The Fun I Had at Winter Jam 2018
written by: Savannah Johnson
Winter Jam, for those who do not know, is an annual convention that was started in 1995 by the group NewSong in order to provide a cheap and exciting experience for people to be surrounded by music and worship and messages of the good news of Christ. Since then, the concert has seen artists such as Skillet, Hillsong, Newsboys, Building 429, and of course NewSong. The concert has also been a launch pad for many artists like for KING AND COUNTRY and Sidewalk Prophets. This year the organizers added comedian John Crist to the lineup, who was absolutely hilarious.
People begin lining up in the morning for the doors to open up at 5pm, but Andrea Drake, Josiah Griffin and I did not get in line until 4pm and we had seats directly across from the stage, a great place to be. Before the big names begin every year, there is the “Pre-Jam Party” where new artists are given a chance to perform and spread their name and their message. My personal favorite was Dan Bremnes.
After the Pre-Jam artists get the party started, the bigger name artists come out and perform. All in all, there were 11 different artists who performed that night, with Skillet to close the show. In between artists, speakers came out to share an inspirational message or just give information.
This year’s Winter Jam speaker was Nick Hall, and he spoke on the topic of baggage. My favorite quote was, “We carry our baggage, we carry our weight behind us wherever we go, and it weighs us down as we try to climb that ladder closer to Jesus… You can’t do it on your own; you need divine intervention.” Hall used the illustration of trying to climb up a ladder while carrying a bag behind him, filled with the weight of bricks such as “Comparison,” “Lies,” and “Doubt.”
Winter Jam is a wonderful and exciting night, and it is one of the cheapest concerts you will ever find. Although the tour is not finished, Winter Jam won’t be back to Tulsa until next year. If you missed out, Skillet will be joining forces with for KING AND COUNTRY this spring.
