Jen Haugland

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NASHVILLE – FRANKLIN TRIP/MAY 22 – JUNE 2, 2013

I just finished an awesome week and a half down in Nashville & Franklin the end of May. I was blessed to have the wonderful host home of Chris & Jean Thomason’s to stay at. They were so gracious and made me feel so welcome and accepted. They even included me on a few of their family outings while I was there. Such great new friendships were made there.Image

 

On May 24th, I attended a Get Busy workshop at Word Entertainment sponsored by Creative Soul Records/Word Entertainment/GMA where I learned a lot about how to book events and use social media effectively.

The workshop was one of the best I have ever been to, jam-packed with a lot of information… everything we as independent artists need to know to really get busy! For anyone who is interested in what we learned about there, you can purchase your own attendance for $25 here and watch online. Congratulations Eric & team on a successful day!

Aaron Eric & Diego Get Busy 2013

I also attended the GMA Immerse 2013 Conference May 26-29, where I gained some insights which were very helpful for my ministrywork and also enjoyed networking with new friends and friends I had previously met online through Indieheaven & Creative Soul. I even got to watch a songwriting friend, Matt Price, advance to the finals round of reVIEW You performing “Let Your Life Flow” at the end of Immerse. He did an awesome job! He’s been recently added to the New Artist Watch on New Release Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Immerse held a reception for Creative Soul Records as they (I should say “we” now) celebrated 15 years of God’s faithfulness to their vision for independent artists and their ministries. We were all able to take home a preview copy of the 15 year anniversary CD that was just completed by some of the current roster artists. As soon as it is released, you will have to get a copy. There are some really good songs on there!CSR 15 Year Reception

I am really impressed with the team that Eric has put together at Creative Soul to help their independent artists. Diego Cadogan (Director of Artist Relations) and Aaron Walters (Director of Social Media & Marketing) have such wonderful servant hearts, just like their President and Executive Producer. I feel really fortunate to be with this team. They really believe in supporting you and the heart of your ministry.

I also really enjoyed meeting my fellow roster artists with Creative Soul and it is so nice to be part of an artist community that feels like family.

CSR Friends Out to Dinner

I am looking forward to seeing how God will bring us back together again throughout the years for His purposes!

On Thursday the 30th I had my photo shoot with Erick Anderson for the new album project, marketing materials, etc., which was a lot fun. It reminded me of my modeling days of yesteryear! You’ll have to stop by my musician page on facebook as soon as I post some of them to see how they turned out (I am pleased)!Jen PhotoShoot

On my final work day, my producer, Eric Copeland and I worked on some more song ideas for the album. 6 songs have already been completed so far and there are 4 more to go. I am really looking forward to seeing where the Holy Spirit will lead on these last ideas! The fun thing about song writing is that it can go anywhere! There really is no limit to your creativity and I love tapping in to what God gifted me with to see what stories and truths stir up inside of me for the next song!

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I’d have to say that one of the highlights of my trip was the personal tour of Steve Dady’s Sunset Blvd Studios in Cool Springs and meeting the super talented guys of the band who have been laying the tracks on my current project. I really enjoyed visiting with Steve Dady (Engineer), Dave Cleveland (Guitar), Mark Hill (Bass), Steve Brewster (Drums) and Jeff Roach (Keys). These guys and a few others that are on this current project are some of the top session players in the CCM industry and I feel so blessed to have them playing on my upcoming album. They say they want me to send them more songs to work on, so I guess I have my work cut out for me! 😉 I even got to sign the honorary wall in Steve’s garage!

 

I ended my last couple of days by staying with a songwriting friend in Nashville that I met at a retreat a couple of years ago. We always seem to enjoy our fellowship and we encourage and spur one another on in our writing! Iron sharpens iron!

Many blessings to you as we enter these Summer months ahead! There is so much work I need to get done! If you would like to have me come minister in song and testimony at your next event, please get in touch! I am looking forward to serving alongside you for the kingdom!

 

~Jen

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Jen Haugland Music

Jennifer M. Haugland, M.S., L.M.H.C.

Singer/Songwriter/Keyboardist/Worship Leader/Speaker

Email: jen@jenhaugland.com

Website: www.jenhaugland.com (to learn more about my ministry and purchase the music)

Twitter: @jenhaugland

Facebook: http://facebook.com/jenhauglandmusic

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/pub/jen-haugland/20/576/12b/

Reverbnation: www.reverbnation.com/jenhaugland

Indieheaven: www.indieheaven.com/artists/jenhaugland

Purchase my hard copy CDs on CD Baby: www.cdbaby.com/jenhaugland

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There is an amazing strength that comes from within when you know beyond a shadow of a doubt whose you are: that you were created for a purpose and how much you are deeply loved.

“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” Jeremiah 31:3, ESV

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” Psalm 139:13-16, NIV

No lie from the Enemy can steal that truth away. You have to see it and really believe it, no matter what life seems to present you with. We may bend with the wind, but we won’t break.Bend in the Wind

It is the One who has carried you through every high gale and storm; He is the One who sings over you joyfully and holds you tenderly in the palm of His hand. The God from everlasting to everlasting!

Don’t you know, you are a child of God?

“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” Romans 8:16-17, ESV

and 

“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” John 1:12, NIV

This is our positional and eternal truth! It is hard to be shaken from that reality once you get it!

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Failure. Who wants to fail? None of us. But the truth of the matter is, we live in a fallen world and we have a sinful nature that wars against us. There is also an Enemy agent at work against us. As humans we are fragile. We are bound to fail. I fail, you fail, we fail each other. But our God NEVER fails us. “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abPoppiesounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will He keep His anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His steadfast love towards those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us.” Psalm 103: 8-12, ESV

From everlasting to everlasting… He is God!

When you FEEL like you have failed, when you KNOW you have failed, remember this: “But this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in Him.'” Lamentations 3: 21-24, ESV

Do you cling to Him as Your portion? Then NEVER GIVE UP…NEVER!!!

A prayer of hope: We are so thankful, Lord, that even though we fail You and others, even ourselves, You never fail us. Everything you have said about yourself in Your word is true. You have given us Your gracious Holy Spirit, through our Savior, as a deposit on our hearts to mark us for the day of redemption. We wait for that with eager expectation and in the meantime, we pray that the acknowledgement of our failures and humility that comes from them, continues to reflect Your radiant glory in all Your goodness. Yes, Lord, Your mercies are new every morning! Amen

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Yesterday, I wept for Boston.

I did a 12k once and completed 3 triathlons. But I have never run a marathon.

As I heard the news and watched the horror that those in Boston had experienced 2 hours earlier, my heart grieved and I covered my eyes to what I was seeing. My ears heard the screams of innocent people stunned in the aftermath and fear. I cried out, “Why, God?”

Evil has touched our nation once again.

But evil has not triumphed. It lost a long time ago. It rears its ugly head only temporarily to remind us that our lives are precious and not to be taken for granted. It reminds us that people, strangers, healthcare volunteers, law enforcement and others, respond in acts of kindness beyond themselves. We were made for relationship. And we respond in compassion to those in need.

Yesterday, I grieved with all those around the world that were connected to this horrific tragedy and loss of life and limb there in Boston.

This morning I was reminded of God’s faithfulness. That darkness is never dark to Him. That I live, move and breathe in Him. My very existence is held in the palm of His hand and all my days here on this earth are numbered. I will never understand on this side of Heaven why some lives are taken, by what seems to me to be, too early. Why evil has to persist long. I will never understand the full extent why we humans have to go through painful experiences in our life: many times by things that are beyond our control.

As I reflected on those who lost so much yesterday, I was reminded of what God has given me. I used the legs that carry me and I moved them. I hugged my son with my arms. I kissed the lips of my spouse who is my best friend. I used my hands to pray and play the songs that I write as a songwriter on my piano. I listened to sounds of the birds chirping from the nearby tree. I looked with my eyes at the creation and at the beauty of a frail humanity that needs a Savior. There are some who never see, never hear, never walk, can’t hug. But I can. I take it for granted.

To all those who have suffered; to all those who didn’t get to cross their finish line yesterday in Boston; to those who were so excited to watch their family, neighbors and friends run such a historic and prestigious race yesterday and then left this earth so abruptly:

“There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells, God is within her, she will not fail, God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts, The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah” Psalm 47:4-7

There is a finish line with a prize greater than anything this earth can offer. Be still and know that He is God. He is the One that can bring you your comfort when there are no answers. He has swallowed up death in victory. Evil’s power lost it’s grip when the perfect sacrifice laid down His life for all and brought it back up again. Those of us who remain, we are ALIVE. There is hope in a fallen world. There is One who knows our suffering: Christ Jesus.

This morning I didn’t want to run.Running

But this morning I was compelled to run.

I laced up my running shoes and put on my mismatched running gear.

Because others can’t and I can…

 

Today, I ran for Boston.

 

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Link to January/February Newsletter – 2013

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Peace-2013You know those emails you get with the please forward to 10 people and email it back to the person that sent it to you? I don’t like forwarding or replying to them, but sometimes I read them and think, oh that’s nice, or… I don’t believe that… But this morning I read one and I really liked some thoughts in it, so I thought I would share it:

“If God brings you to it, He will bring you
through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.”

I have been through every one of these moments this past year. No matter what happens in life, especially things you can’t change or understand why they are happening, I choose to believe God is at the center of my leaning into Him for my everything to get through these trials. It’s not the praise of man that I seek or worry about. It is the adoration of my Savior that I want to keep front and center. If my life does not reflect that example, then I have failed to show you the best reason of why I live and why He lives for you and me.

Sometimes change requires quietly and boldly moving in new directions. Our paths may intersect from time to time, run parallel or even go in opposite directions, but know that as a friend or family member, you are a gift from God and I love you! Just a little reflection time this morning and wanting to wish you the very best in 2013! Maranatha!

Love,
Jen

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Link to Christmas Newsletter – 2012

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In my Advent readings today I was reminded of Simeon in Luke 2:25-32 and a most precious painting I dearly love and wish I owned a copy of by Ron Dicianni of Simeon’s Moment which was inspired by this scripture:

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Simeon’s Moment by Ron DIcianni

“Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”

After He was circumcised on the 8th day according to Jewish custom, He was given the name I?sous (what we call “Jesus”) which is of Hebrew origin of the name “Joshua” meaning “Jehovah is salvation.” This was the name that the Angel Gabriel had told the virgin Mary to give to the baby that she was about to conceive. Don’t you just love the intentionality of a name? Jesus is salvation!

I imagine how overjoyed Simeon was as he held the Savior of the world! I really love this print so much because of the expression on his face as he held the precious babe, Jesus, knowing what he knew and the imprint of the world in the background. It brings this scripture alive for me and brings me joy and hope! Jesus came for all of us and Simeon knew it! We too can have that same joy as we come to fully understand the price He paid for us. He had to come to earth as fully God and yet fully man to make it real for us and show us a way back to Himself. He knows we need real life examples to follow. And once we believe by faith, He places His Holy Spirit in us guaranteeing what is yet to come!

He has allowed us to see Him as He came to earth in human form and through this wisdom which has now been revealed to all mankind. Will you accept this redemption in your life? The Savior of the world is calling your name…

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(continued from “A Yielded Life-Part I“)…

Well, then I got out of bed… It really was a blessing of a day to get to record the vocals on my first EP. Matt was really gracious with me. But it also happened to be one of the hottest days for the Puget Sound area and even hotter in Matt’s Garaffice! It was upper 90’s in there. Between songs, Matt would turn on the air-conditioning to pump cool air into the studio, but then that dried out my voice more. I was definitely feeling like a fish downing the water!

My husband wanted me to take our “Mr. Burban” (fondly nicknamed by our son when he was a toddler because he couldn’t say Suburban… we joke about it and people wonder why we talk about hard liquor when we are going places). The Honda had been recently having some problems and Craig was pretty sure it would not make the trip. The suburban was much more reliable for what I needed this day, so I lugged the beast down there with the back of it loaded up with a case of water (little did I know that the case of water was going to be for more than drinking).

As I was leaving Matt’s house after finishing the recording, I stopped to fuel up at a local gas station. A gentleman who had just finished fueling stopped me and asked me how much I wanted for my suburban…point blank! I was dumbfounded…”uhh, uhhhh… I don’t know if it’s for sale…you’d have to talk to my husband.” He said okay and asked for my husband’s number. It was quite comical to watch this stranger call my husband and ask Craig to name his price for Mr. Burban as this guy knew it was hard to find this model of suburban in such great condition with no problems. Ha! Little did any of us know (are you curious yet?)! Well, needless to say, Craig wasn’t sure he was ready to sell it yet… shoot, it was still a baby at 15 years old (I’m joking)! So the guy left his contact info with us in case we changed our minds.

I started the long drive home through rush hour traffic and then as I got on to our Olympic Peninsula for the last 45 minute stretch…Mr. Burban wasn’t quite so peppy or happy anymore (dang, should have sold it while I had the chance). That red engine light came on after I got up the first hill and then that farenheit thingy on the dashboard went way over into the red…hmmm… I thought this might be a good idea to pull over. Fortunately, I was right at the turn-off to Port Townsend by a park and ride and was able to pull in to the side of the parking lot and look inconspicuous, while I figured out what on earth was going on with the Suburban. Surely, God, you knew it was a long day for me and that I was trying to get home in time for Craig and I to celebrate our anniversary…right? Inconspicuous? Nope… could this possibly have anything to do with yielding?…

(to be continued…)