NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–Heather Payne, one of the founding members of the Christian singing group Point of Grace, has announced her departure from the group in order to focus on her family and local church involvement.
In a statement posted on the group’s website, pointofgrace.net, Payne said the growing demands of raising four small children and touring finally became too much to handle.
“I have given it my all and in the process I have realized that I can’t do it all,” she wrote. “As much as I have tried to be super-wife, super-mommy and super-singer, my efforts came up empty. I now know that I haven’t been excellent at any of it. The girls [of Point of Grace] have sacrificed and I have sacrificed, but mostly my family has sacrificed, and to continue like this is not God’s will.”
Payne, along with Denise Jones, Shelley Breen and Terry Jones, founded Point of Grace 17 years ago at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkansas. Terry Jones left the group in 2003 to raise her three children, and Leigh Cappillino joined in 2004.
After the birth of her first child, Ella, who is almost 6, Payne said she memorized Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and realized the mandate believers have to train their children in the Lord. As she prayed about what to do in regard to raising four children and continuing her singing career, Payne said the passage kept coming to mind.
“Every time I got to the part about teaching our children ‘diligently’ and at all times, I started feeling uncomfortable,” she wrote in her mid-June website post. “I haven’t been diligently teaching my children, I have been getting by. I am incredibly blessed with a husband that has supported my ministry. He had three of our kids many weekends by himself when I traveled and he embraced that time. Now, my role is to support him in his ministry. I will also be able to be actively involved in our home church. As believers we are members of the body of Christ.”
Payne’s husband, Brian, is an assistant professor of expository preaching and pastoral leadership at Boyce College in Louisville, Ky., the undergraduate college of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The Paynes are members of Ninth & O Baptist Church. He graduated from the seminary in May with a Ph.D. in systematic theology.
Leaving Point of Grace, Payne said, was a “very difficult decision,” but she’ll continue on the sidelines, cheering the trio on in future endeavors.
“I support them 110 percent in all that they do and wish them only blessings,” she wrote.
Jones, Breen and Cappillino, meanwhile, wrote in a post on the website that over the years they’ve developed a unique bond with Payne.
“Something special has happened in our relationships with one another, something that cannot be fabricated, something that can only happen over many years of walking the same road together,” the women wrote. “We have a chemistry with one another, onstage and off, that we not only acknowledge, but treasure.
“After much prayer and consideration, this has led us to the decision to not ‘replace’ Heather. Some would say that no one is irreplaceable, but we would have to respectfully disagree,” they wrote. “Our precious sister Heather, in our opinion, is indeed irreplaceable. We are excited to continue with our ministry for as long as God allows, and it will be as a trio.”
The women said they’re already in the studio recording songs for an expanded version of their most recent project, the album “How You Live,” which was released in its original version last fall. Payne sang lead vocals on the title track, which she said was a reminder to enjoy the blessings God has given.
“We live in such a fast-paced world that we put things off,” Payne said at the time. “We will not use the ‘guest dishes’ because we want to save them for a time when it’s appropriate. When you wish time away, you don’t get that back. ‘How You Live’ is about making every moment count. It encourages us to take advantage of every single moment.”
Point of Grace asked for prayer in making the transition from four members to three, and they thanked fans for their unwavering support.
“As for Heather, we will miss her more than words can say,” they wrote. “We continue to talk and communicate with her every day, and our friendship will continue to grow just as it always has. She is a beautiful person inside and out, and we love her with all our hearts.”
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Erin Roach is a staff writer for Baptist Press.
