testimony

In The Words Of Nick Himself

"It is awesome how God works. He just puts a desire in our hearts, even though at the time it seems like something that is just plain impossible, He still puts it there. And then its like a huge puzzle, He starts putting one piece in, and then another, and then another, until finally it all falls together. I guess that is probably how you could describe this CD in general. Just one puzzle piece after another.
   I was called into the ministry when I was only 12 years old, but when I was even younger, around 9 or so, God put a desire in my heart for music. At the time I could not carry a tune in a bucket even if I tried. Everytime I opened my mouth it sounded like a gut-shot panther. I wanted to sing so badly though, and it never was happening. It was around 1991, and my dad was attending Rhema Bible Training Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. And I will never forget it, I really looked up to the Children's Pastor at Rhema during that time, Andy White. He was just my hero, like most Children's Pastors are to little kids.
   But anyways, back to the story. When Christmas time came around, all I wanted was to get a leading part in the Christmas Play, but like I said I couldn't sing. So when I found out I didnt get the part, I was extremely frustrated, and went out in the hallway and was crying (remember I am 9 then, not 21). Right about then Pastor Andy came out and saw me crying, and asked what was up, so I told him how I wanted to sing, but couldn't. Then he said something I would never forget. He asked me, 'What does Phillipians 4:13 say?' 'I can do all things through Christ who strengthened me' I replied back. Then he said, 'That also includes singing, ya know. Here is what I want you to do. I want you to wake up everymorning and say 'I can sing through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.''
   So I did, every morning. I would wake up and say, 'I can sing through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.' You see, God loves it when you repeat His scripture back to Him, its like you are saying, 'I get it! I get it!' So anyways, I did that every morning. It was tough sometimes, but I never gave up, because I knew that God would fulfill His word.
   It wasn't for another 1 1/2 to 2 years later, and we were worshiping at the church my dad was now pastoring in Interior, SD. I remember belting it out, just singing at the top of my lungs worshiping God. You see, God looks more at your heart, not how pretty you sound. John 4: 23 says 'Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshiper will worship the Father in Spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.' It doesnt say the worshipers that sing well, it says the ones that worship in SPIRIT and in TRUTH. But anyways, thats a whole other sermon.
   There I was just worshiping away, I can remember it like it was yesterday, and all of a sudden I heard myself singing well. I thought I was hearing things, but I wasn't. My dad gave me this weird look, so I knew something was up. I got so excited I wanted to just jump out of my shoes. I could actually sing, and everyone wasn't jumping to cover their ears. It was truly a miracle.
   So I didnt stop there, I wanted to be able to play an instrument. So I asked my dad to teach me how to play the guitar, but that didn't work very well. So I was starting to get discouraged, but then I remembered what Pastor Andy said, so I decided to do that with guitar playing. So every morning I got up and I said 'Praise God! I can play an instrument through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.' When I started doing that, God laid it on my heart to just keep standing in Faith about that, to not go take any lessons but to just stand in Faith on it. Now I'm not saying that if God lays it on your heart to do something that you should not pursue learning it, this was just with my case. Unless of course God lays it on your heart the same way he did mine.
   But anyways, once again let's get back to the subject and off of one of my many famous rabbit trails. So every morning that would be the first thing out of my mouth. That lasted for another, oh, 6 years or so, just standing in Faith that I was going to learn an instrument. And then in May of 2000, I was cleaning the church, and I saw my dad's guitar sitting up front of the church. And right then God told me, down in my heart, 'Go pick up that guitar.' Of course me being the stupid human I am, I ignored it. And everytime I would walk by the guitar, there was this strong urgency to go pick it up.
   So finally after 'accidently' walking by the guitar many times, I finally picked it up and said 'Ok God, if you are wanting to show this to me, than show it to me.' And as sure as I am sitting here, God just literally showed me what to play. I started to play the song Heart Of Worship. I was amazed. Of course I had seen my dad play some, but I couldn't believe I was actually playing the guitar. Now I look back at it, and it probably didn't sound ANYTHING like Heart Of Worship, but what did I know, I was playing something, and it sounded somewhat like a song!
   Now I am not saying guitar playing came easy then, I had to work at it, I knew just a little, but I still had to work at it. So every day I played, and I played and I played. It wasn't even 2 months after starting to play and I wrote my first two songs, one actually is on this CD ('Better Way'). Right then I started putting two and two together that maybe God was trying to show me something. It goes back to that puzzle, it was like He got the edge put in place, so you kinda know what it looks like, but the middle is still gone. I knew it, I was called into music. I had to be, God was giving me these songs left and right.
   So of course, what does a young 18 year old do when he starts being able to play the guitar, he joins a band. At this time I wasn't playing very well, but I could still make a good sound from some notes I picked up. It was not very long after Timmy Stuen, my brother Nate, myself, and a few others had started the ministry Bull Riders For Christ. We had been traveling around preaching at different churches, and it was usually Tim playing the guitar and me singing for worship. So we decided to put together a band to travel around and do the worship at the different church services we were doing. A friend of mine, Aaron Smith, who I knew through rodeo ended up being an AWESOME drummer, and he had a heart to worship God. So we asked him to play drums for us, which ended up being the heart and sole of our newly found band GiG (Growing in God). So now we had a drummer and two guitar players, but no bass player. So since Timmy had more experience on the guitar, I got stuck with learning the Bass guitar, with our first gig being only 5 days away.
   Now before this time I had never even really seen a bass guitar, so it was once again up to God. So I said, 'Ok God, I know you made everything, and I know you know all, so you can show me how to play this and play it well.' Sure enough, God showed me. It wasn't everything, but it was just enough to get by for that one gig. But then I fell in love with the bass guitar. Thats all I wanted to do, aside from ride bulls, was play my guitar and the bass guitar.
The band, GiG, was together for a little over two years. It was an awesome time or learning and growing together. After the two years God called us all off in our different directions. But this was when God really started working with me. It was like everytime I sat down to play, He was giving me a song. In fact I couldn't write them fast enough at times. This whole time I know it is ALL from God, because of how I was learning all these instruments, and the way these songs would just appear. You definately know a song is from God when you sing it 4 or 5 times, and THEN it starts to minister to you. Of course one thing led to another, once again through God's devine power, and here we are now with the CD 'Who Cares? So What!', a CD totally inspired and written by God, with me just being the pencil and instrument to share it on with you.
   I guess if there is really anything I want to get across, may it be through you reading this whole entire book I just wrote down, or it be by you listening to the songs I have written, is that God loves you, and that He has a plan for you. Do not EVER give up on something God lays on your heart. Satan is going to try and come and steal that away from you, but don't let him succeed. Always keep your eyes on the light, and not back in the darkness, because in the light, all things are possible."

   Thank You and God Bless,
                   Nick Morrison