In the garden and in the recording studio, these students built community during spring break.

CARL GLADSTONE
Young People’s Ministries

March 11-17 was an amazing week for Motor City Wesley. Spring break took them to Nashville, Tennessee where they acted out their faith in various ways.

Motor City Wesley students and musical friends wrote and recorded 6 tracks for the debut of a benefit album of Motor City Hymns.

We served with the Nashville Food Project and the Youth Service Fund to help each in their justice, health, mercy and community-building work.  And we discerned a call to send proceeds from the sale of the Motor City Hymns album to global efforts provide clean drinking water to those in need.

Our guests, including Albion, MI resident Michael Trotter of The War & Treaty, Jim Flammia of All Eyes Media, and the talented Michigan-connected Rachael Davis offered great insight into making good music that makes goodness happen in the world.

Big thanks go out to United Methodist Communications for the use of their production studios, and to Young People’s Ministries and their Conspiritor Collective project in helping set up this week.  Both these UM agencies have some creative thinking going about what similar weeks for other musically inclined young people’s ministries might look like!

Now its time for mixing and mastering.  This album will be released with additional downloads (chord charts, lyric slides) to help churches use these songs in their worship gatherings, so we’ll be getting those ready also.

We look forward to releasing this resource on May 30th and sharing it with everyone at the Michigan Annual Conference in Traverse City.

Last Updated on November 1, 2023