My name is Chris Driesbach  

I’m a member of Crown of Life WELS in New Orleans, and during the last three years I’ve been on many “Thank You” trips, playing concerts at over 400 WELS churches in 33 states from Anchorage, Alaska to Orlando, Florida.  My songs are all original Christian music and I love to tell the story of our church and my own journey to faith.

 Crown of Life was almost destroyed August 29, 2005 when flooding caused by hurricane Katrina put 4.5 feet of muddy seawater in our 3 church buildings.  I was one of the first to get into our property after the water went down and I have to say I really thought we were finished as a congregation.  I was so wrong!  God’s love has poured over us through the overwhelming kindness of individuals, churches, and our church body.  The Builders for Christ have restored our church, fellowship hall and parsonage.  Our church was rededicated October 29, 2006.  

Forty-one of our neighbors’ and members’ homes have been rebuilt by the Kingdom Workers Faith in Action group.  Many college and high school students came here to do the dirty, dangerous work of gutting flooded homes.  In all, 1,300 volunteers have come to help us.  Ample funds have been generously donated to pay for it all.  I wish I could tell you what it's like for us to have been recipients of all this care and love.  Completely amazing, awesome, and impossible to comprehend.

I moved to New Orleans in October of 2000, and have belonged to Crown of Life since then.  I’ve been writing Christian songs for the last 5 years, including a song about my personal experience with hurricane Katrina.  I have recorded 5 Christian CDs: After the Storm in August 2006, Movin’ On late June 2007, Feed Your Faith in May 2008, Let Christ Be Known in January 2009 and Hymns for Him in June 2009.

I played music professionally for 30 years on the west coast.  I was an atheist until age 33, and after that sort of a new-age spiritualist.  Eight years later I became a Lutheran and a Christian at the same time in 1995.  Faith Lutheran Church and Pastor James Oldfield in Anchorage Alaska were my first church and pastor.  We went through a 22-week Bible study course together.  Pastor Oldfield read to me out of the Bible when I asked him all of the hardest questions I could think of and after 6 weeks of his class I was given the gift of faith by the Spirit working though God’s Word.  My life completely changed, of course! 

I lost all my musical equipment in the flood following the storm, but generous church members have given money to replace it, and I've got some really wonderful new gear.  I have a deep desire to go play for and say thanks to the nice people who've helped us so much, and have touched me so wonderfully, to meet them and worship with them.  I’ve long dreamed of being a Christian songwriter and performer and my prayer is that this will be a beginning of a new career working for my God.