Love For Uganda

Remember how I was telling you about our Love For Uganda initiative?? Here’s one of the reports back from the team who is on the ground right now just north of Kampala - 

By 9:00am yesterday, we were in the midst of putting together “Love for Uganda” packages. At first the job looked quite manageable, but by 11:00am we had a much better idea of the scope of the job ahead of us. Our assembly line started with two 500 gm packages of salt and one large bar of soap. Then 1kg of rice had to be scooped from a large bag, put into a small plastic bag and tied, ready to be added. The next step was to do the same for one kg. of sugar. Once the bag was complete, it had to be tied and taken to another room for storage. With a great deal of help from Ugandan staff, by 6:30pm we put together over 1900 packages, enough for each of the students and staff members at the two schools.

This morning we were up and ready to present the assembly at Buikwe at 9:00am. However, the weather had different ideas, as the rain, that started before dawn, continued until after 9:00am. Many of the students who have to walk long distances wait until the rain stops before they come to school, so it was around 9:40am before we were able to start our assemblies. Following the assembly, the students came to us by class and we distributed the food packages – lots of smiles. A truck was loaded with food packages for Kiyindi, and before long we were off to the school there. At Kiyindi we went through the same process, beginning at noon. We also blessed the staff by giving them food packages.

Beautiful. A bunch of Christians in central Ontario giving their money so that a bunch of kids in Uganda can eat over their winter break from school.

I like prizes!

I like contests. I like prizes. I like winning things. And I like to see people encouraged.

If you’re not reading Joel Klampert’s blog, you really should. Check it out here – www.klampert.com – and leave him a comment.

Joel – Looking forward to meeting you in February!

My Favourite Acoustic/Unplugged Albums Ever

I’m doing some work off-site today and they had the Bryan Adams MTV Unplugged album playing and I was thinking about my favourite unplugged albums of all time. Here’s my top 3 -

1. Eric Clapton – Unplugged
   
   This was one of the first CD’s that I ever bought and I remember spending hours and hours with it playing as background music. Clapton’s re-working of several great songs and some new tracks as well. Everyone is pretty familiar with the brilliant version of “Layla” as well as “Tears From Heaven” which became a hit single and helped this album win SIX Grammy Awards, including Record, Album and Song of the Year. It still gets very regular rotation both at my home and office.
2. Nirvana – MTV Unplugged In New York
   
   The most intriguing thing about this album is that it was released after Kurt Cobain’s death in April 1994. It won a Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album in 1996 and was a commercial success. The contrast of this performance with the band’s reputation is what did it for me. Nirvana was generally known as heroes of the grunge movement – slackers, uncaring about appearances, rebellious attitudes, etc – but the presentation factor of this performance is incredible. The slacker attitude of the band in the midst of this beautiful stage and lighting design is really shown in their performance of “All Apologies” – check the video here. Of course having Dave Grohl playing drums adds to the “cool factor” of this album, too!
3. Bryan Adams – MTV Unplugged
   
   Ignore the fact that this guy is Canadian and just appreciate that this album is killer. He took a bunch of his rockin’, electric-driven songs and turned them in to a beautiful collection of songs presented in a unique, artistic way. The re-work of “Cuts Like A Knife” and “18 Till I Die” are my favourites on this album. To me this is the truest unplugged album of the three because of the way that the songs are arranged with a variety of acoustic instruments which wouldn’t normally be thought of in listening to the original versions of these songs. There is some really beautiful music on this album and you definitely owe it to yourself to check it out if you haven’t heard it.

Building Update

We’ve been doing a building expansion/renovation project since about April and the end is just about in sight! I was able to take some more pictures today and wanted to get you up to speed.

First, here’s a panoramic photo from the door leading in to the room in our north venue -

Right in the centre is the new stage and on either side are the floor-to-ceiling windows which let in a crazy awesome amount of natural light. Still to happen in this room? Acoustic panel around the sides, projector/screen installation, sound system, flooring and finishing the new sound booth which you see framed over on the left.

I know that some of you were concerned about the state of the carpet job in my new office so here is a photo update to put your mind at ease -

Here’s a nice shot of the view outside my office window. I’m looking forward to actually having a window in my office!

 If you want to check more posts on our building project, click here.

 

You say tomato..

This week started off great. Our ministry staff spent a good 24 hours away with each other – we ate, laughed, told stories, prayed, bowled and just got caught up. Our senior pastor has returned from his 3-month sabbatical and it was good to hear about what God has been speaking to him and also good to get him caught up with what’s been going on while he’s been away. It was a productive time both for our team and for our relationships – spending unstructured time with the people I serve alongside is a great use of time.

One of the main topics of our conversations was Twitter. If you’re plugged in to the whole idea of online community then you probably know what Twitter is and you’ve probably made one of two decisions – you either think it’s incredible and you’ve jumped in with both feet, finding the best desktop app, how to tweet from your phone or Blackberry, been looking for the funniest tweeps to follow.. OR.. you think it’s a big waste of time, has no real relational value, that it’s just another internet fad and is in no way worth of your time.

I have been on both sides of that fence. But I am much more in the former category rather than the latter. I have seen the benefits of Twitter several times this year in developing genuine relationships, fostering communication and the sharing of ideas.

As a staff team, we live along the spectrum of wired/connected/early adapter to traditional/skeptical/slow to adopt – I think every team needs to be diverse and so the fact that we have people along that spectrum is a good thing. BUT.. We did spend some time talking about Twitter and let’s just say that some people really get it and some people rrrrrreally don’t get it.

Do you get it? If you have no idea what Twitter is and why anyone would be interested, here’s a quick video -

> 

Here’s where I’m at with Twitter. Does it take time? Yes. Does it take some attention? Yes. Does it have its value? Yes, definitely. How? It is a communication and technology tool that can be leveraged by individuals AND teams to develop along missional and relational levels. How? Imagine if a large percentage of our church was Twittering and following each others’ updates – instead of only seeing each other on Sunday morning and at their small group there would be an increase in “virtual connections” where people would have quick updates on what other people in the church are doing through the week.

The missional implication? As other OBC folks are twittering about how they are living out their kingdom ministry through the week there are others who are following those updates and praying for them as they go. The relational implication? When we gather again on Sunday morning we have an increased sense of what has been front and centre in the minds of those people all week.

There are a whack of sites out there that will give you the top 10 reasons FOR and AGAINST Twitter but for me there is definite value in being involved in Twitter-land so I’ll keep doing it.

Are you on Twitter? Do you think it’s a waste of time?

If you are, follow my updates at www.twitter.com/chrisfromcanada

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UPDATE – Okay I think this is going to be a post that gets some good attention so I want to start keeping a running tally of people from OBC who are on Twitter. If you or someone you know isn’t listed here and they Twitter, leave it in the comments.

Chris Vacher – @chrisfromcanada
Earl Marshall – @earlmarshall
Ami Alexander – @amionajourney
Noelle Klassen – @dandercas
Teresa Aukema – @cowsrus 

Harmonic Capo

Wow – thanks for posting this, Jordan!

 

 

Worship Confessional – October 19, 2008

This week we had a great morning at OBC but we did things a little different. Because a good number of our creative arts ministry folks were heading down to a conference on Friday & Saturday we wanted to bring in a guest worship leader to lighten the load on our team. We also had a guest speaker, one of our partner missionaries from India. On top of all that it was the first Sunday back for our senior pastor and his wife after their 3-month sabbatical. So it was definitely a unique morning with its own unique challenges compared to a regular Sunday for us.

For worship we brought Joel Auge and his band to lead the service. Joel is an incredible musician and a great worship leader. His CD on Integrity released earlier this year and he has been busy touring all over North America. Joel was one of the worship leaders at the conference we attended so we were able to bring him and his band up to Orangeville on Sunday morning. They did a great job leading us in worship – you should definitely look at bringing him to your church sometime.

It was nice to change it up a little bit and give our congregation a bit of a taste of a different worship style from where we are right now. I heard lots of positive feedback from people who really enjoyed having Joel and his band there. I also really enjoyed Joel’s ministry and just having him in Orangeville with us.

So why not try changing things up every once in a while? If you’re the leader of your worship ministry and NOT taking Sundays off stage you are missing the opportunity to let your ministry grow, to see things from a new vantage point, to let God inspire you in a new way. Why not schedule a Sunday a couple of months from now when you are planning to not be on stage? Prepare your team for the idea and help them get ready for it if that will be a big jump for them. Or bring in a local worship leader from outside your church to give you a break and give your Sunday morning a new flavour. It will keep things fresh for you and for your church!

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We’re posting all of these confessionals and linking them to Fred’s linkfest over here – check it out!

Fellowship Church – New Creation

Terrace Crawford posted this and I needed to share it – wow! This is a performance of the song “New Creation” by Fellowship Church. It’s going to be released on their upcoming CD “Closer To The Start” – check out this video!

New Creation from FC Post on Vimeo.

You can follow along with the news on the release of Fellowship’s CD “Closer To The Start” at www.closertothestart.com.

Transposr.com

RSSers – you may need to hit the blog to check out the video and before/after mp3’s!

Check it out for yourself at www.transposr.com. Sorry for the audio – my mic is crapping out on me and I really should get a new one.

As promised, the before and after versions of this mp3 file -

Before: “How Awesome Is Our God” in D -

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

After: “How Awesome Is Our God” in E -

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

As you can hear, it’s not exactly a picture perfect recreation of the song in the new key but if you are just looknig for a way for your band to play along with a chart you’ve given them that’s in a different key than the recording they’ve got then this is a really simple way to make that happen.

If you’d like to hear the whole song and download a chord chart, you can do that at this post here – http://www.chrisfromcanada.com/?p=734

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, Canada! Enjoy it!

Why do I love blogging?

Lots of reasons. Too many to name right now.

Want to hear about one that’s near the top of the list? Community.

Yeah. Strange, eh? I’ve “met” loads of people through blogworld and was encouraged by them this week in a pretty major way.

After our services on Sunday morning I was in a pretty tough spot. I had a ridiculously hard and uncalled for conversation between services and I let it put me in a bad place. I was needing some encouragement and so I emailed a bunch of folks – lifelong, close-as-brothers friends as well as people I have only met through blogs and Twitter.

“That’s kind of weird,” you say? Well… Yeah. I would have said the same thing a couple of years ago. But check some of the responses that came back from these guys that I have never had a real-life conversation with - 

I am absolutely praying for you. An I’m happy to know how I can specifically be praying. 
I WAY respect you for asking now – the time to ask for prayer is not to wait until it’s too late.

–

Even though you and I have never met in real life, I consider you a friend, and you have my prayers – like, I prayed for you right when I received your message this afternoon, but I’m also committing to pray for you.  I know you’re pursuing God’s will, and believe me, I know how hard that can be sometimes – and even if it isn’t hard, it’s not always easy.

–

I’ll definitely be praying for you, brother!

Now come on. Does it get any better than that?? I was in need of major encouragement and those guys came through for me big time. As much as blogworld would like to make you believe, life is not all roses and sunshine and having friendships that reach outside of the “here and now” is a pretty awesome thing.

Free tickets & a free song!!

Not only am I giving away free tickets to the upcoming Vicky Beeching & Bluetree tour that’s making away across Canada but now Bluetree is giving everyone a free download of one of their awesome songs.

Head over to their site here – www.bluetreeonline.co.uk/backstage – and check it out!

There’s still time to get in on the contest for free tickets. I’ll pick the winner on Thursday. Head over to this post and leave a comment!!

Three years ago today..

Three years ago today I met Avery Lyn, our eldest daughter.  She was not so willing to come in to this world – she was induced five days after her due date. Not a moment too soon, as far as my wife is concerned!

I remember my first response in the moments after she was born was just to laugh. I know most guys cry and we’re supposed to be all emotional when we witness the birth of our precious babies but all I could do was laugh. It was the most incredible feeling and the only thing that came out of my mouth was laughter!

She was born at about 10:45pm on October 7, 2005 and the last 3 years have been quite a whirlwind – we sold a house, bought a house, moved our family, have welcomed two more girls to this world, become part of a new church family. Yes, all of that in just three years! But every day has been made a little brighter and a little more fun because of my precious Avery.

Avery, you are the most vivacious, personable little 3-year old socialite I have ever met. You light up a room when you walk through the door and you know that the sight of your smile and the sound of your laughter brings joy to so many people. My deepest prayer for you is that you would continue to squeeze every moment out of every single day that God gives you on this planet – He has great things in store for you and will use every little bit of your hilarious personality to accomplish great things.

Love you, baby!

Free tickets – Vicky Beeching & Bluetree

My friends at Unite Productions have been very generous in offering two tickets to any of the shows on the upcoming Life: Just Add Water Tour that is making its way across Canada this month. This tour features two incredible artists – Vicky Beeching and Bluetree – as well as an incredible speaker, Phil Cann.

Want free tickets? Keep reading!!

Every night of this tour promises to be a great show but it is also for a great cause. Check this out -

Life: Just Add Water Tours Across Canada
Come and be a part of the first cross Canada social justice tour whose goal is to deliver fresh water to some of the world’s poorest regions. The tour will hit 12 major Canadian cities beginning in Gander, Newfoundland on October 10, 2008 and ending in Victoria, BC on October 23, 2008. A major donor has underwritten the tour so most of the $10 ticket will go solely as funds to drill wells in regions of Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

That is pretty amazing! So great to see artists and concert promoters teaming up for a great cause.

So how can you win the pair of tickets? Just leave a comment with your name and the show you would like to attend. In the interest of fairness, let’s keep this limited to Canadians who are living near where the shows are happening. I’ll choose a winner at random on the morning of Thursday, October 9th.

Life: Just Add Water Tour Dates
October 10: YC Newfoundland – Gander, Newfoundland
October 11: Moncton, New Brunswick – Glad Tidings Pentecostal Church
October 12: Montreal, Quebec – Evangel Pentecostal Church
October 14: Ottawa, Ontario – Woodvale Pentecostal Church
October 15: Brampton, Ontario – Kennedy Road Tabernacle
October 16: St. Catharines, Ontario – Central Gospel
October 17: Winnipeg, Manitoba – Calvary Temple
October 18: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan – Elim Tabernacle
October 20: Calgary, Alberta – First Assembly
October 21: Edmonton, Alberta – West Edmonton Christian Assembly
October 22: Langley, British Columbia – Christian Life Assembly
October 23: Victoria, British Columbia – Glad Tidings Pentecostal Church

There you go. Who wants free tickets?? Just leave a comment!

Toronto – Nuit Blanche

One of the great things about living in Orangeville is that it’s the best of both worlds – we live in a small, safe, clean small town but we’re also very close to the big city and all that Toronto has to offer. One of the cool things that’s been happening in Toronto the past few years is Nuit Blanche -

 

 

October 4, 2008
6:52 pm to sunrise

For one sleepless night, experience Toronto transformed by artists.

Discover art in galleries, museums and unexpected places. From bridges and tunnels to warehouses and stadiums, choose from more than 155 destinations and chart your own path.

It’s impossible to see everything in 12 short hours! Check out the 2008 Programme details and make note of your favourites, then visit the Plan Ahead section of the website for useful tools to create your own art-after-dark adventure.

One night only. All night long.

One of those cool things that doesn’t happen in most cities. I’m not sure if I’ll get down to it but I’m excited about taking my girls to stuff like this as they get older. Although the tagline they’re using (“contemporary art thing”) does nothing to help the wishy-washy stereotype of artists that’s happening in Canada right now, it is awesome to see such a huge event getting the promotion that is happening all over the place right now.

Click here to see a list of all of the different art projects happening as part of this event. Awesome!

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This post is part of the Randy-man’s Watercooler over here

 

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