Stacey Gagne

STACEY GAGNE –

Yesterday I was sitting in the Passport Health Office realizing it had been almost exactly a year (off by one day) that I was there!  Some of you may remember my trip to Ethiopia with Compassion International last October.   It was my very first missions trip on my very first passport and really was life changing.   Yesterday  it was time to update some immunizations for another adventure!

I’m excited to tell you that I am preparing to travel this October to Jacmel, Haiti!  I will be traveling with a team going to work with Joy in Hope, a ministry whose vision is to:

“support, encourage and build Haitian families in order to provide them with the spiritual, educational cultural and physical foundation needed to impact their community, their nation and the world for Christ.   Joy In Hope accomplishes its mission through three branches of ministry: children’s homes, churches and schools and numerous outreach efforts such as educational programs, evangelism, feeding and nutritional programs and medical clinics. Each of these avenues allows Joy In Hope to provide a Christ-centered model for serving in the local community.”  

Our team of 9 from several different states will be joining together to bless this community that is still recovering from the earthquake.   It’s also a special trip for me because I’ll be traveling with some friends I have made through volunteering at Creation Festival as well as making some new ones.  Also,  my friends Gwenn and Nick and their family are on staff with Joy in Hope and live in Jacmel.  The leader of our trip is Denise, Gwenn’s mom.   I expect that it will be a special trip in many ways and I’m thrilled to introduce the WJTL audience to my friends at Joy in Hope.

Some things we’ll be doing there as a team may include home construction,  distribution of diapers,  formula and other supplies,  working on the land where the Children’s Home is to be built and just generally being an encouragement to the community there in whatever ways we can as we share the Love of Jesus.

I am excited to have the opportunity to serve on this team and share my experiences with the WJTL listening audience.   Tune in during the week of October 24th as I report to you live from Jacmel, Haiti!  .   Thanks for keeping our team in your prayers.

Preparing for the Adventure!

Stacey

STACEY GAGNE – Did you know that WJTL has an internship program?  We really enjoy having high school and college students join us each semester as they pursue their interests in Radio, Communications and Music Business among other related majors.

This year we are excited to have two fabulous young women with us!  Introducing Interns Julie and Sandra:

Julie Urbanik has been listening to WJTL since she was 7 or 8, so we as a staff have known her for years.  Now she’s a student at Millersville University studying Music Business and Technologies.  You’ll be able to hear her on the air on Thursday mornings during the Get Up and Go Show with Fred and Lisa and will see her out at some of our summer live remotes.   She’s only been with us for one week so far and has already put together our parade playlist, mailed some letters and prizes, updated our events calendar, recorded an on air promo and helped at Walk for Life in Columbia!  She’s off to a great start!

Sandra Robinson studies at Grove City College.  She’s a Music Education major with interest in Communications.  Sandra hosts and co-hosts 2 radio shows at at her school.  She also grew up listening to WJTL and loves a variety of different music styles.   Sandra will be with us on Tuesdays and will also joining the Get Up and Go Show team this summer.  She has a busy schedule with her summer job, but we plan to have her come out to many events too.  Tuesday was her first day and she had a great time with Fred and Lisa and our guests!

Please help us make our fabulous interns feel welcome when you see them out at live events.   If you or someone you know is pursuing a career in broadcasting or music business or a related field and is interested in future internships at WJTL, please email me at stacey@wjtl.com.

Stacey Gagne

Coordinator and cheerleader  for our Internship Program

STACEY GAGNE – I haven’t blogged as much as usual this month… because my fingers have been furiously keeping up with the donations that have poured in!  WJTL had a need.  Listeners responded.  God provided.

I was unsure how things would look as we ended 2010.  I trusted that God would take care of us somehow, but wasn’t sure how that would look considering the economy, considering how everyone has responded to the need for so many other organizations in need this year, etc.   But here we are having met budget before the end of the day with donations still coming in.  What a treat to get to open the envelopes, read the notes, share them with the staff and see our needs being met once again.  I have been amazed.

The Jon Foreman Song “Your Love is Strong” is one I’ve really appreciated this year … and these lyrics from scripture seem especially appropriate for today.  I’ll post them below.

Happy New Year!

Stacey Gagne

Celebrating the New Year with joy and amazement!

“Heavenly Father
You always amaze me
Let your kingdom come
In my world and in my life
You give me the food I need
To live through the day
And forgive me as I forgive
The people that wronged me
Lead me far from temptation
Deliver me from the evil one

I look out the window
The birds are composing
Not a note is out of tune
Or out of place
I look at the meadow
And stare at the flowers
Better dressed than any girl
On her wedding day

So why do I worry?
Why do I freak out?
God knows what I need
You know what I need

Chorus (3x):
Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong

The kingdom of the heavens
Is now advancing
Invade my heart
Invade this broken town
The kingdom of the heavens
Is buried treasure
Will you sell yourself
To buy the one you’ve found?

Two things you told me
That you are strong
And you love me
Yes, you love me

(Chorus 3x)

Our God in heaven
Hallowed be
Thy name above all names
Your kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven
Give us today our daily bread
Forgive us wicked sinners
Lead us far away from our vices
And deliver us from these prisons”

STACEY GAGNE – Ask anyone from the office and I think they’ll agree: I get giddy like a little girl at Christmastime.  Oh o.k., I can be giddy fairly often.   But especially now.   I’m excited to see my family,  anxious to give the gifts I’ve chosen, and excited to see SNOW in Vermont.  But there’s more…

I know that the joy and excitement I have has a deeper root.   As I hear and sing songs about Jesus being born, and our church services focus on the reason for the season…  we remember the many miracles.   I get full of wonder and my heart is full of joy.  We are celebrating a day that marks the birth of our Savior!!  I seek to celebrate that in my heart throughout the year!

May your heart be filled with joy that goes far beyond the season!!!

Merrry Christmas

Stacey Gagne

“I’ll be home for Christmas”

STACEY GAGNE-  We receive lots of calls and emails asking who sings the “barnyard carol of the bells song”.  Unfortunately, we don’t really know.  It’s a song that we received years ago at the station on a special “radio only”  release cd.   It’s become a favorite for many listeners and I wanted to let you know that if you just can’t wait for the next time the song is played on WJTL, it is actually available to watch/listen to on Youtube.

Enjoy!

Stacey M. Gagne

Merry Christmas!

STACEY GAGNE –

I love corporate worship settings.  There is something so special about joining together with others in singing to Our God.

This afternoon  I am singing along at my desk with Phil Whickham, Chris Tomlin and Lincoln Brewster.    I wonder how many other listeners are singing along or at least joining in worship silently from wherever they are.   We are worshiping together!

Just a thought!

Stacey Gagne

A Worshiper singing along at WJTL

STACEY GAGNE – We recently added the Prayer Wall feature to the website.  It’s already been an amazing tool for people to share their prayer requests and see that others are praying for them!!!  I was looking through some of the testimonies on the stories page and thought I’d share an excerpt:

“A few weeks ago I wrote a prayer request out of desperation. I was frusterated with trying to find a Bible Study and feeling let down by my friends. First of all, I want to say that I was totally blown away by the number of people that prayed for me and then by all the advice I received. The body of Christ is an amazing thing!”  (You can see the full story at the Prayer Wall Stories Tab)

There are already many many requests on the prayer requests page.  Please take a moment to visit the page, let someone you know you are praying and even encourage someone.   Prayer Works!

STACEY GAGNE – I have had the privilege of meeting some very beautiful babies and children recently as I have several friends having and adopting children these days.  Today as I was greeting and trying to connect with my newest sweet little friend I found myself welling up with this hope that this child would decide that I was someone they wanted to love and that they would one day come to trust me as one of their parents friends.

I’m not a parent, but as I’m sitting here going about my day I am realizing that this is a feeling that parents must have on such a deeper level… and that God has on a greater level still.  He’s longing for us, His creation,  His children to love him, to trust Him and to come to Him, even honor and obey Him out of that love.

Just a thought I’m thinking … while being thankful for the precious little ones I get to be friends with.

Stacey M. Gagne

Thankful for God’s love for His precious ones big and small.

STACEY GAGNE – It’s 5:30 am and I’m so excited for this day to begin.  WJTL’s 26 Hours of Compassion is here.  This is the culmination and purpose for my trip and experiences in Ethiopia… to let others know about what Compassion is doing and give you an opportunity to  get involved.

This morning I got really excited when I saw the link go up for the children needing sponsorship from the FBI (Faith Bible International) Project.  These are the kids that will be filling the classrooms and playgrounds that I walked through!!!

So here is your invitation!  Listen in!  Check out some child profiles … and please pray!  Then give us a call and sponsor a child!  We’re looking forward to hearing from you.

STACEY GAGNE – I just clicked on our direct link to Compassion International from WJTL’s web page.   I noticed that as I went in a couple of pages there are many pre-teens and older teens in need of sponsorship. I wanted to take a moment to highlight this group of kids.  I think it’s often the case (at least it was for me) to have that excitement to start a sponsorship with a child from a very young age.  I, personally, love the idea of walking with a child through their years of growing up and knowing I was along with them every step of the way.  I started sponsoring both of my children from early ages.

The thing is for these teens, what has most likely happened is that for one reason or another they lost their sponsor somewhere along the way.   I’m sure financial troubles have been a large factor due to the economy as of late.   These students are in a crucial time in their life as they finish out school, deal with the many issues that teens deal with, etc.  It’s their final push to finish out the program and possibly move on to university!  They can use encouragement and support now more than ever.  I just wanted to put out an encouragement for anyone who might consider sponsoring an older child… you might only have them for a couple of years, but your impact on their life will be great.  If you have a heart for teens, or like the idea of being able to motivate and encourage a child as they finish out the program… there are children out there who would love to meet you.