyond the skirt of the tent was limited.  I cannot see who is driving by, who is observing from a distance, and am from the most part hidden from them.  As the church, we can't wall ourselves off to the rest of the world, and only see what's "inside the tent."  We must be obedient to the Great Commission, and "Go!" 
   
3. Witnessed to someone I've wanted to witness to for about 15 years - As we walked up and were saying hello to everyone, a familiar face was there. He knew exactly who we were, but I could not place him.  As we talked, I remembered who he was.  This man was someone I watched  my dad witnessed to as soon as we moved to Saratoga.  There were certain places in downtown Saratoga that my dad wanted to win to the Lord, and this guy owned a business on the main road.  I remember dad befriending, and witnessing to him.  He wanted nothing to do with it back then.  Oh how he loved his sin..... oh how we loved our sin.  I talked to him for a brief moment, and turns out that he was there with his chopper and had entered the bike competition earlier.  He shared with me that he had a horrible wreck a few years earlier, and the person in the ambulance told him he was going to die.  That lead into the conversation that my dad has carried on for years.  With all my heart and with tears in my eyes and in my voice, I explained as best I could of what Jesus did for him.  Though we worked for 30 min., he was still cloudy on the understanding, but I believe that the fog will soon lift, and he will be a testimony of the MERCY OF CHRIST!
   

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www.FrankAragon.com
Oh Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth your praise.  Psalm 51:13

Wild Week 2009

Nassau Bay Baptist Church never ceases to amaze me. Not only do they do things Christ centered, but they are so kind to us. Wild Week goes from Mon - Thurs the same week they have VBS for the children. Many of the students that participated were leaders in VBS during the morning. We ate together, worshiped together, and played together.

We also got to meet Nate, their new Student Pastor. Really neat guy that preached the word with a Christ centered message. I pray that his ministry at NBBC is fruitful.

Woodlands United Methodist 6th Grade Confirmation

Just wanted to quickly give an update to the weekend.  Anytime Matthew, Cliff, and I get to play, we always have fun.  It was a different setting for us, but we had a lot of communication on Sat. night especially, and really expressed a lot of heart.  I could hear Cliff singing above the monitors, and he didn't have a mic!  Matthew (as long as he's my brother, I'm not calling him Matt.)  never ceases to amaze me with his talent.  He owns the rhythm.  He almost exclusively practices guitar now, and still does so many creative things on the drums. 

God has blessed me with a new guitar.  The person that gave it to me was lead by Christ to do so.  It truly was a gift to the kingdom, for it will be used to sing the praises of the One that died to save me.  I could go on about that, but another time. 

It was also a pleasure getting to work with Kris Rives.  He played electric on Sat. night, and helped us out with the digital Yamaha board.  He added a lot of heart and energy to our sound, even though he was stuck behind the speaker ;)

Eric Albert, the children's pastor at WUMC was a blast to be around.  I'm very grateful that he trusted us to lead worship.  Hope we can hang out again soon. 

We have a few weeks off, and hope to be doing some writing.  If you know of anywhere 3 scrubs can play, please let us know.

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www.FrankAragon.com
Oh Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth your praise.  Psalm 51:13

Good News Club & Common Grounds

So after my family gets to see Azariah on the ultrasound (sweet), I get to sing for the 3, 4, & 5 graders.  It's gonna be FUN!!!

SETLIST:
Sing, Sing, Sing
Praise Ye the Lord
I Just wanna be a sheep
Zacchaeus
If you tell 2 people
Away in a Manger

Then, I get to lead worship with Chris Lanig at Common Grounds tonight!  Looking forward to being back.

God, whatever you have for today, may it be for Your glory!!!!


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Frank Aragon
www.AragonBand.com

Blessed Week

Unfortunately, the band is not getting to play together much. We've seen each other once in the last 12 weeks! However, I'll share in another post what has been going on in our lives individually.

However, the ministry is thriving! I, Frank, had the opportunity to be in front of about 350 people throughout the week to sing, and share the message of hope in Christ! The last one was for a group called upwards which was a flag football league. Read a funny story about that one.

Here are all the things we done this year. Please cont. to pray that God uses us in whatever was is best for His kingdom.

GNC & CG

Good News Club
It is Incredible watching all the kids return.  So many of the students were ready for Good News Club!  There had to be 100 kids there today.  Many of them wearing their Good News Club T-shirt.  Not only that, but we got to do an opening assembly in the middle of the school atrium.  When you first walk into the school, there's a place with a fountain, really tall ceilings, some coffee shop style tables and chairs.  We gathered there and sang "My Redeemer Lives, I've got Joy, and You are Worthy of My Praise!"  It was kinda crazy, but they sounded great.  After that, they broke up into smaller groups by grade, and heard the story of how God used Elijah to provide for the widow and her son.  Dawn gave the Gospel at the beginning, and it was very clear.  She didn't invite them to come to Christ so they could have a better life, but because they'd sinned against God, and he died for them on the cross.  THE LAMB IS WORTHY!!!!

Common Grounds
There were fewer students there tonight, but seemed ready to worship.  This was our 5th time to worship together with me leading, and we're moving past the newness.  Now, they seem to trust me to run to Christ.  During the music time, there was a focus that was there that has not been.  We prayed God would help us move to that place.  Not a big emotional high, mind you, but a sincerity of heart.  Praise the Lord.

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www.AragonBand.com

Common Grounds

Been having a blast at Common Grounds at Nassau Bay. After working so hard with Matthew and Cliff, it's really different w/out them for this, but it's allowed for a different feel of music. Kinda quiet, you know.

Get to play there on Wed. for the rest of Oct, and some in Nov. I'm praying that we will all learn to worship as brothers and sisters in Christ, in Spirit and in Truth.

Quick Update

Just to let everyone know, Aragon is doing good.  We all still have our homes, with min. damage.  As of today, Cliff still does not have power or water, so pray for him and Lynn as they help his mom w/ a tree on her house.

There will be many schedule changes due to Ike.

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www.FrankAragon.com
www.AragonBand.com

FBC La Porte

The coolest thing about the evening was the relationships that were built b/t us and the leaders of the student ministry.  Bryan, the youth pastor, Micah and Mark, who were lay leaders in the church as well as leaders in the FCA.  We have never experienced this type of fellowship from a group of men.  They set up lights, pulled down speakers, set up a stage, set up a back drop, setup a greenroom, arranged drinks and a couple of fruit baskets to be delivered.  They hung up a cross, helped with our PA setup, helped w/ sound check, and helped setup all the media stuff.  You guys, if you read this, thank you for showing us the love of Christ.  We're just a small band that's only on the 4th concert of the tour and all ready feeling the weight of all the travel stuff.  Thanks for the encouragement.

 

Had a really good time in the concert.....I think Cliff was really feeling it....did some pretty crazy fast stuff towards the end.  Of course, Matthew did great, even w/ glass in his foot!  I'm still struggling to find the sound and volume from the amp.  I picked up a Fender deluxe on the way there, and it was certainly plenty loud enough, though way too jangly.  I still need to work w/ the settings.

 

For the students at FBC LaPorte, I applaud you for bringing your friends to hear the Gospel.  Sometimes, as we grow in our faith, it's hard to muster up the courage to teach our friends.  It's even hard to give them something to watch or read.   Bringing them to church is the next best thing (as long as they don't die while they're waiting for the event!)  Keep growing in Christ!  Stick your nose in the Bible everyday and obey what you read.

 

Answered prayers

• Matthew found a really nice drum kit, at a really nice price!  That's something we've been praying for.
• We're up on itunes now....thought that would never happen.

Prayer request

• I can find the right sound and settings on the amp so our sound will come together.
• CD Sales to pick up (especially on-line)
• October dates to begin to fill up
• More opp. to share the Gospel each place we go.
  
  
  

Freedom Tabernacle

Wow!!! Another great night!  I know bands say this kinda thing all the time, but it is an honor to get to be part of big moments in church family life.  We had a wonderful night of celebration.....the Gospel was proclaimed....and taught about how scripture teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lust. (Titus 3:11-15)  We celebrated together.  It was a very powerful time, with Jesus at the center.

 

Some have asked how I feel about those kinds of services with many tears and emotions.  It's those that feel as if they could go forever, and no one would mind. God created emotions, and there were many emotions when people encountered God in scripture....usually fear.....in the NT we see rejoicing along w/ fear. 

 

In those emotional service, I allow truth to guide me.  God's word won't let your mind stray to crazy things.  And the proof of the "power" of the service, is proved in the "fruit of repentance."  In other words, how we submit to Christ in our day to day lives.

 

For the future, remember that God wants us to worship in "Spirit and in Truth."  The Spirit of Christ abides w/ us to lead us to all truth, and we know His Word is true.  A good equation is: Truth + Faith=Emotion + Action.  If you get it backwards, you will end up very confused.

Continue to pray for:

• Drums for Matthew
• Our floor monitors (speakers) are fixed
• I find the right guitar amp at the right price
• We are fully prayed up and prepared for FBC La Porte "Smash!"
  

Coffee Oasis

This turned out a lot more fun than work. Pulling off acoustic sets can sometimes be tricky, but it seemed to turn out well.

Like the previous night, we started with adversity. Matthew couldn't make it, and the PA was making an awful crackling noise. The noise worked itself out, and Ed showed up to put some percussion in. Ed and Alicia are such great friends. For that matter, all of Canopy.

Several friends showed up, and hung out. Anytime the Gospel is proclaimed in a passionate but yet matter-of-fact kinda way, it's always exciting. Think about the song, "We Remember" where Frank is howling "Thank you, Jesus!" How great it is to hear Christ magnified in that setting. Gotta lot o respect for Coffee Oasis for bringing us in. Btw, their brewed coffee is much more diverse than Starbucks. I mean, burnt taste burnt!

Cliff played beautifully, including the old tunes that I threw on him during the set. We also had a great moment of song writing live. Too bad we didn't record it. I think it was the best song we ever wrote.....but can't remember! Ha!! That's the way it goes.

Prayer needs:

• Matthew a set of drums,
• PA is fixed before Kountze,
• More online CD sales

FBC Seabrook

Thank you, thank you, thank you, FBC Seabrook, for having us at your lock-in on Friday.  We had a blast.  I pray that you enjoy the songs on the CD, and that you will continue to work for the Lord.  

 

Friday night was late, but a great eye opener for the first stop on the TAP tour.  The 3 of us realized that it's time to get in shape.  We were dragging by the last of the set.  It's also time to get our PA ready to go.  Set up and sound check lasted well over 3 hours, and we were never really satisfied at the end of the sound check.  Of course, Carlos bailed us out as usual.  He is a faithful friend and brother.  The FBC Seabrook crew were very patient as we struggled through sound check, and tied into their system.  Thanks, John!

 

The whole band was using different gear.  We are getting used to our new stuff.  Matthew is still unsettled about the drums he's using on this tour, so that's certainly a prayer concern.  Overall, our individual sound was a level up.  As Cliff likes to sing,

"Praises loud above the crowd to yeild first place, with a 'high-end sound.'"

 

Speaking of prayer, an answered prayer is that God helped us find the drum mics we lost.  We' thought we going to have to spend serious cash on a new set, but they were at another church all along.  Praise the Lord!!!

 

I'll post a couple of more request soon.

Hilcrest Baptist in Jasper Tx

Had a wonderful time with Hilcrest Baptist in Jasper. We actually went to San Rayburn lake and did ministry. This crew worked and played hard. Worship was sweet on Sunday morning. One can easily tell that Jeff, their worship pastor, sets an example of the love of Christ.

Galveston West End VBS July 21-25

Got to be involved at West End Baptist church this week. I started off slow, then picked up as the week progressed. Bro. Noel was so kind and caring, and the Anchor Baptist team that brought people to teach, do music, and snacks were amazing. Thank you Lord for this oppurtunity to serve on the island.