Last week Sarah and I went on an adventure to find a keyboard for Burlington Community Church. Sarah is very energized about leading worship and will be coordinating our efforts, selecting songs and allowing daddy to guide her. For all intent and purpose, she will be the worship leader and has been prepared as such through her youth group efforts at Fair Oaks Church and Velocity Student Ministries. We decided that we needed a keyboard since that is the only instrument any of us can play and there is no piano in the Tansley Woods Community Centre. We found what we were looking for and getting ready to buy it when we needed to leave for a weekend to get Sarah and Ceilidh to camp.
As the girls were off to Virginia to go to camp with Velocity, Tracey and I were to visit a friend in Michigan and help in their church on Sunday. This is a church plant about 10 years old. They have not had a keyboard player and asked if I would jump in the band for them. I was happy to do that and after the service was over, they gave us the keyboard! Isn't that cool?! They said they had if all this time and it just sat in the closet for 3 years. What a nice gift. Sarah and I are done shopping and we have a keyboard that God supplied! This is great because we can use money in other ways now.
In my conversation with this friend, he talked of a mutual friend because his teens were going to the camps he runs called LIFT. Back in 1999, this man let Sarah sing at a teens camp in Gettysburg, PA with attendance of around 800. Sarah was only 3 at the time and was determined to sing on stage. On 4 occasions, I told her she would not be able to but she insisted. Finally I said, "honey, daddy is not is charge of this camp and if you really want to sing, you will have to ask Dan Brown." I thought for sure this would be the end of it but she said, "where is he?" I pointed him out on stage and she walked straight up to him and asked. She got to sing and was not afraid! As a matter of fact, all the teens sang the song with her and did so a few other times that week. She became a favorite for the week and it was not uncommon to watch her being body surfed through the crowd during the music. She was having a blast.
When I heard my friend would see this guy at camp, I asked him to let Dan know that a little 3 year old girl he let sing at camp is now a 15 year old worship leader for her father and their new church plant. Pretty cool, right?!! You never know what kind of impact it will have when you let someone take a first step in service for Christ.
I am grateful for others in her life who encouraged her and gave her opportunities to grow and become the leader she is and will be. Her youth pastor, Christian Gaffney, gave her the latest opportunities and I am a thankful father and pastor.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Just over a month in Canada
I just wanted to give you an update on our work and life in Burlington along with a huge thank you for your support in prayers and finances. Above all, Tracey and I would like to thank you for sending encouraging words. Every so often drop us a line in email, Facebook, or call…something because it is always encouraging. We came up here without knowing anyone and it can get lonely.
My daughters have downloaded Skype - we are dowdys4. We were also introduced to Oovoo which allows multiple people to talk to each online other at the same time. It’s like Skype only better! The girls have enjoyed spending time in the evenings talking to friends from Velocity. And as you probably assume, Kowdy, Taylor and Jenny are the ones they Oovoo the most.
We have been actively working toward Vision TO Week. There is a lot to do but we a checking things off the list. We have 25 or so who said they are coming up from Fair Oaks Church. We are thrilled. Eric and Jill Bisignano are coming up from OH as well. My sister, brother-in-law and their kids are also joining us from PA, a friend from MI, and my parents (of course).
We plan to get into the community and meet people so we can get them into the service on the 22nd of August. We are going to spend some time in the Tansley Woods Community Center meeting people and engaging in activities. We will task individuals with Facebook and Evites, rehearsals for music and children ministry, and training for 1st Impressions and nursery. Thursday through Saturday will be targeted toward kids in our community. Of course, there will also be a few days to enjoy the sights and activities of Toronto. We’re aiming for flexibility to allow families to choose when and what they would want to do for fun through the week.
We have been pretty aggressively meeting everyone we can in our neighborhood and have had a few very good connections and informal house church meetings. One lady is very interested and asked me a few deeper questions about what we believe. She comes from a Catholic background and is really searching. I would not be surprised to be leading her to Christ very soon. Her name is Laura if you will pray for her with us.
Speaking of prayer….here is the list of people we have currently connected with and would like you to pray for their salvation:
Scott, Meghan and daughter, Ryan
Dragon (no kidding…a guy from Serbia!)
Paul and Jesse
Don, Laura and daughters, Eva and Claire
Darla
Mansoor
We had a pretty successful event on July 1st with 11 of us on Canada Day for dinner. We were pleased because we have only really gotten to know people in the 2 weeks we’ve all been here plus the week Tracey was here on her own. We were able to share what we are doing in Burlington and we are still interacting with these families.
We were able to share our testimony and the story of Pastor Stokes’ vision in starting this church with my brother-in-law’s church in PA and will share at a friend’s church in MI on July 18th. We are going down to Virginia for a wedding the last weekend in July and as a bonus we’ll see you that Sunday. We look forward to catching up with friends. Ceilidh & Sarah will be down early to go to camp with Velocity and visit friends until Tracey and I arrive.
To say the least, we are having a busy summer and loving it! We are anxious to see what God will do in forming Burlington Community Church and thankful we will be His instruments.
See you on August 1st!
My daughters have downloaded Skype - we are dowdys4. We were also introduced to Oovoo which allows multiple people to talk to each online other at the same time. It’s like Skype only better! The girls have enjoyed spending time in the evenings talking to friends from Velocity. And as you probably assume, Kowdy, Taylor and Jenny are the ones they Oovoo the most.
We have been actively working toward Vision TO Week. There is a lot to do but we a checking things off the list. We have 25 or so who said they are coming up from Fair Oaks Church. We are thrilled. Eric and Jill Bisignano are coming up from OH as well. My sister, brother-in-law and their kids are also joining us from PA, a friend from MI, and my parents (of course).
We plan to get into the community and meet people so we can get them into the service on the 22nd of August. We are going to spend some time in the Tansley Woods Community Center meeting people and engaging in activities. We will task individuals with Facebook and Evites, rehearsals for music and children ministry, and training for 1st Impressions and nursery. Thursday through Saturday will be targeted toward kids in our community. Of course, there will also be a few days to enjoy the sights and activities of Toronto. We’re aiming for flexibility to allow families to choose when and what they would want to do for fun through the week.
We have been pretty aggressively meeting everyone we can in our neighborhood and have had a few very good connections and informal house church meetings. One lady is very interested and asked me a few deeper questions about what we believe. She comes from a Catholic background and is really searching. I would not be surprised to be leading her to Christ very soon. Her name is Laura if you will pray for her with us.
Speaking of prayer….here is the list of people we have currently connected with and would like you to pray for their salvation:
Scott, Meghan and daughter, Ryan
Dragon (no kidding…a guy from Serbia!)
Paul and Jesse
Don, Laura and daughters, Eva and Claire
Darla
Mansoor
We had a pretty successful event on July 1st with 11 of us on Canada Day for dinner. We were pleased because we have only really gotten to know people in the 2 weeks we’ve all been here plus the week Tracey was here on her own. We were able to share what we are doing in Burlington and we are still interacting with these families.
We were able to share our testimony and the story of Pastor Stokes’ vision in starting this church with my brother-in-law’s church in PA and will share at a friend’s church in MI on July 18th. We are going down to Virginia for a wedding the last weekend in July and as a bonus we’ll see you that Sunday. We look forward to catching up with friends. Ceilidh & Sarah will be down early to go to camp with Velocity and visit friends until Tracey and I arrive.
To say the least, we are having a busy summer and loving it! We are anxious to see what God will do in forming Burlington Community Church and thankful we will be His instruments.
See you on August 1st!
Friday, July 2, 2010
Canada Day Event
Well, we did it! Our first outreach event was a success! We had invited several neighbors to come and spend Canada Day with us and had a total of 11 of us there. We decided to "play our strong suit" which is that of hospitality. Tracey and I did a cookout. The weather could not have been better and the guests any nicer. We were able to enjoy the company and talk about what we will be doing in August. The guests stayed for 4 1/2 hours so we were certainly pleased with the fact that they were comfortable around us. I pray they will come to Christ and to Burlington Community Church.
When we were inviting neighbors to the cookout, I asked one lady if they wanted to come over and grill with us on Canada Day. She said, "Eeewww...what's that?!" Pretty funny, right? As I was explaining she said, "Oh, you mean BBQ" and laughed at me! :-) I'm still being reeducated to Canadian ways, but she came with her husband and 2 young kids.
We are grateful for a good turn out though Satan was at work even that day. My daughters stayed a few days with their cousins in PA so I left that morning to go get them. It was a simple enough task but when I go to the border, I sat for 4 hours! My sister was kind and loving enough to keep coming my direction rather than the half way point we designated. She ended up coming all the way to the border with the girls. I left the house at 9:30a.m. and returned with Ceilidh and Sarah at 4:40p.m. with guest due to arrive at 5:00p.m. NOT what we had planned and potentially very defeating. Thankfully Tracey was home to keep moving on things and the girls and I were home just in time to help clean a few things, put sodas on ice, pull out little kids' toys and fire up the grill. Incredible obstacles but we got through it and Tracey was the key player in that first outreach event.
We look forward to seeing what God will do with us in the future and can't wait to have our friends and family come to help us get the word out during Vision TO Week!
When we were inviting neighbors to the cookout, I asked one lady if they wanted to come over and grill with us on Canada Day. She said, "Eeewww...what's that?!" Pretty funny, right? As I was explaining she said, "Oh, you mean BBQ" and laughed at me! :-) I'm still being reeducated to Canadian ways, but she came with her husband and 2 young kids.
We are grateful for a good turn out though Satan was at work even that day. My daughters stayed a few days with their cousins in PA so I left that morning to go get them. It was a simple enough task but when I go to the border, I sat for 4 hours! My sister was kind and loving enough to keep coming my direction rather than the half way point we designated. She ended up coming all the way to the border with the girls. I left the house at 9:30a.m. and returned with Ceilidh and Sarah at 4:40p.m. with guest due to arrive at 5:00p.m. NOT what we had planned and potentially very defeating. Thankfully Tracey was home to keep moving on things and the girls and I were home just in time to help clean a few things, put sodas on ice, pull out little kids' toys and fire up the grill. Incredible obstacles but we got through it and Tracey was the key player in that first outreach event.
We look forward to seeing what God will do with us in the future and can't wait to have our friends and family come to help us get the word out during Vision TO Week!
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