Who are 40 miles North?

Known musically as “40 miles North”, husband/wife team Jeremiah and Marcie Olson have been writing, recording, and performing original music and leading worship for about 10 years.

The couple met in 1997 at Grace College in Winona Lake, IN. Jeremiah’s upbringing was in Longview, TX and Marcie hailed most recently from Vancouver, WA. Marcie’s musical experience began at age 8 and varied from solos and choirs to a semester as a music minor her freshman year at Grace. Jeremiah had only begun playing guitar a couple years earlier and found college to be a musical “crash course”. When the two first sang together in the summer of 1997, they both sensed that big things were in store. And they were right. They married in the summer of 1999.

With each new opportunity to share their music, God’s direction became more and more clear. With every door they walked through, another opened up. This culminated in 2001 with an invitation for Jeremiah to join Grace Community Church in Goshen, IN as full-time worship pastor. Convinced that it was God’s plan for them to work out their calling through their music, the couple adopted the name “40 miles North”- taken from the distance and direction of the move God was calling them to make.

The journey has been full of learning and surprises. As Jeremiah says, “I went to college to be a pastor, and they made a musician out of me. I came to this church to be a musician, and they’ve made a pastor out of me.”

Marcie has made a full-time job of staying home to raise the couple’s two young daughters, Carina (3 years) and Libby Rae (18 months). She manages to keep the home peaceful- quite a feat these days, as the couple is at their busiest with concerts, albums, radio play, and overseas opportunities.

As young parents still figuring out life, as a small family trying to make ends meet, and as a ministry couple deeply entrenched in the demands of a large and still-growing church, how do the Olsons find the time or energy to have an effective ministry like 40 miles North?

Says Marcie, “We could never do it without the team of people that have rallied around us- babysitting, praying, filling in the gaps left by having our families far away. So many people have taken the initiative and made it their priority to support us in this. To us, that’s just another affirmation that this is what we’re supposed to be doing.”

What are people saying about 40 miles North?

“A rare combination of musical expertise and passionate devotion to their Lord.”

“Their music is an overflow of a seeking heart, an honest spirit, and a continued journey to know more and more of Him.”

“Without a doubt, the Olsons of 40 Miles North exude Christ-likeness in the midst of a waning Christian music scene.”

“We have received more feedback from our listeners about the music of 40 miles North than any other local artist we have played on this station.”

“It doesn’t escape me that it is a divine plan to marry such a duo not only spiritually, but also musically. You can’t help but know this when you hear the powerful harmonies they birth.”

“40 Miles North has an incredible gift to combine story and song that both teaches and touches our emotions.”

Upcoming Concerts

• December 3: Fremont, IN
• December 5: Osceola, IN
• December 6: Delaware, OH

More details …