GIVING MORE THAN THE BIRD

I visited GMA (Gospel Music Association) headquarters this morning. We gathered around a conference table strewn with napkins and Krispy Kreams just before 9AM. The staff, newly de-eye-crusted and caffeinated, sat amazingly awake and friendly for so early in the morning as I walked through the beatitudes with them. I gave them something between a mini-concert, a sermon, a morning devotion and a friendly casual conversation. I'm not sure if I was asked or if someone at Rocketown did the asking but I'm glad the asking got done. It was good to finally meet the people who give us artists the bird.

The bird of course is a bronze statuette, a dove in flight, handed to the artists and other creative types each year at the Dove Awards - our equivalent to the Grammy. I even got to hold a Dove Award this morning, given in the category of best background noise to eat donuts by I think.

But Doves aren't all the folks at the GMA do for you and the industry. Here are some quick links to their other endeavors and services:

Music piracy prevention and education
Contests and classes for musicians
Re-emphasizing service in the life of the artist who is Christian
Conferences and events like Seminar in the Rockies (I'll be teaching and singing there this year)
Providing spiritual growth opportunities
Providing professional growth opportunities.

Basically, if all you know about the GMA is that they give out little faux metal foul, well, you could be missing out on something helpful or just plain interesting.

Thanks to everyone at the GMA for feeding me and listening to me this morning. It went a long way toward removing the pain of losing the seven Dove Awards your members nominated me for once upon a time.

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