wonvoice creative

Right now I am in the throes of planning our carols by candlelight. (23 rd of December, Warburton oval) Every year we have to go over lists of carols & Christmas songs & make decisions about which ones we will & won’t sing. The reaction to different carols from different team members is quite amusing to watch. What lights some people’s lights just doesn’t work for others. I guess that doesn’t surprise anyone. The reaction to “the little drummer boy” is generally predictable. I’m tipping that there wasn’t a boy with a drum in the stable at Bethlehem, & if there was, I’m tipping that Joseph & Mary wouldn’t have smiled politely & said “sure, come on in & play your drum. We’ve just traveled a looong way, had a baby & the baby is sleeping right now, but heck get out your drum & have a bash!! Only one thing drummer boy; I hope you can breast feed coz you’ll be putting him back to bed.” (more…)

I have just come back from a really hectic 3 day trip to Canberra. I left at 9 pm on Sunday, drove the truck to just over the border, slept for 5 hours, drove to Canberra, set up 2 shows, packed down 1, slept for about 8 hours, worked on the second show, packed it down, drove back to Melbourne & I was in my bed by 3 am this morning. (Wednesday.)

A funny thing happened when I got home. After the mad rush & the almost constant movement of the last 3 days, I stood in my very quiet lounge room at 3 am, & was almost overwhelmed by the stillness & the silence. (more…)

One of my favourite personal pastimes & a great soul re-generator is the practise of solitude. Solitude is an interesting & I might say, lost art form. We live in an era where we can be more connected than any other time in history. An ever growing array of electronic media are hunting down the corners of the globe connecting people & places in real time.

We once walked to the summit of Mt Kosciuszko & about 80% of the people that were at the peak of the highest mountain in Australia pulled out their mobile phones & called someone. Hmmm. In this era of connectedness, I would like to put a question out there; ready? When has there ever been a time in history when we have been so connected, & yet anecdotally you would have to say, so alone?

I find that the practise of solitude, that is being alone rather than being lonely, (more…)

Hey

Sorry for the absence. Life is really working on us at the moment but we are in there fighting & let me tell you, Bernie & I have more than a little resolve & conviction about what the next step of our life will be.

It’s (our next step) being fueled by more than a little prayer & as we pray we really feel the Holy Spirit leading us to meditate on a bigger world picture than we’ve allowed ourselves to have for some time. In fact, one of the convictions that is causing us angst & freedom in the same breath, is that we have allowed ourselves to live such small lives. One factor in this change has been seeing our church work to raise $20,000 to build a house for aids orphans in Uganda as part of the Watoto children’s project. Imagine that. $20,000 & you change the course of life for some children who would previously have been forgotten. As a result of this, I find that I now have a reason to get out & play live music again. I want to play & share what I’ve been given with people, but now I also want to use $10 out of every c.d. sale to buy a brick in the Watoto house. So even if you have an inkiling of a thought, invite us to play. It’s for an amazing cause. We’ll play pretty much anywhere, lounge rooms, coffee shops, big events, you name it. Coz you see, I know with great conviction that this isn’t about me, it’s about what I do with the gifts I’ve been given.

Another factor was visiting my good mate Andy Sorenson who is recording indigenous worship albums in Rwanda at the behest of the Rwandan government. the first one “Amani” is out & it’s amazing. The second one (I was privileged to hear a preview of this when I visited the Grove Studios) is just breath taking. Click here to go to his website & get your copy.

Finally, on the weekend just gone, I saw an interview with film maker Richard Curtis, one of the driving forces behind Live 8, make poverty history & comic relief. It was almost as if God was saying to Bernie & I “I’m not going to let this trail go cold in your hearts!” As we watched this 2 minute clip, I looked around the some 600+ gathered in the auditorium; there was scarcely a dry eye. Check it out & get back to me. I would love to read your thoughts. You need to go to http://www.makepovertyhistory.org/video/ & scroll down til you see the video titled “Yellow Dress”

Cheers.

MM