As the weekend progressed from one service to the next there was a growing anticipation as each service brought something new and something powerful. The Troubadour reunion was no exception. As a student here in the early 90's, the only thing I knew about the Troubadours is what I heard. They were no longer a travel group at Trinity when I got here. So as I approached this service, I was very excited, but I also was very curious. What will this service be like? What made the Troubadours such a good ministry team? Will they be able to re-kindle that flame after all these year? These were some of my questions as the service approached.

The first thing that caught my attention was meeting Bob Garrison...Brother Garrison that is. And his very presence gave you the impression that he loved the Lord and he loved life. Although Brother Garrison is not in the best of health these days, it never once showed on his countenance. If fact, he quit taking chemo treatments a few weeks before the 60th so he would have the strength to make the trip. Then once he was here, he found himself in the hospital after only one night. He was treated and released on Saturday in time to make it to our big Celebration Banquet with Lowell Lundstrom. When Sunday came, Brother Garrison was beaming with excitement!

The second thing I noticed as I entered the sanctuary before the service began was the thirty people walking around the room praying very fervently for God to move in the upcoming service. What a powerful time it was in there praying with the Troubadours! One observer proclaimed to me, "Look at this, this was the key to the power behind the ministry of the Troubadours."

The third thing that grabbed my attention was the service itself, what an amazing time! It is hard to even explain what happened that night, except that it was all about God. A Troubadour's service is really a large group of people, all on the stage at once, singing some group songs, some solos, and sharing several personal testimonies. The music was good and the testimonies were great...but there was one defining thing that made this night special, the presence of God. Each part of the service was placed strategically to build on a previous part. As these Troubadours shared their own stories about their conversion or how God had delivered them from a tragedy in their life, then you were completely drawn into the ministry of the night. These people were real! Real men and women, with real obstacles in their lives, that a real God had helped them make it through. Some stories were survival, where God had helped them make it through a very tough time. Some stories were of deliverance, where God had provided a miracle at just the right time. And some were of discovery, where God revealed Himself to them in the midst of difficulty or at a low point and became their Savior, Redeemer and Friend.

The high point of the night was as they wrapped up, and Brother Garrison took the microphone and declared with a contagious joy that although his health was failing, it could never dampen the joy inside. The Bible tells us, "The joy of the Lord is my strength", but Brother Bob Garrison was a living example of that truth being lived out in an earthen vessel. Words could not do justice to the presence of God in that place. Eyes were not dry, joy could not be contained, discouragement was conquered, and God's people were renewed in a powerful way.