Teen Challenge - 50th Anniversary

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Celebrating 50 Years of Miracles

conference > Sara Groves

Before Sara Groves debuted in 1998, she was a high school teacher in her hometown of Rosemont, MN. Through God's directing and leading, Sara left that job to pursue what had been a joy and a passion of hers since she was a little child. Since the release of her first independent album, Sara has experienced many ups and downs in her walk with Christ that have ultimatly formed her into a stronger and more confident woman of God. As well, she has developed into a highly acclaimed and respected singer and songwriter.

Sara had been teaching high school for four years when an opportunity came up for her to sing at a fundraising concert for Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Afterward, some of her students asked her for a CD, but she did not have one. It was at this point that she realized that it may be beneficial to have something recorded for her to witness with. In 1998, she recorded an independent album entitled Past the Wishing, and she also began singing at various places on weekends. It soon became evident that she could not do both so Sara decided to take a year off of teaching. By the end of the year, she was traveling full time with her husband, Troy.

Today, Sara's career remains a family affair. Her husband, who is her manager, and her family travel with her on their tour bus, which has been turned into a mobile nursery/playroom.

Sara's sound is generally thought of as pop/folk/inspirational/worship. In 2001, she released Conversations through INO records. All Right Here followed in 2002. The Other Side of Something was released in 2004 and Add to the Beauty in 2005.

The Other Side of Something is an album that means a great deal to Sara. It represents her struggles of the past year, but more importantly, the freedom and victory she eventually found in Christ that enabled her to place her whole life in His hands and rely on Him completely.

Sara's struggles began when she gave birth to their first son. She hit the road with him when he was just five weeks old and felt as through her life was out of control for the three years following. She was very consumed with feelings of worry over their children and desperatly wanted a guarantee from God that their kids would always be safe and that they would turn out perfect.

A turning point finally came when she took a year off the road and intensely focused on the Word. She had decided that she could no longer live the way she was and that she was ready to release her entire life to the Lord. Much of this CD reflects Sara's feelings of defeat, but also her new confidence and optimism about the future.

Sara has been writing songs for as long as she can remember. It is very therapeutic for her and is something she believes she will never stop doing. She desires to write music that will minister to herself and others for many years to come, instead of just for the current audience. Her musical influences include Fred Hammond and Keith Green. Other influences include her parents and her producer, Nate Sabin.

Sara Groves knows that music is a universal language, and she is excited about the opportunity to speak it on her own terms, as a songwriter with a Christian worldview. "It's amazing to me the doors music can open. You cannot say five words to someone, but you can talk to them about Christ and who He is...in the music," she says. "I used to struggle with the fact that I don't write as poetic as some people... I used to think good music was something you couldn't understand, all these veiled literary references that the average person couldn't decipher." But, she says, when it comes down to it, "My music is not so much about the poetry or the art, as it is about being understood...."

Read more about the music ministry of Sara Groves at www.saragroves.com.