Tuesday, May 06, 2008

May, 2008

Communicating God’s love through music and the performing arts.

blue sky nine in Egypt

    “For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.” Ps. 56:13

You have been praying for the Muslims in blue sky nine’s audiences while they were in Egypt. God heard your prayers!

Although most of the conversations after their concerts were in Arabic, band members were able to speak to the students who spoke English.

During the concerts, Scott shared how he had used alcohol and drugs to deal with the pain of strained family relationships he was going through.

After a show, Holly (lead female vocalist) had a conversation with a young woman named Olivia. Holly remembers… “She pulled me aside after our concert in Alexandria and said, ‘I do not know about God’s love. I feel unhappy. I have thought about drinking or doing drugs to make me happy. After I heard your message today, I do not want to do these things. I want to know God’s love for me.’

“Olivia is just one of the reasons God sent blue sky nine to Egypt— God wanted her to hear that He loves her and will keep her feet from stumbling.”

Plattsburgh - May 12, 2008

Coffeehouse at Great Adirondack Soup Co. (24 Oak Stt..) at 7:00p.m.

Come out to the Great Adirondack Soup Company on Oak Street (across from the library) and hang out with us for the evening. We’ll play some tunes, share what God has been doing at Keynote and in our lives, and catch up with what He’s been doing in yours. If you could bring a finger dessert or snacks, that would be marvelous! Drinks will be available.

We know this is REALLY short notice, but we just got everything arranged. So join us for an evening of fellowship, worship, and a fun time in the Lord!!!

We will also be at North Country Alliance Church May 11th, at the 10a.m. service and Koinonia Church in Potsdam, Sunday morning, May 18th.

While we are on the road we’ll be checking our email, so if you want to get together with us while we’re in New York, the best way to contact us will be by email.

In Memoriam



On Friday, May 16th, there will be a Memorial Service at Saint Mary’s Catholic Church in Potsdam, NY to celebrate the life of Vince Howie, Tom’s dad. As this letter goes to press, we’re not sure of the time— although it will be in the morning. If you live in the area and would like to come, send us an email and we’ll get you the time and directions.

Destiny: DESTINO

After we get back from New York we’ll only have a few days before the Summer Project begins. The SP is like a summer missions trip for college students who want to try music ministry.

This year 70 students— twice as many as 2007— will have three weeks of training, then tour in bands, work as office interns, or help produce a short film. The summer for Keynote is like what we do all year long… on steroids!! This year we will have seven SP bands including two with Impact (Crusade’s ministry to African Americans); and new this year— a band with Destino (CCC’s ministry to Hispanics). Tom and I are SO excited that we get to tour with the Destino band!! Tom will be playing percussion and Cathy will help shepherd the students.

We’re really looking forward to being back out on the road for a couple of weeks! There are a couple of concerts already booked— we will be going with Destino to Orlando, New Jersey, New York City, and Rochester, NY. If you know of any Hispanic ministries that would like to do an outreach in these areas, let us know ASAP!!

CreateArt: Creative Ministry

An idea from the Lord dropped into a conversation Cathy was having with a friend and became immediate ministry.

Here’s the short version— What would happen if we invited a bunch of creative people to come to our house with their art supplies and set up mini-studios all over the house for them to create in their medium? What if these people know there will be a theme, and, to help them get started, what if we discuss the theme (i.e. “faithfulness”) before we start? And what if, after we eat dinner together, we tour the mini-studios and hear each artist describe his work and creative process?

The answer to all of these questions is CreateArt!! We’ve had three of these days at our house, and the response has been overwhelming as creative individuals have had the space, freedom, and encouragement to feed their souls by creating.

So far, the artists who have come to CreateArt have been Keynote staff and family members, but we have a vision to expand into our local church and, eventually, reach out into the local art community. That’s really exciting, but the immediate ministry has been within our family. Jon has begun composing again after a 2- year dry spell, and Tom is painting and drawing after an even longer journey in the desert. And both of them attribute having the freedom, encouragement, and camaraderie to create as lifting heavy weights and depression!! We were just trying to be faithful to God’s call… and He used CreateArt to bless our family!! He is SO good!!

Sabbatical: lots of R & R

Our responses to, “How was your Sabbatical” sound much like the comments people make after retiring— “How did we do all this AND work, too?!?” “We’re busier now than when we were working!”

While we did keep busy, we also got to REST. Sleeping a little longer in the morning, driving to errands in a leisurely manner, reading some good books, and even lying in the sun gave us time to catch our breath. Both of us still have more than half of the items on our dream to-do lists, but we got good starts on activities which will continue to refresh us (like CreateArt days and recording Cathy’s music) in the weeks to come.

Speaking of Cathy’s music… we began recording a full-length, 12-song CD with our friend Eddie while on Sabbatical, but it’s going to be a long, expensive process. We’re hoping to finish by mid fall. We’ll keep you posted!!

Please pray for:
  • blue sky nine on tour in Wisconsin.
  • Giants of Silence, as they begin outreach in Mexico City, Mexico.
  • Us, that we will glorify God in all we do.
  • Progress in recording Cathy’s music, and for our interactions with Eddie and Steve.
  • Tom’s mom, Bea, as she adjusts to life without her husband of 59 years.
  • Beccy, a stay-at-home mom who is in prison unjustly and not allowed to see her young children.
  • Our 41 brothers in jail because of their faith in a Muslim country.

THANKS!!

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Our mission statement

"Partnering with strategic ministries to communicate God’s love through music and the performing arts"
  • Authentic
  • Dynamic
  • Catalytic
  • Worldwide
  • Life Change

Everything we do, from organizing equipment to processing finances, to performing and sharing the Gospel on stage is put through the filter of our mission statement and values.

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