The atmosphere was drenched with sweet fragrance, and it had nothing to do with all the candles in the room. You could feel it, smell it, and taste it – a beautiful night of worship in the presence of God Almighty. God was the only perfection that night, but if you could dream up a perfect worship service, the CD Release & Benefit Concert with Aaron De La Cruz & the WorshipOut Band held last Saturday night was as close as it gets. The room was set up cozy, the sound mix was the best ever, the lighting and video were beautifully choreographed, the crowd was energetic, and all the artists were in a place of worship that can only be described as wonderful and pure.

The first group to open up the night was CRU. Although their name is Portuguese for “raw or unfinished” and they say they like leaving things imperfect, that night their worship was made perfect by His power and for His glory. Their ability to draw you in to their intimate worship was profound. Their eclectic sound brought something for everyone.

Then Melodie absolutely blew us all away with her signature power praise. One of the songs she sang was “I Am Blessed,” but even as we all sat there in awe of her vocal performance, we wanted to jump up and shout back to her that we were the ones who “were blessed” for having been there to witness her sweet and honest worship to the Lord.

Finally, Aaron De La Cruz & the WorshipOut Band took the platform. You could see they were ready to worship, and there was a sense that something big was about to happen. The crowd was ready too. When the first note of the first song was played, the crowd jumped to their feet in praise to the Lord. Everybody was ready for the release – not just the release of the music, but the release of the Holy Spirit’s power on the service.

The WorshipOut Band sound was powerful and amazing. Their flow during and between songs was smooth and seamless. Each song drew everyone closer and closer in. WorshipOut first played 6 songs from the CD, and it was just one great song after another -- Take It All, Ain’t No Rock, In The Morning Time, Mighty Mighty Mighty, and Ocean of Grace. Then Aaron & Norma shared an intimate moment with the crowd by singing In Your Arms Forever. There wasn’t a dry eye in the place after they shared how that song came to be. WorshipOut came back to continue the praise and worship with Your Love Is Great, Need To Worship, I Want You Lord, and Worshippers Arise. No one wanted it to end.

When they got to My Passion, Aaron called for people to release themselves to God and come to the altar in response to God’s calling. The Holy Spirit compelled many to respond. The altar became a place where people were received and prayed with. As the sounds of the music thumped on our hearts, you could also feel the heart thump of God refreshing, restoring and renewing our lives. WorshipOut then tried to end the night with Not Forgotten, but the crowd insisted they keep going, so they pumped out a finale of Lord, I Lift Your Name On High. But it wasn’t just any ordinary version of Lord, I Lift. Instead, in their usual talented form, WorshipOut worked in riffs of Jackson Five’s ABC-123, and ended the night with everyone jumping and dancing in excited worship.

Everyone who was there knew they were witnessing a small glimpse of something wonderful to come. Many said they hadn’t been to a service like that in a long time, and they wanted to know when the next one would be. Although we don’t know exactly what God has in store, stay tuned, because there is more to come…

Adopt-A-Block & Under The Bridge ministries are the benefit recipients of the canned & non-perishable foods and blankets. Under the direction of Abel Duran, these two ministries have operated for the last 7 years in the San Gorgonio Pass area. They provide various services in the community such as giving sack lunches to the homeless who live "under the bridge," and helping clean and beautify the community, block by block. The highlight of their year is every Thanksgiving and Christmas, hosting a luncheon for the homeless and needy, free of charge, setup in the parking lot of a popular liquor store "hangout." If you would like to donate your time or monetary gifts, call 909-228-6610.

Watch for these new up & coming artists that will add to the worship experience:

• New Ambient / Christian / Experimental band "Cru" from Glendora will be performing 4 songs led by frontman Christian Garcia. Check out their sound at www.myspace.com/crumusica
• Powerful vocalist "Melodie" fresh from Gary Bonner's Music Department of Cal Baptist University. She will amaze you with her God-given vocal strength & anointing.