Easterfest!!!

Hello all!

Entry Gate of Easterfest

Mainstage performance last year

Man has it been a busy few weeks! Jonathan and I have both been working full-time with Easterfest for the past few weeks, and we are now working full time from this crazy awesome..HUGE.. tent set up in Queen's Park. Easterfest is the largest Christian music festival in Australia, bringing in tens of thousands of people from across the world for the Easter weekend. There are some of the world's top music artists... such as Switchfoot, Petra, Newsboys, Naturally 7, Darlene Zchech from Hillsong, and many many more. Easterfest City will send smaller known artists and bands to perform in cafes, pubs, shopping centers, and city squares as well. This will be a HUGE economic boost to the city after the devastating floods that occurred in January. Greater than that though, the Easter gospel message will be proclaimed throughout the city all weekend long. Easterfest is set up so to attract non-Christians while providing a drug and alcohol free environment. There is a special crew called "Easterfestivity" that will be solely sharing the gospel message of Jesus with people in the park, on the streets of the city, in the campgrounds, and everywhere else in the city. Churches will all join together for a joint worship service in the park led by Darlene Zchech on Easter Sunday, and we anticipate hundreds coming to know Jesus.

We have never seen anything that more fully brings a city (both Christians and non-Christians) together in unity than Easterfest. It is an incredible place for Christians to intermix with non and allow the Holy Spirit to flow in relationship. Many youth groups come and camp throughout the weekend, so there are many late-night fireside talks that turn into people being led to Christ. We can't wait to see all that happens!

Queen's Park getting ready for Easterfest 2011

It has been an honor to work with Easterfest, and we have learned sooooo much! Jonathan is main Artist Coordinator, working with the big-wig music artist and managers for months on itineraries, sets, tech specs, fleet, and more. I've been the VIP Guest Coordinator, working on providing guest passes and special priviledges to political leaders, pastors, city leaders, sponsors, media, etc. We've also gotten our hands in several other things such as crew management, other admin, working to development venues in Easterfest City, and more. We also can't wait to meet Switchfoot and the other artists in person :) :) It's definitely all about Jesus though!

So please be in prayer for us this weekend. We will be working 6am until 1 or 2 in the morning for the next three days. We need physical and mental strength, but we are definitely excited at the same time.

Blessings,
Melissa and Jonathan

Pruning Time

"That's why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Cor 12: 10

Let me tell you... I (Melissa) have definitely been feeling my weaknesses the past week or two! God is pruning me for sure, but Satan has also been shaking in is boots and on the attack-mode as well. I appreciate all your prayers more than you know, and I'll try to share a little of what's been going on.

After the girl's getaway camp I immediately got sick...an odd sick including head, stomach, but really just zapped of all energy! That next week was just one attack after another. I was homesick, physically sick, emotionally on a roller-coaster, easily frustrated, sensitive, and ummm probably a bit over-reacting to issues...just to name a few haha! BUT in the midst of it all God gave me a keen awareness of the spiritual battle going on. I was not "lost" in my difficulties, if that makes sense. I knew that I was being attacked, and so God enabled me to be on the offensive, declaring out God's victory and talking it out with my husband all along as well. For instance God gave me grace to say out loud, "ok Jonathan, right now I am feeling very VERY sensitive and my flesh is telling me you meant 'this' when my spirit knows you did not mean it that way.." that's just an example. I kept hurting myself physically all week too! Cuts, scraped, bruises... my joints hurt like crazy and to end it all I've had a stomach bug now for two days. It's been some of the best "pruning" of my life though!! God's grace is so good! It's been the neatest thing to be so keenly aware of the spiritual realm in the midst of physical attack, and I believe that God is strengthening my ability to discern the same for other people. I've had awesome conversations with people about the battle between spirit and flesh and learning to live with your spirit maintaining dominance. I've even had a powerful prayer time with one of the leaders here for her emotions, feelings, etc to be totally dominated by the spirit inside her. Very cool. SOO I will boast in my weakness today, thanking God for the opportunity to suffer so that he can teach me, grow me, and stretch my spiritual discernment. Plus, if I can continue to pray for healing for others when I'm feeling so physically sucked of life myself, I know God's grace is flowing....

The Outback feast!

Drive on the way to Oakey

We traveled to Oakey (the Moundville of Toowoomba) for a real Outback cookout with a lovely pastor and his family!! Lamb, pumpkin, corn, carrot, and DAMPER (a huge biscuit cooked on the fire served with honey..yum!) It was awesome! Some of the most special fellowship time since we've arrived as well. Enjoy the pics :)

We are working majorly hard now on Easterfest!!! Jonathan is back at work again now after dinner on Artist itineraries and such. We will be moving our offices to the park this weekend..so I'll be working rain or shine from the park in downtown Toowoomba from now on. Pretty cool, but slightly daunting. We are doing the best we can for having never worked with anything remotely similar to a music festival for 50,000 people before lol.  I'll be writing a blog that follows the construction process, as well as tying up loose ends on VIP guests and such. It seems Jonathan's work with artists is never ending, but I'm sure he will be doing some construction work next week. With the CEO Isaac Moody's official announcement of his run in politics, things has changed a little around the office, but we are excited for Isaac and seeking to support him in any way! Jonathan may do so by running with him at 6:00am every morning...we'll see haha.

My motel in Lismore. A true aussie Inn

I traveled to Lismore, New South Wales with the leader of City Women this past weekend for a speaking engagement. The passion in that group of women (and 3 men!) to see change in their city was just awesome. God did a work in me too. As I talked with Tish more about how God led her to where she is, God solidified that ministry is NOT intimidating. Maybe its just my tendency to make things "hard"(as a analyzer), but God really just freed me up to realize that I don't have to have a specific passion for a specific group of people, or issue, or whatever... I don't need to have some "TA DA" moment or major revelation even to spark a fire for moving in ministry. I just do it. My passion comes from my passion to see the gap between what Jesus desires and reality to be filled up. Anywhere that is lacking in seeing God's Kingdom on earth is an area to move on with the love of Jesus. If God gives someone an idea for something that is in line with his desire for his kingdom to be on earth as it is in heaven, just go for it! Tish never had a huge heart for girls (in fact she had a totally different plan!) but she saw God's heart for these hurting girls and moved to fill the gap. That's my prayer...that we would be gap fillers. Nothing is to daunting our outside of my "passion" or "experience", if God shows me a gap, I move to do what I can to fill it without trying to make it work. Ministry is nothing of my doing anyway, so why should I try to make it hard? I just feel really free to love people and walk in an environment of ministering unlike ever before. Ohhh my spirit is so relaxed!

Tomorrow I will be going to "Bella Sistahs", which is a sort of small group/mentorship time for the girls who go to Bella Chicks (the youth group for non-churched girls). I have been asked to share my testimony again with these girls tomorrow, so I am anticipating big things! My prayer is that there will be more girls who need to know the love and acceptance of our Jesus who will be there and become free the the enslavement of body issues. Praying for salvations as well! I will also be sharing me testimony at Bella Chicks this Friday night...in a toned-down version... but praying the same as well. This Saturday we are going with the church youth to the beach! Looking forward to some van-ride convos...those are the best for digging into kids' lives.

Jonathan finally shaved the head and beard! It was long awaiting...enjoy the pics :)

Please pray for us as we enter this incredibly busy time over the next three weeks! We are believing for God to move BIG at Easterfest this year. There are some major new outreaches to reach people with the gospel message this year. One of called "Easterfestivity" which is a group of young adults from our church here who will be doing street evangelism throughout the city. Every year hundreds have come to salvation, and we are praying even more this year. We are also praying for opportunities to be a light to the 1000 crew, hundreds of music artists and more who do not know Christ. This festival is meant to be different because it stands on the gospel message...you never know how it could impact someone and what seed it will sow.

Thank you all for your prayers! Keep um coming :)

Blessings,
Mel and Jono