Where it all begins

Hello my name is Louis Crowley. Lets start by telling you a little bit about me and why I founded 4:23 Praise. I was born in Memphis, Tennessee but I've lived in Bonita Springs, Florida since 1985. Both of my parents have always been Church going believers which led to me being saved at 11 years old while attending a church camp. Throughout my life, I have pushed God's grace to what feels like it's limit, but God has somehow always pulled me back from the brink. Through his grace I was able to get married, have two awesome girls as well as being able to raise my beautiful niece.

Both of my parents are musically inclined and I have always been drawn to God by music. My mother has played piano and sang on praise and worship teams for as long as I can remember and still does to this day. My flesh and ego took me down avenues of wanting notoriety and fame through music. A path that eventually ended in alcohol, pain and bad decisions. There aren’t enough words to explain how low I was. I felt that I had gotten so far away from God that my relationship with him was irreparable, but you and I both know he never left my side. When I finally fixed my eyes back on Him I began to feel Christ-centered again, but the struggle was real. I felt weak and scared. It was like using my muscles again after years of atrophy. I wanted to be in God's presence. I started praying, listening to praise and worship music, reading the word and sure enough He began to speak to me. That same child-like feeling from when I began my journey singing and praising Him came flooding back in. As He started to work through me, I realized when I wanted to be in His presence through music, I could only find it in church.

Now I need to give you a word of caution. When you pray for God to give you visions of what He truly wants for you, do not be surprised if He does just that. God truly started to press at me showing me a specific vision. Huge gatherings of people outside the walls of their denominations. People entering into His presence through praise and worship in music. People receiving prayer and getting saved. It was a little overwhelming, but from that moment on, God continued to move in my life. I'm going to be faithful for what God has in store for my life and these praise and worship events are just the beginning.

Thanks for making it through my first blog. I hope to be putting these out regularly as a sort of journal documenting experience of putting together the vision God has for me so stay tuned!

Louis Crowley