CTI releases new studio album!

We're proud to announce the release of Speak Without Sound, our new studio album for 2008!

Featuring members of our 2007 - 2008 fulltime ministry teams, Speak Without Sound is a concept album that we hope will take each listener on a journey, encouraging them as they seek the God that we serve and the life that He calls us to live.

We know it's kind of an odd title for an album (especially for one produced by a ministry that seeks to use music as a primary way to communicate our message!) But we also recognize that music simply provides us with an entryway into worlds that we would not have an opportunity to interact with otherwise. But it only opens the door. On the other side, our very lives must speak without sound if our message is to be understood and believed, for we know our words will be void if the fruit of Christ-likeness is not evident in us.

What opens the door for you?

The song from which the title is drawn goes on to proclaim "Your love is so loud!" How amazing and true it is that something as intangible as love is demonstrated most clearly in ways that speak louder than any message we can communicate audibly!

At CTI, we recognize that our greatest ministry takes place beyond the music, in the moments when we speak not through microphones, but through who we, as individuals, are striving to be. And that's a ministry opportunity that is available to everyone.

Saint Francis of Assisi admonished those under his charge to "preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words." We hope you'll join us in discovering the ways that we are all called to speak without sound.

You can preview or order the CD online by clicking the links to the right, or by visiting CTImusic.org

From the midwest...

Wow - a lot of ministry has happened since our last post, so here are some pictures and more updates!

Here is a shot of the ladies' group that gave us the quilts! We had such a great time with them.


In Iowa, we ministered alongside Pastor Bruce, doing the events that Shawn mentioned in his last post. We also got to stay with Bob Eggen, and the best part is that we will be in Prairie du Chien at the end of the tour - so we'll get to see them again!


After leaving Iowa, we headed down and spent a day with Matt Duncan's (team 14:22) family. It was a blast hearing stories of when team 14:22 was there. Thanks, Duncan family! When we left, we headed to St. Louis, and took some time to see the Gateway Arch.



After the Arch, we joined Kim Tsui and Eric Hong (both CTI alumni) at St. Louis Chinese Gospel Church. We had an outreach concert at their church, and then led worship the next day during their English service. It was awesome ministering with them. On Monday, we had some time and got to visit the St. Louis Zoo with Kim and Eric. Thanks for a great time, guys!


More to come later...

Coffee, Quilts, and Church

Its been a while since i have posted a blog but God has been teaching me a lot about myself these days so i would like to share what has been happening these days, we started a new tour about a week and a half ago and we started in Iowa, the love that we were shown in that small town was amazing, we played in two church services and spent time with the people of the church at a potluck the next day was at a public school, it was a lot of fun with those kids, then the next day was a retirement home, the folks there really enjoyed us coming and playing, the day before we left we visited a ladies quilting group and as a gift we were all given a quilt, those ladies were amazing
our next stop was at a chinese church its been a lot of fun hanging out playing shows and just enjoying each others company and seeing God at work in all of us,
oh and there have also been many times with coffee

Aug-December Video Summary

Here's just a brief 6 minute video that I made as sort of a wrapped up update for all of you about our year so far. I hope you enjoy!




Jessie

christmas break

hey peoples... we are all fanally at our real homes for christmas!! this is the first time in five months. i left the ministry thursday night at eight and didnt get home till one in the morning on friday.

The Face of Christ

I haven't blogged for a while, and as much as I have wanted to, I have been selfish with the short time we have to spare. But now, as we sit occupying the tables of a McDonalds, I prepare this blog.

Last week, we were blessed to go to a homeless shelter. The lyrics of Chris Rice's "Face of Christ" was stuck in my head constantly during our time there. I want to share some of those words with you all:
___
"He shares a room outside with a dozen other guys
And the only roof he knows is that sometimes starry sky
A tattered sleeping bag on a concrete slab is his bed
And he's too cold to talk tonight, so I just sit with him instead and think….

How did I find myself in a better place
I can't look down on the frown on the other guy's face
'Cause when I stoop down low and look him square in the eye
I get a funny feelin; I just might be dealin
With the face of Christ

So you had no choice which day you would be born
Or the color of you skin, Or what planet you've been in
Would your mind be strong, Would your eyes be blue or brown
And if daddy would be rich, Or if mama stuck around at all

So if you find yourself in a better place
Don't look down on the frown on the other guy's face
You gotta stoop down low and look him square in the eye
And get a funny feelin; you just might be dealin
With the face of Christ"
___


Wow is that a good reminder. God has put us where we are (whether rich or poor, in any circumstance of life) so that we may bring glory to Him. It's sort of like something we talked about in our CTI prep-training, though slightly different context: It is like trying to jump to the moon (which can represent God for this example - without getting theologically critical). Say that the person next to me was born shorter than me, so when they try to jump to the moon, they can't jump very high at all. I could either stand there snickering in pride that I can jump higher…or realize…Even if I can jump higher, what is a couple feet compared to the distance to the moon.

God loves you, me, and the rest of the world just the same…unconditionally and perfectly. The more I understand that, the more I am just blown away with who God how indescribable He truly is.

Shopping Carts and Humble Hearts

How many shopping carts would it take to hold all of your earthly possessions?

On Thursday, November 15th we had the opportunity to play for Mel Trotter Ministries, a homeless shelter in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. We got there pretty early, so we decided to walk through a display called "A Walk in Their Shoes" - run by the ministry. The display took us on a walk through the different "stages" of a homeless person's life, including living out of a car, taking shelter in doorways, finding warmth near trash can fires or exhaust grates on buildings, and why so many homeless use shopping carts. At each different exhibit there were reflection questions to get us thinking about ministry to the homeless. Questions like, "How do you feel when you see a homeless person sleeping on a park bench?" or, "Do you think it's their fault that they are homeless?" and, at the exhibit describing the importance of a shopping cart to a homeless man or woman, one of the questions was, "How many shopping carts would it take to hold all of your earthly possessions?"

As we continued through the afternoon and evening at Mel Trotter, that question stuck in my brain. I have a pretty good idea of the answer because it was only three months ago that Brad and I packed up our whole apartment to head out to Minnesota. I thought about how much I have been given and how much I have been entrusted with, and I really thought about the way I'm using what I have. Am I using it to build up my "kingdom" or to build up God's?

Later that evening we played a concert for the women that are housed at the shelter. It was such a blessing to play for these women. They received our ministry with open hearts, many had tears in their eyes as we worshiped. During the Dare You to Move drama they cheered loudly every time Jesus defeated the demons. I had the opportunity to give my testimony, and as I was speaking I felt so much love radiating from their faces. We went there to minister to them, but they ended up being so much more of a blessing to us because of their love for the Lord, and their excitement about what He has done for them, even though they faced really hard circumstances. It was a really humbling experience. A line from our song Hallelujah says, "Whatever's in front of me, I'll choose to sing Hallelujah." These women were such an awesome example of that decision.

- Renee

Update and November Tour

Hello to all!

We have spent the last week and a half "debriefing" (it's a CTI buzz-word) our experience from Singapore, as well as learning 8 and a half new songs and gearing up for our November tour. Thanks to all of our Singaporean friends for a fantastic month of October!

We are preparing to head out to do some concerts in Illinois, Indiana, and (wait for it)... CANADA! We are going to cover a lot of ground, and have several long driving days. But we have at least one concert a day (minus Mondays) for the next 3 weeks! Please keep us in prayer as we utilize the many tools and experiences that we learned in Singapore, as well as the new music we have been handed. The Lord is faithful, and He will provide!

Thanks to everyone for prayers and for reading. See ya!

-Brad

Oops!

I accidentally loaded the wrong video...try this one...

To Our Singapore Brothers and Sisters...

Yes...this is our welcome home gift. Burrrr!!! We miss you all and I am sure missing the warm weather too.

God bless!

-Jessie

HOME SAFE!

Just a quick note to let you all know that the team has made it home safe. We're doing debriefing with them today in Willmar. Tomorrow will be a much deserved day off!

Only one more day...

Hey everyone,


Well, it's our last full day in Singapore and we're all feeling a little sad as we think about saying goodbye to all of the new friends we've made over the past month. We still have two concerts to do this afternoon, then we are packing up the equipment and preparing to leave. (But not without a trip to the Singapore Night Safari!)


I remember from my trip to Honduras with CTI in 2003 that leaving was a lot harder than I expected, and I'm finding that the same is true here in Singapore. It's been a challenging month, adjusting to a new culture, stepping out of my comfort zone and doing things I've never done before, meeting tons of people everyday, and so on. But God has done awesome things both in us and through us this month, and it's sad to see that time come to an end. The time we've spent with the SYFC staff and volunteers has been such a blessing, and it's hard to say goodbye.


But we know that God has things in store for all of us - those returning to the States and those who are staying to minister in Singapore, and it will be exciting to see what He has planned. So we look forward to that.


Thank you so much for your prayers this month! Please continue to pray for us as we wrap things up here and prepare to travel home.


For 1421,


Renee


Ps. The rest of the team says hello. Jessie says that she's staying in Tokyo for awhile, then flying back to Singapore. :) (Don't worry Chris and the Milsteads, Brad will make sure she makes the flight back home.) Oh, and for those who know me... I still have my purse, but not my glasses.


Pps. Hey 1422! We miss you and can't wait to see you! Race you home...

Just thought I would update you, while I'm taking a bit of a breather. We just got back from leading chapel at a secondary school from 6am to 1 pm.

The past couple days have been pretty indescribable. This past Friday and Saturday we had two GARAGE events. The car park of the YFC building was decked out in an American theme, tables were set up, stage, lights, and real life crowd was added to the night for an experience for all the youth that came out. It was going to be a chance for us to be able to share the gospel & describe our purpose for coming to Singapore; to share our passion for Christ.

The first night, Friday, went over so well! We had been traveling and touring with students during the past week going to various POLY, ITE,and secondary schools. The result of all our time spent with the students was overwhelming. We played a sold-out show, squishing students into the carpark for some good food, music, and great company.

Personally I came out of that night with a heavy heart and feeling a bit uneasy. By now I've come to LOVE the youth here...they are awesome! That night I just wanted to tell them about my passion. I wanted them to respond to Christ...and it broke my heart to think that they didn't understand the kind of life that they could be living right now.

This was a thought that I carried with me to the next morning. I was in tears, just thinking about all those Singapore youth desiring them to understand what a life with Christ could be like. Ever since coming to Singapore, my prayer has been to "break my heart for what breaks Yours and to show me how to love like You have loved me." (a line from one of my fav. songs) That morning after our staff meeting and prayer for the night to come, I couldn't stop the tears and the pain that I felt for them...I felt the pain Christ felt for the lost and it tore me up inside...

That night, the second GARAGE concert, was just as amazing. I sat at a table with a group of 4 girls and one guy. Later that night, after sharing my personal story, one of the girls, Amanda, asked me if I would show her how to get the kind of life we were talking about. Her mother was a Christian and her father was a Buddhist, but she had decided that she'd follow her father before that night. I got to lead her to Christ and teach her how to pray...wow :)


...a couple of ways that God schooled me that night...

1.Working in weakness: I'm the type of person that doesn't think before I speak, so I end up talking so much just to try to clarify my point. Half the time I never say what I want. But this time, ahhh...the words just came out. I talked bout my life story, about Christ, His love, forgiveness and mercy...and with time to spare! how cool...

2.Showing me He cared: Even though that morning I was overwhelmed with a desire for Christ to be known to the youth, I really didn't need a someone to make a commitment to make me feel better. That night was an answer to a prayer I never said. But it was what made my heart full & and thankful , because I have a love that gives more than I need.

3.Slamming my Skepticism: We did street evangelism the week before, handing out tracs, inviting people to fill out surveys, talk about their religion, and invited them to GARAGE. Back in North American...I would have laughed at the possibility of this bringing results. But the girl that I lead to Christ that night was one of the girls I had a 5 minute encounter with on that Singapore street. crazy!

4. The little things : I was supposed to be placed on another table, but was moved because Jessie swiped my table and started chatting to them first. So I was placed on her previous table, allowing me to be able to share my story.


Amanda said to me that night, that the thing that got her was the moment I talked about love. About how unconditional it was...she said it was too beautiful to pass up...

anyways...God's been too cool to describe...this is glimpse of what we, or I, am learning. Keep the prayers shooting up!


~ Michelle


Shout Outs:


Eliot: 31000 ba, ma and "yun", just wanted to let you know that i'm getting FAT and am still ALIVE. please pray for me as i'm getting fed WAY too much and WAY too well (some call that suffering for Jesus). on a serious note. shout outs to the Bomstads, the Drauses, Lauren, and of course to the awesome office staff esp. my therapist in Willmar! shouts to the spedies, rozzie, clau and grace. i miss you all. and of course to my lovely Bethel kids and Salties (if you guys are still there!). don't worry, i'll be back soon church!!! shouts to team 14:22 and keep up the good work in the BEST country in the whole wide world. ngo oi ALL OF YOU and miss YOU lots!!!! i think i miss my laptop and... skype... 31001!




Michelle: Mom, Dad, Julie, Tim, Dan, Hannah, Reuben, I'm alive & loving being in Singapore again! So much to experience...I tried turtle the other day, hmmmm good! Dave and Judy: prep some good Blonde jokes for me...I'm running out of the old ones, have fun in Hawaii! Ruthie:can't wait to talk your ear off :), Jimmy , thxs for the surprise visit b/f leaving, Ernest: Meredith is too cute!! & i miss Moe,ok....life is good :)14:22 : can't wait to catch up & missing you TONS! :)

More from Singapore

Hello friends and family!

Well, it's been over a week since our last post so we thought we'd give you an update of what we've been doing and what's coming up for 1421 in Singapore.

Last week we had several events with students from the 5 Singapore Poly's. During the week we went out in groups of 2 and met with the Christian students at their weekly prayer meetings to encourage them to share their faith with their friends. It is so neat to see the excitement of the students and to hear how they came to Christ. I have learned a lot about sharing the gospel by working alongside them at our evangelistic events.

Our first big event with the Poly students was an evening barbecue at the beach. Many Christian students came and invited their friends, and we ended up having a great turn out. We played some games, sang some songs, ate some food, and several of us had the opportunity to share the gospel with our groups. A few students said that they were interested in finding out more about Jesus, so please be praying for us and the SYFC as we follow up with these students at future events. And of course be praying for the students themselves, that God would continue to work in their hearts and bring them closer to Himself.

The next big event was our food tour! (Notice how our events tend to revolve around food... the YFC staff claims that eating is their favorite pastime!) This was a really fun evening. The seven of us "hid" in a clothing store in Chinatown, and students were given blurry pictures of us and they had to come find us in the store. We were each assigned to a group, and our group took us around several places in Chinatown and we got to sample various types of yummy food. I don't remember what any of them were called... except for carrot cake, which we renamed "radish omelet" because it's nothing like what we think of as carrot cake. During dinner (yes - we had a big dinner after we finished sampling all that food) we had another opportunity to share the gospel with the students that were with us. I got to "tag-team" with one of my new Singapore friends, and I was so impressed by her boldness in sharing her faith with a girl from her school.

On Saturday we had a breakfast with Chinese students that are studying in Singapore. (Again... food related! We are definitely not going hungry on this trip!) We had so much fun playing games with the students and getting to know them. We were able to perform a couple of songs for them, and many signed up to come to our upcoming events.

Another fun thing we did was film a short "MTV" (or music video) for one of our rep songs. We all got a chance to show off our melodramatic acting skills, and the finished product is quite nice! One of the student volunteers put it together - it was his first MTV and he did such a great job. Can't wait to show it to you when you get back. They will play the video behind us as we perform the song to help lead into our gospel presentation and our theme of "Alive."

Yesterday was our first official concert in Singapore. We played at one of the Poly's, which was a huge answer to prayer! The SYFC has been trying to get a group into the Poly's to perform for 5 years now, and this was the first time they've been given permission. We won't know whether or not it went over well with the students and teachers until next week, so please be praying for that. It did seem like we had a good response, though! We were there to publicize our "Garage" concerts coming up this weekend, and many people signed up to come from this school. We were not allowed to share the gospel or talk about our faith at this school, so we are praying that many will come to Garage so that we can share with them there.

Which brings me to today... today we played at a local Christian secondary school, which was a really cool experience. We played 3 times throughout the day for students on breaks between classes, and we got a chance to talk with them and hang out between sets.

Upcoming events:
*Evangelistic concert tomorrow (Friday morning) at a secondary school.
*Garage! Friday and Saturday night
*Church evangelistic event on Sunday
*Primary school chapel services on Monday
*Barbecue and Shopping Tour later in the month

I think that's it for now. It's taken me two days to write this update - hopefully it won't take you two days to read it.

Prayer requests:
*Besides a few very temporary and minor setbacks, we have all been healthy so far! No one has had to miss an event due to illness. Thanks for your prayers, please keep praying!
*We will be very busy for the next 2 weeks, so please pray for energy and endurance as we serve.
*Thank God for the awesome SYFC staff who are taking such good care of us, supporting us in every way they can, and teaching us so much in the process. We have been so blessed by them.
*Continue to pray for our boldness in sharing the gospel in small group or one-on-one situations. For most of us, it's so much easier to do from stage!
*And above all, that God would be glorified in every big or little thing that we do, and that lives would be changed.

Goodbye for now!

Renee

Ps. We miss you, 1422! We're praying for you!

Singapore blogspot

Just a note to let you all know that you can see pictures and videos of the team in Singapore on a blog that SYFC keeps updated: www.carpenterstools.blogspot.com

We've made this link available in the link bar to the right.

How's it goin', la?

Hello from Singapore!

On behalf of the rest of the team, Jessie and I (Michelle) just thought we would blog to let you all know we are alive and thriving.

Life really has been amazing. We met up with the YFC staff and have been working in and around the ministry building for the past couple days. They have been so generous and excited to share their culture, to the extent that two of the outreach events they have planned for us are to have students take us on a shopping tour and a food tour around Singapore. This coming week we will be working with Polytechnical school students (level after highschool). We will be meeting with them, encouraging the Christians in their faith and helping them to witness to their friends.

A lot of the ministry that we will be doing is one-on-one and more personal/relationship based. Coming in, that wasn't what we expected, but it's becoming so clear how important that really is. We are working at just developing friendships with the youth here, which we love! Last week, we met and chilled with some of the ITE students (a hands-on school, college age). The whole afternoon we played board games, ate CANADIAN pizza (*yay!*), and were able to encourage & be encouraged by them.

The weather here is very warm. You never have to check the weather channel to decide what to wear. The past two days, there has been a lot of rain, which has cooled the temperature for a bit. The staff has been taking us around and letting us try all kinds of food.

We have also gained an entire new rep of songs! Including Good Charlotte, The Fray, The Corrs, Craig David, Howie Day, and....Highschool Musical! We are also learning new dance moves and a drama for our school programs. The past couple days we have been trying to nail down our new rep. The other day, we spent the morning attempting one of the new songs. Later that day, after spending "so much time" on it, the YFC staff asked if we would play it for some of the ITE students. We were honored that the SYFC thought we were ready to play it! We also performed our Chinese song, "Yeong Chee," as an encore, which they started cheering for after the first 3 notes and which Renee has learned to sing in perfect dialect. Praise God!

Though our feet are just getting wet, we are encouraged, challenged and eager for what is to come. Please continue to keep our ministry and time with the YFC in your prayers.

Specifically, please pray:
- servant hearts
- healthy bodies
- words to speak when we evangelize and tell our testimonies, that we wouldn't be afraid and that we would allow Christ to speak through us
- willing and receptive hearts to hear
- SYFC leadership that are currently on a retreat..to be refreshed and encouraged
- keep us humble and patient
- unity on and within our team


p.s. for those who know Roy...he's getting married to Eleane on Saturday!

To home friends and family: We are excited to share all the stories and pictures, Moms we are all alive,

To CTI family: hello office! we miss checking mail and your encouragement. Singapore food costs definately help lighten the budget, you're welcome Donna :)

check out our YFC blog for us....www.carpenterstools.blogspot.com

until next time,
Blessings and Love from the other side of the world!

Team 14:21 (Brad, Renee, Tim, Shawn, Eliot, Jessie, and Michelle)

Safe arrival in Singapore

Brad called this AM (Minnesota time- it was 10 pm Singapore time.) The team landed in Singapore late Wednesday night and connected with our YFC partners there.

They spent the day on Thursday setting up and working through their program for the YCF staff. Their upcoming ministry will involve lots of promotion for YFC outreaches, appearances at local churches to help connect them with YFC, and lots of interaction and "relational evangelism" with kids who are a regular part of YFC programming but don't necessarily know the Lord.

The team should rest well tonight in their Singaporean host homes! Singapore is 13 hours ahead of the US Central time zone, so they've got a bit of an adjustment to make convincing their bodies to go to bed before lunch!

-Chris, for 14:21

Off We Go!

Well, in 6 1/2 hours we begin the long trek to Singapore. We are not exactly sure if or when we will be able to throw a post out while we are over there, but if we can we will post an update on God's continued work in Singapore. Pray for us; that we go as servants of Jesus Christ to serve His people, whether that means washing clothes, cleaning toilets, or playing music...may we be humbled to become more like Jesus. Thank you all for your support and love. May God bless you all!

Team 14:21 (wronged) and Team 14:22 (thieves)

It started as an ordinary day....life was good in the little town of Wilmar...

Two teams...

...harshly torn apart, separated for two weeks...reunited under the same of name of community...

They looked upon each other with sheer delight & rejoiced at the beauty of their friendships

Until that cold, dreary Tuesday morning...

Rehearsal was progressing nicely. There was a strong camaraderie between the teams
...or so they thought.

It all changed when the lunch bell rang. They exchanged delightful comments during the course of their noontime meal...both basking in the beauty of the lunch meat, pretzels, and eliquent conversation.

A group of individuals vacated the building, leaving good memories with the people still inside....BUT thieft was fresh on their minds...In walking outside, the individuals began to covet after a particular motorized vehicle, kindly known as Luther.

(* Let the record show...that Luther was a very special motorized vehicle and so the group of coveting thieves were overcome with emotional bitterness at the cold reality that Luther would never be theirs. They struggled with the acceptance of reality and in a moment of weakness....allowed their bitterness and feelings of strong emotion take over)

Unbeknownst to the owners, their beloved Luther was taken right out of their grasp. They soon realized upon exiting the building, that they had been seriously and unforgivably wronged. Being the mature individuals that they were, they decided that anger would not be the path they would chose to tread, but instead, revenge, sweet revenge.

Nocholantly the scheming began. It was obvious to the wronged, that the thieves needed to be taught a lesson. No one, I mean, NO one, could steal a piece of their heart and get away with it.

As these poor distressed individuals arrived at their destination in a beat up, deterioriting, sadly pathetic, and floor stained motorized vehicle, they purposefully parked in a most inconvinient and remote area of the deserted parking lot.

Joy filled their hearts when they saw that Luther, although traumatized, was still alive and well! Knowing full well, the extent of the malicious behavior of the thieves, they decided, as a preacaution, and safe guard against further attack, to temporarily sacrifice the ability for Luther, to fulfill his man made duty. And so, wires were to be crossed. It was difficult to cause pain to a dearly loved motorized vehicle, but they knew, it was for the best.

With eager anticipation they ran through the doors of the religious building, happy that Luther was safe and their future looked bright. But then, they remembered, times of sweet fellowship, of kping, and playing apples to apples, and laptop parties at coffee houses and the pain that being seperated for two weeks had caused these two groups of people. So, being, the amazing and benevolent individuals they were, they decided, to...... green line!

So they treated the thieves with kindness, and love, and compassion and remembered above all, to never gloat about having the newest, biggest, and best, motorized vehicle ever.

Life lesson= Jesus.

Even though... I'm pretty sure the answer is squirrels!

We love you guys! Consider yourselves Pung yaued!

To all thieves and wronged,
Vanita and Michelle ( 2 out of 4 coolest homeschoolers in the Full Time program)

End of Tour...

A few more quick notes and pictures, so we can officially wrap up the training tour (blog-style!). After leaving Lakeview Christian, we finished our tour by playing in three services for Mission Covenant Church in Poplar, WI. It was so much fun playing in the church, because the people were so kind. It's much easier to do our jobs when the reception we get is positive, and this is definitely one of those occasions. The room we played in was beautiful, with a large stage and climbing wall! Unfortunately, we didn't get to scale the wall while we were there, but we still had lots of fun hanging out at Dinah and Rick's house. Below are some pictures of a bonfire we had.





Special thanks to Carey and his family for hosting our time at Mission Covenant. It was great, we'd love to come back!

After that, we headed back to Willmar. We arrived around 7:30 on Sunday evening, and dispersed from there. We spent Monday recharging, and dove back into training this morning (Tuesday). From here, we prep for Singapore, and we leave on Tuesday morning! Thank you all for your prayers and comments. Seeya!

-Brad