Anita met Jesus Christ in a tiny Pentecostal church in Silverton, NJ on a Sunday night in April. 1982. A shy non-practicing Catholic girl, in bondage for many years and haunted by many ghosts of abuse, rape, shame and hopelessness. A glorious healing light burst through that night, even though she trembled under the growling, accusing voice of the tattoo-biceped, ex marine, who slammed his fist on his worn pulpit. His glittering black eyes bore through her.
"If you die tonight in a car accident.. Will you go to heaven or burn in hell?"
She declared the salvation prayer and in that small church, Anita finally found a loving, accepting family that she had always wanted. She bloomed, making up for many lost years, enrolling in college and graduating at the top of her class, Magna cum laude. The earning of that degree was interrupted though, by the courtship with a demented man who threatened to kill her if she didn't marry him. That domestic violent season which lasted almost two years nearly took away her exuberant faith and new-found nursing home ministry. But Christ never abandoned her.
Healing took place and resilience set her back on track. She met lead guitarist, Chris Durante at a church picnic where he invited her to front his Christian rock band with him. The Lord began to hone Anita in her new role as lead vocalist-lyricist of "The Promise" and Chris, her and the band shared the Gospel of Christ to the NJ, PA and NY maximum security prisons, family festivals and community showcases.
Anita also grew in leadership positions, teaching behavior modification classes at Nutri-System Weight Loss Centers and as a youth advocate for Youth Advocate Program. Just as she was enjoying her life, strange and debilitating symptoms sent her to the hospital where she was given a diagnosis of Lyme disease. 1992 was riddled with hospital intravaneous Rosephin treatments and Amomoxicillin antibiotic.
The next several years, with her immune system breaking down and battling many episodes of bronchial infections she almost died from carbon monoxide poisoning from her apartment's broken heater. The carbon monoxide did serious damage to her brain and deep depression set in and she was unable to sustain employment.
But God wasn't finished with her yet. She found herself once more with hope and found another accepting family at non-profit Christian outreach, Love in the Name of Christ, in the Fall of 1998. Executive Director, Carolyn Eyerman and project Manager, Joan Hodem saw things in Anita she never knew she had. The six years there taught her even more about people and serving their needs. This was also where her journey with the guitar started!
Dystonia is a complex, highly variable neurological disorder characterized by involuntary muscle contractions. Dystonia is a range pf movement disorders that involve extended muscle contractions. There may be twisting body movements, tremor and awkward postures. According to my research and personal experience, my Dystonia symptoms were caused my Mercury Amalgam poisoning, toxic Mold and nerve damage from carbon monoxide poisoning. EMF sensitivity and dirty electric can also cause the nervous system to overload.
The main treatment for Dystonia are Botox and DBS Deep Brain Stimulation..
I was diagnosed in 2007 with Dystonia. I was prescribed a muscle relaxant.
So, Anita Ivette Ferrer, was a gentle and fragile girl, easily frightened by the Outer Limits electricity monster and intimidated by her mother's raging temper tandtrums. Nonetheless, she had a dream. She sketched and sang and composed poetry in careful calligraphy hand.
A traumatic and threatening encounter with a bullying classmate in her favorite art class shattered her pre-conceived notion that people were kind and could be trusted. The bullying continued till graduation day and she wore her cloak of shame and rejection like a weighted anchor. Doors don't swing open wide for those who've suffered bullying, abuse, poverty and/or molestation.
But in April of 1982, Jesus Christ opened wide the door of grace and Anita walked through. Decades of deeply ingrained traumas and negative events were assuagged and she began to see more clearly that she had worth and God had a plan for her life..
Enrolling at Brookdale Community College, Anita discovered that door of favor swung wide open and she rediscovered her poetry, singing and art. No longer fearful and distrusting of people, she was deeply curious and disturbed about injustice and social issues. er professors were impressed with her empathy and passion to pursue studies in the humanities. Graduating with high honors despite great financial hardship and a violent failed, marriage, Anita knew that the best was yet to come.
Anita's journey with Christ led her to chase and slay many giants, particularly health. Lyme Disease came in 1992 and then carbon monoxide poisoning almost took her life in 1997.All during this time, Anita chronicled her life events through her journaling and then came an invitation to learn the guitar.
Her health lost it;s resilience from the damaging environmental assaults on her nervous system, but her love for composing songs and performing continued. Then were menntoring broken women, youth outreach and hospice. Outwardly, it looked as if Anita's continual suffering and down-spiraling health would diminish her calling, but herdevotion and trust in Christ's promises was her saving grace and anchor.
Despite her present and most daunting giant, oromandibular-TMJ Dystonia from mercury poisoning, she continues to sing, write about and express her gratitude of facing death...and helping others to live!
Anita hopes to find a cure for the Dystonia so that she can travel and tour, speaking and singing about overcoming and getting better with age.Her heart beats for the glorious expectation of God's best through her. She hopes that her music and art will provoke intimacy with Christ and a deep empathy for hurt and broken people. She champions the underrdog because she is a giant slayer.
So, I was not expecting to start the week off with a new blog. I welcomed Father and thanked Him for giving me the opportunity to be His conduit . Then suddenly my thoughts turned to AI. INFO WARS, Alex Jones has been regularly mentioning AI’s consumption of huge amounts of water and electricity. I was very curious about this. What is the method of AIs production? My husband’s pastor, Frank, sent an ominous report about how fast Data centers were proliferating across our nation and even the world. Protests were also arising regarding the detrimental effects of the Data Centers in small towns, rural communities and farmland.
I found a very informative YouTube video which describes how the AI Data Centers work. I wish to share some of my insights concerning AI.
I have no issue with technology as long as it doesn’t interfere with the work of the Holy Spirit. I am a purist., When it comes to Almighty God’s desire to see Heaven influence the earthly realm. According to my Bible, God garnishes His people with glorious and divine gifts. We also are to be living sacrifices and to be transformed by the holy Spirit. 1 Cor. 12 gives us great details about all the gifts for the edification of the church.
From the perspective of music, art and creativity, I’ve seen many musicians use AI for their compositions.My husband, Mark refuses to listen to any of Mike Adam’s music. Gospel artists also are using AI and even pastors used AI for their sermons! (shame on them).
I believe that AI will diminish our capacity for authenticity and also hinder the Holy Spirit from feely enduring us with His anointing and power.. I urge my Christian brothers and sisters to soul search and pray about eschewing the temptation of AI for their Godly pursuits. God does give us free will and many of us will insist that AI can be used for God’s glory. However the choice is: With what degree of purity and anointing do we wish our gifts, saturated in the Holy Spirit, to manifest? One thing for sure, I do not need AI to shine my gifts! Rest assured that satan will try to duplicate miracles through AI and this is where God’s children must learn to test the spirits. 1John 1:4.
There are many negative aspects of the Data Centers. There are environmental, energy and even health concerns relating to the Data Centers. It would be in our best interest to understand and address the issue of a Data center in our area..
I woke up to a new week. Sunday was very challenging because I had great trouble breathing. My pastor asked me to give the message, in addition to leading worship. I was almost in tears as I struggled to focus on supporting my notes and keeping accurate rhythm on my guitar. Surprisingly, our deacon, Fred, complimented my singing and mentioned the anointing he felt. I just shook my head in humble gratitude that I could even get through the service. I was expectant and hopeful that today, my breathing would be more relaxed and I could record some more demos of my new worship songs.
As I was enjoying my first cup of morning coffee, I picked up a CD by a beautiful Messianic artist, Carlos Perdomo and started to read the credits of his album. I noticed the name Lynn DeShazo. I remember many worship songs she wrote in the late eighties. I decided to look her up via Google and saw that she is now retired. I went to YouTube to see if there were any videos of her. A video drew my attention, titled, “What a Beautiful Name.” A beautiful dark-haired man, who looked like Jesus, was holding a microphone. Of course I had to check it out being that I covered that song many times leading worship. The first thirty seconds began with the man declaring the glory of God’s kingdom. He was dressed in a beautiful white suit and had a commanding voice. A sweet violin wafted as his powerful voice projected. Accompanying images showed close-ups of people crying, praying and looking stupefied. The beautiful music was so compelling I lifted my hands in worship. The song was not the HillSong version of “What a Beautiful Name,” but was divinely anthemic. Then I looked closely at all the details of the video as the song progressed. The performance looked like it was taking place in an amphitheater packed with thousands of people. I was a bit bedazzled. I also scrutinized the close-up shots of the singer and the syllables did not exactly match the position of his mouth and tongue. This happens with inaccurate lip-syncing. At the end of the video, two people were shown surrendering their lives to Jesus.
As I quietly pondered the video, I felt compelled to research his music website and his Wikipedia bio. I did notice that there were several of Elias Grace’s You Tube videos. They were all very similar, looking perfect and a bit surreal. As I Googled Elias Grace, I found not one Facebook or personal website. I also clicked on the link of his Spotify and the music was from a soulful Black artist. I became very suspicious and I immediately realized that all of this beautiful hoopla was AI generated.
I praise God for all the precious people who do sincerely accept Christ as their Savior after watching this video. God can use anything, including AI for His Glory. However as a purist and worship artist myself, let us always remember that satan comes disguised as an angel of light.
I am noticing that musically-talentless people are jumping the bandwagon of AI to create their musical compositions. I am not impressed…at all! I am a purist. I remember the days when I would drive to Belmar Boardwalk on a sunny afternoon with my ministry cat, Baby-Baby, and my Taylor guitar and just sing and strum away to the children and passerbys. A young guy approached me after singing a song. He replied, “I have never heard such a pure voice.” He gave me his email address as he wanted to get to know me better, lol.
I remember recording my first album with a local, talented producer, Ernie Wilkens. Mariah Carey was the rage and I practiced with her CD every day to strengthen my lungs and increase my vocal range. I was a caregiver to a precious, elderly stroke victim who became a grandfather to me. When “Pop” went to bed, off I’d go to the garage to practice my challenging vocal scales in my Toyota. After I finished recording my first album, “I’ll Fly High, I connected with a talented and very sweet man, Jeff. My spiritual mom, Winnie, saw him at a jewelry booth at Collingswood auction and asked if he was a guitar player. He affirmed. Winnie told him that I needed a guitarist to accompany me and he asked if I had any music. I just happened to have a copy of my CD and he bought it on the spot. When I got home, his message on my answering machine was, “That voice, that voice. You need to learn guitar and accompany yourself.” Jeff had only gotten to my third song, “Tell Me, Tell Me.” I was amazed.
The next thing I knew, Jeff asked to come over as he wanted to show me how to play the guitar. He taught me the basic chords and left his guitar. “Get comfortable with it every day” he smiled. I fell deeply in love with the guitar and wrote my first song. Several months later, bored with basic chords, I bought a Jazz chord book and experimented with the beautiful and unique sounds. That year, 2001, I composed worship songs for my second album “Devotion/One Small Warrior.” I also happened to grow in my repertoire of learning jazz standards and top 40 songs to sing at the area restaurants and coffeehouses. God so blessed my new gift where I was able to support myself without a live-in roommate or man.
So, the reason I am addressing this AI generated video is that it is a precursor of platforms to come. We Christians must be wary and discerning regarding news, world events, entertainment and politics generated by AI. This is not a trivial matter. The book of Revelation: 13:13-15 describes great and mysterious manifestations. I will not go into detail about the complexities, manifestations and power of AI because there are innumerable articles from Christian journalists, scientists and pastors. We all need to soberly pray and fast about everything we see and encounter online or in the news. The Bible tells us that if it were possible, the very elect would be deceived. Mat 24:24. Jesus told his disciples, “Take heed that no man deceives you.”
1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits, whether they are of Good. Because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
I checked out more comments under the videos from “Elias Grace.” I saw not one one person doubting or even mentioning the AI generation. My pastor, Augusto Perez, shared on his podcast last year that he had a dream about a beautiful and gentle man coming out to the world and being lauded as the Messiah by the masses. Papa Augusto said that the Jesus in his dream needed rest from all the traveling and meetings. Papa Augusto immediately knew that this was not the real Jesus because Jesus now abides in a perfect and glorified body that never tires!
My friends, I beseech you all to meditate on the scriptures day and night. Ask Holy Spirit to increase your discernment because the antichrist will come like a gentle lamb, beautiful, mesmerizing and supernatural. I also ask musicians and especially worship artists to ask holy Spirit to purify your worship gift. Jesus is a purist and he hates artificiality. I refuse to mix my divine artistry with AI technology. Christian artists, you need to fast and pray about using AI. Remember the anointing which ensued from the old testament Psalmists and even the Hymn writers. Get back to the pure basics, practice, commitment and Holy Spirit anointing.
One last thing. Ask AI if he wants to acknowledge Jesus Christ, Yashuah HaMachiah as Lord and Savior?
So, I was not expecting to publish a blog today, but after seeing and listening to this video I had to address and share. Secular contaminating propaganda is no surprise to me. I have noticed though ,that even storng Christian brothers and sisters are lured into the deceptive lures of today’s idolized music icons. Music has incredible influencing power and we all are being drawn into it.
I responded on this YouTube video and pray that our young people will use their brains and quiet their minds to aks Holy Spirit about what they admire and follow. May Gen Z shine as lights and receive holy boldness to address their peers about the folly of deception and idolatry.
They need to declare Phil. 2 10&11. Every Knee shall BOW & every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord! Rev 21:12 And I saw in the books, according to their works.small & great, stand before God, & the books were opened. And another book was opened which is the book of LIFE. And the dead were judged out of those things written . verse 15 And whoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
We had better start admonishing our precious young people because Jesus is coming back soon and if our gown is spotted and/or wrinkled, we will not rise with him. Very scary and very serious.
I come from the male-oriented world of hard rock, but no longer have any interest in secular music or trends. My desire is to please my Heavenly Father and Jesus. May we ask Holy Spirit to purify our hearts and ask him if there is anything that displeases Him. He will purge us when we desire it. May Father God strengthen and cleanse you so you can be fit for His use!
MY debut album, song collection Produced by Ernie Wilkens, Gary Dates and Daryl Dahrouge. An eclectric collection of folk-rock, jazz hip-hop and jazz rock.
So, I met Chris Durante at a church picnic in the summer of 1989 and he asked me if I would front his Christian hard Rock Band, The Promise. I was just a folk soprano who sang a capella with twin sisters in ursing homes. Who knew that God was preparing me for greater ministry and service to people through my non profit Brave Flame Productions. Chris 's artistry has embellished most of my songs and albums over the years and we are grateful for the influence and inspiration of the the Holy Spirit through us frail and fragile instruments!
John Mulrenan, producer-engineer, Acorn Digital, Howell, NJ has also been a long-time friend and music partner. He has lent his artistry to my projects on keyboards, piano, bass and programming. His expertise has been invaluable. He is an underrated and transcendent talent!
And last, but not least is my talented husband, Mark, who has been my sound engineer.since we married. His extensive experience doing sound for NJ's best bands has been a valuable asset to my music. Bless God for giving me such a devoted husband!
1989 Maximum Security Prisons & Correctional Facilities
The Promise Christian Band
1998 Love in the Name of Christ Christian non-Profit
Coordinator: Just the Right Touch
One on One Mentoring, Helping welfare recipients & displaced homemakers transition to the work force, supplying appropriate business clothing & resumes & mentoring,
Youth Advocate YAP, Youth Advocate Program.
Mentoring youth in social & life skills: liaison between parents/guardians with social service agencies
