The Missing (Piece) Peace

Every year I find myself taking on at least one major theatrical effort. For many years it was either with road companies or in church groups, but the last two years I find myself working in community theatre. Last year, as some of you may remember, I was priveledged to work with some great people on a production of Arthur Miller's "Death of a Saleman." This year I find myself doing soundscape design once again on a new production called "The Missing Piece Peace."

Written by Deborah Briggs and Alan Garrett "The Missing Piece Peace" is a Christmas production with a difference. I can't go into a lot of detail without spoiling the experience, but trust me this is not your parent's Sunday School Christmas play.Taking place in different dimensions and different time zones, it chronicles one man's struggle to make sense of it all. I'll leave it at that. The play features a great cast under the direction of Deborah Briggs; and Alan Garrett as Musical Director adds his own touch to the proceedings with a live 7-voice chorus accompanied by a five-piece ensemble. All in all it promises to be a wonderful dramatic and musical experience.

But if that isn't enough, there's an even more compelling reason to take in "The Missing Piece Peace" this holiday season. All of the proceeds from the ticket sales will be going to assist iProjects.ca in funding the building of an orphange in Peru. The land for the project has already been acquired and they are now looking to build the needed buildings.

iProjects.ca (Isaiah Projects) is a Christ centered charitable organization, working in partnership with local leaders in third world countries to help fund infrastructural development projects that will significantly impact the lives of the local people. Projects are selected on the basis of how they will offer hope and improve the quality of life for individuals with a bias towards helping the young and most needy in society. Iprojects funds the construction of schools, orphanages, youth centres and other projects which empower youth to become leaders in their own communities therefore enabling them to have a positive influence in the area where they live.

In addition, we are also asking patrons to bring Canadian Tire money and/or pop cans to be donated to Habitat for Humanity to help them in their efforts.

So if you are going to be in the Guelph area this holiday season I would ask you to contribute to two great causes and enjoy a great show by attending "The Missing Piece Peace." Performances are being presented at Guelph Little Theatre, on the following dates:

Saturday, December 15, 2007 @ 2pm & 8pm

Sunday, December 16, 2007 @ 2pm

Thursday, December 20, 2007 @ 8pm

Friday, December 21, 2007 @ 8pm

Saturday, December 22, 2007 @ 2pm & 8pm

All seats are $17 and available through the Guelph Little Theatre box office by calling 519-821-0270 or through their website at www.guelphlittletheatre.com

Thanks everyone... and see you at the show!!

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A Bright Light shines no more.

I'll tell you up front, this is the same post as I placed on my Java and Jesus blog two days ago. I Just felt I needed to post it here as well. The subject seems appropriate for this venue. For me it's a pretty black and white issue....
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I had fully intended to write the next episode of 'Exploring the Kingdom Gospel" this week, but then something unexpected happened. Late Wednesday night a man walked out of a local bar, got into his truck and drove off. Because he was drunk, instead of taking the on-ramp to Hwy 6 south, he took the off ramp and wound up driving south in the North-bound lanes. A few minutes later he drove head on into a car, killing the driver. That driver was a wonderful young woman named Anna Graham.

I first met Anna about a year ago. Her uncle asked me to work on a production of "Death of a Salesman" that he was directing for Guelph Little Theatre. It was one of the best experiences of my life, and Anna was no small part of it. Anna, along with Anthony "Pooch" Brown, was designing the lighting for the production. You didn't have to watch her work for long to know that this woman not only knew what she was doing, she enjoyed it immensely and had a real gift for creativity. You also didn't have to watch for long to see just how proud her uncle, my friend Lloyd, was of her.

And now she's gone!

As you scan the status lines of her friends on Facebook you can see the range of emotions. One person "is sad", another "is numb", one more is "trying to come to terms." The most vocal of the lot is "Really mad....and hurt...and not understanding why this life has to be so f**kin unfair!!!" (the asterisks are mine). I know how he feels. I felt the same way when James died a year ago (I wrote about it here.). But somehow, I don't feel the same pain about Anna, not the same way.

I know part of the reason is the simple fact Anna and I weren't as close as James and I were. It's no reflection on Anna; we worked together on 'Salesman' and then went our separate ways, her to her circle and me to mine. Most of the pain I feel is for her uncle Lloyd. Him I do consider a friend, and as both actor/director and human being, have a great deal of respect and admiration for the man. I can only imagine what he is going through. He's never far from my thoughts.

But the biggest difference in this case is there was some good to be found in Jame's death. He had been sick for a long time. In many ways his passing was a relief. His suffering is over and the spiritual part of me can at least begin to wrap my head around the idea that God decided it was for the best.

But in Anna's case this logic does not apply. The hard cold fact is Anna died because someone couldn't find anything better to do with a Wednesday night than get drunk watching naked women dance on stage. And even that might not matter except he then compounded things by making the selfish decision to drive himself home, and no one, not the bartender, not the servers, not his friends, nor the big burly guy at the door took the necessary steps to stop him. Anna is gone because human beings made selfish and wrong choices! Plain and simple!

Do I sound like I'm ranting? Of course I am. I'm angry! Because the simple fact is THIS IS WHY WE NEED GOD!!

Every day on the news and in other media I hear people trying to tell me how outmoded a concept God is. How human beings don't need some invisible being in the sky, they are quite capable of conducting their own affairs. Morality is a flexible concept and changes from day to day, what's good for you is bad for me, etc. etc. etc. Religion is no longer required because we can run our own affairs quite nicely thank you.

But the fact is, human beings, generally speaking, as a species, are no where near smart enough, wise enough, deep enough or insightful enough to be their own moral compass. When push comes to shove each of us, left to our own devices, will make a decision based not on the common good, or the welfare of others, but on our selfish wants and desires. The only hope for us is to have a moral guide that comes from outside of ourselves. A culture of accountability which holds us personally responsible for our actions on a level above and beyond the human trappings of law and order. This is the role religion fulfills.

And before you get started on the evils of organized religion, let me say it's not the institution of religion I'm talking about. Rather it is the ground level, day-to-day belief that God is watching, and that someday we will have to face Him one-on-one and He will say, "Explain it to me again why you were a complete and total moron" - or words to that effect. For thousands of years the love for and fear of God has kept human beings from acting out of selfish motives and inspired us to think twice before we act, even if the only reason is the slim possibility that if we don't behave we might find ourselves spending eternity roasting on a spit over a lava-fed barbecue. Though personally I have always suspected the lake of fire in Revelation is a metaphor for something far worse.

I know - I'm preaching. I'm taking advantage of Anna's death to get on my soapbox and call down fire and brimstone. Well, I make no apologies for it. I'm not trying to be comforting, I'm trying to stop this kind of thing from happening the only way I know how.

I know full well that if it were not for the work of God in my life, I could well be that same moron getting drunk watching naked women dance. Or possibly something much worse. This is why Jesus came to earth as a child and sacrificed himself as a man - to save us from ourselves. To give us an option other than hopelessly trying to be our own moral compass. He is God's response to our insistance on doing things our own way.

The hard cold fact is that this world is the way it is because human beings, collectively and individually, have said "Sorry God, we don't need you any more. We are totally capable of making our own decisions. We are the captains of our own fates. Thanks for all your help in the past - we'll take it from here." And like it or not - this fractured, faulty, unfair world we live in is the result. I don't like it either, but that's the way it is.

The good news is this; when we said that, God responded by saying, "Fine. Have it your way. But when it all falls apart, when the unfairness of it all gets to you and you just can't take it any more - please, please, PLEASE! Come crying back to Me and I promise - I WILL HELP YOU GET THROUGH IT!"

Good-bye Anna.

Shalom everyone.

The Chinese Gov't Doesn't Like Me!!!

Well, It would seem that folks surfing the Internet in the People's Republic of China are not allowed to read the musings of yours truly.


But then that's hardly surprising when you think about it. I mean, it's not like they would want the Christians in China being encouraged, or exchange ideas about what the Bible is really saying, or learn something of church history. No we can't have that now can we? If you want to know if your favorite URL is blocked in China check out The Great Firewall of China. Just enter the URL in the space provided and see if their test location can access your site from inside China.

Sarcasm aside, it actually serves to remind us that we are extremely privileged in this country. For all of our complaining about inept government, inconvenient bureaucracies, lengthy commutes and the lineup at Tim Hortons, the fact remains that we are the most fortunate people in the world.

We live in a country where we are free to vote for the worst candidate, make the wrong career choice, and over indulge our every desire. We can be complete and total idiots and the only consequence will be those of our own making. There's no one telling us where to live, what to do for a living, or what to think. We can worship who we want; Jesus or Buddha or Mohammed or no one at all. And it's all because of the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice to secure these freedoms for us.

So I add my voice to the hundreds of others and ask you, when you see the poppy displays at Tim Hortons, or the veterans in the mall with the poppies and pins, please give generously, shake a hand, and say, "Thank You!"