By MATT PIKE
This Saturday, the New Generation Singers, St. Joseph’s premiere Christian Youth organization, are hitting the road once again for their 55th tour heading through the northwest United States and into Canada, before traveling back to St. Joseph.
69 area high-school and college-age students from northwest Missouri will travel with the group during the tour. New G’s youth will spend two weeks of their summer to share their hope, faith, and heart with people across the route with a highly energetic program, bringing an original voice for the youth of St. Joseph area. New G has been preparing all year, and during the summer has been performing at churches around the St. Joseph area getting ready for the two-week mission trip to share their carefully developed Sermon in Song.
On Saturday, July 18th, the New G singers will be leaving St. Joseph from the Ashland United Methodist Church, located at 2711 Ashland Ave in St Joseph, at 8am. The group will be heading through the northwest United States, with stops along the way in Nebraska, Wyoming, and Montana, before traveling into Alberta and British Columbia, Canada, then turning around and returning back to St. Joseph, with other stops in South Dakota and Idaho. They will return for their Homecoming Concert on Saturday August, 1st, which will be held at the historic Missouri Theater at 7pm.
The theme this year's tour is entitled “Lift Your Eyes” and features uplifting songs that are tied together by dialogues, designed to inspire and cross denominational barriers.
“To me, personally, ‘Lift Your Eyes’ is a constant reminder that there is something greater than both myself and my daily struggles, and that thing is Jesus. It encourages me to lift my eyes off my circumstances and onto Jesus, who is greater than anything I could ever face.” Gwen Oswald, a singer in the group says in a news release.
“Lifting your eyes is all about changing your perspective about your faith. Let me ask, when was the last time you questioned your faith instead of trusting in God? When was the last time thought you were lost instead of letting Christ guide your path? I lift my eyes to the mountains. ‘My help comes from the Lord’ from Psalm 121. Change your perspective because God has not left you," New G President Ethan High added.
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