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With a sincere passion for music and worship ever since
he was a child, Mark Francis is a worship leader that gives a unique blend of
songs for his generation. His heart is centered on bringing others to the throne
of grace and the glory of the cross through music. Mark's current worship duties
include leading worship at a monthly multi-church young adult ministry called
CrossLink, as well as leading Sunday morning services at Fellowship Bible Church
in Winchester, VA.
Mark has been leading others in worship for over 10 years now. Raised in a
Christian home in Williamsburg, VA, Mark enjoyed the everyday worship he
received in attending Christian school. However, it wasn't until he attended
Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC, did he begin to pick up a guitar
and learned to play it. After a short time, he began planning and leading the
Baptist Student Union services on campus. He moved to St. Louis, MO after
graduating, and refined his musical skills at Gateway Christian Church by
playing acoustic guitar, drums and singing back-up vocal for the Sunday morning
praise band. Mark and his wife, Erika, also got involved with the Gateway
Christian youth. He led their youth band for over 1 1/2 years. In 2000, Mark and
Erika moved to Winchester, VA and immediately got plugged into Fellowship Bible
Church. Their young adult ministry was in need of a worship leader, and Mark
gladly filled that role. He was able to help run that ministry by planning the
weekly services, assemble ministry teams, create videos for the service, assist
the sound/media techs, and lead a small group. God led Mark to move away from
that ministry in 2005 in order to prepare for the CrossLink ministry that was
launched in 2006.
Building the CrossLink ministry has given Mark a refreshed look on what it
means to lead worship. Mark understands the responsibility of leading others to
see God's presence through worship, as well as leading others into a stronger
sense of community with each other. "Building up to the CrossLink ministry has
been a huge growth process", continues Mark. "I truly believe that God used all
the elements of my past to build this ministry." CrossLink was created out of
the need in the local Winchester community to link Christian young adults
together. "I could see that young adults were not connecting to each other
because of so many small pockets of them at separate churches. CrossLink can now
link these people together in a unified way and give them a chance to worship
God openly and freely in a way that they may not get at their home church."
Mark is now seeking out more ways to expand his musical talents. In the
past he has played at events such as a Fellowship for Christian Athletes youth
night, Redland United Methodist Church annual summer event, Fellowship Bible
Church's youth group weekend retreat, a community-wide tent revival at the local
fairground, and much more.
Having written and co-written several songs to date, Mark is in the
process of creating a repertoire of songs that he can use in any worship
setting. The recording process is underway, and he hopes to be able to share
these songs in the near future. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would
be a song-writer", Mark says. "My prayers have always been to allow God to use
me in any way possible to play, sing and lead for His glory. As God has shaped
and molded me over the past several years, He has led me to this point of
responding to Him and His greatness in a new way. I long to see others respond
to Him, have a passion to live for Him, and be a living sacrifice in a way He
has called us to be."
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your
bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual
act of worship" Romans 12:1