About Life or Death

Although the name is a recent addition, the Life or Death Worship Band has been playing together in central PA for over eight years. They started by leading worship at West Shore Christian Fellowship as Harvest. In the three years they spent there, they developed and inspired a complete worship band for the church. “Leading worship is an awesome responsibility that I really believe God has created me to do,” says band member Greg Morrison. Harvest prided themselves on playing venues where Christian music is seldom heard, such as bowling allies, coffee houses, etc. Unfortunately, Harvest suffered a major setback when the home in which they practiced and stored their equipment burned. Since then, they have spent their time specializing in helping smaller churches create a contemporary worship environment including training congregation members to become part of the worship team. The addition of a praise band has helped draw a youthful crowd to many churches, as this crowd seems to enjoy a fresh take on worshiping God. You can see the Life or Death Worship Band filling in from time-to-time at various churches around the area. Some of their previous engagements include Enola Church of God, Crossfire Singles Ministry, Glenvale Church of God, Paxtonville United Methodist, and Hope Eternal among others. They also play at church-sponsored coffee houses and special events throughout the Susquehanna Valley.

Lead singer and bassist/guitarist Greg Morrison started playing music in 1971. Although he got his start in a secular rock band, he felt the tug of God calling him from the very beginning of his musical career. His band was given the opportunity to tour in Europe, but for some reason, Morrison felt he needed to stay stateside. In 1982, he was saved and began to play Christian music all over south-central PA. With an exceptional ability to relate to and inspire others, Morrison loves to recruit and encourage musicians and singers to use their gifts to serve God. He is so committed to this goal that in September 2009 he quit his day job at the Attorney General’s office, where he worked for 35 years, to focus on his music full time.

Keyboardist Mike Vandling started music lessons when he was five years old, and “hated every minute of it.” Aside from his early music lessons, his background does not seem like that of a musician. He was born in Germany, but raised in Central PA. He attended Rollins College in Florida, earning a business degree with every intention of coming back home to run the family business. In 1976 he started working at Specialty Bakers, went full-time in 1980, and by 1984 he had purchased the company. The bakery reached out to those in the community who were looking for a second chance, including people looking to start over when released from prison. This is when he first met Larry Hale, senior Pastor at Glenvale Church of God where Vandling is a member. He sold the business in 1989 to “retire.” With more free time, he started attending Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Enola with Hale, where he was saved. During his retirement, Vandling served on the board for Second Chance Ministries for several years while serving in several leadership positions at West Shore Christian Fellowship, now Light of Hope. Currently, Vandling is the IT manager for the PA State Associate of Boroughs. While working for the Boroughs pays the bills, playing music fulfills a passion to reach out with God’s Word through music.

Dave Hoffman is the Life or Death sound technician. A self-proclaimed computer geek, Hoffman has been very involved in musical ministry since 1985. Dave truly has a servant’s heart and his efforts with the band allow Vandling and Morrison to concentrate on the ministry rather than the equipment. He has been with the band since their beginnings as Harvest.

The Life or Death Worship Band has a simple and uplifting sound. They are inspired by the popular Contemporary Christian band, Casting Crowns. Vandling and Morrison are more than just a Christian cover band. Morrison, a self-taught musician, actually writes a lot of his own music. It is easy to see the passion each band member has for Christ and music while they are on stage. According to Vandling, the best part about serving the Lord with music is, “when the Spirit of God is present, and the people are really worshiping.”

The Life or Death Worship Band rarely asks for money, making their services very affordable. They play for the love of Christ and to spread His message through music. Donations and love offerings are gladly accepted, but they never turn down an opportunity based on monetary considerations. In the future, they would like to play for missions and outreach events, food banks, and other places that could benefit from a positive and uplifting message. They are available on short notice and they carry their own equipment. This takes a lot of the burden of special events off the church or organization, letting the congregation and event planners enjoy their time together.

Please give us the opportunity to discuss your worship needs and how we may be of service to your church or group.

Take a moment and check out our web site. We have posted our schedule, samples of our live performances, promotional material and much more. If you would like a free promotion kit as well as a CD with several sample tracks, simply use the Contact Us link at the top of this page.

Have a blessed day!