Coming Events

We're excited to be singing together in Thonotosassa, FL, Lakeland, FL and Lancaster, PA. If you're in the area, we'd love to see you there!

Married To The Music

Melissa's new article, "Married To The Music" debuts in this month's issue of Singing News. Check it out!

A Homecoming Christmas

This beautiful and delicious book celebrates the mystery and awe of the Incarnation using every one of the senses, inviting you to see, touch, hear, smell and taste Christmas! With very personal contributions from the Homecoming family of artists, including Melissa's Snowball Cookie recipe, and meaningful words from Gloria and Bill Gaither and well-known author Calvin Miller, you will experience Christmas with a fresh new excitement. If you want a gift that means something, this is it! Click here to purchase this book.

Jim Brady: A Songwriter's Heart - December 6th, 2011

 

Click here for your online reservation: http://www.instantpresenter.com/PIID=E958D986864E

Benefit Concert

 

A Living Legacy

I am so excited about a new project that I recently produced entitled "A Living Legacy" featuring the songs of Squire Parsons.

When I was 10 years old, my parents took me to a concert that made an eternal impact on my life. That was the night I met the man they called "The Gentle Giant of Gospel Music" Squire Parsons. His songs have not only set the bar high for young aspiring writers but brought joy, comfort and encouragement to us all.

I am so happy to be a part of paying tribute to a wonderful man who has filled Gospel Music with songs that are timeless and lyrics & melodies that soothe the soul.

I'm also very exited to offer this CD on the site because a portion of the proceeds for each item sold goes to the ministry of Squire Parsons. We also have the companion songbook with all 18 songs plus a bonus song, Squire's latest single, "I'm Still Here."

Be sure to check out the October issue of The Singing News for the full story of how it all came together!

Blessings,
Jim

Clarkston, MI

Hello everyone! If you are anywhere near Clarkston, MI this Thursday night (September 22nd), Melissa and I would love for you to join us for a concert at Dixie Baptist Church.

Tickets are $11.00 and the Foresters and the Rob Mills Family will also be on the program. For more info, please see the poster below.

Gaither Taping

Here are some photos from the DVD Taping with the Gaithers at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC.

Muncie, IN

It was a treat for us to sing together in Muncie, IN last month, The folks in attendance that night were absolutely incredible to sing to! Their responses to each song were so boisterous and encouraging, we could’ve sung all night! It felt like we were singing to a thousand and yet at the same time, it felt like we were all visiting in the living room after a holiday meal. A sweet night indeed!

Interestingly, we could’ve missed the night entirely. As we got close to Muncie, we had to get on a two-lane road and just before we reached it, a pick-up truck ran into a semi on that very road. By the time we got there, traffic was stopped in both directions and the line of vehicles was already long. Over the next 40 minutes cars continued to pile up on each side of the road. Finally Jim & our sound engineer, Robert, got out and began talking with some of the local rescue personnel and truck drivers who had started standing outside their vehicles. Due to the fact that the semi involved in the accident was transporting fuel, the situation was no where near a resolution. So they came up with a plan. There was a small road, too small for the semis to travel over, but ok for smaller vehicles, we could take that would get us back on track and to the venue on time. After a “ hop, skip and a jump” on that small country road, we were back in business.

During the concert, special prayer went up for our family members facing the valley of illness and we were greatly encouraged by the love and support of our sweet family of God. His Word says when two or three come together in His name, He is in their midst and that was the case in Muncie. God met with us in a marvelous way and we are so thankful!

Update

It’s been a very eventful few weeks.  Jim took two long trips to the west coast with the Booth Brothers while I stayed in OH with my parents.

In the middle of it all, Jim was able to spend a few days with Dad, Mom and I, which was wonderful! During that time, he and I went to Alexandria, IN to attend Gloria Gaither’s first Songwriter’s Intensive and it was incredible! We spent two days learning from Bill & Gloria, Donnie McGuire & Reba Rambo McGuire, Buddy Greene and Andrew Peterson.  Each writer had a different perspective on the writing process and we left with not only more knowledge of writing, we left with a greater desire to write.  We left inspired!

On my way home, to meet Jim for our upcoming IN concert, I took a quick trip to see my lovely friend Lauren Talley marry her sweetheart, Brian Alvey. The wedding was held in a quaint chapel at a beautiful resort in the mountains of TN.  At the reception, their first dance was to Jim’s song “Never Let You Go.” They call it “their song” and it was so special to see how Jim’s words have touched their lives. It was a sweet day, one that lingers in my heart and brings a smile.

This past Friday, Jim and I sang in Muncie, IN and had a great time singing together! I’ll post pictures and write more about that soon.

I’m back in OH now, doing a little cooking and laundry before Jim and I head to Sevierville, TN to sing at Tony Gore’s Smoky Mountain BBQ & Grill on Thursday.  If you live nearby, come join us, it’s gonna be fun and the food is fantastic! I am so looking forward to some BBQ and fried green tomatoes!

For now, it’s chicken casserole, chicken casserole, chicken casserole, Mom’s current favorite.  Today, I’m making my third casserole in the past two weeks! Thankfully, Dad is still enjoying it because I’ll keep cooking it as long as Mom wants it. It’s easy on her stomach and it’s filled with protein!

To update you on my parents’ health, Dad’s surgery is scheduled for July 25th.  Since they found the mass in February, it’s definitely had time to change and grow so our prayer is that it hasn’t grown too much and that the surgery will be a simple one.  Mom is doing alright but has had a few setbacks.  She was scheduled to have another round of chemotherapy last week but her blood counts were off so that was postponed. She’ll, hopefully, be able to start chemo again this week.  In addition, she was given a break from radiation, taking off Friday and Monday, giving her a long weekend, which made her very happy. If all goes well, she’ll finish her treatments within the next two weeks and prayerfully, have no need for surgery.

We received quite a shock this week when we learned that Jim’s sister, Debbie, has stage 3 ovarian cancer.  She goes in for surgery this Wednesday, and due to the degree of difficulty, it will be a lengthy one.  The current plan, once the surgery is completed, is six rounds of chemotherapy and although this journey will be long and hard, we’re thankful it is an option!

Jim flew to Tampa to surprise her and has been enjoying a sweet visit with her over the weekend.  He’s been sending me texts and pictures from the his visit which we’ll post soon. I know he’ll have some great stories to tell!

After getting the news of Debbie’s cancer, one friend texted me to let me know she’s praying and said while she hates to see us going through all of this, she knows God is faithful.  This is true! We have no idea why we have such sickness in our family and to be transparent, it’s HARD! Our hearts hurt.  Yet we know God is still with us, He isn’t oblivious to our needs and our hearts are softened.  We’re listening for His voice.  We know He’s speaking to us and we’re excited to hear what He has to say!

Update

You never know when God’s going to surprise you and today was one of those days.

I had taken Mom to her radiation treatment and, as usual, we got home right at lunch time. When I asked her what she’d like for to eat, she said she just wanted cereal. Now, I’m learning, as many of you probably already know, that chemotherapy and radiation treatments will not only make you nauseous, they often change the way food tastes. So, Mom has only wanted to eat things that still taste good to her and especially things she thought would be soothing to her stomach. I’m continually reminding her (she might say nagging) to eat more and make sure there’s protein in her diet. Today was no different.

Sometimes, she enjoys a scrambled egg. So, I asked her if she wanted an egg and some toast for lunch. As she continued to say “ I just want cereal” and I continued to say “How about an egg?”, it became a game with us, who would give in? We laughed about it and then she said “I think I’ll eat an egg.” I was ecstatic! I hurried into the kitchen and began to cook.
When I took Mom her lunch, she looked at it and said “That’s funny!” I looked at the egg and then looked at her questioningly, wondering what could be so funny about an egg. She then reminded me that I usually scramble her egg but, obviously, I'd forgotten and fried the egg. I looked back down at her plate. Sure enough, I’d fried the egg, overeasy. Ooops! I have no idea where my brain was or what prompted me to fry that egg. At least I didn’t, until she continued…
Mom had wanted a fried egg today and forgot to tell me. She was expecting a scrambled egg but got exactly what she wanted.

Isn’t that just like God? He looks out for us, even in the little things. Which reminds me, He’s taking care of the big things too!

Update

I was talking with a friend and received the sweetest encouragement. She told me how she walked into her daughter’s room to tell her “Good Morning” and, even though she makes an effort to give her daughter privacy, couldn’t help but see her prayer list that was hanging on the wall.

What caught her eye, that she just had to share with me, was my parents’ names, on her daughter’s prayer list. Hearing this was a tremendous blessing!

As I go through the difficulty of my parents’ health issues, and receive sweet words of encouragement from you all, I’m reminded that we’re to love others as ourselves. Meaning, we are to care for them and pray for them in their trials as if those trials were our own.

The love and support from you all has been so uplifting, the appreciation I feel is almost more than I know how to express. Especially when I hear of a young girl, who is loving and praying for my family as if they were her own.
I thank God for you all! You make me want to be a better person, to love others as you have loved me!

Hugs,
Melissa

Update

It's a moment when time seems to stand still. When the diagnosis comes in and you hear the dreaded "C" word. I know many of you have been there, you know what we're facing.

My mom was diagnosed with cancer recently and it was something I didn't want to hear. That dreaded "C" word has claimed the lives of three of my grandparents and I hate it with a passion! In addition, Mom has already faced a stroke and two heart attacks. I'm saddened to see her suffer through this too.

This past week, Mom received two types of chemotherapy. One at the doctor's office and one in a pack she wore that delivered about a 1/2 teaspoon of medicine per hour for four days and was then removed. She's now getting a rest from it and will be given another four-day pack to wear in 28 days. Although she did get a little nauseous, it wasn't unbearable, and we're grateful for that simple blessing.

She's also undergoing 5-6 weeks of radiation treatment and the prognosis is good. The doctor says, at the end of treatment, she should be fine and that is our prayer!

During this time, Dad went into the hospital for stomach pain and in the midst of finding two ulcers, the doctors also found a mass on his kidney. Jim and I went to Ohio and were in the doctor's office with Dad when he told us there's a 90% likelihood that Dad has cancer as well.

Dad began going through all of the necessary tests and surgery was quickly planned. Then there was a setback. After additional testing, Dad was diagnosed with MRSA, a from of staph infection, which delayed his surgery. He's now been cleared of the MRSA and is waiting to once again do all the tests that are needed before surgery.

Again, the prognosis is good. The doctor says once they remove the mass, Dad should have no need for further treatment and, for that, we're grateful. But oh, how my heart hurts. I so badly want to fix this for them, to make it all go away so they don't have to suffer. Still, we'll battle on, and face things as they come, believing that the God who made us, still loves us and will not put on us more than we can bear.

I've already received many notes of encouragement and I thank you all for your prayers. I'll continue to post updates to let you know how things are progressing and, I'm sure, to post a special prayer request now and then.

Much Love,
Melissa

Claremore, OK

I had a great time in Claremore, OK this past weekend! It all started with dinner and fellowship with some of the ladies of the church on Saturday night, then setting up and a sound check to be ready for Sunday morning. We started Sunday with a church-wide pancake breakfast (yum!), then had a concert during the Sunday worship time, followed by a women's event Sunday afternoon and then a few hours of vocal and performance training with some of the teenage girls in the church (for the record, those girls were full of talent!!). A local trio, Patrick Quick & The Travelers, stopped by and we sang around the piano where I enjoyed singing a little harmony. Fun times!

We ended the night at Braum's, a local ice cream franchise. My sundae of vanilla ice cream topped with hot fudge, caramel sauce, bananas and pecans was incredibly delicious, especially the caramel sauce, oh my! It's probably a good thing there are no Braum's in the Nashville area. Still, if any of you have influence on the higher-ups at Braum's, and would like to mention it, I'm SURE their business would thrive in our area!

A big THANK YOU to Shirley Nickles for hosting me at the church and to Steve Massey, who ran sound for me. During soundcheck, I found out that not only can Steve run sound and video, he used to solve crimes as a medical examiner, is now a police officer AND can play the guitar! So, I took advantage of the situation and asked him to do a song with me during the Sunday morning concert. Being the good sport that he is, he joined me on stage and we had a blast! So, thanks again y'all. You made the weekend a success and made a TN girl feel right at home in Claremore, OK!

- Melissa

Claremore, OK

I'm so excited to be headed out to OK this weekend! I'll be singing at Claremore Nazarene Church in Claremore, OK on Sunday morning and in the afternoon, will be singing and speaking for their women's event. If you're in the area, come out and see us. It's gonna be fun!

Welcome!

Hello Friends and WELCOME to our new website!

As you navigate the pages of this new site, you'll notice quite a change and we will continue to re-vamp the site in the months to come. We want this to be a great place to connect and celebrate God's goodness!

For those of you who have tried to contact us through email, we apologize for the confusion. We're in the process of fixing the "bugs" in the system and will notify you when all is rectified.

Currently, Jim is in the studio and on the road with the Booth Brothers, while Melissa continues to write and add dates to her solo calendar. As schedules allow, there will also be a few dates throughout the year where we are singing together. It's a whirlwind of activity and we're excited to see what 2011 brings!

We have some exciting things planned and can't wait to introduce you to some of our new passions in ministry!

Happy New Year!
Jim & Melissa